Summary
In Genesis 18, Abraham intercedes with God on behalf of Sodom, humbly negotiating for the city’s preservation if a diminishing number of righteous people can be found, demonstrating both his empathy and faith. The narrative underscores God's willingness to engage in dialogue with believers and highlights the importance of advocacy and righteousness in sparing judgment.
Lot welcomed two angels into Sodom, offering them hospitality against the city's wickedness; despite their initial refusal, he insisted, demonstrating both ancient customs and his protective nature. Lot's position at the city gate is thought to indicate his role as a community judge or protector of travelers, illustrating his desire to shield them from harm.
Shawn's teaching highlights the importance of hospitality and kindness towards strangers, as exemplified by Lot and the biblical figures who unknowingly hosted angels or the resurrected Christ. It also discusses the scriptural condemnation of homosexuality, affirming the Biblical model of sexual relations between a man and a woman as seen from Creation, reinforcing that deviation from this is considered anathema within the biblical narrative.
Shawn's teaching emphasizes that the Bible explicitly addresses the sin of homosexuality, depicting it as contrary to God's holiness and moral plan, which necessitates that religious leaders speak out against it as part of their faith practice. He argues that if Christians believe in Jesus' imminent return, they should consistently oppose homosexuality and other sins; however, he also suggests that if the world's sins are reconciled through Christ, believers might adopt a more inclusive stance.
Shawn's teaching emphasizes that Christians should demonstrate unconditional love and seek to bring all individuals, regardless of sexual orientation, into a faith-based relationship with God through the knowledge of the Great News, which states that God reconciled the world to Himself through Christ. He underscores the point that sin, in any form, is an affront to God, but it is the lack of faith, rather than sexual preference, that is the primary issue today, urging believers to focus on faith and the reconciling message of Christ rather than judgment.
Shawn teaches that Lot, despite facing a hostile crowd in Sodom, demonstrated faith and righteousness by negotiating and trusting that YHWH would protect his daughters, similar to how YHWH protected Sarai with Pharaoh. Lot's actions were not of cowardice but of strategic negotiation, rooted in faith, aiming to delay the crowd while ensuring the safety of his family, reflecting the complexity of his situation and motives beyond his literal words.
The narrative highlights the events in Genesis where messengers pull Lot into the house, using either literal blindness or deep darkness to prevent the men outside from finding the door, a phenomenon paralleled in 2 Kings 6 with Elisha. It also underscores the impending destruction of Sodom, emphasizing Lot's failed attempt to convince his sons-in-law to leave, who dismissed his warnings as a joke, resulting in their demise with the rest of the city.
Abraham's Plea for Sodom
WELCOME
PRAYER
SONG
SILENCE
We left off last week with Abraham asking the Lord in verses 24-25 of chapter 18 of Genesis.
24 Peradventure there be fifty righteous within the city: wilt thou also destroy and not spare the place for the fifty righteous that are therein?
25 That be far from thee to do after this manner, to slay the righteous with the wicked: and that the righteous should be as the wicked, that be far from thee: Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?
The Lord's Response to Abraham
Let’s read on and hear how the Lord responds:
Genesis 18.26-19.1-14
December 4th 2022
26 And the LORD said, If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes.
27 And Abraham answered and said, Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord, which am but dust and ashes:
28 Peradventure there shall lack five of the fifty righteous: wilt thou destroy all the city for lack of five? And he said, If I find there forty and five, I will not destroy it.
29 And he spake unto him yet again, and said, Peradventure there shall be forty found there. And he said, I will not do it for forty's sake.
30 And he said unto him, Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak: Peradventure there shall thirty be found there. And he said, I will not do it, if I find thirty there.
31 And he said, Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord: Peradventure there shall be twenty found there. And he said, I will not destroy it for twenty's sake.
32 And he said, Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak yet but this once: Peradventure ten shall be found there. And he said, I will not destroy it for ten's sake.
33 And the LORD went his way, as soon as he had left communing with Abraham: and Abraham returned unto his place.
Abraham's Humble Approach
Alright back to verse 26.
26 And the LORD said, If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes.
27 And Abraham answered and said, Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord, which am but dust and ashes:
That last line that Abraham adds when speaking to YHWH reflects deeply on how humble Abraham was in speaking to YHWH and how contrite he was in his presence. And after admitting this stance of his heart he enters into what we might call, reasoning with the Lord and says (at verses 28-32):
28 Peradventure there shall lack five of the fifty righteous: wilt thou destroy all the city for lack of five? And he (YHWH) said, If I find there forty and five, I will not destroy it.
29 And he (ABRAHAM) spake unto him yet again, and said, Peradventure there shall be forty found there. And he (YHWH) said, I will not do it for forty's sake.
30 And he said unto him, Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak: Peradventure there shall thirty be found there. And he (YHWH) said, I will not do it, if I find thirty there.
31 And he (ABRAHAM) said, Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord: Peradventure there shall be twenty found there. And he (YHWH) said, I will not destroy it for twenty's sake.
32 And he said, Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak yet but this once: Peradventure ten shall be found there. And he said, I will not destroy it for ten's sake.
The Hebrew translators took some liberty to fill in the gaps of this back and forth because the language does not include any Hebrew words for “peradventure” – it really only includes the bare minimum of words that sort of sound like men haggling over the price of a lawmower?
Would you take 50?
45?
40?
30?
25?
20?
10?
It seems that Abraham was thinking of Lot and his family here for they would have been seen as righteous in their having not yet appeared to have lost the identity of the Living God in their lives.
It is sort of significant that the Lord remained in the conversation (so to speak) until Abraham stopped lowering the number. Once Abraham stopped, YHWH appears to stop and the Jewish Targum adds that at this point, “the glory of the Lord was lifted up,” or departed from the presence of Abraham.
And this brings us to chapter 19 and
The Story of Lot and the Angels
Genesis 19:1 And there came two angels to Sodom at even; and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom: and Lot seeing them rose up to meet them; and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground; 2 And he said, Behold now, my lords, turn in, I pray you, into your servant's house, and tarry all night, and wash your feet, and ye shall rise up early, and go on your ways. And they said, Nay; but we will abide in the street all night. 3 And he pressed upon them greatly; and they turned in unto him, and entered into his house; and he made them a feast, and did bake unleavened bread, and they did eat.
4 But before they lay down, the men of the city, even the men of Sodom, compassed the house round, both old and young, all the people from every quarter: 5 And they called unto Lot, and said unto him, Where are the men which came in to thee this night? bring them out unto us, that we may know them. 6 And Lot went out at the door unto them, and shut the door after him, 7 And said, I pray you, brethren, do not so wickedly. 8 Behold now, I have two daughters which have not known man; let me, I pray you, bring them out unto you, and do ye to them as is good in your eyes: only unto these men do nothing; for therefore came they under the shadow of my roof. 9 And they said, Stand back. And they said again, This one fellow came in to sojourn, and he will needs be a judge: now will we deal worse with thee, than with them. And they pressed sore upon the man, even Lot, and came near to break the door.
Lot's Encounter with the Men of Sodom
10 But the men put forth their hand, and pulled Lot into the house to them, and shut to the door. 11 And they smote the men that were at the door of the house with blindness, both small and great: so that they wearied themselves to find the door. 12 And the men said unto Lot, Hast thou here any besides? son in law, and thy sons, and thy daughters, and whatsoever thou hast in the city, bring them out of this place: 13 For we will destroy this place, because the cry of them is waxen great before the face of the LORD; and the LORD hath sent us to destroy it. 14 And Lot went out, and spake unto his sons in law, which married his daughters, and said, Up, get you out of this place; for the LORD will destroy this city. But he seemed as one that mocked unto his sons in law.
Lot's Presence at the City Gate
Alright, we remember in chapter 18:22 that two of the messengers had left Abraham and headed to Sodom. Now we read verse 1 of chapter 19: Genesis 19:1 And there came two angels to Sodom at even; and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom: and Lot seeing them rose up to meet them; and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground. Why Lot sat at the gate of Sodom is unknown but some speculate that he did this as a means to escort unassuming and ill prepared travelers from entering the place and being swept up by its evil citizens. Some wonder if he would then take them to his home and treat them hospitably in the service of his God. To me this is as good a reason as any.
The City Gate's Significance
But anciently, the city gates often served as a place where community trials were held and people would show up and posit their complaints against each other before an assigned magistrate or judge and it is believed that this is more probably the reason Lot was there because the citizens will speak to this relative to Lot in a moment. In any case, Lot, like his uncle Abraham to the three, bowed himself before these two messengers. It wasn’t due to any religious observance because it does seem like he was not aware of their origin but it was rather in accordance to custom. (verse 2) 2 And he said, Behold now, my lords, turn in, I pray you, into your servant's house, and tarry all night, and wash your feet, and ye shall rise up early, and go on your ways. And they said, Nay; but we will abide in the street all night.
Hospitality and Righteousness in Biblical Narrative
Talked about Hebrews saying to be mindful of hosting strangers for you might be hosting angels without knowing it. The same was true when the resurrected Lord appeared to the two men walking on the road to Emmaus. In both cases, the angels here and the Lord (there) accepted the invitations to stay or lodge with the unsuspecting souls they met. Here, these messengers first rejected Lot's invitation and said that they would rather lodge in the street over the night, but (verse 3)
3 . . . he (Lot) pressed upon them greatly; and they turned in unto him, and entered into his house; and he made them a feast, and did bake unleavened bread, and they did eat.
I get fascinated by the choices of the messengers. First they say, no, we will dwell in the streets but then they agree to the invitation and change their intentions in response to Lot “pressing them greatly.” It makes me think of times God determines to do something but due to our pestering changes His mind too? Makes me wonder greatly at free will choices in life.
Old Testament Hospitality and Wisdom Needed Today
Anyways, more love extended to strangers here in the Old Testament. Wisdom is greatly needed today to try and effectively execute the same.
4 But before they lay down, the men of the city, even the men of Sodom, compassed the house round, both old and young, all the people from every quarter:
5 And they called unto Lot, and said unto him, “Where are the men which came in to thee this night? bring them out unto us, that we may know them.”
Okay – a bit of a heavy topic but a necessary one in order to get it right. And I want to begin by reiterating a fact that if it is not accepted, then the complexion of this topic changes dramatically.
Reconciling the World Through Christ
And what I want to reiterate is the reality of 2nd Corinthians 5:19 where Paul writes
“. . . that God was in Christ, reconciling the world (KOSMOS) unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.”
If this was not complete, and IF Jesus is coming back to take His pure bride in the future, then the biblical narrative remains in full and complete force, and – let me just make this plain about this – from the biblical narrative homosexuality would be absolutely anathema to the Body and the wrath of God would greatly abide upon those who practice it. It's a straight up scriptural fact.
Let me appeal to the scripture, remembering that it is telling us everything that God was doing as a means to reconcile the world to Himself through the finished work of Christ. Part of this was to “lay plain” the need for people to walk according to His plan, His ways, and His laws. Relative to human sexual relations these things are PLAINLY described in the Creation of human beings in the garden – “male and female made He them.” And they were to multiply and replenish the earth.
This model was God’s model and it truly reflected so many important principles that scripture brings forth. Going all the way back to chapter 4 of Genesis 4:1 we read:
“And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the LORD.”
This “knowing” between Adam and Eve references sexual intercourse which through God’s divine hand human beings reproduce and populate the world He created.
Biblical Stance on Sexual Relations
For this reason alternative sexual relations, specifically a man knowing another man, was absolutely anathema to the will of God in his efforts to establish a nation to bring forth the Savior and scripture straitly condemns the activity as nothing short of reprehensible. We cannot get around it – biblically speaking, homosexuality – especially man lying with man is utterly condemned.
Back in Genesis 13 we read when Abram and Lot were choosing places to live that
“Abram dwelled in the land of Canaan, and Lot dwelled in the cities of the plain, and pitched his tent toward Sodom. But the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners before the LORD exceedingly.”
Now, what we are reading here in chapter 19 will not be the only time such a thing will happen in the Old Testament. In fact, in one of the most horrific chapters of scripture, Judges 19, we read, in part
16 And, behold, there came an old man from his work out of the field at even, which was also of mount
The Biblical Perspective on Homosexuality
Ephraim; and he sojourned in Gibeah: but the men of the place were Benjamites. 17 And when he had lifted up his eyes, he saw a wayfaring man in the street of the city: and the old man said, Whither goest thou? and whence comest thou?
20 And the old man said, Peace be with thee; howsoever let all thy wants lie upon me; only lodge not in the street. 21 So he brought him into his house, and gave provender unto the asses: and they washed their feet, and did eat and drink. 22 Now as they were making their hearts merry, behold, the men of the city, certain sons of Belial, beset the house round about, and beat at the door, and spake to the master of the house, the old man, saying, Bring forth the man that came into thine house, that we may know him.
We will return to the more horrific details of this story later, but for now we see that the desire for homosexual relations among men was powerful in the Old Testament and pushed men forward in acts of utter boldness to fulfill their desires. Because of this very story, the act of oral or anal intercourse has been labeled, Sodomy, and is referred to by Isaiah, when he wrote
References from Isaiah
Isaiah 3:9 The shew of their (meaning those who practice anal intercourse) countenance doth witness against them; and they declare their sinMissing the mark of faith and love—no punishment, just lost growth or peace. as Sodom, they hide it not. Woe unto their soul! for they have rewarded evil unto themselves.
Moving out to the Apostolic Record, Paul pulls no punches in Romans 1 when he writes, speaking of the pagan cultures that were threaded through the Roman Empire
Apostolic Teachings from Paul
Roman 1:22 Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, 23 And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things. 24 Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: 25 Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen. 26 For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: 27 And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet.
Jude, speaking and describing the fiery wrath that God had poured out upon people wrote beginning at verse 3:
Jude's Commentary
Jude 1:3 Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints. 4 For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ. 5 I will therefore put you in remembrance, though ye once knew this, how that the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed them that believed not. 6 And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day. 7 Even as Sodom and Gomorrha, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire (meaning, fire from the eternal God).
So, yes, the biblical narrative references the sin of homosexuality directly and we cannot escape the fact. Again, IF we are waiting on Jesus to come to take His pure bride, then the narrative, and the sinister nature of the sin relative to God’s holiness and plan remains – and pastors ought to speak out strongly against it in every form along with all forms of sin. WE CANNOT GET AROUND THIS. So again, if a church believes Jesus is coming back they are utterly hypocritical in not fully embracing the stance against homosexuality.
However, if God has reconciled the world to Himself in and through the victorious work of His Son, and “world sin” has been paid, then no church, no person ought to
Faith and Understanding
We should never attack homosexuals (or anyone else for that matter) but instead we should seek to bring all souls to faith through our unconditional love and a knowledge of the Great NewsThe message that prophecy is fulfilled and we are free to pursue God in love and liberty—without fear or religious control..
Get it?
We cannot read the word and excuse homosexuality if it is yet to be fulfilled. If it has been fulfilled, then we cannot use the Word against them for the simple reason they, like all the rest of us, are covered by the blood, and they, like the rest of us, are invited into relationship with God by faith. I maintain that the sin today on heterosexuals and homosexuals alike is faithlessness, not their preference for same or different genders. Why? Because all sin, all missing the mark, egregious or mild, is an affront to God – all of it – and none (LISTEN) in the age of fulfillment is any worse than another.
This is the brass tacks of being Christian – and we are confronted with a HUGE EITHER/OR. In the face of it we have errantly moved – on the one hand, we have people taking up arms against the world and its sin in the flesh wrongly, on the other hand we have people unjustifiably accepting homosexuality while maintaining a eminent return. Neither work. Only the truth works. And the truth is the Great News which is GOD was IN CHRIST RECONCILING THE WORLD TO HIMSELF. WHAT WORLD? The whole world.
A New Narrative
Imagine that we change the narrative today in the world as Christians and make it this:
A Christian couple have a son who is gay. They have recognized some signs along the way and they accept it as part of this life. And they teach their gay son that Jesus loves him, and gave His life for Him, and that God so loved Him that he gave His only Son to pave the way for him, yes, their gay son, to have a relationship with God through FAITH. This IS a biblically supported view given in the face of the Great News.
But back to the story at hand. The inhabitants of Sodom wanted same sex knowledge of these two messengers.
6 And Lot went out at the door unto them, and shut the door after him,
In other words, he exited the house and closed the door behind him.
7 And said, I pray you, brethren, do not so wickedly.
A Complex Passage
Now what we read next is on the surface utterly incomprehensible. But it’s here, and I trust it was the actual case, so here we go:
8 Behold now, I have two daughters which have not known man; let me, I pray you, bring them out unto you, and do ye to them as is good in your eyes: only unto these men do nothing; for therefore came they under the shadow of my roof.
Aside from the account of Judges this is one of the most difficult passages to read and understand right out the gate in plain English. I mean it makes me sick, makes me think that Lot was a coward, and make me think in my flesh that God was indifferent to the status of women in Old Testament days for the simple reason that Peter references Lot as being a righteous man before God. (2nd Peter 2:7-8)
But that is my flesh speaking and my immediate foolishness to read AND interpret the text from literally, and instead of letting it interpret we have to try and let spiritual reason abide. And the first thing to note is that since Peter validates Lot’s righteousness, then Lot must have been righteous and what he offers up here CANNOT be what we might think.
I am fully willing to accept what He did as okay at face value (for that day and age) and NOT seek any other way of explaining it other than what it says HOWEVER because of Peter telling us that God saw Lot as righteous, I cannot believe that what Lot did in offering his daughters up was as it seems. And so, we have to think, reason, and resist fleshly anger that can pop up in the face of it all. I say this because I have seen passages like this (appear) to cause some souls to abandon the faith.
We know that Lot showed the common hospitality of an Ancient Near Eastern family by inviting the messengers in to stay in his house. In that day, he was obligated to protect them even to losing his own life.
Lot's Actions in Sodom
Would this mean that he was not also obligated to protect his own family members? Of course not! Of course not. So, we have to try and see this situation in that day, in that very event, and what Lot could have possibly been trying to do rather than what his literal words suggest he did. Note that we never read of this approach Lot takes as being “endorsed by God” nor renounced, nor are we told WHAT Lot was attempting to do through the offer. We are just told what he did not WHAT he intended in doing it.
Context and Faith
However, we can look to other accounts in scripture, along with the context of this event, to help give Lot the benefit of the doubt. Unlike some commentaries suggest (like they try to suggest that Abram was a coward before Pharoah when he offered up Sarai) I maintain that Lot was not any sort of coward. I mean, he went outside to face the crowd and shut the door behind him. That is not something a coward does.
Josephus writes of the inhabitants of Sodom from a historical perspective and said that “the Sodomites were unjust towards men, and impious towards God … They hated strangers, and abused themselves with Sodomitical practices.” Knowing this about the community helps prove that Lot was not afraid when he went out and faced them.
So, let’s get rid of that notion. Plus, I am certain that other Apostolic writers would have used Lot as an example of failing and cowardice (instead of being righteous as Peter does) to teach us all a lesson in bravery.
Lot as a Righteous Man
So, we know that Lot was a “righteous man,” from what Peter wrote. And a righteous man would be ??? “a man of faith!” Lot was the nephew of Abraham and was traveling with him and Sarah up until they planted themselves in Canaan and Sodom. Lot saw first-hand how YHWH acted on behalf of Sarah firsthand and protected her, leaving her untouched by Pharoah when Abram let him take her because of her beauty. He saw Abram offer her up to the lusts of Pharoah in faith, trusting that YHWH would intervene before she could be violated.
It is entirely within reasonable context that Lot had the same faith that YHWH would do the same for his daughters. And if we think about it this is exactly what happened. right? The angels of YHWH did step in and kept Lot and his daughters safe!!
Also, and think about this, Lot may have known that such an offer would have been refused by the men of Sodom. I mean, they wanted male sex, not female, and so perhaps this was just a means of negotiation. I’m sure the daughters inside of course were horrified but “the wisdom of a Dad is often not understood by the innocence of his daughters.” (believe me)
Finally, it appears that these women were engaged to be married and Lot was using this fact, and the fact that they probably came from families in the city who would have been infuriated if these men took their sons brides, and so he made the offer like Paul appealed to being circumcised as a means to cause the crowd to divide with some defending the women and others considering the offer. All of this could have bought Lot time but I do not believe that what he said in verse 8 was ever a threat of actually happening. Just my thoughts.
9 And they (the men of the city) said, Stand back. And they said again, This one fellow came in to sojourn, and he will needs be a judge: now will we deal worse with thee, than with them. And they pressed sore upon the man, even Lot, and came near to break the door.
Another way to read this might be
“And they (the crowd said), "Stand back!" Then they added, "This one (Lot) came in to stay [here, in Sodom], and he keeps acting as a judge; (which is why he was sitting at the gate in verse 1) “now we will deal worse with you (Lot) than with them. So they pressed hard against the man Lot, and came near to break down the door.”
I think that their reaction is pretty self explanatory but note that they do not even respond to Lot offering up his daughters. This says to me that the whole offer was never taken in seriousness and that Lot made it both in faith that his daughters would remain safe and perhaps as a strategy to buy more time.
Protection and Deliverance
10 But the men (the messengers who were inside the house) put forth their hand, and pulled Lot into the house to them, and shut to the door. 11 And they smote the men that were at the door of the house with blindness, both small and great: so that they wearied themselves to find the door.
This “blindness” is understood by the ancients as either “actual literal blindness of their eyes” OR they caused such a deep darkness to take place so much so that they could not find Lot's door. We see a similar event take place in 2nd Kings 6 when Elisha blinds the Syrians.
The Call to Escape
12 And the men (messengers) said unto Lot, Hast thou here any besides? son in law, and thy sons, and thy daughters, and whatsoever thou hast in the city, bring them out of this place:
Now at verse 12 the word son in law is singular but in verse 14 it is plural. Because Lot describes his daughters as virgins it appears these sons in laws were only espoused to the daughters but were still considered part of his family and the angels offered them escape. But listen to verse 13 – 14 as the messengers say:
13 For we will destroy this place, because the cry of them is waxen great before the face of the LORD; and the LORD hath sent us to destroy it.
Sons in Law's Reaction
And why do we not read of these sons in law leaving Sodom with Lot and his wife and daughters? Verse 14:
14 And Lot went out, and spake unto his sons in law, which married his daughters, and said, Up, get you out of this place; for the LORD will destroy this city. But he seemed as one that mocked unto his sons in law.
Another way to read that last line is that the sons in law thought he was joking. It was no joke. And failing to believe it seems that these men were accounted as wicked among the other sodomites and perished right along with them.
We will stop here and continue next week.
Comments, questions.
Prayer Requests
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