Sodom & Gomorrah

Genesis 19

I remember well the first time I was involved in a Bible Study and was informed that the sin of Sodom was inhospitality.  My reaction was and is:  They've got to be joking!  Inhospitality is when I neglect to serve my visitors and guests coffee; rape is way beyond being inhospitable!  How can the two be compared?

When I read this story, I have a feeling that in order for these men to act (to become)like this, they must have been imbibing in a little more alcohol than is wise.  It was, afterall, late in the evening (course time may not matter).  I cannot imagine sober men enmass acting like these men - maybe I'm naive - maybe the whole town was insane.

Whatever the problem - oh yes the problem was sin..., God saves Lot because of Abraham.  God tries to send him out into the wilderness - but - Lot begs him to send him to a small town (Zoar) nearby that apparently God was also planning on destroying.  God relents and allows it.  God spares Zoar.  Doesn't take long for Lot to figure out that this is not such a nice (hospitable :) ) place, either.  He is afraid for his life so taking his daughters; he heads out into the wilderness.  They move to a cave in the mountains.

Now his daughters are lonely - their fiance was destroyed in Sodom - they want children.  The only man around is their father.  Apparently Lot doesn't know when he's had enough to drink (not an uncommon problem it seems).  His daughters give him wine and he passes out two nights in a row.  They rape their father and have children by him to preserve the family line - or at least that is the justification offered.

So it would seem, these daughters raised in an unhealthy (understatement as is inhospitality) learned quite well the lessons from the community they lived in.  What is it that we teach our children in our community?  Are they growing up in unhealthy environments or are we teaching them to love and serve the Lord and his people?  Are they learning any respect for others or is it all about themselves?

May God bless all that we say and think and do that they may be acceptable in his sight and glorify him, our Lord, our Rock, and our Redeemer.