Net English TranslationGenesis 20 =
Abraham and Abimelech
20

1 Abraham journeyed from there to the Negev1 region and settled between Kadesh and Shur. While he lived as a temporary resident2 in Gerar, 2 Abraham said about his wife Sarah, “She is my sister.” So Abimelech, king of Gerar, sent for Sarah and took her.

3 But God appeared3 to Abimelech in a dream at night and said to him, “You are as good as dead4 because of the woman you have taken, for she is someone else’s wife.”5

4 Now Abimelech had not gone near her. He said, “Lord,6 would you really slaughter an innocent nation?7 5 Did Abraham8 not say to me, ‘She is my sister’? And she herself said,9 ‘He is my brother.’ I have done this with a clear conscience10 and with innocent hands!”

6 Then in the dream God replied to him, “Yes, I know that you have done this with a clear conscience.11 That is why I have kept you12 from sinning against me and why13 I did not allow you to touch her. 7 But now give back the man’s wife. Indeed14 he is a prophet15 and he will pray for you; thus you will live.16 But if you don’t give her back,17 know that you will surely die18 along with all who belong to you.”

8 Early in the morning19 Abimelech summoned20 all his servants. When he told them about all these things,21 they22 were terrified. 9 Abimelech summoned Abraham and said to him, “What have you done to us? What sin did I commit against you that would cause you to bring such great guilt on me and my kingdom?23 You have done things to me that should not be done!”24 10 Then Abimelech asked25 Abraham, “What prompted you to do this thing?”26

11 Abraham replied, “Because I thought,27 ‘Surely no one fears God in this place. They will kill me because of28 my wife.’ 12 What’s more,29 she is indeed my sister, my father’s daughter, but not my mother’s daughter. She became my wife. 13 When God made me wander30 from my father’s house, I told her, ‘This is what you can do to show your loyalty to me:31 Every place we go, say about me, “He is my brother.”’”

14 So Abimelech gave32 sheep, cattle, and male and female servants to Abraham. He also gave his wife Sarah back to him. 15 Then Abimelech said, “Look, my land is before you; live wherever you please.”33

16 To Sarah he said, “Look, I have given a thousand pieces of silver34 to your ‘brother.’35 This is compensation for you so that you will stand vindicated before all who are with you.”36

17 Abraham prayed to God, and God healed Abimelech, as well as his wife and female slaves so that they were able to have children. 18 For the Lord37 had caused infertility to strike every woman38 in the household of Abimelech because he took39 Sarah, Abraham’s wife.

120:1tn Or “the South [country]”; Heb “the land of the Negev.”sn Negev is the name for the southern desert region in the land of Canaan. 220:1tn Heb “and he sojourned.” 320:3tn Heb “came.” 420:3tn Heb “Look, you [are] dead.” The Hebrew construction uses the particle הִנֵּה (hinneh) with a second person pronominal particle הִנֵּה (hinneh) with by the participle. It is a highly rhetorical expression. 520:3tn Heb “and she is owned by an owner.” The disjunctive clause is causal or explanatory in this case. 620:4tn The Hebrew term translated “Lord” here is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay). 720:4tn Apparently Abimelech assumes that God’s judgment will fall on his entire nation. Some, finding the reference to a nation problematic, prefer to emend the text and read, “Would you really kill someone who is innocent?” See E. A. Speiser, Genesis (AB), 149. 820:5tn Heb “he”; the referent has been specified in the translation for clarity. 920:5tn Heb “and she, even she.” 1020:5tn Heb “with the integrity of my heart.” 1120:6tn Heb “with the integrity of your heart.” 1220:6tn Heb “and I, even I, kept you.” 1320:6tn Heb “therefore.” 1420:7tn Or “for,” if the particle is understood as causal (as many English translations do) rather than asseverative. 1520:7sn For a discussion of the term prophet see N. Walker, “What is a Nabhi?” ZAW 73 (1961): 99-100. 1620:7tn After the preceding jussive (or imperfect), the imperative with vav conjunctive here indicates result.sn He will pray for you that you may live. Abraham was known as a man of God whose prayer would be effectual. Ironically and sadly, he was also known as a liar. 1720:7tn Heb “if there is not you returning.” The suffix on the particle becomes the subject of the negated clause. 1820:7tn The imperfect is preceded by the infinitive absolute to make the warning emphatic. 1920:8tn Heb “And Abimelech rose early in the morning and he summoned.” 2020:8tn The verb קָרָא (qara’) followed by the preposition לְ (lamed) means “to summon.” 2120:8tn Heb “And he spoke all these things in their ears.” 2220:8tn Heb “the men.” This has been replaced by the pronoun “they” in the translation for stylistic reasons. 2320:9tn Heb “How did I sin against you that you have brought on me and on my kingdom a great sin?” The expression “great sin” refers to adultery. For discussion of the cultural background of the passage, see J. J. Rabinowitz, “The Great Sin in Ancient Egyptian Marriage Contracts,” JNES 18 (1959): 73, and W. L. Moran, “The Scandal of the ‘Great Sin’ at Ugarit,” JNES 18 (1959): 280-81. 2420:9tn Heb “Deeds which should not be done you have done to me.” The imperfect has an obligatory nuance here. 2520:10tn Heb “And Abimelech said to.” 2620:10tn Heb “What did you see that you did this thing?” The question implies that Abraham had some motive for deceiving Abimelech. 2720:11tn Heb “Because I said.” 2820:11tn Heb “over the matter of.” 2920:12tn Heb “but also.” 3020:13tn The Hebrew verb is plural. This may be a case of grammatical agreement with the name for God, which is plural in form. However, when this plural name refers to the one true God, accompanying predicates are usually singular in form. Perhaps Abraham is accommodating his speech to Abimelech’s polytheistic perspective. (See GKC 463 §145.i.) If so, one should translate, “when the gods made me wander.” 3120:13tn Heb “This is your loyal deed which you can do for me.” 3220:14tn Heb “took and gave.” 3320:15tn Heb “In the [place that is] good in your eyes live!” 3420:16sn A thousand pieces [Heb “shekels”] of silver. The standards for weighing money varied considerably in the ancient Near East, but the generally accepted weight for the shekel is 11.5 grams (0.4 ounce). This makes the weight of silver here 11.5 kilograms, or 400 ounces (about 25 pounds). 3520:16sn To your ‘brother.’ Note the way that the king refers to Abraham. Was he being sarcastic? It was surely a rebuke to Sarah. What is amazing is how patient this king was. It is proof that the fear of God was in that place, contrary to what Abraham believed (see v. 11). 3620:16tn Heb “Look, it is for you a covering of the eyes, for all who are with you, and with all, and you are set right.” The exact meaning of the statement is unclear. Apparently it means that the gift of money somehow exonerates her in other people’s eyes. They will not look on her as compromised (see G. J. Wenham, Genesis [WBC], 2:74). 3720:18tn In the Hebrew text the clause begins with “because.” 3820:18tn Heb had completely closed up every womb.” In the Hebrew text infinitive absolute precedes the finite verb for emphasis.sn The Lord had closed up every womb. This fact indicates that Sarah was in Abimelech’s household for weeks or months before the dream revelation was given (20:6-7). No one in his household could have children after Sarah arrived on the scene. 3920:18tn Heb “because of.” The words “he took” are supplied in the translation for clarity.
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