Verses 1-2, “And Abraham journeyed from there to the South, and dwelt between Kadesh and Shur, and stayed in Gerar. Now Abraham said of Sarah his wife, 'She is my sister.' And Abimelech king of Gerar sent and took Sarah.” Abraham once again has the same lapse in faith that he had previously. Rather than trusting God to keep him safe, he relied on his flesh and his own abilities, which left him suffering the consequences and shame. Jeremiah 17:5-10, “Thus says the Lord: 'Cursed is the man who trusts in man And makes flesh his strength, Whose heart departs from the Lord . For he shall be like a shrub in the desert, And shall not see when good comes, But shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, In a salt land which is not inhabited. Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, And whose hope is the Lord. For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, Which spreads out its roots by the river, And will not fear when heat comes; But its leaf will be green, And will not be anxious in the year of drought, Nor will cease from yielding fruit. The heart is deceitful above all things, And desperately wicked; Who can know it? I, the Lord, search the heart, I test the mind, Even to give every man according to his ways, According to the fruit of his doings.' ”
Verses 3-7, “But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night, and said to him, 'Indeed you are a dead man because of the woman whom you have taken, for she is a man’s wife.' But Abimelech had not come near her; and he said, 'Lord, will You slay a righteous nation also? Did he not say to me, "She is my sister"? And she, even she herself said, "He is my brother." In the integrity of my heart and innocence of my hands I have done this.' 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. 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.' ” God protected Abraham even in his faithless act, and did not let Abimelech touch Sarah. He still referred to Abraham as a prophet and directed Abimelech to treat him as such. Romans 11:29, “For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.” But sadly, Abraham would be rebuked by a pagan king for his behavior. Verses 8-10, “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. 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.' Then Abimelech said to Abraham, 'What did you have in view, that you have done this thing?' ” Abimelech wants to know what Abraham was thinking when he devised such a plan. Certainly, what he had in view did not include the Lord either.
If we are reproached, it should be for Christ's sake, not for our own stupidity and sinful choices. Abraham should have been embarrassed that he fell into the same sin twice. His sorrow did not motivate him to change his heart on this matter, so God teaches him ...the same lesson again. I Peter 4:12-17, “Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy. If you are reproached for the name of Christ, blessed are you, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. On their part He is blasphemed, but on your part He is glorified. But let none of you suffer as a murderer, a thief, an evildoer, or as a busybody in other people’s matters. Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in this matter. For the time has come for judgment to begin at the house of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God?”
Verses 11-13, “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. 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. 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.' ” ’ ” Abraham seems to lay out some excuses rather than just owning his sin. He first blames the people for being ungodly, then tries to get off on a technicality saying, "she truly is my sister", and even goes so far as to blame God for sending him into harms way. Abraham sinned against Abimelech and owed him an apology, but even worse, he sinned against God. Proverbs 28:13, “He who covers his sins will not prosper, But whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy.” Abraham might have looked like he was prospering, materially speaking, when the king gave him silver, but his compromise was not prosperous to his walk with God. As one who formerly rejected gifts from the king of Sodom, not wanting man to get credit for his wealth, he now had no moral leg to stand on. He most definitely had lost spiritual ground.
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