The most important thing that we learn from this week’s Parsha is that God hates evil. He destroys Sodom and Gomorrah because of the evil they do. But Lot is blinded by his wealth and refuses to leave. He is forced out. And then has a sad end,

Dvar Torah – Parshat Vayeira

The Danger of Choosing Prosperity Over Morality

Good morning.

I’ve recorded the last couple of Divrei Torah a little differently because I’ve been very busy here in Israel. But enough about me. Let’s get to the parsha.

This week’s parsha is Vayeira, and there are many important lessons we can learn from it.

We begin with the three angels who visit Abraham. One of them informs Abraham and Sarah that, despite their advanced age, they will have a son.

According to the Midrash, an angel can perform only one mission. One angel comes to announce the birth of Isaac, another is sent to destroy Sodom, and a third is sent to rescue Lot.

Now, we know that Abraham prayed to God to spare the people of Sodom. Why? Because Abraham was a man of chesed, of loving-kindness. He cared about other people, even people whose values were completely opposed to his own.

And the people of Sodom were the exact opposite of Abraham.

When they discovered that strangers were staying in Lot’s home, they surrounded the house and demanded that Lot bring the strangers outside. They wanted to sexually assault and brutalize them.

Remember, they had no idea these strangers were angels.

Lot tried desperately to protect his guests. He even offered his own daughters to the mob, a deeply troubling offer. But the people of Sodom were interested only in abusing the strangers.

This tells us something about the society in which Lot had chosen to live.

Why did Lot move to Sodom in the first place?

Because it was prosperous!

The land was fertile, the grazing was excellent, and the region was economically successful. Lot saw an opportunity to become wealthy, and he took it.

But there was one major problem.

Sodom had economic prosperity without morality.

And that is a very dangerous combination.

The twentieth-century economist Friedrich Hayek, who was himself an agnostic, recognized the importance of moral traditions and institutions in sustaining a free society. Economic freedom cannot survive indefinitely without a moral framework.

And that brings us back to Lot.

The angels warn Lot that God is about to destroy Sodom. They tell him to leave immediately.

But Lot hesitates.

He doesn’t want to leave.

Think about that for a moment. He knows the city is going to be destroyed, and yet he cannot bring himself to abandon it.

Finally, the angels have to take him and his family by the hand and lead them out.

They are given one very specific instruction: Do not look back.

But Lot’s wife looks back, and she becomes a pillar of salt.

Why did she look back?

Perhaps because she missed the life she had in Sodom. She missed her home, her possessions, her social position, and the prosperity she had enjoyed.

She could not let go of a society that was destroying itself.

And this is a lesson that has repeated itself throughout history.

Think about the Jews of Germany before World War II.

Many German Jews were deeply integrated into German society. They considered themselves Germans. Germany was a country of great culture, philosophy, science, and music.

Many could not believe that such a civilized country could descend into barbarism.

Even as the Nazis came to power and antisemitic persecution intensified, some continued to believe that things would eventually improve.

Of course, we must remember that many Jews desperately wanted to escape but were unable to find countries willing to accept them.

Nevertheless, the tragedy reminds us how difficult it can be to recognize that the world we have known is disappearing.

And we see another warning in our own time.

For years, there were people who believed that Hamas could be moderated, that economic incentives and political arrangements would prevent it from committing atrocities.

Then came October 7.

There is a particularly disturbing contrast between the Nazis and Hamas. The Nazis attempted to conceal much of their systematic murder of the Jews. Hamas terrorists, on the other hand, openly filmed and publicized atrocities committed during their attack.

The lesson is that we must take evil seriously. We cannot simply assume that people who openly express murderous intentions will never act upon them.

And that brings us back to Lot.

Lot should have understood long before the destruction that he was living in the wrong place.

He had chosen his neighbors because of their wealth rather than their character.

And those neighbors influenced him and his family.

Now look at how Lot’s story ends.

After escaping Sodom, he finds himself living in a cave with his two daughters.

His daughters, apparently believing that there are no other men available to continue the human race, get their father drunk and have relations with him. Both become pregnant.

Think about the tragedy of Lot.

He began as a wealthy man, living in one of the most prosperous regions of the world.

He chose Sodom because he wanted economic success.

But what did he end up with?

He lost his home. He lost his wealth. He lost his wife. And his family was left morally devastated.

Lot chose prosperity over morality, and in the end, he lost both.

That is the great lesson of this week’s parsha.

There is nothing wrong with wanting to be successful. There is nothing wrong with making money. Judaism certainly does not condemn wealth.

But wealth cannot be the sole consideration in deciding where we live, whom we associate with, or what kind of society we want to build.

We must look at the moral character of the people around us.

And when we see a society descending into evil, we must have the courage to recognize what is happening rather than pretending that everything will somehow work out.

Abraham understood that morality comes first.

Lot learned that lesson far too late.

And that is something for all of us to think about.