2 Peter 2:8
(for that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard)—
Truth to Learn
Living in the midst of sin is torture for a committed Christian.
Behind the Words
The word “tormented” comes from the Greek word basanidzō, which means “an examination by torture.”
Meaning Explained
In the previous verses we talked about the wickedness of Sodom and its affect on Lot. According to verse seven God delivered “righteous Lot” who had been worn down by the lustful behavior of the lawless people of the city.
Today’s verse reiterates the fact that the actions of the people of Sodom had a tormenting and debilitating effect on Lot. Peter starts off this verse restating Lot’s righteousness as if to make the point that, in spite of his constant exposure to and oppression from the acts of the inhabitants of Sodom, Lot was indeed righteous. But he was not at peace!
The verse tells us that as Lot was living among these people, day after day, he was seeing their actions and hearing them talk about them. Apparently the thoughts and actions of the people of Sodom were constantly focused on their sinful lusts. I can just imagine all their billboards and all of their television commercials were laden with sexual innuendos and overt sexuality. I can imagine their Wall Street advertisers saying, “Sex sells our products.”
Today’s society, like Sodom of old, is controlled by lust. What we see today is a world totally focused on eating, drinking, partying, and sexuality. The effects of it are all around us, from alcoholism and drug abuse to an epidemic of obesity, to the blinding lust for power and riches, to overt depraved sexuality. In 1 John 2:16 it says,
“all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.”
It’s all around us. We are living in the midst of it day after day. Lot was being tortured by it. We all know what happens to people who are tortured, they will say and do almost anything just to end the torture. We need to be careful in our condemnation of Lot for his own perverse reasoning, offering his daughter to protect the angels. He was being tortured!
Application
The real question is, are you being tortured by what you see and hear around you today? Do the things you see and hear daily vex your spirit? Does it bother you to see blatant sexuality portrayed in movies and advertisements day after day? Are you able to keep your desires for food, fun, and sex in their proper place? Or have you succumbed to the constant barrage of sinfulness around you so that you spend more time during the day thinking about your own desires and things of the world than you do about the God who loves you?
Here’s a quick test. Compare the amount of time you spend daily fellowshipping with God (through prayer, reading and studying the Bible, and humbling yourself before Him) to the amount of time you spend in worldly pursuits or entertainment.
Ouch, that hurts!
In God’s service, for His glory,
Copyright © 2009 Will Krause. All rights reserved.
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