Lot was the nephew of Abraham, a righteous man who lived in a wicked city but was delivered by God’s mercy. His story begins in Genesis 11:27-31 and is developed through Genesis 12–19. When Abraham left Ur of the Chaldeans in obedience to God’s call, Lot went with him.
As their flocks and herds increased, strife arose between their herdsmen, prompting Abraham to offer Lot his choice of land. Genesis 13:10-11 says, “Lot lifted his eyes and saw all the plain of Jordan… then Lot chose for himself all the plain of Jordan.” He pitched his tent toward Sodom, a decision that would carry grave consequences.
Though the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah were exceedingly wicked (Genesis 13:13), Lot eventually dwelled there. When God judged those cities for their abominations (Genesis 19:13), He sent two angels to deliver Lot and his family. Lot hesitated, but the angels took them by the hand and led them out, saying, “Escape for your life! Do not look behind you” (Genesis 19:17).
Lot’s wife disobeyed and looked back, becoming a pillar of salt (Genesis 19:26), a warning repeated by Jesus in Luke 17:32. Lot and his daughters fled to the mountains. Later, in an act of great moral failing, his daughters got him drunk and conceived children by him (Genesis 19:33-38), giving rise to the Moabites and Ammonites, nations that would often oppose Israel.
Yet, 2 Peter 2:7-8 calls Lot a righteous man, “oppressed by the filthy conduct of the wicked.” Though compromised by poor choices and worldly associations, Lot was spared because of God’s covenant mercy and Abraham’s intercession (Genesis 18:23-33).
Lot’s life warns of the danger of compromise with evil but also magnifies God’s mercy toward those who are His.