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6 And God said to him in a dream, "Yes, I know that you did this in the integrity of your heart. For I also withheld you from sinning against Me; therefore I did not let you touch her. 7 Now therefore, restore the man’s wife; for he is a prophet, and he will pray for you and you shall live. But if you do not restore her, know that you shall surely die, you and all who are yours." 8 So Abimelech rose early in the morning, called all his servants, and told all these things in their hearing; and the men were very much afraid. 9 And Abimelech called Abraham and said to him, "What have you done to us? How have I offended you, that you have brought on me and on my kingdom a great sin? You have done deeds to me that ought not to be done." 10 Then Abimelech said to Abraham, "What did you have in view, that you have done this thing?" 11 And Abraham said, "Because I thought, surely the fear of God is not in this place; and they will kill me on account of my wife. 12 But indeed she is truly my sister. She is the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother; and she became my wife. 13 And it came to pass, when God caused me to wander from my father’s house, that I said to her, 'This is your kindness that you should do for me: in every place, wherever we go, say of me, 'He is my brother.'" ~ Genesis 20:6-13
Today, we return to the story of Abraham and Sarah where we find them in a city called Gerar where King Abimelech reigned. You will remember that Abimelech means "My Father is King." Abraham had fled to Gerar because it was lush and there was great grazing land for his animals. Hmmm, sounds like Lot before he went to Sodom. Today's episode is yet another on the development of Abraham's trust in the God of the Bible as his Father.
In v.6 of today's passage we read, "And God said to him in a dream, 'Yes, I know that you did this in the integrity of your heart. For I also withheld you from sinning against Me; therefore I did not let you touch her.'"
After Abraham and Sarah arrived in Gerar and since they lied about Sarah's identity again, King Abimelech took her to be in his harem thinking she was Abraham's sister. Strategically, in this verse God refers to Himself as "Ha-Elohim," or "the God." Previously in v.3 He simply said Elohim, and in v.4 Abimelech called Him Adonai, the name one would use when speaking to God in a personal manner. And now God is referred to as "The God." In other words, there is one true God and Abimelech understood this truth.
This is the very first mention of the word integrity in the Bible. And, since Abimelech was a man of integrity God kept him from further sin. When we decide to be a people of integrity, God will keep us from sinning against "Him." Sin is always first and foremost against God because He is the standard. God is the One who defined things correctly for us in the first place. When we sin, we rip apart His definition of what it is that we are doing.
"The God" kept Abimelech from sinning against Sarah. God is sovereign which means His plans and purposes will be carried out and nothing will thwart them. When we sin against God, it is due to the fact that He gave us our free-will which He has factored into His plan. In the end, no sin will ever thwart His plans or to keep them from happening. Either actively or passively, the result will always be the same, His will will come to fruition.
In v.7 of today's passage we read, "Now therefore, restore the man’s wife; for he is a prophet, and he will pray for you and you shall live. But if you do not restore her, know that you shall surely die, you and all who are yours."
For the first time in the Bible someone is called "a prophet" but it’s not the first person in the Bible to be said to hold the gift of prophecy. The first person to be referenced as a prophet was Abel; the Lord Jesus described him as such in Luke 11. Here, God spoke of Abraham as a prophet not of him speaking to men about God, but rather speaking to God on the behalf of men. Abraham did what we should all be in the habit of doing, he prayed to God on the behalf of the king.
In v.8 of today's passage we read, "So Abimelech rose early in the morning, called all his servants, and told all these things in their hearing; and the men were very much afraid."
Abimelech's actions were of a man who not only saw the destruction of Sodom, these are the actions of a man who understood that it was destroyed by God as the sun rose "early in the morning." It is as if Abimelech knew what was coming if he didn’t obey God immediately so he arose early. He called his servants in order to make sure that nobody touched Sarah and probably because some of them had suggested he take her into his fold in the first place.
In v.9 of today's passage we read, "And Abimelech called Abraham and said to him, 'What have you done to us? How have I offended you, that you have brought on me and on my kingdom a great sin? You have done deeds to me that ought not to be done.'"
Abimelech used the plural "us" because he knew the wicked actions of the king often brought the wrath of God on the whole kingdom. This was a plea from Abimelech of innocence done in a very pious way. Abimelech just didn't understand that God was in on protecting Sarah from the wickedness that was in the old unregenerate king. Perhaps we like Abimelech take too much credit for our "godliness." Whatever good that may come out of us is from God, so He should get the glory.
In v.10-11 of today's passage we read, "10 Then Abimelech said to Abraham, 'What did you have in view, that you have done this thing? 11 And Abraham said, 'Because I thought, surely the fear of God is not in this place; and they will kill me on account of my wife.'"
The people of the land feared Abraham because he had driven out the invading Babylonian kings from the area earlier. But Abraham was fearful that if the people of Gerar knew Sarah was his wife, they might have abducted her and killed him. Abraham was honest when he said, "surely the fear of God is not in this place." Abraham had been in Canaan long enough to know that polytheism and idolatry were the norm. When this is true, there is no fear of the true God because there is a reliance on the false ones. That which we worship defines us.
In v.12-13 of today's passage we read, "12 But indeed she is truly my sister. She is the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother; and she became my wife. 13 And it came to pass, when God caused me to wander from my father’s house, that I said to her, 'This is your kindness that you should do for me: in every place, wherever we go, say of me, 'He is my brother.'"
Sarah was the daughter of Terah, Abraham’s father, but she had a different mother. Abraham and Sarah partially lied to save Abraham's rear end again. Interestingly, this is one of only a handful of times in the Bible where the name "Elohim" meaning "God" is used in connection with a plural verb. In the NKJV this verse reads, "God caused me to wander…" but it is best translated, "…the god’s caused me to wander." It is plural, not singular.
The premise of the Bible, from the first sentence to the last is that there is one God. But here, Abraham wasn’t speaking about God at all. Abraham, just two verses ago, spoke of God with a singular verb when he said, "I thought, surely the fear of God is not in this place," meaning there is one God and He is the true God to be feared. What Abraham said to Abimelech was "the false gods" of Mesopotamia, caused him to move from his father’s house. God, the true God, in order to establish Abraham called him away from the false gods. And yet, Abraham struggled to follow.
Despite the fact that we have been born again, having believed on the Lord Jesus for our salvation, our old nature will never die this side of heaven. As followers of Christ, we are still capable of the worst sins. Abraham had been a follower of God for thirty years at this point in his life and he was still capable of doing the worst. And, you and I are no different. In heaven we will learn how God kept us from certain sins. This is why when God comes into the human heart through Jesus Christ, He doesn't completely drive out our old nature. Oh, He writes it off as worthless. In fact, He says that everything that comes from self is worthless. No matter how it looks in the eyes of others, if it comes from the self-advancing, self-centered core, it is worthless and it always will be. We should never be shocked by the sin that comes out of us or others who follow Christ.
