HELLO LOT’S DAUGHTERS
If you didn’t get a chance to read last week’s post click here.
She couldn’t contain herself and looked back at the last minute. Her lack of self-control left her daughter’s without a mother.
This week I want to take a closer look at Lot’s daughters.
Lot’s daughters were engaged with men from Sodom and Gomorrah when the angels of the Lord showed up to deliver their family. They were probably excited about getting married. Every engaged girl I’ve ever known has been ecstatic and over joyed at the prospects of marriage. I wonder if they were devastated when their fiancés refused to leave the city with them. They refused to let go of the wickedness of S&G to create a new life with them.
I know my heart would have shattered.
Not only did these two sisters lose their future husbands in their escape they also lost their mother. Who’s to know how close they were. The passage doesn’t mention any grieving or morning for the loss of their mother. Regardless of their mother-daughter relationships losing everything in a matter of minutes must have been traumatizing to say the least. And to top it all off their father driven by fear rushes them into the mountains to live secluded in a cave! Who does that?!
They may have been able to start over and meet new potential suitors. However that is not what happens. Maybe it was their upbringing in Sodom and Gomorrah. Maybe it was cave fever. Maybe they lost hope all together. I can’t begin to imagine what type of desperation possessed the older sister to suggest what we know today as a vile and inappropriate act.
31 One day the older daughter said to the younger, “Our father is old, and there is no man around here to give us children—as is the custom all over the earth. 32 Let’s get our father to drink wine and then sleep with him and preserve our family line through our father.”
We learned in Hello Cain’s Wife that God had yet to outlawed incest in the times of the book of Genesis. It doesn’t become a sin until Leviticus. So, in some regard her idea isn’t all that crazy or far-fetched, if viewed from the perspective of that time period and their customs. If someone suggested that today… I’d be very very concerned for them. In any case the younger sister agreed.
Side bar: [They must have been lonely. I know what loneliness feels like and it’s one of those heartaches that you feel physically. To me it hurts so much that I just want to tear my heart out to make the ache stop. It’s one of those cases in which the tears sting so bad when you cry and you don’t know what to do so you just wallow in it until it passes.]
I’m learning that Jesus is always at our side. We never need to feel lonely because Christ is always with us. Besides no one will be able to be with us every second of the day. We will be alone at times; in moments of loneliness lets’ cry out to the author of time and space. Let’s allow God to fill the relational void.
If only Lot’s Daughters had the good sense to call out to God for a solution instead of attempting to fix their problems on their own. I read a blog post about Lot’s family that mentioned an interesting point, the girls probably knew that they were doing something inappropriate because why get their father drunk? Why not just talk to him and tell him what was going on? Maybe he might have understood and mustered the courage to leave the cave and rejoin civilization.
We learn in verses 34 through 38 that in two consecutive nights the sisters get Lot drunk and sleep with him in order to become pregnant. They both conceived and gave birth to sons.
Happy ending? I wouldn’t say so. Their sons’ descendants grow up to be enemies of God’s chosen people.
Not such a great fate for Lot’s family after all.
Read the full story here.
What I Learned from Lot’s Daughters:
- We are all capable of doing wild things when faced with desperate situations.
- Sometimes it’s easier to take matters into our own hands.
- The journey is just as important as the destination.
- Always measure the consequences.
What did you learn from Lot’s Daughters? Anything stand out to you? Share in the comments below!
My Prayer for You:
Dear Jesus, please help us remember that you are near even when we cannot feel or hear you. Lord, help us present all requests to you instead of seeking out quick fixes that will only hurt us further in the long run. I pray that you may use today’s post to minister to someone’s heart. That the words read on this screen may be of encouragement and Godly conviction. I ask you with a humble heart to lead us into your will and not our own. Please help us put aside the plans that satisfy our flesh but grieve your spirit. Thank you for loving us without reservation. Thank you for hearing our prayers. In Jesus’ name, Amen!
Memory Verse: Isaiah 41:10
Isaiah 41: 10 So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.