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Abraham finds out that a little "white lie" can seriously hurt him.
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This narrative shows us that
even the strongest among us
struggle and fall.
◦ Abraham here lies.
◦ Moses was a murderer.
◦ David was an adulterer and murder.
◦ Paul was a persecutor of
Christians.
Yet, Abram continued his
struggle to be who God needed
him to be.
◦ Eventually he got there.
◦ If you and I keep struggling, we can
get there, too.
GENESIS 12:10-20
This passage presents a big faith
challenge for Abram.
◦ First, there is a famine in Canaan.
How will Abram and his family survive?
If God is going to give Abram this land,
couldn’t He stop a famine from coming?
◦ Second, If Pharaoh takes Abram’s
wife, what will Abram do?
How will he go on without his
helpmate?
How will God give him the many nations
he’s been promised?
“Abram went down to Egypt to
dwell there” (v 10).
◦ Notice that Abram did not simply
go to Egypt to survive the famine--
he went to dwell in Egypt.
“Now there was a famine in the land,
and Abram went down to Egypt to live
there for a while because the famine
was severe” (NIV).
The point is that Abram’s faith is
suffering a major lapse here.
He plans on staying in Egypt a while
instead of journeying on to the land
God would show him.
The Hebrew word is used elsewhere
for stays of several years in duration
and even permanent residences.
Why is Abram’s “faith challenge”
understandable?
◦ What are some comparable “faith
challenges” in our lives?
◦ Obviously, Abram need have no
fear--God would lead him to the
Promised Land as promised.
How can we trust in God’s promises
when we face “faith challenges”?
What are some of God’s promises in
light of struggles?
Should Abram have intended to
stay for some time in Egypt?
◦ There seems nothing wrong in
Abram’s seeking refuge in Egypt.
◦ The issue is that he apparently
intended to remain in Egypt for
many years.
Abram apparently made a quick
transition from faith in God’s
promises to doubt and fear.
◦ Is it not easy to move from faith to
fear?
Famine was quite common in
Palestine.
◦ Rainfall in the southern part of
Palestine is only 4-12 inches per
year on average.
Abram has journeyed to “the South” (v
9).
The Hebrew is Negev, which means
“dry.”
◦ Egypt, on the other hand, could
count on the annual Nile floods to
fertilize the land.
Thus, Egypt was noted in Scripture for
its abundant food crops (Deut 11:10).
Egypt was often a place of refuge during
periods of famine (e.g., Joseph and the
Twelve Tribes).
Abram is worried about Sarai’s
beauty.
◦ Sarai is 65, and Abram considers her very
beautiful.
◦ The Egyptians also find her very beautiful,
and she was taken to Pharaoh’s house.
Abram’s proposal is to act as Sarai’s
brother.
◦ The purpose seems to have been for
Abram to intercept any marriage
proposals.
◦ In the ANE, there was an institution called
“fratriarchy” where a woman without a
father was protected by her brother who
negotiated marriage.
Of course, Abram was Sarai’s
brother.
◦ Gen 20:12.
◦ Since that’s the case, did Abram
really lie?
What is a lie?
Why is lying wrong?
Jn 8:44.
Eph 4:25.
Rev 21:8.
Abram was simply protecting his
life in this deceit.
◦ Is it wrong to lie to save our lives?
◦ Should we really die in order to
keep from sinning?
Heb 12:3-4.
Sarai was taken to Pharaoh’s
house.
◦ Whether this was a voluntary
taking or not, we simply do not
know.
But, Abram’s options would have
seemed limited since Pharaoh is the one
doing the asking.
◦ We also do not know if there was a
sexual relationship between Sarai
and Pharaoh.
That seems to have been the point of
Pharaoh’s taking Sarai.
God might have prevented that from
occurring.
However, Sarai was undoubtedly in
Pharaoh’s harem.
Abram is treated very kindly by
Pharaoh.
◦ He is given great livestock and
servants.
◦ The gift of female donkeys and
camels were particularly valuable.
Just because Abram is rewarded by
Pharaoh does not mean that God
approved of his actions.
◦ The great livestock are going to cause
problems with Lot.
◦ One of the female servants seems to be
Hagar (she was an Egyptian, Gen 16:3).
Therefore, this one sin is going to
cost Abram dearly (and it’s just a little
“white lie”).
◦ One sin can change the course of your
entire life (even after God has forgiven
you).
◦ How careful do we need to be with sin?
Once Sarai has been taken, “the
LORD plagued Pharaoh and his
house with great plagues.”
◦ This is the same Hebrew word
used to describe the ten plagues
God through Moses would later
bring upon the Egyptians (Ex 11:1).
◦ This is also the term used to speak
of skin diseases (Lev 13) such as
leprosy (2 Ki 15:5).
Pharaoh calls Abram & Pharaoh
is concerned about the breach
of morality, not Abram!
◦ Are there times that the world is
more concerned with morality than
we are?
◦ How do we remain concerned
about morality and God’s
standards?
Pharaoh cast Abram out of
Egypt in much the same way
God cast Adam and Eve out of
the Garden.
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