In Genesis 20, Abraham is again sojourning outside the land in Gerar, south of Canaan. Gerar was Philistine territory. We are not told why he was on the move. However, we have déjà vu all over again.
After Abram’s “fall” with Hagar, and after God’s exaltation of Sarah through the promise of Isaac, and after God’s protection of Lot for Abraham’s sake; seeing all that God had done for him and through him one would think he would think twice about repeating the same mistake.
Truthfully, we are no different than Abraham. In reality, for many of us, it takes more than once for our unfaithfulness to be shaken from us. It is only through the power of God that we can overcome.
Again, fearful of the surrounding kings, he shields himself behind Sarah. And again, the foreign king (Abimelech) takes her into his household. Same song, second verse. The Bible describes Sarah as “a woman of beautiful countenance” (Gen. 12:11). By the grace of God, her beauty did not fade. At this time she would have been 89-90 years old.
Ages of men and women in the Bible must be interpreted in light of the life spans that people were still living at a particular time in history. Though Abraham, Sarah, and Abimelech did not live as old as people in Noah’s generation (Noah lived to be 950, Genesis 9:29), Abraham was only separated from Noah by 10 generations (Genesis 11:10-26). Abraham’s dad, Terah, died at 205 (Genesis 11:32). Abraham lived to be 175 (Genesis 25:7). The point is: Sarah, at age 89-90, may have looked similar to a 45-55-year-old woman today. And, there are still plenty of 45-55+ year-old women today that kings and other world leaders find very attractive.
But God has not abandoned Sarah. He continues to guard and keep her. He comes to Abimelech in a dream and pronounces a death sentence for taking another man’s wife. Abimelech protests his innocence for he had not come near her. Abimelech said to the LORD, will you slay also a righteous nation? – I didn’t know, God. I was deceived for Abraham told me Sarah was his sister. He pleads, in the integrity of my heart and innocency of my hands have I done this.
And God demonstrates both his sovereignty and his justice. He is just; he won’t kill Abimelech for this transgression, provided that Abimelech now put things right. God said to him in a dream that He knew the integrity of his heart and that is why God withheld him from sinning by not touching her. God instructs Abimelech to restore Sarah to Abraham, for he is a prophet; and Abraham would pray for him that he shall live. God warned Abimelech that if he did not restore Sarah to Abraham he would surely die and all that is his.
And we see the sovereignty of God in keeping Abimelech from sinning.
Abimelech tells his household what has happened and they all stand in fear. Like Pharaoh, Abimelech confronts Abraham. “Why have you done this to us and how have I offended you?” Abimelech was upset because of what Abraham brought upon him and his kingdom. And rebukes in that he should not have done this thing.
Abraham comes clean. The sister-wife trick is his deliberate policy in his travels. It’s a half-truth, because Sarah is his half-sister. And Abraham employs this deception because he believes there is no fear of God in Gerar, and therefore they will think nothing of killing an old man to steal his wife. And this is the irony—Abraham sees that there’s no fear of God in Gerar, but can’t see that there is no faith in God’s protection in himself.
Nevertheless, God is faithful to his promises. He continues to bless Abraham. Like Pharaoh, Abimelech lavishes wealth on Abraham. And God grants even more favor. Abimelech pays a thousand pieces of silver as a testimony that he did not violate the marriage bed. And unlike Pharaoh, he does not exile Abraham from Gerar, but allows him to live in the land. And now the blessing of God flows to the nations, as God heals Abimelech and his people from the curse that God had inflicted.
Fast Forward
It would be great to say that the story ended here, with Abraham repentant and turned. But the deception continues. Like father, like son. In Genesis 26, Isaac adopts the same reasoning as his dad, and passes his distant cousin off as his sister. He fears the godless nations will kill him to take his beautiful wife, Rebekah. But the kings of Gerar are on to him. Abimelech (possibly the son of the previous king) is watching Isaac and Rebekah out a window. Perhaps he is thinking how much he’d like to marry Isaac’s “sister.” But instead he sees Isaac and Rebekah not acting like brother and sister. They’re fooling around. Isaac’s name means “laughter,” and the passage literally says that Isaac was “Isaac-ing” with his wife. Abimelech confronts Isaac for the deception and announces protection for Isaac—Anyone who touches Isaac or his wife will be put to death. And again, despite Isaac’s unbelief and deception, God blesses him. He makes him fruitful and rich and wealthy, and through Isaac he blesses the nations.
So, what do we learn from these stories? We are reminded that we are not made right with God by our goodness. It is impossible, for the bible is clear that ‘we are all as an unclean thing and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags…’ (Isaiah 64:6). God justifies the ungodly in Christ by faith alone. For Old Testaments believers it was the same, for their faith in the Lord was counted as righteousness.
Abraham and Isaac were sinners, as we all are. If the promise was dependent on their good works, they would be hopeless. But it’s not. Not for them, and not for us. God is true, even when every man is a liar (Romans 3:4)—including the heroes of the faith.