Genesis 20 - Day 20 (click here to read the chapter)
Scripture: Genesis 20:1-4 Abraham moved south to the Negev and lived for a while between Kadesh and Shur, and then he moved on to Gerar. While living there as a foreigner, 2 Abraham introduced his wife, Sarah, by saying, “She is my sister.” So King Abimelech of Gerar sent for Sarah and had her brought to him at his palace. 3 But that night God came to Abimelech in a dream and told him, “You are a dead man, for that woman you have taken is already married!” 4 But Abimelech had not slept with her yet, so he said, “Lord, will you destroy an innocent nation? Commentary: This is an astonishing episode. It seems incredible that Abraham should make the same dreadful mistake again: visiting a foreign country, he passes his wife off as his sister. If perhaps in chap. 12 we may excuse him, because at that stage he had little experience of God’s providential protecting care, now years older and richer in experiences of deliverance from danger, it is amazing to find Abraham fearing for his life in Gerar. The righteous prophet who boldly pleaded for the salvation of Sodom is now discovered to be less than perfect in his trust in God’s safekeeping. Indeed, when challenged by Abimelek, he resorts to lying, claiming he described Sarah as his sister wherever they went. Coming straight after the sacking of Sodom and the unfilial behavior of Lot’s daughters, this story disturbs the reader in another way. In the great city of Sodom, there were not ten righteous, but Gerar had a God-fearing king who ruled a righteous nation (20:4, 8). Not all foreigners were as godless as Sodom. Thus this incident makes us realize that Abraham is not such a saint as we might have concluded from chap. 18, nor were all the inhabitants of Canaan so depraved as those who lived in Sodom. Wenham, G. J. (1994). Genesis 16–50 (Vol. 2, p. 75). Dallas: Word, Incorporated. Application: Life is full of surprises and as the old cliche goes, don't judge a book by its cover. Even after all these years Abraham still has his faults, like we all do. The eye-opener here is that King Abimelech recognized the Lord's omniscience and omnipotence. There are people in our lives who know and fear God as well. Prayer: Almighty God, who seest that we have no power of ourselves to help ourselves. Keep us both outwardly in our bodies, and inwardly in our souls, that we may be defended from all adversities which may happen to the body, and from all evil thoughts which may assault and hurt the soul, through Jesus Christ our Lord. (Saint Gregory - Collect for Second Sunday in Lent, Book of Common Prayer) Wenham, G. J. (1994). Genesis 16–50 (Vol. 2, p. 76). Dallas: Word, Incorporated. Comments are closed.
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