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Lot's Wife
She Paid a Tremendous Price for Disobeying God
Now while all of this was going on, the Sacred Record reveals, that Lot's wife would end up disobeying God -- by turning around to look back at the destruction of the two cities. And it would also be at this point, that the Sacred Record confirms, that when she'd laid her eyes upon the wrath of the Almighty God -- she would be turned into a pillar of salt.
(Bible Study Online Article Covers : Genesis 19:26)
Short Recap?
If you've been following along, you would know that throughout the last couple of articles, we'd learned that Abraham had tried awfully hard to get the Lord to spare the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah.
The scripture reveals that Abraham convinced God to leave the two wicked cities standing through prayer and reasoning. But also know that God would only do this if He could at least -- find ten righteous people that had lived from within the two cities.
However, Abraham's proposal was problematic. The proposal dealt with God finding at least ten righteous people, and if God wasn't able to find the ten righteous people needed, then the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah wouldn't be spared from God's wrath of judgment.
For we must remember that this is what the Lord had agreed to when Abraham was interceding on Sodom and Gomorrah's behalf:
"Then [Abraham] said, 'May the Lord not be angry, but let me speak just once more. What if only ten can be found [in Sodom]?' [God] answered, 'For the sake of ten, I will not destroy it.'" -- Genesis 18:32
As I stated earlier, God couldn't find the ten righteous people that He had agreed to when it came to sparing the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. Because of this, God would hold true to His Word when destroying the two cities. However, despite that, we would soon learn that one group was spared from God's wrath of judgment, and that fortunate group just so happened to be Lot, his two daughters, and his wife.
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Lot's Behavior
Very Interesting?
Now, while we're here, first let me point out that I find it very interesting that Lot was so attached to the comforts of this world that while he was amid God's destructive wrath and the wicked chaos of Sodom and Gomorrah, Lot still had the sense of mind to try to bargain with the angels that were ordered to save him before they'd destroyed the cities.
Also, Lot did not want to go up into the mountains the angels had told him to go. Instead, Lot wanted to go and seek safety in the nearby town known as Zoar. Personally, I find Lot's situation a strong testament to the power of praying to God. For you must understand that Lot would've perished in those cities, along with the men of Sodom, if it had not been for the prayers of Abraham.
But I digressed...
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If It Had Not Been For Abraham?
However, we now find that Lot could bargain with the angels. Because of Abraham's prayer, the angels granted Lot's request to go to the small town known as "Zoar" instead of him and his family going to the mountains that he was supposed to have gone to in the first place.
Also, note that the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah was delayed until Lot and his family had reached the small town of Zoar. Now, it's at this point that we find that the sun had risen across the land and that God had begun to rain down burning sulfur unto the two cities, overthrowing them and destroying the city's entire plain and its vegetation. And all those people who were living in the two towns had perished.
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The Disobedience of Lot's Wife?
Now, while all of this was going on, the Sacred Record reveals that Lot's wife would end up disobeying God, by turning around to look back at the destruction of the two cities. It would also be at this point that the Sacred Record confirms that when she'd laid her eyes upon the wrath of the Almighty God, she would be turned into a pillar of salt:
"But Lot's wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt." -- Genesis 19:26
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Abraham Awakes To The Aftermath?
Now, as the days pass, we know that we're entering into another, and this is where we find Abraham awakening from his sleep. Also, know that it's now early in the morning, and at this point, Abraham has decided to go and return to the place where he had spoken to the angel of the Lord. Abraham was still very concerned about the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. Now, as Abraham looked out towards these cities, it would be at this time that he saw a dense dark smoke rising throughout the entire land.
It would also be at this time that he realized the cities were not spared. Honestly, there are times when I wonder how Abraham must have felt while he was looking down at the two destroyed cities. For we'd learned earlier that he had pleaded and tried bargaining with God the day before when it came to the two cities being spared for the righteous sake.
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Not Even Ten
Could Be Counted Amongst the Righteous?
After all, Abraham had thought that there should've been at least ten righteous people that could have been found living from within the two cities. One could also assume that Abraham perhaps had his nephew Lot on his mind while pleading with the Lord regarding Sodom and Gomorrah. There should've been at least ten righteous people from Lot's family alone. Unfortunately, this is true for the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. Therefore, the two cities were destroyed.
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Looking Beyond
One's Natural Understanding?
However, I also know that Abraham could not see how powerful his prayer to God was, for we find that with the divine petition that Abraham had boldly put forth before the Lord, he was able to get God to alter his plans (somewhat) when it came to judging the two cities. God remembered the conversation that He had with Abraham, and so, in this case, the righteous did not suffer because of the wicked.
Although Lot wasn't living in the ways of the Lord, perhaps his heart was in the right place, and this could be why he was still spared. Know that this is a powerful lesson we can learn from when it comes to the prayers we send up to God. And although at times, we don't recognize what we thought we would see from our prayer request, that doesn't mean that God isn't working on fulfilling them in His own way.
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Lot's Wife
Her Second Chance?
Let's take a moment to look at Lot's wife, for it would seem, in a natural sense, that her punishment was rather harsh. But understand that we must remember that it was initially God's plan to destroy everything that was associated with Sodom and Gomorrah. And make no mistake, the only reason why Lot's wife had a chance to be spared dealt with the fact that she was Lot's wife.
If it had not been for the powerful prayer request that Abraham had presented before the Lord, she would not have had that chance to begin with. Now, with that being said, what did Lot's wife do with the second chance gifted to her? I tell what she did, for she, unfortunately, continued to disobey God, by looking back at a place she'd perhaps, longed for. I doubt she possibly had friends and some material things that were back in the city of Sodom.
It's also possible that Lot's wife had second-guessed her decision to leave, thinking that maybe the city of Sodom would somehow survive. I, for one, could see her thinking that perhaps she didn't have to leave everything and everyone she knew and cared about.
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A Good Example for Today?
Understand that this example of Lot's wife is just how we are in the world today. Most of us have second-guessed and doubted our eternal salvation, and this is why we take risky chances by constantly putting our dedication to the Lord on the back burner for the people and the material things of this world.
But know that we must be careful. One day, we could find ourselves in the same position as Lot's wife. Because of this, we could easily miss our chance for eternal life because we couldn't let go of the people and the things of this world. I hope and pray that we don't make the mistake of being like Lot's wife, for there's simply too much at stake.
Oh, my Heavenly Father, help us to be brave, courageous, and strong enough to turn from our wicked and worldly ways. Please give us the needed insight and understanding that would cause us to have the desire to be transformed into what you have called us to be. For we're a rare treasure, and Father, we owe everything to You, for all that we are and continue to become. Thank you, God, for everything that you have poured into us, for you are my precious Lord. Now I ask these things of You, in Jesus' mighty name. Amen.
In the next Bible Study Online Article:
Now that God had destroyed the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. And now that we also know (thanks to Abraham), that God had spared Abraham's nephew Lot, and his daughters from His wrath. In the next article we'll find out, just how Lot and his daughters, were doing in the town of Zoar. Was it what Lot thought it would be, or perhaps, something much different?
May God blessings be upon you, and thank you for your support
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10) Abraham the Father of a Multitude
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13) Abraham Bargains for Sodom
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