If I Could Ask One Question of Lot, I would ask “What Were You Thinking?”

 “The two angels came to Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gateway of Sodom. When Lot saw them, he rose to meet them, and bowed down with his face to the ground. He said, “Please, my lords, turn aside to your servant’s house and spend the night, and wash your feet; then you can rise early and go on your way.” They said, “No; we will spend the night in the square.” But he urged them strongly; so they turned aside to him and entered his house; and he made them a feast, and baked unleavened bread, and they ate. 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; and they called to Lot, “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us, so that we may know them.” Lot went out of the door to the men, shut the door after him, and said, “I beg you, my brothers, do not act so wickedly. Look, I have two daughters who have not known a 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.” But they replied, “Stand back!” And they said, “This fellow came here as an alien, and he would play the judge! Now we will deal worse with you than with them.” Then they pressed hard against the man Lot, and came near the door to break it down. But the men inside reached out their hands and brought Lot into the house with them, and shut the door. And they struck with blindness the men who were at the door of the house, both small and great, so that they were unable to find the door.” Genesis 19:1-11

The story of Sodom – more specifically the people of Sodom is one of the more troubling stories in the Old Testament. The stories about the sins of the people of Sodom have reached all the way to heaven, and the Lord has determined to do something about it. Abraham has tried to get the messengers to reconsider their course of action, and they have determined that if they find ten righteous people in the city, the Lord will not destroy the city. And so the two messengers of the Lord arrive in the city, and Lot asks them to stay with him. And while they are with Lot, the men of the city come and demand of Lot to give the visitors to them, so “they man know them”. This is a particularly terrible sin, the sin of “non-consensual” sexual relations. So Lot determines to keep the men of the city away from the visitors – after all, hospitality to strangers is of the utmost importance for the people of Israel. And in a strange turn of events, Lot says “Look, I have two daughters who have not known a 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.” His response seems as bad as the demands of the men of the city.

We may find ourselves questioning the culture of that day, but protecting one’s guests required great sacrifice. Was Lot right to offer his own daughters in place of the men – the messengers of the Lord? No. But we see something greater happening, because in the story, the Lord’s messengers protected Lot and his daughters in spite of Lot’s choice of hospitality over protecting his own daughters.

But, if I had the opportunity to ask Lot a question, I would ask him “What were you thinking?” That is my question for Lot. What question would you ask him?

Pastor Dave

If I Could Ask One Question of Balaam, I would ask “Did the Donkey Speak With an Accent?”

“God’s anger was kindled because he was going, and the angel of the Lord took his stand in the road as his adversary. Now he was riding on the donkey, and his two servants were with him. The donkey saw the angel of the Lord standing in the road, with a drawn sword in his hand; so the donkey turned off the road, and went into the field; and Balaam struck the donkey, to turn it back onto the road. Then the angel of the Lord stood in a narrow path between the vineyards, with a wall on either side. When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord, it scraped against the wall, and scraped Balaam’s foot against the wall; so he struck it again. Then the angel of the Lord went ahead, and stood in a narrow place, where there was no way to turn either to the right or to the left. When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord, it lay down under Balaam; and Balaam’s anger was kindled, and he struck the donkey with his staff. Then the Lord opened the mouth of the donkey, and it said to Balaam, “What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times?” Balaam said to the donkey, “Because you have made a fool of me! I wish I had a sword in my hand! I would kill you right now!” But the donkey said to Balaam, “Am I not your donkey, which you have ridden all your life to this day? Have I been in the habit of treating you this way?” And he said, “No.” Then the Lord opened the eyes of Balaam, and he saw the angel of the Lord standing in the road, with his drawn sword in his hand; and he bowed down, falling on his face. The angel of the Lord said to him, “Why have you struck your donkey these three times? I have come out as an adversary, because your way is perverse before me. The donkey saw me, and turned away from me these three times. If it had not turned away from me, surely just now I would have killed you and let it live.” Then Balaam said to the angel of the Lord, “I have sinned, for I did not know that you were standing in the road to oppose me. Now therefore, if it is displeasing to you, I will return home.” Numbers 22:22-34

The story of Balaam and his donkey is one of my favorite stories in the Old Testament.   G-d is angry with Balaam, and so has taken a stand to contend with him. Balaam, unable to see what the donkey sees, is blind to how he has angered G-d. While G-d is trying to put Balaam on a different path, Balaam is trying to do the same to the donkey. And, Balaam is not think about G-d at all. He thinks, “You stupid donkey! Why did you do that to me?” As such, he does not say anything at this point but beats the poor donkey. His injury does not cause him to consider at all that G-d may be trying to get his attention. It never comes to mind that G-d may be telling him something. He takes all his pain and rage out on this innocent donkey, which was only trying to obey G-d.

The confrontation continues between Balaam and his donkey until finally the donkey has had enough. And he speaks his anger at Balaam: “Am I not your donkey, which you have ridden all your life to this day? Have I been in the habit of treating you this way?”

When the donkey spoke to Balaam, I wonder if he had an accent? This is the question I would ask Balaam because, well, I have never heard a donkey speak. Do donkey’s from the southern states in America speak with a southern accent? Do the donkeys from Appalachia speak with a regional accent? Of course, if I ever encountered a talking donkey, I am not so sure what I would do. But, I would at least take note of his or her accent.

That is the question I would ask Balaam. What is your question for Balaam? 

Pastor Dave