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Abram and Sarai

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Abram and Sarai

(Based on Genesis 12)

6 minuten leestijd Arcering uitzetten

As we continue our Bible history, we now come to a very blessed and well-known man in the Bible. His name is Abram. Abram was another man who, like Enoch, lived close to God and obeyed Him.

One day, God told Abram to leave the country that he was living in and to take his entire household, which means his family and all his possessions such as his animals and clothing, to move to a new land which God would show him. Some people, and maybe we, too, would have grumbled getting such a command. Why should we have to leave our family and friends and go to some place where we will not know anyone?

Abram, however, did not object. He had faith in God, just like we read about Noah. Abram obeyed God because he knew that God would only have him do what was best for him. Abram believed that the Lord would care for him in this new country also.

God did have a plan for Abram. He told Him, “I will make of thee a great nation. I will bless you and make your offspring (your children and grandchildren) as many as the stars in the heavens.” God also promised him a further blessing that the Lord Jesus Christ would be born from his offspring and would save His people from their sins.

We can see a large group of people leaving their home, carrying all their belongings with them. It is Abram and Sarai and all of their flocks. Abram’s nephew, Lot, also came along with them. Abram and his family walked a long, long distance until finally they came to a land called Canaan. When they came there, the Lord told them, “This is the land which I told you of, and this is the land which I will give to you and your children.”

At that very spot, Abram built an altar, worshipped, and brought an offering unto the Lord. It was Abram’s desire to show his thankfulness to God for bringing him to this place safely and for giving him this land. After offering the sacrifice, the group traveled on, but then they experienced a problem. There was a famine in the land, which means there was no food for them or their animals, so Abram did not want to stay there. He and Sarai decided to leave Canaan to travel to another country called Egypt and stay there for a while.

As they traveled, Abram began to worry about Pharaoh. Pharaoh was the king of Egypt, a very powerful and important man. If he wanted to take Sarai and marry her, he could take her away from Abram. He could also kill Abram, for kings did that in those days.

Abram thought about it. Sarai was a beautiful woman. If Pharaoh thought that Abram was her husband, perhaps he would kill him—but not if he thought Sarai was Abram’s sister. Abram thought, “That is what I will do; I will tell Pharaoh she is my sister.” That was not the truth, was it? Sometimes people will say, “It was just a little white lie,” but we must remember that all lies are sin against a holy God. Abram at this time did not trust God. He forgot that God had promised to make of him a great nation. God could certainly protect him, also in a strange country.

It is true in a way that Sarai was Abram’s sister; she was what we would call a half sister. So was he really telling a lie? Yes, in God’s eyes he was not telling the truth because the Lord knew what was in Abram’s heart. Abram was trying to deceive Pharaoh which was a sin in his heart.

Here is another example. Suppose that you do not want to go to school. You feel just a teeny bit sick, but you make it sound much worse to your father and mother. You tell them that you have a bad headache and that your stomach feels really bad. After hearing this, your father and mother tell you to stay home from school.

Now, it is true that you feel a little bit sick, but it is not really as bad as you said it was. You know it will probably go away. So it really is not true; it is a lie. You were trying to “trick” your parents. This is what Abram tried to do, so he told Sarai to tell everyone that she was his sister.

When Pharaoh saw Sarai, he thought she was a beautiful woman, and he took her into his house. He did not kill Abram, however, since he thought he was her brother. Pharaoh gave Abram many presents such as sheep, servants, and camels for her. In this manner he meant to pay Abram for Sarai. Then Pharaoh noticed that, suddenly, bad things began to happen to his family. Maybe they all became sick, or perhaps the animals began to die. Whatever it was, Pharaoh knew that God was punishing him for taking Sarai into his house. It could be that God revealed this to Pharaoh in a dream.

Some kings are very mean rulers, but God provided that Pharaoh was very kind to Abram. Most kings would have killed Abram so that they could take his wife to be their wife, but Pharaoh just said, “Why did you not tell me she was your wife? Then I would not have taken her.”

Pharaoh gave Sarai back to Abram and told him to get out of his country. So Abram, Sarai, and Lot left Egypt and went back to the land of Canaan.

It would be well if Abram had learned a lesson from telling this lie, but he later told the same lie to another king. We can see in this history that even God’s people at times commit sin. They are not perfect, but they, like we, must pray every day that God will keep them from sin and wicked thoughts.

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Bekijk de hele uitgave van woensdag 1 februari 2017

The Banner of Truth | 24 Pagina's

Abram and Sarai

Bekijk de hele uitgave van woensdag 1 februari 2017

The Banner of Truth | 24 Pagina's