Lately, I’ve been thinking about Lot’s wife.
We don’t know much about her because the Bible doesn’t go into great detail about who she is. In fact, she’s only mentioned a few times in the Bible (Genesis 19:15-16; Genesis 19:26; Luke 17:32) and not once are we even given her name. What we do know is that she was Lot’s wife and that she had two daughters, and the family lived in Sodom.
I’m not going to go into great detail about their back-story, you can read the full account HERE. But the gist of it is that God was fed up with Sodom’s sins, two angels came to remove Lot and the family from the city before its destruction, and had to forcibly remove the four of them from the city. They were told to flee to the mountains, and were warned not to look back.
Lot’s wife looked back.
We know the basics of the story, but I have to wonder, why? Why did she look back? What drew her back to that wicked city? Did she still have family there? Was she merely curious as to what was happening behind her? Was she regretting leaving, or did her heart yearn to remain behind? Whatever the reason, this mother disobeyed a direct command from God…but it wasn’t just her that suffered the consequences.
Yes. She died. Turned into a pillar of salt. Tragic…yes. But even more tragic was what this one selfish act brought to her children. Without a mother there to guide them, they followed their father to the mountain and devised a wicked scheme. These two girls got their father Lot, drunk, and took turns sleeping with him. Their father became father and grandfather to his own daughter’s sons. So sad. So tragic. So unnecessary.
If Lot’s wife hadn’t looked back, this most likely would not have happened. This mother chose herself over her daughters. She looked back, even though the future was running ahead of her. Her decision affected much more than herself. It changed the destiny of her children.
Today is Mother’s Day, and I have to ask…are we looking back?
What we do as a mother has a profound effect on our children. Every decision, every action, every inaction, the words we speak or the words we don’t…all of it matters. Now, I’m not saying we mom’s can’t have a life outside of our families, but if your children are more of a burden than a blessing it may be time to ask yourself what matters most.
I’m certain if given the chance, Lot’s wife would say, “Don’t look back.”