by c1mnls from it na well ns by mnchinea cities of the J.rnd; in contrast to l,is uncle (Deut xi. 10, ll)-aa thou comest unto who rem,iincd a wanderer throughout its Zoa.r-nt the south-enet corner of the Dend borders, sojourning RB in n strange country Son (vide eh. xiv. 3 ). (Heb. xi. 9). And (with this purpose in con• Ver. 11.-Then Lot chose him all the templation, he) pitched his tent toward plain of Jordan. .Allured by its beauty and (i. e. in the direction of, and as far as to) fortility, nnd heedless of other or higher con- Sodom. siderations. And Lot journeyed east, D'J8t;l Ver. 13.-llut (literally, and) the men of = versus orientem (cf. eh. xi. 2). And they Sodom were wicked and sinners - their sepsrated themselves the one from the other. wickedness i.~ more specifically detailed in Literally, a maiifrom his brother. eh. xix., q. v.)-before the Lord-literally, Ver. 12.-Abram dwelled in the land of to Jehovah= before the face of .Jehovah; Canaan. Strictly so called ; in its larger ivavriov roii 9,oi, (LXX.),-vi.de eh. x. 9; an sense Canaan included the circle of the aggravation of the wickedness of the So- Jordan. And Lot dwelled in the cities of domites-exceedingly. Their vileness was the plain, Being desirous of a permanent restrained neither in quantity nor quality. settlement within the gates, or at least in .As it passed all height in arrogance, so it the immediate neighbourhood, of the wealthy burst all bounds in prevalence.
HO}IILETICS. Ver. 10.-Tlie cltoice of Lot. I. THE EXCELLENCE OF LoT's CHOICE. 1. Beaut,'jul. Viewed from the Bethel plateau, at the moment perhaps gilded with the shimmering rad.iance of the morning sun, the Jordan circle was a scene of enchanting loveliness ; and in yielding to the fascinations of the gorgeous panorama that spread itself out on the distant horizon it cannot be affirmed that Lot committed sin. The Almighty Maker of the universe loves beauty, as his works attest (Eccles. iii. 11), and hath implanted the like instinct in the soul of man. Hence, so far from being a signal of depravity, the capacity of admiring and appreciating mere physical and external ·grace and symmetry betokens a nature not yet completely disempowered by sin; and so far from its being wrong to surround oneself with objects that are pleasing to the eye, it is rather incumbent so to do, provided always it can be accomplished with- out sin. 2. Prodztctive. As there is no sin in having elegant mansions, fair gardens, and fine pictures to look upon, so neither i11 there evil in desiring fertile fields instead of barren rocks to cultivate. Sentenced to eat bread in the sweat of his brow, the Christian is not thereby required to prefer a tract of moorland to a farm of rich alluvial soil. llfonkish asceticism may enjoin such self-mortification on its devotees; Christianity invites men to enjoy the good things which have been freely given to them by God. The well-watered fields of the Jordan circle were as open to the choice of Lot as were the bleak Judrean hills. 3. S1tggestive. Already it Im.I recalled to his memory the luxuriant plains of Egypt which he had lately visited, and to his imagination the resplendent Eden of man's primeval clays; and doubtless it was such a region as could scarcely fail to inspire a devout mind with lofty thoughts, pure emotions, and holy aspirations, so leading the entranced worshipper from nature up to nature's God, Since the human soul cannot choose but be insensibly affected for g·ood or evil by its material as well 11.B moral environment, it is well, when Divine providence gives .us the election, that we select for our abodes scenes and places that shall elevate and refine rather than deteriorate and depress. IL 'I'm: DRAWBACKS 01!' LoT's CHOICE. 1. Bad neighbours. The inhabitants of tl1c Jordanic Pentapolis were sinners of an aggravated type. And while it may not be possible to avoid all contact with wicked men (1 Cor. v. 10), it becomes God's people to keep as far aloof as possible from the ungodly, and especially from trans- gressors like the Sodomites. Mingling with and marrying into the families of the ungodly ruined the antedilnvian world. '!'he chief injury done to the Church of Christ arises from n throwing down of the wall of separation between it and the world. Separation from and nonconformity to the world, and much more the wicked _Portion of it, is the duty of believers (Rom. xii. 2; 1 Cor. vi. 17). 2. ~Moral co11t,1minatio1i. Though Lot was II good man, his piety would not prevent the gradual deterioration of his nature through the evil influence of his neighbours. There is li contagion, for good or evil, in example which is well nigh irresistible. "He that THE BOOK OF GENESIS. (en. ,nn. 10-18,