Daily Devotions
Genesis
"But the transgressors shall be destroyed together; the future of the wicked shall be cut off. But the salvation of the righteous is from the Lord…" Psalm 37:38-39a
Text: Genesis 19:1-38
MAKING HASTE TO FLEE FROM DESTRUCTION
Lot did not seem overly eager about leaving Sodom, even though he was informed that the city would be destroyed. The angels had to virtually drag Lot, his wife and his two daughters out of the doomed city.
“When the morning dawned, the angels urged Lot to hurry,
saying, ‘Arise, take your wife and your two daughters
who are here, lest you be consumed in the punishment of the city.’
And while he lingered, the men took hold of his hand,
his wife’s hand, and the hands of his two daughters, the Lord
Being merciful to him, and they brought him out and set him outside the city. So it came to pass, when they had brought them outside,
that he said, ‘Escape for your life! Do not look behind you
nor stay anywhere in the plain. Escape to the mountains,
lest you be destroyed.”GENESIS 19:15-17
1. Is it not logical to flee from impending destruction?
The angels must have been puzzled by Lot and his reluctance to leave Sodom. To them, flight was the most logical thing to do! Fleeing from impending and obvious destruction should be instinctive!
2. Angelic assistance
The angels grabbed the hands of only four members of Lot’s family, and pulled them away from the city. There was Lot himself, his wife and his two daughters. The sons-in-law had sneered at Lot’s plea and had obviously rejected his warning concerning the destruction of the city.
3. Clear instructions
It was not God’s desire to see Lot and any member of his family hurt. However, they must pay heed to the instructions given by the angels.
a) To flee as far as possible
They must flee the city and go as far as they could possibly go. There was symbolic meaning. One must flee from the very presence of sin and evil.
b) They must not look back
Again, a symbolic meaning is intended. To look back is akin to desiring the old life of sin and unrighteousness.
HESITATION TO LEAVE FAMILIAR SURROUNDINGS
Why was Lot not keen about leaving Sodom? It is likely that he had become somewhat attached to his life in that city. He had become familiar with the ways of the world, and perhaps accustomed to it. Thus he found it hard to break free from sin.