Abraham and Abimelek

20:1–18Ref—Ge 12:10–20; 26:1–11

20 Now Abraham moved on from thereu into the region of the Negevv and lived between Kadeshw and Shur.x For a whiley he stayed in Gerar,z 2 and there Abraham said of his wife Sarah, “She is my sister.a” Then Abimelekb king of Gerar sent for Sarah and took her.c

3 But God came to Abimelekd in a dreame one night and said to him, “You are as good as deadf because of the woman you have taken; she is a married woman.”g

4 Now Abimelek had not gone near her, so he said, “Lord, will you destroy an innocent nation?h 5 Did he not say to me, ‘She is my sister,i’ and didn’t she also say, ‘He is my brother’? I have done this with a clear consciencej and clean hands.k”

6 Then God said to him in the dream, “Yes, I know you did this with a clear conscience, and so I have keptl you from sinning against me.m That is why I did not let you touch her. 7 Now return the man’s wife, for he is a prophet,n and he will pray for youo and you will live. But if you do not return her, you may be sure that you and all who belong to you will die.”p

8 Early the next morning Abimelek summoned all his officials, and when he told them all that had happened, they were very much afraid. 9 Then Abimelek called Abraham in and said, “What have you done to us? How have I wronged you that you have brought such great guilt upon me and my kingdom? You have done things to me that should never be done.q” 10 And Abimelek asked Abraham, “What was your reason for doing this?”

11 Abraham replied, “I said to myself, ‘There is surely no fear of Godr in this place, and they will kill me because of my wife.’s 12 Besides, she really is my sister,t the daughter of my father though not of my mother; and she became my wife. 13 And when God had me wanderu from my father’s household,v I said to her, ‘This is how you can show your love to me: Everywhere we go, say of me, “He is my brother.” ’ ”

14 Then Abimelekw brought sheep and cattle and male and female slaves and gave them to Abraham,x and he returned Sarah his wife to him. 15 And Abimelek said, “My land is before you; live wherever you like.”y

16 To Sarah he said, “I am giving your brother a thousand shekelsa of silver. This is to cover the offense against you before all who are with you; you are completely vindicated.”

17 Then Abraham prayed to God,z and God healed Abimelek, his wife and his female slaves so they could have children again, 18 for the Lord had kept all the women in Abimelek’s household from conceiving because of Abraham’s wife Sarah.a

The Birth of Isaac

21 Now the Lord was gracious to Sarahb as he had said, and the Lord did for Sarah what he had promised.c 2 Sarah became pregnant and bore a sond to Abraham in his old age,e at the very time God had promised him.f 3 Abraham gave the name Isaaca g to the son Sarah bore him. 4 When his son Isaac was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him,h as God commanded him. 5 Abraham was a hundred years oldi when his son Isaac was born to him.

6 Sarah said, “God has brought me laughter,j and everyone who hears about this will laugh with me.” 7 And she added, “Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age.”k

Hagar and Ishmael Sent Away

8 The child grew and was weaned,l and on the day Isaac was weaned Abraham held a great feast. 9 But Sarah saw that the son whom Hagar the Egyptian had borne to Abrahamm was mocking,n 10 and she said to Abraham, “Get rid of that slave womano and her son, for that woman’s son will never share in the inheritance with my son Isaac.”p

11 The matter distressed Abraham greatly because it concerned his son.q 12 But God said to him, “Do not be so distressed about the boy and your slave woman. Listen to whatever Sarah tells you, because it is through Isaac that your offspringb will be reckoned.r 13 I will make the son of the slave into a nations also, because he is your offspring.”

14 Early the next morning Abraham took some food and a skin of water and gave them to Hagar.t He set them on her shoulders and then sent her off with the boy. She went on her way and wandered in the Desert of Beersheba.u

15 When the water in the skin was gone, she put the boy under one of the bushes. 16 Then she went off and sat down about a bowshot away, for she thought, “I cannot watch the boy die.” And as she sat there, shec began to sob.v

17 God heard the boy crying,w and the angel of Godx called to Hagar from heaveny and said to her, “What is the matter, Hagar? Do not be afraid;z God has heard the boy crying as he lies there. 18 Lift the boy up and take him by the hand, for I will make him into a great nation.a”

19 Then God opened her eyesb and she saw a well of water.c So she went and filled the skin with water and gave the boy a drink.

20 God was with the boyd as he grew up. He lived in the desert and became an archer. 21 While he was living in the Desert of Paran,e his mother got a wife for himf from Egypt.

The Treaty at Beersheba

22 At that time Abimelekg and Phicol the commander of his forcesh said to Abraham, “God is with you in everything you do.i 23 Now swearj to me here before God that you will not deal falsely with me or my children or my descendants.k Show to me and the country where you now reside as a foreigner the same kindness I have shown to you.”l

24 Abraham said, “I swear it.”

25 Then Abraham complained to Abimelek about a well of water that Abimelek’s servants had seized.m 26 But Abimelek said, “I don’t know who has done this. You did not tell me, and I heard about it only today.”

27 So Abraham brought sheep and cattle and gave them to Abimelek, and the two men made a treaty.n 28 Abraham set apart seven ewe lambs from the flock, 29 and Abimelek asked Abraham, “What is the meaning of these seven ewe lambs you have set apart by themselves?”

30 He replied, “Accept these seven lambs from my hand as a witnesso that I dug this well.p”

31 So that place was called Beersheba,d q because the two men swore an oathr there.

32 After the treatys had been made at Beersheba,t Abimelek and Phicol the commander of his forcesu returned to the land of the Philistines.v 33 Abraham planted a tamarisk treew in Beersheba, and there he called on the name of the Lord,x the Eternal God.y 34 And Abraham stayed in the land of the Philistinesz for a long time.

Abraham Tested

22 Some time later God testeda Abraham. He said to him, “Abraham!”

“Here I am,”b he replied.

2 Then God said, “Take your sonc, your only son, whom you love—Isaac—and go to the region of Moriah.d Sacrifice him there as a burnt offeringe on a mountain I will show you.f”

3 Early the next morningg Abraham got up and loaded his donkey. He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. When he had cut enough wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place God had told him about. 4 On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. 5 He said to his servants, “Stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you.h”

6 Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac,i and he himself carried the fire and the knife.j As the two of them went on together, 7 Isaac spoke up and said to his father Abraham, “Father?”

“Yes, my son?” Abraham replied.

“The fire and wood are here,” Isaac said, “but where is the lambk for the burnt offering?”

8 Abraham answered, “God himself will providel the lambm for the burnt offering, my son.” And the two of them went on together.

9 When they reached the place God had told him about,n Abraham built an altaro there and arranged the woodp on it. He bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar,q on top of the wood. 10 Then he reached out his hand and took the knifer to slay his son.s 11 But the angel of the Lordt called out to him from heaven,u “Abraham! Abraham!”v

“Here I am,”w he replied.

12 “Do not lay a hand on the boy,” he said. “Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God,x because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.y”

13 Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a rama caught by its horns.z He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son.a 14 So Abraham calledb that place The Lordc Will Provide. And to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.d”

15 The angel of the Lorde called to Abraham from heavenf a second time 16 and said, “I swear by myself,g declares the Lord, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son,h 17 I will surely bless youi and make your descendantsj as numerous as the stars in the skyk and as the sand on the seashore.l Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies,m 18 and through your offspringb all nations on earth will be blessed,c n because you have obeyed me.”o

19 Then Abraham returned to his servants, and they set off together for Beersheba.p And Abraham stayed in Beersheba.

Nahor’s Sons

20 Some time later Abraham was told, “Milkah is also a mother; she has borne sons to your brother Nahor:q 21 Uzr the firstborn, Buzs his brother, Kemuel (the father of Aram), 22 Kesed, Hazo, Pildash, Jidlaph and Bethuel.t” 23 Bethuel became the father of Rebekah.u Milkah bore these eight sons to Abraham’s brother Nahor.v 24 His concubine,w whose name was Reumah, also had sons: Tebah, Gaham, Tahash and Maakah.