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1 Now the two angels came to Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gate of Sodom. When Lot saw them, he rose to meet them, and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground. 2 And he said, "Here now, my lords, please turn in to your servant’s house and spend the night, and wash your feet; then you may rise early and go on your way." And they said, "No, but we will spend the night in the open square." 3 But he insisted strongly; so they turned in to him and entered his house. Then he made them a feast, and baked unleavened bread, and they ate. 4 Now before they lay down, the men of the city, the men of Sodom, both old and young, all the people from every quarter, surrounded the house. 5 And they called to Lot and said to him, "Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us that we may know them carnally." ~ Genesis 19:1-5
Today, we transition into Genesis 19 where we discover why Abraham was so adamant in praying for the people who lived in the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. In today's passage, the two angels who were the Lord Jesus at Abraham's tent, went down to the city of Sodom. Given the condition of Sodom and Gomorrah, this was a gracious act on the behalf of God to send these two messengers to these cities before they would be destroyed. Fear is not the best motivator, but it has been known to turn some back to the Lord. It does not appear that happened in these two cities.
In v.1 of today's passage we read, "Now the two angels came to Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gate of Sodom. When Lot saw them, he rose to meet them, and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground."
These two men who were with the Lord at Abraham's tent are describe as angels who were sent from the Lord as messengers. When they arrived at the gate of Sodom, these two angels immediately met Lot, Abraham's nephew. The gate and walls of ancient Middle Eastern cities were built out of stone and the gate normally had an arched entrance with deep recesses on each side. In these recesses, they built seating where people could relax, conduct business, and guard if needed. These recesses would be in the shade and catch any breezes coming through, just as Abraham did at the door of his tent. In Lot’s case, he was probably one of several judges of Sodom. In those days, the elders and judges of a city spent their time at the city gate.
When these angels arrived at Abraham's tent with the Lord Jesus, Abraham fell on his face before the Lord. Abraham fell down before the Lord out of respect and as a sign of worship. When these two angels arrived in Sodom without the Lord Jesus, Lot bowed himself with his face toward the ground. Note that worship was not involved. Lot didn't worship the angels because he knew only the Lord deserves our reverence.
Originally, when Lot separated from Abraham, he pitched his tent toward Sodom. To start out, Lot did not live in Sodom, but he was near it. He was still in his tent; he was a sojourner in his tent while he pitched just outside the city. Not long after that, Lot according to Genesis 14, lived in Sodom. By the time of the invasion of the five kings, he had moved right into the city. And now, we find that he was one of the leaders of Sodom. And, Lot was probably the most respected man in town.
Lot made a great success out of his life in Sodom, he even won his way into the hearts of the people of the city. He entered as an unknown and he achieved both wealth and honor there. But, to what degree did he impact the eternity for the people who lived in Sodom? The Lord Jesus once said, "For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?" A myopic view of eternity renders one with the short-sided desire to invest only in this world. There is a much better investment to be made and those types of investments will last for an eternity.
In v.2 of today's passage we read, "And he said, 'Here now, my lords, please turn in to your servant’s house and spend the night, and wash your feet; then you may rise early and go on your way.' And they said, 'No, but we will spend the night in the open square.'"
Lot didn’t just greet the angels with humility, he offered them his home and hospitality as well. Since it was so late in the day, these guys wouldn’t have had time to walk to any other city and they wouldn’t have been safe sleeping on the open road. This explains their statement that they would spend the night in the open square. Lot knew this would be dangerous for the two angels because the men of the town were especially wicked. To ensure their safety, he offered the two angels his home.
In v.3 of today's passage we read, "But he insisted strongly; so they turned in to him and entered his house. Then he made them a feast, and baked unleavened bread, and they ate."
Lot was genuinely concerned about these two angels whom he invited into his home. There was no selfish ambition and there was no thought of getting paid for his efforts. Lot was simply a nice guy taking care of strangers. He made for them unleavened bread that they might have their supper sooner, and that they would be able to get to bed earlier. Interestingly, the Hebrew word for "unleavened bread" first appears in the Bible here in this verse. The Jews, years later would use unleavened bread during Passover as a commemoration of their Exodus from Egyptian bondage. Since the children of Israel left Egypt hastily, they did not have time for the bread to rise, so it was made on that very first Passover without leaven or yeast. Leaven or yeast is often used in the Bible to represent sin.
In v.4-5 of today's passage we read, "4 Now before they lay down, the men of the city, the men of Sodom, both old and young, all the people from every quarter, surrounded the house. 5 And they called to Lot and said to him, 'Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us that we may know them carnally.'"
The sin of Sodom was so great that even those too young or too old to participate still came so they could watch. It was somewhat of a spectacle. The people from every part of the city wanted to be entertained by this perverted event. The word translated "to know" meant they wanted to perform homosexual rape or sodomy on these two angels. What these people proposed was an offense of the deepest perversion and disgrace found in humanity. It is the sin for which Sodom is still known for today, even though many are trying to change its definition. In Romans 1, the Apostle Paul cites this depravity as that which occurs when people have completely suppressed the knowledge of God from their minds and lives.
In Romans 1 we also read of God's wrath. The shortness of life on earth and the tragedy of all of the pain involved are all part of what is captured in the words "the wrath of God." No one escapes God's wrath; it is being revealed, and we have to face it unless we have believed on the Lord Jesus Christ. Fear, for most, must be the first pressure applied. This is the case because we will not understand anything about God's love until we understand His hatred of sin. We do not understand nor do we appreciate God's grace until we understand the wickedness of our sin. God’s attributes are perfectly balanced in His divine perfection. If He had no wrath, He would not be God. He is perfect in love, on the one hand, and God is equally perfect in His hate of sin, on the other. Just as totally as God loves us, so He totally hates sin.
