Lot goes outside to the men, shutting the door behind him, and attempts to reason with them. The action of going out and closing the door behind him is simultaneously brave (he faces the mob alone) and protective (he keeps the guests inside). But the attempt to reason with a mob that has already established its demands is futile. Proverbs 9:7–8 warns that whoever corrects a mocker invites insults; whoever rebukes the wicked incurs abuse. Lot is about to discover that the city has passed the point where moral reasoning reaches it. The application: there is a moment in the corruption of a community when moral argument no longer has traction — when the mob has moved past the stage of debate into the stage of demand. Knowing when that moment has arrived is wisdom. Lot tries to reason; what he needed to do was leave.

COMMUNITY REFLECTIONS

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