NIV, Faithlife Study Bible | Page 92

42 | Genesis 19:30
out of the ca tas tro phe that over threw the cit ies where Lot had lived .
Lot and His Daughters
30
Lot and his two daugh ters left Zoar and set tled in the moun tains , for he was afraid to stay in Zoar . He and his two daugh ters lived in a cave . 31 One day the old er daugh ter said to the youn ger , “ Our fa ther is old , and there is no man around here to give us chil dren — ​as is the cus tom all over the earth . 32 Let ’ s get our fa ther to drink wine and then sleep with him and pre serve our fam i ly line through our fa ther .”
33
That night they got their fa ther to drink wine , and the old er daugh ter went in and slept with him . He was not aware of it when she lay down or when she got up .
34
The next day the old er daugh ter said to the youn ger , “ Last night I slept with my fa ther . Let ’ s get him to drink wine again to night , and you go in and sleep with him so we can pre serve our fam i ly line through our fa ther .” 35 So they got their fa ther to drink wine that night also , and the youn ger daugh ter went in and slept with him . Again he was not aware of it when she lay down or when she got up .
36
So both of Lot ’ s daugh ters be came preg nant by their fa ther . 37 The old er daugh ter had a son ,
19:30 – 38 Lot ’ s daughters , worried about their ability to find men to give them offspring , get their father drunk and have sexual relations with him ( vv . 32 – 35 ). Both women get pregnant and have sons . Their sons produce the Moabites and Ammonites ( vv . 37 – 38 ); both of these groups are given special protection after the Israelites leave Egypt ( Dt 2:9,19 ). This episode of incest concludes the story of Lot . See the people diagram “ Lot ’ s Family Tree ” below .
19:32 preserve our family line through our father While it is possible ( Ge 19:31 ) that the women believed there were no more men left in their region after the cataclysm , the emphasis on Lot ’ s lineage suggests that they believed there were no more relatives left to continue the family line . The absence of a blood heir was akin to being erased from history in an ancient Near Eastern culture . While this does not in any way excuse the incestuous behavior , it helps explain their desperation .
Lot ' s Family Tree
Nahor
Terah
Abraham Sarah Nahor Haran
Wife Lot Daughter Daughter Milkah Iskah
Moab Ben-Ammi
Moabites Ammonites