Actions and consequences of Lot’s wife vs. Actions and consequences of
David
Genesis 19 talks about how Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed. Lot and his
wife and daughters fled. But because Lot’s wife looked back, she died.
Genesis 19:26
Lot’s wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.
In my view, Lot’s wife was under no
law. This event happened more than 400 years prior to Moses, when the Law was
introduced.
The following is being said about
Abraham, who was the uncle of Lot, so Lot and Abraham lived in around the same
era.
Galatians 3:15-18
Brothers and sisters, let me take an example from everyday life. Just as no one can set aside or add to a human covenant that has been duly established, so it is in this case.The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. Scripture
does not say “and to seeds,” meaning many people, but “and to your seed,”[ meaning
one person, who is Christ. What I mean is this: The law, introduced 430 years later, does not set aside the covenant
previously established by God and thus do away with the promise. For if the inheritance depends on the law, then it no
longer depends on the promise; but God in his grace gave it to Abraham through a
promise.
First, this brings confusion when reading
the following verse:
Genesis 26:5: Because Abraham obeyed me and kept my requirements, my
commands, my decrees and my laws.
Some argue that these laws refer to the Noahic covenant
The Noahic covenant [Genesis 8-9] applies to the whole
of humankind. In this covenant, God:
1. God blessed Noah and his sons, and told them to
populate the earth [9:1]
2. Placed all plants and animals under human command [9:2-3]
3. Forbade the eating meat with the blood still in it [9:4]
4. Murder was forbidden [9:5]
5. Humankind were commanded to shed the blood of those who shed blood [9:6]
6. The Lord promised that he would never again destroy all life on earth by a
flood [9:11]
7. The Lord created the rainbow as the sign of this covenant for all ages to come
[9:12-17]
Still, nowhere is there a law that forbids looking back when fleeing
from a city. Lot’s wife did not do anything forbidden according to these laws.
Others argue that a commandment was given in Genesis 19 itself
Genesis 19:15-17 With the coming of dawn,
the angels urged Lot, saying, “Hurry! Take your wife and your two daughters who
are here, or you will be swept away when the city is punished.” When he hesitated, the men grasped
his hand and the hands of his wife and of his two daughters and led them safely
out of the city, for the Lord was merciful to them. As
soon as they had brought them out, one of them said, “Flee for your lives! Don’t look back, and don’t stop anywhere in the plain! Flee to the mountains or you will be swept
away!”
I have problems with this.
It is not likely that Lot and his wife were aware that this was being said by
an angel.
In the beginning of the
chapter this is being said about the angels:
Genesis 19:1-2 The two angels arrived at Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gateway of the
city. When he saw them, he got
up to meet them and bowed down with his face to the ground. “My lords,” he said, “please turn
aside to your servant’s house. You can wash your feet and spend the night and then go on
your way early in the morning.”
The fact that Lot called
the angels lords does not imply that he thought they were more than just men.
Sara also called Abraham her lord (1 Peter 3:6). Furthermore, Hebrews 13:2 says
the following:
Do not forget to show hospitality
to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels
without knowing it.
I think this applies to Lot. So, to say that Lot's wife ignored the commandment in this chapter to me is truly a problem.
When for instance Jonah received a commandment from God, it was the Word of God
that was speaking to him (Jonah 1:1-2), and he was aware of this. For Moses, it
was God Himself that spoke directly to Him.
But for Lot and his wife and
daughters, it was all but clear that this was a message from God. The angels were
just two strangers, that appeared to them as men.
In my opinion, Lot’s wife has been being punished while not having violated any law or commandment from God.
Like Paul says, in Romans 4:15
And where there is no law there is no transgression.
Then David.
2 Samuel 11:2-4: One evening David got up from his bed and walked around on the roofof
the palace. From the roof he saw a woman bathing. The woman
was very beautiful, and David sent someone to find out about
her. The man said, “She is Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam and the wife of Uriah the Hittite.” Then David sent messengers to get her. She came to him, and he
slept with her.
He was already under the Law of Moses. He violated this by sleeping with Bathsheba, whose husband was Uriah.
Leviticus 20:10
"'If a man commits adultery with another
man's wife--with the wife of his neighbor--both the adulterer and the
adulteress are to be put to death.
Then:
2 Samuel 11:14-15: In the morning David wrote a letter to Joab and sent it with
Uriah. In it he wrote, “Put Uriah
out in front where the fighting is fiercest. Then withdraw from him so he will
be struck down and die.”
Uriah was now basically
murdered because of the orders from David.
This violated the commandment
that one shall not murder (Exodus 20:13)
What was Gods view on
David?
Acts 13:22 After removing Saul, he made David
their king. God testified concerning him: 'I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart; he will do
everything I want him to do.'
David was a man after God's heart, and was not punished for any of his crimes.
To make a short summary
Lot’s wife
Under any law?: No
(Alleged) crime: Looking back
Consequence: Turned into a pillar of salt, so basically death
David
Under any law: Yes, under the Law of Moses
Crime: Adultery and murder
Consequence: Nothing but blessings from God
How can these two things ever be reconciled with each other?
I still believe in God and in the Bible as the Word of God, but these stories appear disturbing to me.
God seems to act here with double standards. How can this ever be?
Every answer will be appreciated
Thanks
