For the Genesis 12:17-20 PODCAST
17 But the Lord plagued Pharaoh and his house with great plagues because of Sarai, Abram’s wife. 18 And Pharaoh called Abram and said, "What is this you have done to me? Why did you not tell me that she was your wife? 19 Why did you say, ‘She is my sister’? I might have taken her as my wife. Now therefore, here is your wife; take her and go your way.” 20 So Pharaoh commanded his men concerning him; and they sent him away, with his wife and all that he had. ~ Genesis 12:17-20
Today, we conclude our study of Genesis 12 where we are given the process whereby our faith in the Lord is strengthened. As we have been seeing, our faith in the God of the Bible grows when He speaks His word into our lives. It is His spoken word that gives birth to our faith in. Once our faith in Him is birthed, we discover that our faith ultimately leads to obedience to Him. It is out of our obedience to Him that we get to know Him better which leads us to a greater sense of reassurance from Him. Being strengthened by His reassurances, we go deeper with Him through the testing of our faith.
In v.17 of today's passage we read, "But the Lord plagued Pharaoh and his house with great plagues because of Sarai, Abram’s wife."
Our lives of faith are full of obstacles, there is no faith without doubt. "Doubt is the shadow cast by faith." Abram had trusted God for over 1,000 miles from Ur to Canaan, yet after arriving in the Promised Land, he encountered a famine and he panicked. In his panicked state he rushed down to Egypt and led his wife to sin. Abram’s sin led Pharaoh to sin. Our sin always affects those around us. There are no sins that only affect us. In fact, often our sin will cause others to sin. There are no sins that only hurt us.
As a result of Abram's choice to be defined by his fear, he made a choice that was not in concert with the will of God for his life. One bad choice led to another and God inflicted Pharaoh and his house with plagues. The Hebrew word translated "plagues" can refer to sores or wounds. These plagues were not deadly, they were just aggravating. The plagues were to Pharaoh and his house not so much a punishment as a message. Our cursed world is full of examples of innocent suffering caused by the sins of others. Drunk drivers, abusive parents, pregnant women on cocaine, thieves, rapists, and murderers are but a few examples of those who cause the innocent to suffer. At least in this case, the suffering was apparently non-lethal and had a clearly-defined purpose.
Despite Abram's faithlessness, God had promised him that he would have children. Despite his fear and subsequent poor choices, Abram was protected by the God of the promise and the promise of God. In Ephesians 1:11 we read, " In Christ we too have been claimed as God’s own possession, since we were predestined according to the purpose of him who accomplishes all things according to the counsel of his will." That is the most sweeping statement of all pertaining to the sovereign will of God. Sadly, there are times when we like Abram believe in our sovereignty more than we do God's.
In v.18-19 of today's passage we read, "And Pharaoh called Abram and said, 'What is this you have done to me? Why did you not tell me that she was your wife? 19 Why did you say, ‘She is my sister’? I might have taken her as my wife. Now therefore, here is your wife; take her and go your way.'"
When Pharaoh realized that Abram was God's man and God had somehow plagued he and his household, he rebuked Abram and ensured him that he hadn’t yet done anything to Sarai.
I am struck by the similarities between this story and that of the Exodus which happened 430 years later. Two different Pharaohs were involved in the two different stories separated by the 430 years. And, at the end of both stories, the Pharaoh was forced through plagues to send both of the men of God away with wealth. Oh, the sovereignty of God.
In v.20 of today's passage we read, "So Pharaoh commanded his men concerning him; and they sent him away, with his wife and all that he had."
Throughout time the promises of God have constantly appeared like they might fail. Yet through God's providence, He remains faithful despite the lack of our faithfulness. I find it quite comforting that God relentlessly uses the chaos of life to deliver His people into His will. Human failure and sin cannot stand in God’s way. He will accomplish what He has decreed. And so, Abram left having journeyed to Egypt, having gained more wealth, and was also delivered from the famine of the land of Canaan. God had protected Abram and blessed him in his pilgrimage and he would continue to do so all the days of his life. And through it all, Abram learned a lot about leadership as his faith in the God of the Bible grew. William Booth, founder of the Salvation Army once said, "The greatness of the man's power is the measure of his surrender."
Abram had pitched his tent between Bethel (a picture of heaven) and Ai (a picture of hell.) After that, he headed south and then into Egypt. Similarly, the Lord Jesus Christ came and dwelt among us as a human being, living on earth between heaven and hell. From there, he journeyed into the land of chaos, pictured by Egypt. Like Sarai who belonged to Abram, but was taken to the house of Pharaoh, we were all created by God, but we strayed into the land of chaos and sin. From that place though, we have been delivered by the Lord Jesus, our rightful husband. By faith in Him and what He has done, we can be rejoined to God and He will safely take us back to the Land of Promise.
Abram had faith during this entire episode, even though it was overshadowed at times by his lack of faith. This is the way it is and this is the way our faith is strengthened, through our failure. May we never forget the great deeds of our sovereign God who has accomplished on our behalf in the Person and the work of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, our secure eternity. We can trust Him with our eternity, let's trust Him with our lives here on earth. This means we will obey Him at every turn because we are being defined by Him.
