Genesis 20 Devotional

Faithful When We Are Not

“Then God said to Abimelech in the dream, “Yes, I know that you did this with a clear conscience, and so I have kept you from sinning against Me. That is why I did not let you touch her.”Genesis 20:6 (BSB)

Years after Egypt, Abraham repeats the same lie. In Gerar he says that Sarah is his sister, and King Abimelech takes her into his household (20:2). Only a chapter before the promised son is born, the promise is put at risk, and Abraham is the one who put it there. This time God warns Abimelech in a dream, telling him that he has kept him from sinning and did not let him touch Sarah (20:6).

Abimelech comes out of the story looking more upright than Abraham, who admits he lied because he assumed there was no fear of God in that place (20:11). Yet God calls Abraham a prophet, and when Abraham prays for Abimelech's household, God heals them (20:7, 20:17). God's choice of Abraham never rested on Abraham's record. Paul says that if we are faithless, God remains faithful, because he cannot deny himself (2 Timothy 2:13). His faithfulness holds even when our oldest fears and habits resurface.

To think about: Which old fear or habit keeps resurfacing in your life, and how does God's faithfulness to Abraham speak to it?