Abraham: Falsely Accused Prophet!!

 Some call Abraham, prophet and chosen of God as the seed from which Christ would be born,  ’liar’ for saying  Sarai ’is my sister’.  (Gen 20:12 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.)   The missing element in the entire discussion is that as the prohet of God…Abram prophesied to Sarai when he said, :Therefore IT SHALL COME TO PASS, when the Egyptians shall see thee, that they shall say, This is his wife: and they will kill me, but they will save thee alive Gen 12:12.”                                                          

Christ was promised from the loins of Abraham. Abraham was warned of God concerning those who would harm to gain Sarah.

 

Abram was a prophet of God.  God revealed to Abram the heathen practice of killing the husband to legally have his wife. (Gen 20:7 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.      

 Remember how David…generations later.. lusted after Bathsheba and had her husband killed so he could legally have her as his wife????  So as a prophet and chosen man of God….the advesary would be seeking Abram’s destruction. But GOD was Abram and Sarai’s  rock, shield, deliverer, fortress, and strength!!  Notice…please…that both times that Abram said ‘She is my sister’…. God’s wrath fell on those who lusted after Sarai…and NOT on Abram and Sarai.  And let me tell ya …GOD’S judgement is JUST!!          

The first time Abram called Sarai ’sister’ was to the Egyptian men, princes and Pharoah who lusted after her because of her beauty. The event is recorded in the scriptures at the end of this paragraph. The second time Abraham called Sarai ’sister’ was before Abimelech, king of Gerar, for the same reason he called her ‘sister’ near Egypt…to save both Sarai and himself…as preordained by God (Gen 12: 7 And the LORD appeared unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land:…)  Abram ‘believed’ God about all things spoken to him from God. Abram KNEW he was to be kept alive …for the purposes of God.  ABRAM WAS RIGHTEOUS.   HE ’KNEW’ FROM GOD THE VICES AND DANGERS FOUND AMONG WICKED MEN.   ((Abram was seventy-five when he and Sarai followed God’s instructions and left Ur for the ‘promised’ land. He was eighty-six when God changed his name to Abraham).

Ge 12:11

And it came to pass, when he was come near to enter into Egypt, that he said unto Sarai his wife, Behold now, I know that thou art a fair woman to look upon:

Ge 12:12

Therefore it shall come to pass, when the Egyptians shall see thee, that they shall say, This is his wife: and they will kill me, but they will save thee alive.

Ge 12:13

Say, I pray thee, thou art my sister: that it may be well with me for thy sake; and my soul shall live because of thee.

Ge 12:14

And it came to pass, that, when Abram was come into Egypt, the Egyptians beheld the woman that she was very fair.

Ge 12:15

The princes also of Pharaoh saw her, and commended her before Pharaoh: and the woman was taken into Pharaoh’s house.

Ge 12:16

And he entreated Abram well for her sake: and he had sheep, and oxen, and he asses, and menservants, and maidservants, and she asses, and camels.

Ge 12:17

And the LORD plagued Pharaoh and his house with great plagues because of Sarai Abram’s wife.

Ge 12:18

And Pharaoh called Abram, and said, What is this that thou hast done unto me? why didst thou not tell me that she was thy wife?

Ge 12:19

Why saidst thou, She is my sister? so I might have taken her to me to wife: now therefore behold thy wife, take her, and go thy way.

Ge 12:20

And Pharaoh commanded his men concerning him: and they sent him away, and his wife, and all that he had.

ABRAM AND SARAI WERE NOT THE GUILTY PARTIES HERE!!!! PHAROAH RECEIVED JUST RECOMPENSE FROM GOD FOR SEEKING THE DESTRUCTION OF ABRAM AND SARIA.            

SECOND TIME Abraham called Sarai ‘sister.’ 

Ge 20:1

And Abraham journeyed from thence toward the south country, and dwelled between Kadesh and Shur, and sojourned in Gerar.

Ge 20:2

And Abraham said of Sarah his wife, She is my sister: and Abimelech king of Gerar sent, and took Sarah.

Ge 20:3

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.

Ge 20:4

But Abimelech had not come near her: and he said, Lord, wilt thou slay also a righteous nation?

Ge 20:5

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.

Gen. 20:6  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.       (NOTICE…PLEASE..FROM THE ABOVE VERSE….that the only reason Abimelech did not POSSESS Abraham’s wife is because GOD PREVENTED HIM!!!  Soooooo…Abraham was RIGHT…AGAIN.  And his only motive was to FOLLOW the instructions of God concerning journeying to the ‘promised’ land. God was even in the ‘motive.’

Ge 20:7

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.

HOW DARE WE CALL ABRAHAM ‘LIAR’ WHEN GOD CALLS HIM ‘RIGHTEOUS’ AND ‘PROPHET’.   How dare we judge at all!!!!!! But in the case of Abraham…we call God ‘liar’ when we conclude that Abraham was anything other than what the Word of Truth proclaims him to be…..’righteous’ and ‘prophet.’

Ge 20:8

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.

Ge 20:9

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.

Ge 20:10

And Abimelech said unto Abraham, What sawest thou, that thou hast done this thing?

Ge 20:11

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.

Ge 20:12

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.

Ge 20:13

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 show unto me; at every place whither we shall come, say of me, He is my brother.

Ge 20:14

And Abimelech took sheep, and oxen, and menservants, and womenservants, and gave them unto Abraham, and restored him Sarah his wife.

LOOK CLOSELY AT THE REMAINING SCRIPTURE FOR IN THEM WE SEE CLEARLY HOW GOD BRING GOOD FROM EVIL…AND SO FORTH.

Ge 20:15

And Abimelech said, Behold, my land is before thee: dwell where it pleaseth thee

Ge 20:16

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

Ge 20:17

So Abraham prayed unto God: and God healed Abimelech, and his wife, and his maidservants; and they bare children.

Ge 20:18

For the LORD had fast closed up all the wombs of the house of Abimelech, because of Sarah Abraham’s wife.

GOD IS JUST!!!  HE DOES NOT PUNISH THE GUILTLESS!!!  ABIMELECH was in need of a ‘learning experience’ from God. God revealed to Abimeleh the surety of God’s presence and rule in the ‘kingdom of men’ (Dan. 4:17).  He revealed to Abimelech the dangers of carnal lust and worldly practices common to fallen man. God taught Abimelech the danger of choices made without wisdom. And just as importantly, Abimelech learned the RESTORATION power of God to those who ‘believe.’             

THE LESSON FOR US????……..

Mt 7:1

Judge not, that ye be not judged.

We are not to judge a person ‘sinful’…..nor can we judge a person ‘righteous.’  No man can know the heart of another. I regularly hear fellow Christians comment on the ‘righteousness’ and ‘goodness’ of  fellow Christians….even without the presence of the fruits of the Spirit.   The WORD is the Judge.    

Joh 1:1

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

Joh 1:14

And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth