Who is lot in the old testament

The best value in digital Bible study. No software to install. Try it FREE. Font Size Font Size. Previous Next. Genesis New International Version. AU 27 Early the next morning Abraham got up and returned to the place where he had stood before the Lord. There are many examples of such accounts in the Hebrew Bible. As Israel had a long history of hostile relations with the Moabites and Ammonites, it is not surprising that some of the biblical authors would have wanted to take a jab at them by recounting their origins as incestuous.

Hilary Lipka, "Lot and His Daughters", n. Explaining the origin of a feature of the world, e. Hebrew is regarded as the spoken language of ancient Israel but is largely replaced by Aramaic in the Persian period.

The set of Biblical books shared by Jews and Christians. A more neutral alternative to "Old Testament. View more. Because of their great number of flocks, their was increasing tension and conflict between their herdsmen. Abram wisely took note of this and sought to keep the peace by putting some distance between them. As the head of the family, Abram was the authority. He could have told Lot what to do and because of the culture norms of the day Lot would have been obligated to obey. But Abram graciously gives his junior the first choice.

But far be it from me to take up this decision. Abram, my father, you choose which way to go and I will go the other way. I must consider the impact it will make on my family, my wife, and my children. Please give me one week. I will seek direction from the Lord and respond to you. Any of these responses would have showed humility and discernment.

But Lot did none of the above. Instead he made a decision purely on what looked good to him. He looked around, saw what he thought was best, and then took it for himself. Lot made the decision how most people make decisions, by leaning on his own understanding. He weighed the choices using a worldly scale of value. And it was reckless to make this decision without prayer or counsel.

Proverbs — Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. Proverbs — Where there is no guidance, a people falls, but in an abundance of counselors there is safety. Lot made a hasty decision without consulting God or Abram and paid the price as his family was disastrously affected.

And if he rescued righteous Lot, greatly distressed by the sensual conduct of the wicked for as that righteous man lived among them day after day, he was tormenting his righteous soul over their lawless deeds that he saw and heard. Lot is described in this verse as righteous, which will be discussed below.

We see that he his righteous soul was tormented by what he saw. In other words, Lot had a conscience. And his conscience was working. In Sodom, it was in overdrive. Lot did not sell out to the culture.

It bothered him. But he did choose to dwell there. The lack of morals of the culture rubbed off on him and his family. He himself thought little of handing over his single daughters to be sexually assaulted. Where did they come up with such a wicked idea? They likely witnessed such kind of depravity in Sodom.

There they were trained to think pragmatically rather than morally. It is the type of thing their peers were doing. Culture had negatively impacted the entire family. Later God would command the Israelites not to live together with or intermarry the Canaanites because of this very reason Deuteronomy Genesis — But before they lay down, the men of the city, the men of Sodom, both young and old, all the people to the last man, surrounded the house.

Bring them out to us, that we may know them. Behold, I have two daughters who have not known any man. Let me bring them out to you, and do to them as you please. Only do nothing to these men, for they have come under the shelter of my roof. Here Lot does one of the most incomprehensible things you can imagine. He offers to turn his two daughters over to a raging mob and allow them to be raped. Why would he ever even conceive of such a thing? Lot clearly had a serious case of misplaced priorities.

It is evident that he does this out of loyalty to a code. The cultural code he was following demanded that he protect the guests he was hosting at all costs. But the cultural code was just that, culture. And the culture in Sodom and Gomorrah was completely perverted. It should not have to be said, but we will say it anyway.

A father should never under any circumstances allow his children, sons or daughters, to be abused by others. There is no justification ever for this. Note that Lot says his daughters are virgins. In other words, he had protected their purity all of this time. It was that he wrongly placed a higher priority on these guests. In his house were powerful angels, messengers from God. These angels could have and did protect his family from any dangers.

But once again, Lot did not pray and seek help from God. He looked at the situation with his own tainted perspective and came to a decision based on his own rationale. And clearly a lack of respect for women fed into this incorrect rationale. Application : It is never necessary to sin.

The situation appeared desperate, but Lot failed to seek the way out. He looked at the situation as a binary choice rather than seeking another option, help from God. In 1 Corinthians God promises that He always provides a way of escape for temptation.

Years went by, and Lot also became a wealthy man, owning flocks, herds, and tents. He continued to live with his uncle Abram. Their proximity caused problems between their respective herdsmen, who started arguing and fighting over the limited grazing area that was available for their animals. Abram, trying to find a solution to this problem, proposed that he and Lot should separate amicably and move to new territory. Abram gave Lot first choice, and he settled in the well-watered valley of the Jordan, near the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah.

Abram went to live in the plain of Mamre, near Hebron, and built there an altar to God, who renewed His promise to give all the land that Abram could see to him and his descendants. Chedorlaomer, king of Elam, was the overlord of several kingdoms. Bera, king of Sodom, was one of his vassals.

After serving him for 12 years, Bera and four other kings rebelled and formed an alliance. The victors took a number of prisoners, including Lot, and returned to their own countries, loaded with all the goods from Sodom and Gomorrah that they could carry. A man who managed to escape from Chedorlaomer came to Abram and told him that Lot had been captured and was being taken away.

Abram armed of his servants and—with his allies Aner, Eshkol, and Mamre—pursued the four kings, until he caught up with them near the city of Dan.

There, he divided his men in groups; attacked the enemy that night; and defeated them, chasing them back as far as Hobah, near Damascus.