The Mystery of Madam X
Lynn Lusby Pratt

Here Lies Lot’s wife, the unnamed wife of Abraham’s nephew.

Tornado!

Dorothy saw it coming. She should have run straight for the cellar. But she couldn’t leave Toto behind. Once she had him in tow, she searched for Auntie Em. She kept spinning around, calling out. By the time she reached the cellar, the door was already shut. Too late. So Dorothy and Toto ended up in the land of Oz – and we ended up with a great story.

It didn’t work out that well for Lot’s wife.

She and her family lived in Sin City – Sodom. God said he wouldn’t have saved the city if there had been even ten righteous people there. But the residents of Sodom “were wicked and were sinning greatly” (Genesis 13:13, NIV). We know that at least part of the trouble was homosexual behavior (Genesis 19:5).

God personally sent an angel escort to get Lot and his family out.

“Hurry!” said the angel to Lot (v. 15). But Lot hesitated. The angel had to take his hand!

“Don’t look back,” said the angel (v. 17). Then … all Heaven broke loose! Perhaps lightning struck a petroleum field and grass seeping up from the ground ignited into massive explosions. Perhaps there was also miraculous fire dropping from the sky … with a few earthquakes thrown in. Burning sulfur began to rain down. Lot’s wife should have kept running. But she paused to look back.

Dorothy hesitated because of Toto and Auntie Em. They were important to her. What in Sodom was so important to Lot’s wife? What was she thinking?

Well … maybe they had a really good mall. Or maybe there weren’t any decent restaurants once you left the city. Their pro baseball team could’ve been about to win the championship – and Lot’s wife just looooooooved hot dogs!

You know … important stuff.

The actions of Lot’s wife cost her dearly. The Bible says she “became a pillar of salt” (v. 26). Archaeologists believe the location of the now-buried city is a the south end of the Dead Sea. All kinds of strange salt formations dot the area. And somewhere in all of that … are the remains of Lot’s wife.

All because she couldn’t tear herself away from a very bad place. Could anything have been that important? Remember, God could not even find a handful of people to save. The place was rotten. Couldn’t Lot’s wife see that?

Hmmm. Have you ever watched a really bad movie just to see the one or two good parts? Have you ever bought one great thing at a store that sold mostly nasty stuff?

“Well,” you told yourself, “I know it’s kinda bad, but I really like ...”

I’m afraid that’s what Lot’s wife did. To her, 95 percent bad was still OK.

But to God, it wasn’t.

Think about it.

In Memory of Lot’s wife“No one who … looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.” – Luke 9:62, NIV

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