Genesis 20:1–8

Abraham and Abimelech

20From there Abraham journeyed toward the territory of the Negeb and lived between ^pKadesh and Shur; and he ^qsojourned in ^rGerar. ²And Abraham said of Sarah his wife, ^s“She is my sister.” And Abimelech king of Gerar sent and took Sarah. ^3tBut God came to Abimelech ^uin a dream by night and said to him, “Behold, you are a dead man because of the woman whom you have taken, for she is a man’s wife.” ⁴Now Abimelech had not approached her. So he said, ^v“Lord, will you kill an innocent people? ⁵Did he not himself say to me, ‘She is my sister’? And she herself said, ‘He is my brother.’ In the integrity of my heart and the innocence of my hands I have done this.” ⁶Then God said to him in the dream, “Yes, I know that you have done this in the integrity of your heart, and it was I who kept you from sinning ^wagainst me. Therefore I did not let you touch her. ⁷Now then, return the man’s wife, ^xfor he is a prophet, so that he will pray for you, and you shall live. But if you do not return her, know that you shall surely die, you ^yand all who are yours.”

⁸So Abimelech rose early in the morning and called all his servants and told them all these things. And the men were very much afraid.