In Luke 17:20-37 we find red letter words, Jesus if you take it literally, telling us about his second coming. This according to the traditions of my past faith and the title here in my NASB bible. Jesus reminds the people that life will carry on as usual as in the days of Noah and Lot, when he appears.

In verse 17:32 we read, “Remember Lot’s wife.”

Turning back to Gen. 19:26 we see the warning Jesus is giving in Luke 17:32.

‘Looking back’ as in the story of Lot’s wife, will get you turned into a pillar of salt or at least dead, though I’m sure as a pillar of salt, one is dead.

Isn’t it good that the Bible is full of women messing up and being included in the Bible for our consideration? It certainly wouldn’t be near as interesting without them. Can you imagine The Garden of Eden without Eve?

What would the story of Sodom and Gomorrah be like without Lot’s wife?

As a literalist I suppose this once meant to me and it certainly was taught this way, that when the “Son of Man” is revealed it is dangerous to flinch or look back, around or hesitate in any way.

What’s the danger? Well, you might miss the boat. Somehow your actions being deemed less spiritual, leading you to lose your salvation or your promise of salvation. I mean this kind of thought rumbled around everywhere, despite the fact that the majority of our sect believed in the ‘once saved always saved’ motto. Truly it was a strange world, because though that was our confessed belief, there was never anything secure in our understanding of eternal security. There was always the threat of punishment, via the possibility of turning into a pillar of salt. Sure you were probably not losing your salvation but being punished in the earthly realm to be an example to all those who would come after you. “Remember Lot’s wife.” Don’t look back.

We are never really told what “looking back” means which makes me wonder about the point that Jesus is trying to make or the writer, inspired by the Holy Spirit is trying to make.

Gen. 19:26 “But his wife, from behind him, looked back; and she became a pillar of salt.”

I’ve decided to jot down some notes regarding this Genesis story.

Jots are as follows:

Gen. 19:1-3

– two angels show up at the city gates of Sodom
– Lot invites them over for fellowship and food

Gen. 19:4

– men of Sodom, young and old show up at Lot’s house
– then we have mention of “all the people”…so perhaps not just the men?
– the people showed up before bedtime
– do angels sleep?

Gen. 19:5

– so the Sodom people want relations/sex with the men/angels

Gen. 19:7

– Lot considers this wicked behaviour

Gen. 19:8

– so he offers his two virgin daughters for “whatever you like;”
– apparently offering his virgin daughters for mob sex is not wicked

Gen. 19:10

– but the men or is it angels?
– if angels, why not consistently refer to them in the narrative as angels?

Gen. 19:11

– now we have the men doing the angel thing, striking the men at the doorway with blindness

Gen. 19:12

– “Then the men….” – again, angels?

Gen. 19:13

– we learn the men angels have been sent to destroy Sodom

Gen. 19:15

– the angels tell Lot to get his butt in gear and to get going

Gen. 19:16

– No what?

1. Oh no, are you serious?!
2. Oh no, I’m not convinced yet!
3. Oh no, not the mountains!
4. Oh no, we have to leave the valley?!
5. Oh no, my lords, I’m too tired?!

Gen. 19:19

– Lot’s not sure about this and apparently hesitates long enough that the men angels take matters into their own hands literally; taking Lot, his wife and two daughters out of the city
– would you have to be told twice if two angels told you to get out or die?

Gen. 19:17

– one of the angel men tells them to get the heck out of there and now
– then apparently Lot and family are given some rules

1. Don’t look back.
2. Get out of the valley.
3. Go to the mountains.

Gen. 19:18

– to which Lot replies, “Oh no, my lords!”
– note the use of the exclamation mark, this story could have used some more of them
– so we have Lot saying, No!

– seems here in this verse it’s number three, not the mountains, good lord, anything but the mountains, I’ll die there!

Pause here for further consideration.

Lot meets two angels at the city gates. He appears to know them as angels. He bows to them, face to the ground in their presence. Then he brings them home. Before they know it, the entire city has arrived at the door ready for an orgy of sorts with the angel men. Rather then debase the chastity of said angels, Lot offers his two virgin daughters for mass group sex. Rape I would assume since it doesn’t seem the girls had a choice.

But, sex with virgins apparently wasn’t the need for the mob that night. They wanted to rape the angels. Fortunately, for all concerned with being the victims of the mob, the angels did their angelic deeds, pulled Lot back into safety and blinded a few of the sex hungry mob.

The angels tell Lot to take is family and escape the coming destruction of Sodom. God has ordered it. Lot hangs around until daybreak and the angels urge Lot to immediately evacuate. Lot hesitates. They literally have to move him and the family. Then Lot is given instructions and Lot says, no!

The red letters of Luke tell us that Jesus wants us to remember Lot’s wife. Is that the best example considering what we are learning about Lot here?

Continuing on.

Gen. 19:20

– Lot wants to go to Zoar instead of the mountains

Gen. 19:22

– angels grant his request
– I don’t know but by now I’d think Lot would be the pillar of salt

Gen. 19:23

– Lot and his family arrive in Zoar

Gen. 19:24

– the Lord zaps Sodom and Gomorrah

Gen. 19:25

– all inhabitants and ground growth destroyed in Sodom and Gomorrah

Gen. 19:26

– Lot’s wife looks back and turns into a pillar of salt
– she doesn’t even get a chance to negotiate like Lot did; ‘Oh no, my lord!’
– Lot gets to dilly dally around, take his sweet time putting the angels off with the escape plan when they are trying to save his life; tells the angels ‘no’ after receiving their instructions; apparently, in the presence of the saving angels sent by God no less, still fears for his life and he’s still breathing?
– guess God and the angels had more patience with Lot then Lot’s wife
– she looked back, being in Zoar, what could she see, maybe smoke rising?
– maybe she could hear the sound of the destruction, maybe it was her reflexes, ever hear a big boom and not jump and turn to look in the direction of the sound?
– God-given, God-created responses, imagine being on the streets during 9/11 and not looking up when you heard the jets, the impact…try and avoid those instinctive reflexes
– maybe she turned back to mourn the loss of her family, friends, the lost souls?
– if she was mourning, it seemed more then the mourning of Lot and his two daughters for her, we don’t hear of their reaction; the story just moves on to show how God remembered Abraham and remembered Lot

Gen. 19:30

– now it seems Zoar once considered safe is no longer safe and Lot heads for the hills with his daughters

Gen. 19:31-38

– the two virginal daughters now seem concerned for the continuation of the species and plan to have sex with their dad and get pregnant by him
– after all with the state of earthly affairs, what man out there is worthy?
– these kind of relations must also have been considered wicked because the girls have to get dad so drunk he’ll never know of their incestual happenings
– they manage to do so and both give birth to Lot’s sons
– thank goodness Lot found favour in God’s eyes, eh?

Now, back to the second coming and Lot’s wife.

Luke 17:32

– Don’t look back

Luke 17:33 – “Whoever seeks to keep his life shall lose it, and whoever loses his life shall preserve it.”

– is this a subtle implication that by turning around when she was in Zoar, looking back at the smoke rising destruction of Sodom that Lot’s wife sought to keep her own life and that’s why she lost it?
– or is it that her life was preserved by losing it?
– if anyone was seeking life and under his own terms,wouldn’t that be Lot?
– maybe this verse has nothing to do with the “Remember Lot’s wife” warning – maybe this verse belongs to the following verses

Let’s see.

Luke 17:34 – “I tell you, on that night there will be two men in one bed; … ”

Wait a minute?

Does that say, two men in one bed?

…

Oh well, whatever you do, Remember Lot’s wife!

Originally blogged in 2007.