Relapse

You have to wonder, after all the spiritual progress Abraham had made, how he could fall into the same kind of sin against Abimelech that he had years earlier with Pharaoh! Here he is again pretending that Sarah is his sister in order to save his skin. (Genesis 20) He is on the brink of finally grasping the fulfilment of God’s promise, and he’s about to put that fulfilment into serious jeopardy.

The other puzzling thing to me about this passage is how a 90-year-old woman would be sexually attractive enough for a Middle Eastern potentate to want her for his harem. Obviously, there is something here that escapes me. I can more easily understand the propensity of all human beings to lapse into sin than I can understand the attractions aged Sarah held for Abimelech!

In any case, God tells Abimelech about the dire peril in which he and his people now exist, and explains how He has kept Abimelech from sin. Needless to say, Abimelech is furious with Abraham and confronts him, asking, “What was your reason for doing this?” (Gen. 20:10)

Abraham looks for a place to pass the buck, much as Adam had done in the Garden of Eden. He implies that he could not have been guaranteed of his safety from Abimelech’s people. He excuses his lie by saying that Sarah really is his half-sister. He says anything but that he had done wrong.

In spite of his lame excuses, Abimelech is generous to Abraham and Sarah, offering them livestock and the opportunity of living in his territory. Abraham prays to God and the curse of barrenness is removed from Abimelech’s people.

The story is a reminder to me that even the most faithful believer must be vigilant so as not to fall into the same kind of pattern of sin that had entrapped him or her at an earlier time. The old habits and patterns can so easily rear their ugly heads and the unsuspecting pilgrim can easily succumb. We will not be "home free" from temptation and sin until heaven, but we are assured that "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness." (I John 1:9)

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