Abimelech of Gerar

A¹nd Abraham journeyed from thence toward the south country, and dwelled between Kadesh and Shur, and sojourned in Gerar.

² And Abraham said of Sarah his wife, She is my sister: and Abimelech king of Gerar sent, and took Sarah. 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. ⁴ But Abimelech had not come near her: and he said, LORD, wilt thou slay also a righteous nation? 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. 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. 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. 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. 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. ¹⁰ And Abimelech said unto Abraham, What sawest thou, that thou hast done this thing? 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. 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. 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 shew unto me; at every place whither we shall come, say of me, He is my brother. ¹⁴ And Abimelech took sheep, and oxen, and menservants, and womenservants, and gave them unto Abraham, and restored him Sarah his wife. ¹⁵ And Abimelech said, Behold, my land is before thee: dwell where it pleaseth thee. 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. ¹⁷ So Abraham prayed unto God: and God healed Abimelech, and his wife, and his maidservants; and they bare children. ¹⁸ For the LORD had fast closed up all the wombs of the house of Abimelech, because of Sarah Abraham’s wife.

Read full chapter: Genesis 20 →

A²²nd it came to pass at that time, that Abimelech and Phichol the chief captain of his host spake unto Abraham, saying, God is with thee in all that thou doest:

²³ Now therefore swear unto me here by God that thou wilt not deal falsely with me, nor with my son, nor with my son’s son: but according to the kindness that I have done unto thee, thou shalt do unto me, and to the land wherein thou hast sojourned. ²⁴ And Abraham said, I will swear. ²⁵ And Abraham reproved Abimelech because of a well of water, which Abimelech’s servants had violently taken away. ²⁶ And Abimelech said, I wot not who hath done this thing: neither didst thou tell me, neither yet heard I of it, but to day. ²⁷ And Abraham took sheep and oxen, and gave them unto Abimelech; and both of them made a covenant. ²⁸ And Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves. ²⁹ And Abimelech said unto Abraham, What mean these seven ewe lambs which thou hast set by themselves? ³⁰ And he said, For these seven ewe lambs shalt thou take of my hand, that they may be a witness unto me, that I have digged this well. ³¹ Wherefore he called that place Beersheba; because there they sware both of them. ³² Thus they made a covenant at Beersheba: then Abimelech rose up, and Phichol the chief captain of his host, and they returned into the land of the Philistines. ³³ And Abraham planted a grove in Beersheba, and called there on the name of the LORD, the everlasting God. ³⁴ And Abraham sojourned in the Philistines’ land many days.

Read full chapter: Genesis 21 →