Gênesis 20

Gênesis 20

Wuest - Not only are the readers to lay aside every general encumbrance which would slacken their speed in the Christian race, but also any particular, specific one. The words “easily beset” are the translation of euperistatos, eu meaning “readily, deftly, cleverly,” and the verbal form of the rest of the word, “to place itself around.” It speaks of a sin which readily or easily encircles the Christian runner, like a long, loose robe clinging to his limbs. The sin may be any evil propensity. Here the context suggests the sin of unbelief which was the thing keeping the unsaved recipients of this letter from putting their faith in Messiah as High Priest. (Hebrews Commentary) Everyone has besetting sins they constantly struggle with, whether it is gossiping, lying, losing one’s temper, or lust. Christians do not automatically become perfect and sinless when we are saved (1 John 1:8); rather, we will continue to struggle against sin for the rest of our lives. We are constantly fighting against our sinful nature, as what the flesh wants conflicts with what the Spirit wants (Galatians 5:17). The Bible gives examples of people who struggled with besetting sins. Both Abraham and Isaac fell into the same sin multiple times, when they lied about their wives to protect themselves (Genesis 12:10–13; 20:1–2; 26:7–9). In the book of Judges, Samson struggled with lust throughout his life, and it caused him many problems (Judges 14:1–3, 16–17; 16:4–5, 15–17). Similarly, David and Solomon both had a weakness in regard to women, and their lust proved troublesome (2 Samuel 11:2–27; 1 Kings 11:1–4). Besetting sins also affected those in the New Testament: the apostle Peter struggled with the fear of man, such as when he denied knowing Jesus three times (Matthew 26:69–75) and when he sided with the Judaizers in Antioch and was confronted by Paul (Galatians 2:11–14). Besetting sins do not have to control us. In Christ, we have been set free from our sins and are no longer slaves to sin (John 8:36). We are dead to sin: “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20). As we lay aside “the sin that so easily entangles” (Hebrews 12:1), we should avoid tempting situations and relationships, making “no provision for the flesh” (Romans 13:14, NKJV). We should pray for wisdom and strength to change our habits. We should saturate ourselves in Scripture (Psalm 1:1–2; John 17:17). And when we sin, we should immediately seek God’s wonderful mercy and grace, having this promise: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). GotQuestions.org Related Resource: How can I overcome a habitual sin? | GotQuestions.org I overcame _______ sin. How can I avoid a relapse? | GotQuestions.org In regards to forgiveness, is there a difference between willful sin and ignorant sin? | GotQuestions.org What is a sin of commission? | GotQuestions.org Steven Cole's analysis of besetting sins - We all are prone to besetting sins. If Abraham had one, you can be sure that we all have them! Often, like Abraham, we fail in the everyday worries and fears of life, not in the major crises. Abraham had this long-standing fear for his safety. Back before he left his father’s house, he devised this “white” lie and got Sarah to agree to it in an attempt to protect himself (Ge 20:13). If God had called him to go, God would protect him. So this scheme was unnecessary, illogical, and it didn’t even work the two times he tried it. But it was a weak area with Abraham, and he fell into it when he got into these situations. FIVE OBSERVATIONS ON BESETTING SINS (1) BESETTING SINS ARE ALWAYS A DANGER. I don’t mean that we can’t experience consistent victory over them. By God’s grace and power, we can. But I do mean that there will never be a time when we’re so strong spiritually that we don’t have to be on guard against them. If you ever get to thinking, “I’ve finally got that problem licked once and for all,” look out! “Let him who thinks he stands take heed (present imperative see our need to depend on the Holy Spirit to obey) lest he fall” (1 Cor. 10:12+). Abraham had walked with God for years, but he fell into the same sin that had defeated him twenty years before. Some branches of Christianity teach that we can reach a state of sinless perfection in this life (Is sinless perfection possible in this life?). How I wish it were so! The Bible teaches that we can have consistent victory over sin, but it also teaches that even the strongest saints are always vulnerable to temptation (ED: cf Mt 26:41+, 1Pe 2:11+). As long as we remember that we’re weak, so that we walk in the Spirit (Gal 5:16+), we’ll be strong in His strength (ED: 2Ti 2:1+, 1Co 16:13+, 2Co 12:9,10+, Php 4:13+). But the minute we forget it, or start thinking we’re strong in ourselves, we’re in trouble (ED: Rev 2:4+ > "Remember" Rev 2:5+). We need to be careful to avoid situations which expose us to danger (ED: Pr 5:8+, Eph 5:11+). There is no indication here that Abraham sought the Lord about his move to Gerar (Ge 20:1). Since the land of Canaan was so crucial in God’s plan for Abraham and since God had blessed Abraham in his years by the oaks of Mamre, I can’t believe that it was right for him to pack up and move without consulting the Lord, especially into a situation that exposed him to his old weakness. If you know that you’re easily tempted in certain situations, avoid those situations (ED: 1Co 6:18, 19+)! If you’re tempted by drinking, don’t go near bars. If you’re tempted by lust, don’t go to bookstores where pornography is sold; don’t go to movies with sex scenes. If you’re tempted when you travel alone, make arrangements to be accountable and plan your free time with things that will build you in the Lord. Knowing that we’re vulnerable, we need to plan not to sin! (2) BESETTING SINS ARE ROOTED IN THE LOVE OF SELF. If Abraham had been loving God (ED: SEE EXPULSIVE POWER OF A NEW AFFECTION), would he have tarnished God’s Name (which was associated with Abraham) by lying? If he was loving Sarah more than himself (as every husband should do; Eph. 5:25+), would he have been willing to let her be taken from his side and exposed to adultery? Why did Abraham do such a thing? Because he was afraid that he would be killed (Ge 20:11). He loved himself more than he loved God or Sarah. I have read statements by “Christian psychologists” to the effect that most of our problems stem from feelings of low self worth. I read an article recently explaining that one reason pastors commit adultery is low self esteem. But the Bible teaches that most of our sins stem from the fact that we love ourselves more than we love God and more than we love others. Any man who commits adultery is loving himself more than he loves God, his wife, his children, and even more than he loves the other woman. If you try to overcome sin by loving yourself more, you’re simply feeding the source of the problem! The answer to overcoming sin is to deny yourself, not to love yourself (Luke 9:23+). (3) BESETTING SINS ALWAYS HURT OTHERS. We tend to think of our besetting sins as basically harmless. Abraham probably thought, “This is just a white lie. No one will get hurt.” And yet his sin risked losing Sarah to another man. It must have hurt Sarah’s feelings to be used as Abraham’s buffer to protect his hide. And it caused Abimelech and his household to get sick and be on the verge of death (Ge 20:3, 7). We never have the luxury of sinning in private. Our sin always hurts others. God prevented Abimelech from his unintentional sin, but God wouldn’t heal him apart from Abraham’s prayer (Ge 20:7, 17-18). That put Abraham in the position of having to pray that another man’s wife and concubines would not be barren, a prayer that he had asked for his own wife for over 25 years! In Genesis 18, Abraham had learned to pray for those who were under judgment for their own sins. Here he learns to pray for those who had been damaged by his sin. We can’t always undo the damage our sin has caused. But we can pray for those who have been hurt by our sin. We should ask forgiveness, and make restitution when we can. But we need to remember that our sin always hurts others, and thus avoid sinning. Besetting sins are always a danger; they stem from self-love; and, they always damage others. (4) WE TEND TO EXCUSE BESETTING SINS, NOT CONFESS AND FORSAKE THEM. I’d like to be able to report that Abraham confessed his sin and put it out of his life. Maybe he did, but the Bible is silent on it. What we see him doing here is making excuses for it, not confessing it. God uses a pagan king to confront His sinning prophet. Abraham says he thought there would be no fear of God in this place (Ge 20:11), and yet the men of that place feared greatly when they heard of God’s potential judgment on them (Ge 20:8), whereas Abraham had feared them more than he feared God. (ED: Pr 29:25 "The fear of man brings a snare, But he who trusts in the LORD will be exalted.") Abraham has three excuses for his sin. First, he says that the situation forced him to do it. Ever since God had “caused him to wander” from his father’s house, he had been afraid he would be killed, and so he had planned this lie (Ge 20:13). What else could a man do in such a situation? But how could Abraham really be in danger of losing his life, if God had called him to go into Canaan and had promised to make a great nation out of him? There is no situation where God puts you where sin is no longer sin because of the circumstances. Abraham’s second excuse was to justify a half-truth as the truth, to say that Sarah was his sister. But though technically true, it was intended as a lie. The important fact in this case wasn’t that she was his sister, but that she was his wife. You can bend the facts or limit them in such a way as to promote falsehood. That’s lying, even if it is technically true. The motive is what counts. Abraham calls his lie a “kindness” (Ge 20:13). But a lie is never a kindness or “a little white lie.” It’s always sin. The third excuse was, “That’s the way we’ve always done it” (Ge 20:13). He and Sarah had agreed to do it this way years before. “Don’t take it personally, Abimelech! This is just what we’ve always done.” But just because we’ve always done it doesn’t make it right. Maybe we’ve always sinned! This story shows us how “a little white lie” can mushroom into a severe problem which hurts many. We’d all be a lot better off if we’d call our sin what it is--SIN--confess it and turn from it. (ED: Pr 28:13+, 1Jn 1:9+). Thus besetting sins are always a danger; they stem from love of self; they hurt others; and, we tend to excuse them, rather than confess them. A fifth observation: (5) BESETTING SINS ALWAYS DISHONOR GOD. Just think what would have happened if Abimelech had consummated his relationship with Sarah! The birth of Isaac, and of Isaac’s descendant, Christ, would be forever under a cloud. Abraham wouldn’t have known if Isaac was his child in fulfillment of God’s promise or Abimelech’s child. Since Isaac was the link in God’s plan to bless all nations through Abraham’s seed, the whole Messianic program was jeopardized by Abraham’s foolish lie. God was made to look bad through Abraham’s sin. Abimelech must have thought, “If this guy is God’s prophet, I’m not sure I want to know this God!” Abimelech, a pagan, has more integrity here than Abraham, God’s prophet. All sin dishonors God. If Abimelech had committed adultery with Sarah, it wouldn’t have primarily been a sin against Abraham. God says, “I kept you from sinning against Me” (20:6). While our sin hurts others, it always dishonors the God whom we represent. Bruce Goettsche - STEPS TO DEALING WITH RECURRING SIN Admit and Confess the Truth. It is comes to dealing with sin we can't mess around. We must be honest about it. One of the biggest barriers we often face is that we all tend to maintain a "holy facade". In other words, we come together and we smile and maintain a "holy air" about us. We intentionally give the impression that we have everything together. After all, we are Christians. True believers have no problems. They don't struggle. In other words, we are really good at lying to each other. And we try to lie to God. This is the height of foolishness. We are fellow pilgrims. We have good days and bad. We have victories and failures. And until we are willing to admit that things aren't always easy, we'll never be able to take aim at the sin we are unwilling to acknowledge. I find that the best way to deal with recurring sin is to identify the sin completely. Get to the root issues. See it in all it's ugliness . . . here's some examples: Don't just confess, "I lied". Confess that you turned away from the truth which means you turned away from the Lord. Recognize that in your lying you showed a lack of love to the one you lied to. Confess the pride that made you want to hide the truth. Don't just confess, "I lusted". Confess that you were allowing your mind to wallow in filth. Confess that you took something from the one you love in lusting for another. Ask yourself how you would feel it is was your son or daughter that was the object of your lustful thoughts. Don't confess "I took something that didn't belong to me." Confess that you stole. Admit that you robbed another. Admit that you are guilty of coveting what is not yours. Admit that you showed that you were ungrateful for what the Lord has provided you. Don't just confess, "I gossiped". Identify it for what it really is. Confess that you assaulted another's character. Confess that you were guilty of tearing down rather than building up. Confess the pride that made you savor the gossip and the arrogance that presumes to glory in another's failure. Don't just confess, "I didn't make it to church today." Confess the fact that you allowed other things to take priority over your worship of the Lord. Confess the laziness that kept you in bed. Confess your idolatry in honoring something above the Lord. Do you get the idea? Don't soften sin . . . identify it as the horrible thing that it is. If we misrepresent the nature of our sin, we are opening the door for repeated failure. Avoid Tempting Situations The way an Eskimo kills a wolf is grizzly, yet it offers fresh insight into the consuming, self-destructive nature of sin. First the Eskimo coats his knife blade with animal blood and allows it to freeze. Then he adds another layer of blood, and another, until the blade is completely concealed by frozen blood. Next, the hunter fixes his knife in the ground with the blade up. When a wolf follows his sensitive nose to the source of the scent and discovers the bait, he licks it, tasting the fresh frozen blood. He begins to lick faster, more and more vigorously, lapping the blade until the keen edge is bare. Feverishly now, harder and harder, the wolf licks the blade in the Arctic night. So great becomes the craving for blood that the wolf does not notice the razor sharp sting of the naked blade on his own tongue nor does he recognize the instant at which his insatiable thirst is being satisfied by his own warm blood. His carnivorous appetite just craves more - until the day finds him dead in the snow. [Paul Harvey] Things that seem innocent can quickly become destructive Things that seem innocent can quickly become destructive. We need to be alert to those things that lead us into sin. Satan will lure us in with something that appears harmless. He will tempt us to get as close to sin as we can . . .all the time assuring us that we are not "technically sinning." But if we play with sin . . . we will get burned. Joseph had the right idea . . . when his boss's wife grabbed him and tried to seduce him, he didn't play around . . . he ran. If you have problems with lust don't linger at the magazine rack and don't rent movies that could turn your mind from the truth. Put a filtering software on your computer and have someone else set the password. If you have trouble with wasting time . . .chart the way you use your time. Then start cutting back. Limit your time on the Internet or with your video games, or in front of the television. If you have problems with alcohol you shouldn't go out with the boys "just to have a coke" at the local bar. Don't bring liquor into your home. Don't give in to the notion that "one won't hurt me." If you have problems with money, don't carry a credit card. Throw way catalogs before you look at them. Turn off those infomercials! If you have problems with gossip, walk away when gossip begins to take center stage. Learn to ask yourself, "would I want someone to be repeating these things about me?" Ask people for sources. If you have problems with resentment or bitterness, stay away from those who feed your feelings. When your mind starts replaying the hurt and imagining getting even . . . change the channel. Imagine instead what it would be like to forgive and to restore the relationship. Imagine being faithful to God rather than imagining playing God. Where Possible, Get Help from Others. We can all benefit from accountability. It helps to confess our struggles to a trusted friend. Now I know that this is very difficult. As we expose our weaknesses to others sometimes that is used against us. We have to be careful who we look to for accountability. But there is strength that comes from others knowing our areas of weakness. For one thing, those people can be praying for us. For another, it is easier to resist when we know that someone else is going to ask us about our lives. The best relationship is where you holding each other accountable. Read and Memorize Scripture. If we want to free ourselves from sin, we must continually focus on that which is holy, good and righteous. The best way to do that is to read and memorize Scripture. If you are serious about eradicating sin in your life you must spend time in God's Word. It doesn't matter what system you use . . . just keep reading. Expose yourself to God's Word every day. Interact with it. Apply it to your life. Ask, "what should I be learning?" This will help you think Biblically. Do you remember when Jesus was tempted by the devil in the wilderness? Every temptation was answered with the truth of God's Word. The only way you can do this is to commit His Word to memory. You can do this by using some memory system. Or, you can memorize verses that you run across in your own reading. When you come across a verse that speaks powerfully to a need of yours, write it down on a card and carry the card around with you. Refer to the verse often. Think about it as you drive, wait in line, or lie in bed. Arm yourself with God's Word! Don't Give Up Repeated failures tempt us to give up. But that is exactly what the Devil wants us to do! Focus on the goal and not the obstacles. Remind yourself that growth takes time. Keep in mind the image of a little child learning to walk. How often they fall. Sometimes they bang their head. But one thing is certain . . . they keep getting up. We need that same kind of focus as we learn to walk by faith. There will be falls. There will be times of frustration . . .but keep getting up! When you have drifted, come back to the Lord (See Backsliding). When you have sinned, confess it. When you have fallen, get back up . . . and begin again. The holy life is worth pursuing with every ounce of strength we have. It is my hope this morning that you are encouraged by this story of Abraham. I hope you have seen that you are not alone. Abraham struggled. We all struggle. It's a part of the journey. Once we gain victory in one area of our lives, God shows us another to begin working on. Spiritual growth begins when we are humble enough to acknowledge our need for growth. So, it's time to drop the pretense. It's time to stop pretending. It's time to work together to become the people God has called us to be. It is a lifetime pursuit. It won't always be easy. But it will indeed be worth the effort. Walter Kaiser - Hard Sayings of the Bible - Sarai Is My Sister? This incident is puzzling not only because of the subterfuge involved but also because the same kind of episode occurs three times (Ge 12:11-13 and in Gen 20:1–3; 26:7–11). In all three episodes the plot is essentially the same. A patriarch visits a foreign land, accompanied by his wife. Fearing that his wife’s beauty will become a source of danger to himself, he resorts to the subterfuge of pretending that his wife is his sister. The recurrent wife-sister theme in Genesis has provoked an unusual number of comments and speculative solutions. Interpreters have been puzzled about why father and son should have fallen back on this ploy so frequently. The old explanation, the documentary source hypothesis, was that there was a single story told in different parts of the country at different times with different heroes. When these various traditions were welded together, the rough edges of the original sources were left for more intelligent moderns to detect. Hence Genesis 12:10–20 came from the Yahwistic writer of the “J” document, offering a Judean or southern viewpoint, and a written source coming from around 850 B.C. The Isaac parallel likewise came from the “J” document, but it featured another protagonist, Isaac. Genesis 20:1–18 was attributed to the “E” document, since it favored a northern or Ephraimite viewpoint and was committed to writing about a century later than “J.” Even though critical scholars concerned themselves with determining which story was the original and how the others developed from it, there is no compelling reason to doubt that all three incidents occurred. But why did the writer find it necessary to include all three stories? Such an attitude betrays a lack of feeling for Hebrew rhetoric, in which repetition was a favorite device. Yet more is at work here. The two protagonists of these stories, Abram—or as he was later renamed, Abraham—and Isaac, were at the center of the promise-plan by which God was going to bless the very nations they were coming in contact with. Moreover, the means by which God was going to bless these Gentile nations was to be carried in the womb of the very woman to whom these potentates were being attracted. Each of these stories, then, sets up a moment of real suspense for divine providence and for the patriarchs, who, in spite of all their blundering, lying and mismanagement, were still the means through whom God was going to bless the world. It must be stated clearly that Abraham and Isaac both practiced deception. The Bible merely reports that they did so, without approving of it. God preserved the purity of Sarai and Rebekah in spite of all the maneuverings of their husbands. No one can make a case for lying based on these passages. It will always be wrong to lie, since God is truth. What about half lies? Wasn’t it true that Sarai was Abraham’s half sister? Was it not also true that the Hurrian society, in such centers as Haran, where Abraham had stayed on his way to Canaan, had a special legal fiction in which the bonds of marriage were strengthened when the groom adopted his wife as his “sister” in a legal document parallel to the marriage contract? Yes, both are true. Sarai was Abraham’s half sister (Gen 11:29). And there was the Hurrian legal form of sister-marriage. However, most scholars have now concluded that there is very little basis for assuming that Abraham had such a document in mind, since the details of patriarchal and Hurrian marriage documents are quite different. What, then, was Abraham’s motivation? Was he willing to sacrifice his wife’s honor and allow her to marry any suitor in order to save his own skin and possibly get some financial gain? Though Genesis 12:13 might appear to support such an interpretation, subsequent events (Gen 12:15–16) provide a basis for questioning its correctness. Oriental attitudes toward adultery were much more sensitive than ours (Gen 20:2–9). It is doubtful that Abraham would have allowed his wife to bear that sin on her conscience, much less allow himself to be an accomplice in it. The medieval commentators suggested that what Abraham hoped to get out of his “brother” status was the right to receive and deny all suitors’ requests to be Sarai’s husband. This suggestion works in those stories where brothers attempt to delay their sister’s marriage (Laban and Rebekah in Gen 24:55, and Dinah and her brothers in Gen 34:13–17). Abraham and Isaac are to be condemned for their complicity in lying, no matter how noble a motive they may have had, or how much truth the lie contained. Still, God was not to be deterred in his plan to bring life and blessing to the nations through the offspring of Sarai and Rebekah. See also comment on EXODUS 1:15–21; 3:18. Norman Geisler - When Critics Ask - GENESIS 12:10–20; 20:1–18—Why did God let Abraham prosper by lying? PROBLEM: We are told in the Bible not to lie (Ex. 20:16), but, when Abraham lied about Sarah, his wealth was increased. SOLUTION: First, Abraham’s increase in wealth should not be viewed as a divine reward for his lie. Pharaoh’s gifts to him were understandable. Pharaoh may have felt obligated to pay amends for the wicked constraint that his corrupt society put on strangers who visited his land. Furthermore, Pharaoh may have felt he had to make amends to Abraham for unwittingly taking his wife into his palace. Adultery was strictly forbidden by the Egyptian religion. What is more, Abraham paid for his sin. The years of trouble that followed may have been a direct result of his lack of faith in God’s protecting power. Finally, although some people are portrayed as men of God, they are still fallible and responsible for their own sin (e.g., David and Bathsheba, 2 Sam. 12). God blessed them in spite of, not because of, their sins. Gleason Archer - How could God allow Abraham to enrich himself through lying? - Bible Difficulties On two occasions (Gen. 12:10–20; Gen. 20:1–18), Abraham passed off his wife Sarah as his sister in order to save himself from getting killed. The first time he did so was when famine afflicted Canaan so severely that he felt he had to move to Egypt to survive (Gen 12:10). But as he approached that corrupt pagan land, he realized he would be at the mercy of a society that would not stop at murder to seize his beautiful wife for the king’s harem. Abraham felt sure they would kill him if they knew the truth about his marital status. He therefore persuaded Sarah herself to join with him in the lie, feeling that this was the only way his life could be spared. It was understandable enough that she complied with his request under those circumstances. Yet it was a sin on the part of both of them, and it robbed them of all possibility of witnessing to the truth of God before the idolatrous society of Egypt. Pharaoh’s agents did as Abraham had foreseen; they took Sarah to Pharaoh as a lovely addition to his harem (she was still beautiful after sixty-five!). But to Abraham’s embarrassment the king bestowed lavish gifts on him and greatly increased his wealth—in servants, livestock, silver, and gold (Gen. 12:16; 13:2). Even after Pharaoh was stricken with a sudden illness, as soon as Sarah entered his palace, and he was constrained to inquire of his soothsayers the reason for his affliction, he was restrained from exacting vengeance on Abraham for his deception. Perhaps Pharaoh understood the constraint that his visitor was under because of the likelihood of his being murdered for the sake of his wife. Pharaoh was also very uncomfortable about being involved in the sin of adultery—which was sternly forbidden even by the Egyptian religion (cf. Book of the Dead, chap. 125, sec. B19, in Pritchard, ANET, p. 35, where the deceased has to aver that he has never committed adultery). Pharaoh was awed by the power of Abraham’s God, who could smite him so quickly that he could not take Sarah to his bed before he fell deathly sick. For these reasons he allowed Abraham to leave Egypt with all the handsome dowry he had bestowed on him as Sarah’s guardian. It seems quite clear that this account of Abraham’s failure is an honest inclusion of his lack of faith as manifested by this entire episode. If he had not believed that Yahweh was able to protect him with honor and integrity if he went down to Egypt, then he should never have gone there at all. As it was, he brought dishonor on himself and the cause he stood for, discrediting himself before the moral standards of Egypt itself. As for his enrichment through Pharaoh’s generosity, there was a very definite sense in which the king was under obligation to pay amends for the wicked constraint that his corrupt society put on strangers who visited his land. When he found out the truth, he had to admit that Abraham had acted logically when he lied himself out of peril. Therefore it hardly follows that God was responsible for Abraham’s increase in wealth; it was Pharaoh’s own doing, and he did not feel justified in demanding it back, even after he found out the truth. Abraham retained his added possessions as he returned to Canaan, the land God had promised to him. But it may well be that the subsequent years of agonizing delay (twenty or more until he was one hundred years old) were due in part to his failure and lack of faith in God’s protecting power, both in Egypt and (later on) in Gerar. Genesis 20 tells us how readily Abraham fell into the same subterfuge in Gerar, when he once again feared for his safety on account of his wife. As he later explained to Abimelech of Gerar, “I thought, surely there is no fear of God in this place; and they will kill me because of my wife” (Gen. 20:11, NASB). He then went on to explain that in point of fact Sarah was his half sister (v.12), even though she lived with him as his wife. But here again Abraham showed a lack of confidence in God’s power to preserve him from mortal danger and failed to uphold God’s honor before the eyes of the unbelieving world. Even though he was given a thousand shekels by way of atonement for Abimelech’s having taken Sarah into his palace, Abraham had to leave under a cloud of dishonor. Again we should observe that this account no more exonerates Abraham from his sin than did the similar adventure in Egypt. He came away from both failures with dishonor and shame, and his influence on the Philistines was as nullified as it had been in the case of the Egyptians. Genesis 20:3 But God came to Abimelech in a dream of the night, and said to him, “Behold, you are a dead man because of the woman whom you have taken, for she is married.” a dream: Ge 28:12 31:24 37:5,9 40:8 41:1-36 Job 4:12,13 33:15 Mt 1:20 Mt 2:12,13 27:19 a dead: Ge 20:7 Ps 105:14 Eze 33:14,15 Jon 3:4 Genesis 20 Resources - Multiple sermons and commentaries GOD GIVES ABIMELECH A STRONG WARNING Now we see an interesting dialogue between God and Abimelech. One could subtitle this section "where sin abounded, grace did much more abound." (Ro 5:20KJV+). Abraham's sin is abounding, but God steps in and His grace superabounds and supervenes to avert a disastrous scenario! But God - Why is this such a critical "but God?" Because if Sarah is taken into Abimelech's haren and has an heir the following year (God keeps His promises!), the heir is in danger of being reckoned as Abimelech's heir and not Abraham's heir and the Messianic line is potentially corrupted! Below are all 41 uses of this gracious reversal of direction, some (e.g., Eph 2:4) of greater import than others (take a moment and ponder a few of these great uses of "but God")... Gen. 8:1; Gen. 17:19; Gen. 20:3; Gen. 21:12; Gen. 45:8; Gen. 48:21; Gen. 50:20; Gen. 50:24; Exod. 21:13; Num. 22:22; Jdg. 15:19; 1 Sam. 23:14; 1 Chr. 28:3; Job 34:5; Ps. 49:15; Ps. 52:5; Ps. 64:7; Ps. 73:26; Ps. 75:7; Jon. 4:7; Mk. 2:7; Lk. 5:21; Lk. 12:20; Lk. 16:15; Acts 2:24; Acts 7:6; Acts 7:42; Acts 13:30; Rom. 5:8; 1 Co. 1:27; 1 Co. 3:6; 1 Co. 3:7; 1 Co. 6:13; 1 Co. 7:15; 1 Co. 12:24; 1 Co. 15:38; 2 Co. 7:6; Gal. 3:18; Eph. 2:4; Phil. 2:27; 1 Thess. 2:4 But God (Elohim) came to Abimelech in a dream of the night, and said to him, “Behold, you are a dead man because of the woman whom you have taken, for she is married - Abimelech is a title for the leader of a country, such as Pharaoh, Caesar, or Czar. Note the Behold (hinneh) which is used to get the hearer's full attention! Indeed, this was a dream (a nightmare) that would get Abimelech's full attention! Note God does not say you will be but that you are a dead man, which is an even stronger way to state it! This warning reminds me of Heb 10:31 which says "It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God." God (Elohim) speaks of God's sovereignty over these events. Hebrew reads "and she is owned by an owner." God intervenes to preserve Sarah, for she was to be the mother of the promised child to Abraham. God informs Abimelech that Sarah who he had taken into his harem was a married woman and therefore he would be guilty of adultery and deserving of death. This is no difference in the Death Sentence God delivered to Abimelech and that He delivered to the Adam and Eve in the Garden – “you shall surely die” (Ge 2:17; 3:3) God's word of course was denied by Satan – “You surely will not die!” (Ge 3:4) which was a direct contradiction and outright lie from the father of lies (Jn 8:44). God repeatedly warns that the penalty for sin is death -- “the soul that sinneth it shall surely die” (Ezek. 18:20), “the wages of sin is death” (Ro 6:23) Does it strike you as a bit odd that God appeared to a pagan king and not to Abraham to address his sin? Steven