The book of Genesis now returns us to Sarah and Abraham. In verse one, we see them moving into the Negev region and settling in a place called Gerar. The people of this place were once nomadic shepherds but were now beginning to become a more settled people and a warlike nation. Gerar was their capital. These people later came to be known as the Philistines and were enemies of the Israelites. The name Philistines also later brought to this region the name Palestine.
Read what happens in verse 2. Where have we seen this before? I’ll give you a hint… read Gen 12:10-20. Sarah was 65 years old in chapter 12 when she and Abraham went into Egypt and deceived the Pharoah, saying she was his sister. Why had they done this (Gen 12:11). Even at that age, Sarah was such a beautiful woman that Abraham was afraid the Pharoah would have him killed to take his wife from him. But here in chapter 20, coming into Gerar, Sarah is now 90 years old. She cannot possibly still be so beautiful that she puts Abraham’s life at risk. So why repeat the ruse? Well, back in those days, kings generally did not marry for love. Political alliances were much bigger reasons for taking wives and remember, Abraham’s household was large. He had many men and, if you recall, in chapter 13 they had defeated several kings and their armies in order to rescue Lot. And word gets around. Bringing Abraham’s sister into his household was a good way for Abimelech to ensure peace with such a powerful man.
In verse 3, once again we see God intervening in the affairs of men. God appears to Abimelech in a dream and tells him he has a death sentence on his head because of Sarah. God tells Abimelech that Sarah is already another man’s wife. God takes the sanctify of marriage very seriously. What is Abimelech’s reaction (verses 4-5)? We see here that the lie is not only Abraham’s. Sarah has told it also.
In verse 6 God acknowledges to Abimelech that He knows the king is innocent in this circumstance and tells him that this is why He intervened. God Himself prevented Abimelech from sinning with Sarah. Knowing the culture of the time, it is certain that Sarah had been placed into the haram of Abimelech and would have been available to him at his convenience. Consummation of the relationship would have been necessary to complete the marriage. And yet, so far, God had prevented that from happening. Can you think of any specific times in your life when God has intervened and prevented you from committing a foolish sin though you were determined to perform it? I can. Praise Him that He looks out for us as He does.
There is so much in verse 7. God tells Abimelech to return Sarah. He also tells Abimelech that Abraham is a prophet and that Abraham will pray for him. God promises that if Abimelech does this, he will live, but if he does not obey, he and his entire household will die. God takes sins against marriage very, very seriously (Heb 13:4).
Early the next morning, Abimelech summons all his officials and tells them what has happened and they are all afraid (verse 8). Then Abimelech summons Abraham, accuses him of having wronged him and his kingdom, and demands to know why he would do this. Abraham offers two excuses:
- There is no fear of God here and I was afraid of being killed for my wife.
- Sarah really is my half sister so it wasn’t technically a lie… really Abraham???
In verse 13, Abraham revealed to Abimelech that he and Sarah had devised this plan way back before they even left Ur to go to the place God was taking them. When God had called Abraham, he was willing to obey and go where God would take him, but he still didn’t trust God at the time to keep him safe when he did so. Abraham, though willing to obey God, still felt the need to devise a little ruse which he and Sarah could fall back on if God led them into trouble. Aren’t we all guilty of that sometimes? We want to obey God but we are afraid. We don’t really believe in our hearts that God can bring us safely through. We can’t always say that we have learned to trust Him.
We see next, in verse 14, that Abimelech not only returned Sarah to Abraham, but he also gave him gifts of sheep, cattle, and slaves. Please note that the Bible is not condoning slavery here, but rather, just acknowledging that it occurred. In verses 15 and 16, Abimelech allows them to live in his land and gives Abraham silver. He is making peace with Abraham for the wrongs that have occurred. And in verse 17, Abraham prays for Abimelech.
In verses 17-18, we see that God had caused all the women of Abimelech’s household to not be able to conceive children while Sarah was in his haram, but now that she has been returned, God has healed the women. This was not a punishment on Abimelech. Remember, God has absolved Abimelech from guilt. This was meant to get the situation corrected, not to harm Abimelech. Prior to this incident with Abraham, Abimelech and his people did not know the one true God. They did now. And how long did Abraham continue to live there among them (Gen 21:34)?
Responding to God: Worship God for His love and His willingness to intervene in the affairs of men. Seek forgiveness for those times you have been guilty of deceiving others and resolve to make it right. Pray earnestly that God will give you the ability to trust Him and that He will work a way for you to live in harmony with others.
Further Research: Using a concordance, search the Bible to see what God has to say about honestly, truth, and deceit.
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