Chapter Twenty
Lesson Not Learned
20:1 From there Abraham journeyed toward the territory of the Negeb and lived between Kadesh and Shur; and he sojourned in Gerar. 2 And Abraham said of Sarah his wife, “She is my sister.” And Abimelech king of Gerar sent and took Sarah.
It is almost inconceivable to think, let alone understand why Abraham and Sarah would try the same deception they used when they traveled to Egypt earlier (see Genesis 12:10-20). It is true, they did indeed survive and prosper from being in Egypt, but why would they not seek God’s care now? Both had seen the answers to prayer and many miraculous interventions by God, Sarah may have even been pregnant at this time. Were they being careless or perhaps cavalier in trusting in God’s promises? If so, why didn’t they trust God now?
For some unexplained reason, Abraham and Sarah decided to leave the oak trees at Mamre and travel towards the Negeb region. They stopped and lived for a while between Kadesh and Shur, possibly near the location where Hagar encountered the angel (see Genesis 16:7-14). They then moved on to Gerar, the capital city of the land of the Philistines (see Genesis 21:34). The city, as revealed through extensive archaeological excavations, was located near the Egyptian border approximately 12 miles south of Gaza. Archaeologists have also found that the city must have been a prosperous city, which is understandable since it was on a popular and apparently lucrative trade route. Could this have been a lure for Abraham? Perhaps, however at this time he was already very wealthy and would have been considered a powerful and influential leader, he certainly did not need to pursue more possessions.
The Philistines were descendants of Ham and had settled along the Mediterranean coast (see Genesis 10:14-20). When they entered the land, Abraham must have noticed that they did not worship nor honor God and he may have panicked and resorted to an old trick, calling Sarah his sister. Considering that Sarah was now 90 years old it is a little surprising that she was still physically attractive to this king. Some scholars have suggested that since God had rejuvenated her body to have a child then perhaps her entire body benefited from the rejuvenation. Others suggest that Abimelech (a title for Philistine kings, much like the title Pharaoh was used in Egypt) understood the political gain of marrying the sister of such an influential man like Abraham. However, as was the custom of many ancient nations, this king had a harem and of course reserved the right to choose and take any women he desired, and so Abimelech chose Sarah.
20:3 But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night and said to him, “Behold, you are a dead man because of the woman whom you have taken, for she is a man’s wife.” 4 Now Abimelech had not approached her. So he said, “Lord, will you kill an innocent people? 5 Did he not himself say to me, ‘She is my sister’? And she herself said, ‘He is my brother.’ In the integrity of my heart and the innocence of my hands I have done this.” 6 Then God said to him in the dream, “Yes, I know that you have done this in the integrity of your heart, and it was I who kept you from sinning against me. Therefore I did not let you touch her. 7 Now then, return the man’s wife, for he is a prophet, so that he will pray for you, and you shall live. But if you do not return her, know that you shall surely die, you and all who are yours.”
Sarah being taken by Abimelech would have been unacceptable to God for a number of reasons, so it should not surprise us that He would immediately intervene and stop him. God inflicted Abimelech with some form of fatal disorder (see verses 3 and 17), prevented him from getting near her (see verse 6) and closed all the wombs of his house (see verse 18). Then God appeared to Abimelech in a dream and explained to him, not only who Abraham and Sarah were, but also what would happen if he did not listen. Abimelech, concerned for his life and possibly for the lives of everyone in his nation, pleaded his case before God, pointing out that he was lied to. God acknowledged that fact and told him that is why He prevented him from sinning against Him. In His description of Abraham, the Hebrew word ‘nā·ḇî(‘)’[1] was used, seen here for the first time. The word is almost always translated as ‘prophet,’ but could also refer to a spokesman. Typically, the word describes someone who was raised up by God to interact with Him and to convey His messages to others. Instead of healing Abimelech at that time, God instructed him to return Sarah to Abraham and to have Abraham pray for him, otherwise he and everyone that is his, will die. This is the first of five non-godly men in the book of Genesis to have an encounter with God in a dream. Each of those divine dreams include some form of warning from God (see Genesis 31:24; 40:5 and 41:1).
20:8 So Abimelech rose early in the morning and called all his servants and told them all these things. And the men were very much afraid. 9 Then Abimelech called Abraham and said to him, “What have you done to us? And how have I sinned against you, that you have brought on me and my kingdom a great sin? You have done to me things that ought not to be done.” 10 And Abimelech said to Abraham, “What did you see, that you did this thing?” 11 Abraham said, “I did it because I thought, ‘There is no fear of God at all in this place, and they will kill me because of my wife.’ 12 Besides, she is indeed my sister, the daughter of my father though not the daughter of my mother, and she became my wife. 13 And when God caused me to wander from my father’s house, I said to her, ‘This is the kindness you must do me: at every place to which we come, say of me, “He is my brother.” ’ ” 14 Then Abimelech took sheep and oxen, and male servants and female servants, and gave them to Abraham, and returned Sarah his wife to him. 15 And Abimelech said, “Behold, my land is before you; dwell where it pleases you.”
When Abimelech woke up, he immediately called for his servants and told them about the dream. Realizing that if this issue was not resolved soon they could all end up dead, Abimelech quickly calls for Abraham. Upon his arrival, Abimelech chastises him for his deception. In his defense, Abraham states he, upon seeing that they were not a godly nation, feared for his life and then to further justify himself, states that Sarah really is his sister, a half-sister, but still his sister. Abraham also noted that ever since they left his father’s house (approximately 25 years earlier), they agreed to play it safe wherever they went by saying they were brother and sister, not husband and wife. Abimelech then returned Sarah to Abraham, and he also gave him sheep, oxen, and several servants as gifts. He then extended an invitation for them to stay in his land anywhere they wanted to dwell.
20:16 To Sarah he said, “Behold, I have given your brother a thousand pieces of silver. It is a sign of your innocence in the eyes of all who are with you, and before everyone you are vindicated.”
Abimelech then tells Sarah that he gave Abraham a thousand pieces of silver as an acknowledgement that she was indeed innocent and that she was now completely vindicated. It is interesting to note that he referred to Abraham as her brother, almost as if he was trying to downplay his responsibility or accountability in the incident.
20:17 Then Abraham prayed to God, and God healed Abimelech, and also healed his wife and female slaves so that they bore children. 18 For the LORD had closed all the wombs of the house of Abimelech because of Sarah, Abraham’s wife.
After all the exchanging was done, Abraham prayed for Abimelech and his people. While the fault for all that had transpired would have been Abraham’s, God used him for reconciliation. This is a great example of an unconditional covenant in action. Even in disobedience God still acted (curses made and curses lifted) and blessings obtained. God listened to Abraham and Abimelech was healed, God also healed Abimelech’s wife and female slaves, allowing them to now have children.
Considerations
Trusting in God Can Be Contrary to Reason
Abraham’s assessment of the situation may have been accurate since Abimelech never denied what Abraham was saying about the possibility of him being killed to take possession of his wife.
We all require making split-second decisions, every day, some more life-threatening than others, like driving on a crowded freeway or avoiding obstacles when walking. We might be surprised by the number of decisions we make in a day to assure our safety and the safety of others. We do our best to make the right decision, fortunately for most when driving or walking, experience helps make the correct decision. However, when it comes to scenarios that require something more than a quick maneuver, like what Abraham faced, as humans we will try to reason out what we should do. Again, often choosing what experience has taught us, or based on what we have seen in the world, we then make the best possible decision. However, as Christians we need to take the time and turn to God, seeking Him and then trusting Him. Jesus has promised that He is always with us (see Matthew 28:20). Therefore, believers have two basic approaches to prayer to consider, one is to ask God to guide, provide and strengthen us to persevere through what we might be experiencing; or we can ask God to help us avoid a potential situation altogether.
There was no indication that God rebuked Abraham, though He certainly was not pleased with his actions. The good news is that we never again read about Abraham trying to reason his way through situations without God. So, he did learn something, even though it took going through an almost identical tight spot twice.
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[1] Strong’s Hebrew 5030.