Chapter 20

Abraham’s Treachery

1 Now Abraham journeyed from athere toward the land of bthe 1Negev, and 2settled between Kadesh and Shur; then he sojourned in cGerar.

2 Abraham said of Sarah his wife, “aShe is my sister.” So bAbimelech king of Gerar sent and took Sarah.

3 aBut God came to Abimelech in a dream of the night, and said to him, “Behold, byou are a dead man because of the woman whom you have taken, for she is 1married.”

4 Now Abimelech had not come near her; and he said, “Lord, awill You slay a nation, even though 1blameless?

5 “Did he not himself say to me, ‘She is my sister’? And she aherself said, ‘He is my brother.’ In bthe integrity of my heart and the innocence of my 1hands I have done this.”

6 Then God said to him in the dream, “Yes, I know that in the integrity of your heart you have done this, and I also 1akept you from sinning against Me; therefore I did not let you touch her.

7 “Now therefore, restore the man’s wife, for ahe is a prophet, and he will pray for you and you will live. But if you do not restore her, know that you shall surely die, you and all who are yours.”

8 So Abimelech arose early in the morning and called all his servants and told all these things in their hearing; and the men were greatly frightened.

9 aThen Abimelech called Abraham and said to him, “What have you done to us? And 1how have I sinned against you, that you have brought on me and on my kingdom ba great sin? You have done to me 2things that ought not to be done.”

10 And Abimelech said to Abraham, “What have you 1encountered, that you have done this thing?”

11 Abraham said, “Because I thought, surely there is no afear of God in this place, and bthey will kill me because of my wife.

12 “Besides, she actually is my sister, the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother, and she became my wife;

13 and it came about, when aGod caused me to wander from my father’s house, that I said to her, ‘This is 1the kindness which you will show to me: 2everywhere we go, bsay of me, “He is my brother.” ’ ”

14 aAbimelech then took sheep and oxen and male and female servants, and gave them to Abraham, and restored his wife Sarah to him.

15 Abimelech said, “aBehold, my land is before you; 1settle wherever 2you please.”

16 To Sarah he said, “Behold, I have given your abrother a thousand pieces of silver; behold, it is 1your vindication before all who are with you, and before all men you are cleared.”

17 aAbraham prayed to God, and God healed Abimelech and his wife and his maids, so that they bore children.

18 aFor the Lord had closed fast all the wombs of the household of Abimelech because of Sarah, Abraham’s wife.