Lot's Self-Sacrifice

Lot liked his uncle Abraham. He was a chassid of Abraham. There were other family members and nephews, but only he, Lot, went along with Abraham's views wholeheartedly. (Which is why he never squealed to the Egyptians on Abraham's real relationship with Sarah).

Like his uncle, Lot appreciated the opportunity to lavish upon guests; Most especially if they were indeed hungry.

Still, Lot preferred distancing himself physically from uncle Abraham. He wasn't as "religious" as his uncle; But he did indulge, as did his uncle, in congenial outreach to needy souls.

Once, having lived in Sodom for a while, Lot found a voyager out on the street, hungry for food. He instructed his daughter to secretly feed the homeless man at night, without rousing notice of the act of goodwill. Sodomites loathed and would kill perpetrators of goodness and charity.

In fact, the Sodomites caught Lot's daughter red-handed. They took her to a roof, stripped her, smeared her entire body with honey, and bees ate her up or killed her. It was this girl's cries that God refers to: "I will go down now to verify that she so cries." (Gen. 18:21)

Lot thus lost a daughter.

When the angels arrive to Sodom, dressed as passers-by, Lot now risks his OWN life to grant favor to strangers. He suggests they enter his house - only do so by taking a detoured side entrance.

The Sodomites had a great detection system in place to catch perpetrators of goodwill. Lot too was caught in the act.

This urge to do good, at the risk of self-sacrifice, even after losing a daughter to the cause, earned Lot an unusual prize. God rewarded Lot by providing that it be his seed that shall share in the Messianic dynasty's lineage.

(Heard this this Shabbos Lech-Lecha from the chassid Rabbi D.S. Pape, who remembers the Rebbe saying this in a farbrengen in 770 where he occupied a permanent "box seat", that -- on account of this self-sacrifice --  Lot merited the privilege of hosting two seeds of the Messianic genetic pool.)

Lot's Legacy Shines

The most fearsome and ferocious General of the army was leading the charge, with 3 other mighty Generals alongside. These were 4 armies about to do battle with 5 opposing armies. What went on was nothing less than a World War, 9 kingdoms taking sides.

The clashes went on far from where Abraham and Lot occupied vast adjacent property, but local enough for Lot to pick up and visit Sodom when he liked. Oh, he really did like Sodom!

Wouldn't you know it, Lot happened to be "cruising" Sodom one day, just when the mightiest of all generals, Nimrod ("Amraphel"), swept him up, throwing him in with his other booty gained for the day. Lot was in the wrong place the wrong time.

Lot never figured Uncle Abraham would enter his comfortable domain or niche. Abraham was "religious", and he wasn't, which was why they lived in separate domains. Of course he believed in God, Lot did, but he also enjoyed other fascinating facets of life that Abraham would not want to get near to.

A second heart-wrenching shock shook Lot that dreadful day. He went full swing, from a bitter fright of losing his life, to where he achieved freedom's ecstasy as his chains fell away. He experienced Abraham's sudden, daring rescue effort. At the end of the day he had good reason to acknowledge stronger affinity to his Uncle Abraham.

How do we know to read Lot's mind? Torah tells us with 3 "by-the-way" words. "And they grabbed up Lot and all his assets, Lot who was the nephew of Abraham, and he was sitting in Sodom." (Gen.14:12)

Now we know: He was sitting in a bar in Sodom, maybe sipping his favorite drink. Suddenly - an invasion of privacy! Suddenly heavy swords come clashing down! Suddenly, Lot has no prayer to exist to the next moment. What Lot didn't know, and what saved him, was he was the genetic carrier of a unique light.

A most brilliant light lies in wait, to indulge the righteous; A light that had been stored for this purpose since the universe's Day One. This brilliant Messianic light that first coursed through Abraham spiritually now was to pass itself on physically via Lot's genetic distribution. Abraham's Light would thus wend its way into the sovereign Messianic lineage. Lot's seeds of Moav and Amon would incorporate into this chain; Moav- via Rut (and Boaz); Amon - via Naamah (and King Shlomo).

Lot, therefore, couldn't have been all that bad!