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Genesis: Abimelech King of Gerar
February 3, 2018

Last week we saw how angels were sent by God to rescue Lot and his family from the evil of the people of Sodom and Gomorrah. This week we read how God intervened with Abimelech King of Gerar when Sarah was taken from Abraham.

After Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed, Abraham decided to move away and eventually came to Gerar, located between Kadesh and Shur. When he met the King of Gerar, Abimelech, Abraham introduced Sarah as his sister instead of his wife because he was afraid he might be killed if the locals knew they were married. Abimelech took Sarah into his household and one night while he was sleeping, God spoke to him in a dream. God can get His message across to a person in many different ways. With Sodom and Gomorrah, God sent angels to represent him. Now with Abimelech, God chose to speak to him through a dream and bluntly told Abimelech he was a dead man for having taken the wife of Abraham. Because Abimelech had not yet come near Sarah, Abimelech debated with God and reminded God that Abraham had lied to him telling him that Sarah was his sister, and that Sarah had referred to Abraham as her brother. Abimelech claimed to be innocent.

Genesis 20:1-5
And Abraham journeyed from thence toward the south country, and dwelled between Kadesh and Shur, and sojourned in Gerar. And Abraham said of Sarah his wife, She is my sister: and Abimelech king of Gerar sent, and took Sarah. But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night, and said to him, Behold, thou art but a dead man, for the woman which thou hast taken; for she is a man's wife. But Abimelech had not come near her: and he said, Lord, wilt thou slay also a righteous nation? Said he not unto me, She is my sister? and she, even she herself said, He is my brother: in the integrity of my heart and innocency of my hands have I done this.

God shared with Abimelech that He knew Abimelech was innocent and that it was God who kept Abimelech from being near Sarah. Because Sarah had been taken, God caused the women of the kingdom to be barren. He then told Abimelech to give Sarah back to Abraham because Abraham was a prophet. When Abimelech returned Sarah to Abraham he complained to Abraham demanding to know what Abimelech had done to offend Abraham that would cause Abraham to lie about Sarah.

Genesis 20:6-12
And God said unto him in a dream, Yea, I know that thou didst this in the integrity of thy heart; for I also withheld thee from sinning against me: therefore suffered I thee not to touch her. Now therefore restore the man his wife; for he is a prophet, and he shall pray for thee, and thou shalt live: and if thou restore her not, know thou that thou shalt surely die, thou, and all that are thine. Therefore Abimelech rose early in the morning, and called all his servants, and told all these things in their ears: and the men were sore afraid. Then Abimelech called Abraham, and said unto him, What hast thou done unto us? and what have I offended thee, that thou hast brought on me and on my kingdom a great sin? thou hast done deeds unto me that ought not to be done. And Abimelech said unto Abraham, What sawest thou, that thou hast done this thing? And Abraham said, Because I thought, Surely the fear of God is not in this place; and they will slay me for my wife's sake. And yet indeed she is my sister; she is the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother; and she became my wife.

Abraham shared with Abimelech that it was a deliberate survival tactic, but that he did not really lie as Sarah was his half-sister. To part peaceably, Abimelech gave sheep, oxen, silver, and servants to Abraham and allowed him to live anywhere that Abraham would choose.

Genesis 20:13-18
And it came to pass, when God caused me to wander from my father's house, that I said unto her, This is thy kindness which thou shalt shew unto me; at every place whither we shall come, say of me, He is my brother. And Abimelech took sheep, and oxen, and menservants, and womenservants, and gave them unto Abraham, and restored him Sarah his wife. And Abimelech said, Behold, my land is before thee: dwell where it pleaseth thee. And unto Sarah he said, Behold, I have given thy brother a thousand pieces of silver: behold, he is to thee a covering of the eyes, unto all that are with thee, and with all other: thus she was reproved. So Abraham prayed unto God: and God healed Abimelech, and his wife, and his maidservants; and they bare children. For the LORD had fast closed up all the wombs of the house of Abimelech, because of Sarah Abraham's wife.

Abraham prayed and God healed Abimelech allowing his wife and female servants to conceive and have children. While this part of the story is given one chapter in Genesis, to understand that the women were barren would have taken many, many months.

All verses are from the King James Version.
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