God’s traveling companions from chapter 18, two angels, continued to Sodom to meet Lot. Like Abraham, Lot recognizes them as something more than human. But apparently so did some of the residents of the city, who bear down on Lot’s home. Was it an act of intended dominance? Intrigue? Regardless, that sealed the fate of the city. After Lot offered his daughters to the crowd of men (they were rejected) the angels struck the offending men blind and told Lot to pack his bags.
The angels gave Lot a few hours and he tried to rescue his daughters’ fiancées. Why in the world did they treat his pleas as a joke? Then again, I think most Americans would take it as a joke if we heard destruction was imminent. In fact, often when we hear about impending natural disasters we do disregard it, so perhaps the fiancées are very much like us.
I understand Lot’s wife turning into salt for her disobedience. Harsh perhaps, but a time to disregard God’s clear instruction is not in the middle of a time when he’s doling out punishment elsewhere. But I have so many questions about Lot’s daughter’s incest. I wonder if he ever found out: I don’t know the timeline, but I wonder if he chalked up the babies to final flings between his daughters and their fiancées on the eve of Sodom’s destructive. I wonder if Abraham knew, and whether when Lot’s descendants plagued the Israelites they saw their forefather’s failures in their enemies’ spears. But really, I wonder what those girls were thinking. Didn’t God just destroy your city for its wickedness? Didn’t lava just consume everyone you knew? Why would sleeping with your drunk dad seem like a particularly good idea?

Kingdoms in Abram’s time and kingdoms now seem very different. I have a friend whose company recently adding a king to their executive board. I did some googling and found that the man in question was king of a small province within a small African nation. I really don’t know how large Kedorlaomer’s kingdom was, but I can’t imagine Abram’s army defeating the army of Wales, much less the army of Wales and other nations. Even more baffling is why Abram exacted such punishment—I understand his nephew was captured, but it seems a more reasonable request to just ask for his release. Especially given the tawdy reputation of the sodomites & co.
Melchizedek is one of the more interesting characters so far. We know from chapter 4 that people started praying and worshiping to God after Adam and Eve’s son, Seth, was born. But I tend to assume the people we read about are the only believers. In fact, I head a sermon at noted church once where the pastor inferred that anyone mentioned in the Bible by name without the attribution of faith must have been against God. But here is a priest of God (and a king to boot). My inference is that to be a priest, you need a people. So were there other believers around, apart from Abram and Lot? If so, what did they think about their neighbors?
It’s hard to miss the reference to Abram’s gift to the priest—he hands over a tenth of his plunder. We’ve previously seen offerings, but this is the first time we’ve had a gift in the shape of a tithe - traditionally one tenth of your earnings given to the church.
Between the tithe and Melchizedek, I’m reminded that the Bible is not the entire history of God’s interaction with man. Adam spent a long time in the garden (there were a lot of animals to name) and we only know a little of that story. It’s possible that there were a line of faithful after the flood beyond Abram, or that God interjected and called Melchizedek. Or perhaps there’s an in-between. But I’m reminded we’re only seeing a part, though the part I trust is sufficient.

If I were Lot I would have serious doubts about trusting Abram when he suggested he split things fairly. After all, Abram did just prostitute his wife in the interest of pragmatism and the greater good.
This chapter ends with Abram giving an offering to God. Whatever Abram isn’t (I still can’t get past what he did to Sarai in the last chapter), he is a believer. In the end, regardless of what part of the Bible you read, it’s impossible to forget than this is the story of a holy God and a fallen man separated by an impossible divide. The bridge cannot be goodness and we’re reminded by the intense flaws in the few people we’ve seen profiled God’s favor alone grants us salvation. (Even Noah was spared from grace…)