Prophet Lot
The story of Lot, peace be upon him, is one of the Qur'anic stories in which the Holy Qur'an presents the truths of faith, establishes the rules of monotheism, and shows the year of God in dealing with those who oppress themselves and those who turn away from the path of guidance.
The story of Lot with his people is repeated in the Holy Qur'an in several chapters, including: Al-A'raf, Hud, Al-Hijr, Al-Anbiya, Al-Sha'ar, Al-Naml, Al-Ankabut, Al-Safat, Al-Qamar. This story is sometimes detailed and sometimes abbreviated, and it is presented in each chapter in a way that has its own revelations, purposes, influences, and connotations.
God sent prophets with messages and miracles that confirm the truthfulness of their words and their communication with the Lord of the Worlds and His revelation, but God's prophets were met with disbelief and ingratitude from their people for a number of reasons: The other reason is that the interests of some people conflict with righteousness and religion, such as material interests and other passions that they prefer over obedience to God and His pleasure, and among the prophets who struggled in the way of God, trying to take their people to the satisfaction of God and His Paradise, was the Prophet Lot, peace be upon him.
The Story of Lot's People
Lot's people inhabited the area of Sodom in the villages of Jordan, which is said to be in the place where the Dead Sea is now, and God Almighty sent them the message of monotheism with their prophet Lot, peace be upon him, who was the nephew of Abraham Al-Khalil, peace be upon them, so he guided them to monotheism and called them to obey God and his favor, but God's command was difficult for them, as one of their bad characteristics was that their men had sex with men other than what God Almighty instilled in them. But Lot's people hated this and threatened to drive him out of their village if he insisted on them, and Lot continued his call and jihad, and his people continued their disbelief and immorality until Allah (swt) authorized their punishment, so they perished, and among them was Lot's wife, who did not follow the command of Allah (swt) and was one of those who perished.
Lot's people invented an abomination to which no one among the people of Adam had ever been preceded, namely, having sex with the males of the world, and leaving what God has created of women for His righteous servants.
Lot invited them to worship Allah Almighty alone, without a partner, and forbade them from practicing these prohibitions, abominable abominations, and reprehensible acts, but they persisted in their misguidance and tyranny, and continued in their immorality and disbelief, so Allah inflicted on them from the irrepressible misfortune that they could not have imagined and made them an example to the world, and an example for the intelligent people of the world to learn from.
This is why Allah has mentioned their story in several places in His clear Book, so He said in Surat al-A'raf: {"And Lot, when he said to his people, ‘You commit obscenity that no one of the worlds has preceded you, that you lust after men rather than women, but you are an extravagant people,’ and what was the response of his people? except that they said, “Send them out of your village, for they are clean people.” So we saved him and his family, except his wife, who was among the strangers, and we rained rain on them, and see what was the outcome of the criminals.}
Abraham's guests and Lot's people
After Lot (peace be upon him) God sent His angels, Jibril, Israfil and Wamikael, peace be upon them, to inflict torment on the disbelievers. The angels first passed by the village of Abraham, peace be upon him, before they went to Lot, where they preached to Abraham about his son Isaac and his son Jacob, peace be upon them, and told him that they had come to inflict torment on the villages of the people of Lot. Abraham was frightened and concerned about this news, and he argued with the angels out of fear for his nephew Lot, but the angels assured him that God would save Lot, peace be upon him, and destroy the rest of the people, including Lot's wife, because she did not follow her husband's message sent by God Almighty.
After going to Abraham, the angels went to the villages of Lot's people and asked Lot's permission to enter his house. Lot rejoiced at his guests and let them in, but he feared that his people would expose him if they saw the men, especially since the angels were in the form of very beautiful men, and what Lot feared happened; as Lot's wife told them that there were men at her husband's house, so when the people heard the news, they went in haste to negotiate with Lot to enter his guests: (He said, “O my people, these are my daughters, they are purer for you, so fear Allah and do not betray yourselves. They said, “You know that we have no right to your daughters, and that you know what we want.”[7] When the angels saw the anguish that befell Lot - peace be upon him - as he tried to convince his people When the angels saw the anguish that befell Lot (peace be upon him) as he tried to convince his people, they told him that they were angels, and no one could harm them.
Torment:
The angels began announcing to Lot (peace be upon him) the torment that would befall his people, saying, “We are destroying the inhabitants of this village, for its inhabitants were unjust” (Al-Ankabut: 31). Lot, peace be upon him, was ordered to leave the city with his family, and to leave behind those who persisted in their disbelief, except for his wife, who was among the disbelievers.
When they moved away from the city, the torment described by Allah in the Qur'an came in several verses, including “And it became a smoking hole” (Al-Qamar: 37). God ordered the city to be turned upside down, destroyed and crumbled, and the people were destroyed by a flood of stones falling on them.
The fate of Lot's wife:
Lot's wife was a disbeliever who disobeyed his call and refused to believe in God. When Lot was ordered to leave the city, the angels warned him that his wife would be tormented with her people if she did not follow him. However, the wife looked at the city and was tempted to stay with it, so her end was the same as that of her people. It is mentioned in the Qur'an: “Except for your wife, she was one of the strangers” (Al-Ankabut: 32). Her end was painful, as she was afflicted with the same torment as her people.
The story of Lot, peace be upon him: A Journey of Testing and Righteousness:
The story of Lot, peace be upon him, is a journey of testing and righteousness, in which the test that Lot faced and the patience he showed for the sake of God are evident.
Conclusion:
The story of the Prophet Lot (peace be upon him) highlights the importance of the call to God and warns against corruption and deviation from the nature on which God created people. It also shows that whoever insists on disbelief and corruption on earth, the consequence will be painful. Those who follow the right path and stay away from abominations will find help from God, while those who insist on corruption and tyranny will be doomed.
Lot's journey began with his call to his deviant people to obey God and abandon their sins, which was met with strong opposition and rejection by his people. However, Lot remained determined to call them to goodness and repentance.
The greatest test came when angels were sent to Lot to save him and his family from God's coming punishment on their people. At this moment, Lot's righteousness and patience with the tests were crucial factors in his survival.
In Lot's story, righteousness is associated with upholding God's religion and remaining steadfast in obeying Him even in the face of trials and tribulations. Lot clearly demonstrated these qualities, remaining a believer and reformer despite the challenges of time and the opposition of society.
The story of Lot, peace be upon him, is a journey of testing and righteousness, showing us an example of patience, uprightness, and steadfastness to the truth, and how this righteousness leads to human survival and God's favor.