BIBLES NET. COM
Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
on the Whole Bible
Back to Biblesnet.com Home Page
|
[Previous] [Next] |
Matthew Henry |
G E N E S I S
CHAP. XX.
We are here returning to the story of Abraham; yet that part of
it which is here recorded is not to his honour. The fairest marbles
have their flaws, and, while there are spots in the sun, we must
not expect any thing spotless under it. The scripture, it should
be remarked, is impartial in relating the blemishes even of its
most celebrated characters. We have here,
I. Abraham’s sin in
denying his wife, and Abimelech’s sin thereupon in taking her,
II. God’s discourse with Abimelech in a dream, upon
this occasion, wherein he shows him his error
(ver. 3),
accepts his plea
(ver. 4-6),
and directs him to make restitution,
III. Abimelech’s discourse with Abraham, wherein he chides
him for the cheat he had put upon him
(ver. 8-10),
and Abraham
excuses it as well as he can,
IV. The good
issue of the story, in which Abimelech restores Abraham his
wife
(ver. 14-16),
and Abraham, by prayer, prevails with God
for the removal of the judgment Abimelech was under,
| Abraham’s Denial of His Wife. | B. C. 1898. |
|
|
|
1 And Abraham journeyed from
thence toward the south country,
and dwelled between Kadesh and Shur,
and sojourned in Gerar.
2 And Abraham
said of Sarah his wife, She is my
sister: and Abimelech king of Gerar
sent, and took Sarah.
Here is,
1. Abraham’s removal from Mamre,
where he had lived nearly twenty years, into
the country of the Philistines: He sojourned
in Gerar,
v. 1.
We are not told upon what
occasion he removed, whether terrified by the
destruction of Sodom, or because the country
round was for the present prejudiced by it,
or, as some of the Jewish writers say, because
he was grieved at Lot’s incest with his
daughters, and the reproach which the Canaanites
cast upon him and his religion, for
his kinsman’s sake: doubtless there was
some good cause for his removal. Note, In
a world where we are strangers and pilgrims
we cannot expect to be always in the same
place. Again, Wherever we are, we must look
upon ourselves but as sojourners.
2. His sin
in denying his wife, as before
(ch. xii. 13),
which was not only in itself such an equivocation
as bordered upon a lie, and which, if
admitted as lawful, would be the ruin of
human converse and an inlet to all falsehood,
but was also an exposing of the chastity and
honour of his wife, of which he ought to
have been the protector. But, besides this,
it had here a two-fold aggravation:–
(1.) He had been guilty of this same sin before,
and had been reproved for it, and convinced
of the folly of the suggestion which induced
him to it; yet he returns to it. Note, It is
possible that a good man may, not only fall
into sin, but relapse into the same sin,
through the surprise and strength of temptation
and the infirmity of the flesh. Let backsliders
repent then, but not despair,
(2.) Sarah, as it should seem, was
now with child of the promised seed, or, at
least, in expectation of being so quickly, according
to the word of God; he ought therefore
to have taken particular care of her
now, as
3. The peril that
Sarah was brought into by this means: The
king of Gerar sent, and took her to his house,
in order to the taking of her to his bed.
Note, The sin of one often occasions the sin
of others; he that breaks the hedge of God’s
commandments opens a gap to he knows not
how many; the beginning of sin is as the
letting forth of water.
3 But God came to Abimelech in
a dream by night, and said to him,
Behold, thou art but a dead man, for
the woman which thou hast taken;
for she is a man’s wife.
4 But Abimelech
had not come near her: and he
said, LORD, wilt thou slay also a
righteous nation?
5 Said he not unto
me, She is my sister? and she, even
she herself said, He is my brother:
in the integrity of my heart and innocency
of my hands have I done
this.
6 And God said unto him in
a dream, Yea, I know that thou didst
this in the integrity of thy heart;
for I also withheld thee from sinning
against me: therefore suffered I thee
not to touch her.
7 Now therefore
restore the man his wife; for he is a
prophet, and he shall pray for thee,
and thou shalt live: and if thou restore
her not, know thou that thou shalt
surely die, thou, and all that are thine.
It appears by this that God revealed himself
by dreams (which evidenced themselves to
be divine and supernatural) not only to
his servants the prophets, but even to those
who were out of the pale of the church and
covenant; but then, usually, it was with
some regard to God’s own people as in Pharaoh’s
dream, to Joseph, in Nebuchadnezzar’s,
to Daniel, and here, in Abimelech’s, to Abraham
and Sarah, for he reproved this king for
their sake,
I. God gives him notice of his danger
(v. 3),
his danger of sin, telling him that the woman
is a man’s wife, so that if he take her he
will wrong her husband; his danger of death
for this sin: Thou art a dead man; and God’s
saying so of a man makes him so. Note,
Every wilful sinner ought to be told that he
is a dead man, as the condemned malefactor,
and the patient whose disease is mortal,
are said to be so. If thou art a bad man,
certainly thou art a dead man.
II. He pleads ignorance that Abraham and
Sarah had agreed to impose upon him, and
not to let him know that they were any more
than brother and sister,
v. 6.
See what confidence
a man may have towards God when
his heart condemns him not,
If our consciences witness to our integrity,
and that, however we may have been cheated
into a snare, we have not knowingly and wittingly
sinned against God, it will be our rejoicing
in the day of evil. He pleads with
God as Abraham had done,
Wilt thou slay a righteous nation?
v. 4.
Not such a nation as Sodom, which was indeed
justly destroyed, but a nation which, in this
matter, was innocent.
III. God gives a very full answer to what
he had said.
1. He allows his plea, and admits that what
he did he did in the integrity of his heart:
Yea, I know it,
v. 6.
Note, It is matter of
comfort to those that are honest that God
knows their honesty, and will acknowledge
it, though perhaps men that are prejudiced
against them either cannot be convinced of
it or will not own that they are.
2. He lets him know that he was kept
from proceeding in the sin merely by the
good hand of God upon him: I withheld thee
from sinning against me. Abimelech was
hereby kept from doing wrong, Abraham
from suffering wrong, and Sarah from both.
Note,
(1.) There is a great deal of sin devised
and designed that is never executed. As bad
as things are in the world, they are not so
bad as the devil and wicked men would have
them.
(2.) It is God that restrains men from
doing the ill they would do. It is not from
him that there is sin, but it is from him that
there is not more sin, either by his influence
upon men’s minds, checking their inclination
to sin, or by his providence, taking away the
opportunity to sin.
(3.) It is a great mercy
to be hindered from committing sin; of this
God must have the glory, whoever is the
instrument,
3. He charges him to make restitution:
Now therefore, not that thou art better informed,
restore the man his wife,
v. 7.
Note,
Ignorance will excuse no longer than it continues.
If we have entered upon a wrong
course through ignorance this will not
excuse our knowingly persisting in it,
The reasons why he must be just
and kind to Abraham are,
(1.) Because he is
a prophet, near and dear to God, for whom
God does in a particular manner concern
himself. God highly resents the injuries
done to his prophets, and takes them as done
to himself.
(2.) Being a prophet, he shall
pray for thee; this is a prophet’s reward,
and a good reward it is. It is intimated that
there was great efficacy in the prayers of a
prophet, and that good men should be ready
to help those with their prayers that stand in
need of them, and should make, at least, this
return for the kindnesses that are done them.
Abraham was accessory to Abimelech’s
trouble, and therefore was obliged in justice
to pray for him.
(3.) It is at thy peril if
thou do not restore her: Know thou that thou
shalt surely die. Note, He that does wrong,
whoever he is, prince or peasant, shall certainly
receive for the wrong which he has
done, unless he repent and make restitution,
No injustice can be made passable
with God, no, not by Caesar’s image
stamped upon it.
| Abimelech’s Conduct Towards Abraham. | B. C. 1898. |
|
|
|
8 Therefore Abimelech rose early
in the morning, and called all his servants,
and told all these things in their
ears: and the men were sore afraid.
9 Then Abimelech called Abraham,
and said unto him, What hast thou
done unto us? and what have I offended
thee, that thou hast brought
on me and on my kingdom a great
sin? thou hast done deeds unto me
that ought not to be done.
10 And Abimelech said unto Abraham, What
sawest thou, that thou hast done this
thing?
11 And Abraham said, Because
I thought, Surely the fear of
God is not in this place; and they will
slay me for my wife’s sake.
12 And
yet indeed she is my sister; she is the
daughter of my father, but not the
daughter of my mother; and she became
my wife.
13 And it came to
pass, when God caused me to wander
from my father’s house, that I said
unto her, This is thy kindness which
thou shalt show unto me; at every
place whither we shall come, say of
me, He is my brother.
Abimelech, being thus warned of God in a
dream, takes the warning, and, as one truly
afraid of sin and its consequences, he rises
early to obey the directions given him.
I. He has a caution for his servants,
v. 8.
Abraham himself could not be more careful
than he was to command his household in
this matter. Note, Those whom God has
convinced of sin and danger ought to tell
others what God has done for their souls,
that they also may be awakened and brought
to a like holy fear.
II. He has a chiding for Abraham. Observe,
1. The serious reproof which Abimelech
gave to Abraham,
His reasoning
with Abraham upon this occasion was very
strong, and yet very mild. Nothing could
be said better; he does not reproach him,
nor insult over him, does not say, “Is this
your profession? I see, though you will not
swear, you will lie. If these be prophets, I
will beg to be freed from the sight of them:”
but he fairly represents the injury Abraham
had done him, and calmly signifies his resentment
of it.
(1.) He calls that sin which
he now found he had been in danger of a
great sin. Note, Even the light of nature
teaches men that the sin of adultery is a very
great sin: be it observed, to the shame of
many who call themselves Christians, and yet
make a light matter of it.
(2.) He looks
upon it that both himself and his kingdom
would have been exposed to the wrath of
God if he had been guilty of this sin, though
ignorantly. Note, The sins of kings often
prove the plagues of kingdoms; rulers should
therefore, for their people’s sake, dread sin.
(3.) He charges Abraham with doing that
which was not justifiable, in disowning his
marriage. This he speaks of justly, and yet
tenderly; he does not call him a liar and
cheat, but tells him he had done deeds that
ought not to be done. Note, Equivocation
and dissimulation, however they may be palliated,
are very bad things, and by no means
to be admitted in any case.
(4.) He takes it
as a very great injury to himself and his
family that Abraham had thus exposed them
to sin: “What have I offended thee? If I
had been thy worst enemy, thou couldst not
have done me a worse turn, nor taken a more
effectual course to be revenged on me.”
Note, We ought to reckon that those do us
the greatest unkindness in the world that any
way tempt us or expose us to sin, though
they may pretend friendship, and offer that
which is grateful enough to corrupt
nature.
(5.) He challenges him to assign a
cause for his suspecting them as a dangerous
people for an honest man to live among:
“What sawest thou, that thou hast done this
thing?
v. 10.
What reason hadst thou to
think that if we had known her to be thy
wife thou wouldst have been exposed to any
danger by it?” Note, A suspicion of our
goodness is justly reckoned a greater affront
than a slight upon our greatness.
2. The poor excuse that Abraham made
for himself.
(1.) He pleaded the bad opinion he had of
the place,
He thought within himself
(though he could not give any good reason
for his thinking so), “Surely the fear of God
is not in this place, and then they will slay
me.”
[1.] Little good is to be expected
where no fear of God is. See
[2.] There are many places and persons that
have more of the fear of God in them than
we think they have: perhaps they are not
called by our dividing name, they do not wear
our badges, they do not tie themselves to that
which we have an opinion of; and therefore
we conclude they have not the fear of God
in their hearts, which is very injurious both
of Christ and Christians, and makes us obnoxious
to God’s judgment,
[3.] Uncharitableness and censoriousness are sins
that are the cause of many other sins. When
men have once persuaded themselves concerning
such and such that they have not
the fear of God, they think this will justify
them in the most unjust and unchristian
practices towards them. Men would not do
ill if they did not first think ill.
(2.) He excused it from the guilt of a downright
lie by making it out that, in a sense,
she was his sister,
Some think she
was own sister to Lot, who is called his
brother Lot
(ch. xiv. 16),
though he was his
nephew; so Sarah is called his sister. But
those to whom he said, She is my sister, understood
that she was so his sister as not to
be capable of being his wife; so that it was
an equivocation, with an intent to deceive.
(3.) He clears himself from the imputation
of an affront designed to Abimelech in it by
alleging that it had been his practice before,
according to an agreement between him and
his wife, when they first became sojourners
(v. 13):
“When God caused me to wander
from my father’s house, then we settled this
matter.” Note,
[1.] God is to be acknowledged
in all our wanderings.
[2.] Those
that travel abroad, and converse much with
strangers, as they have need of the wisdom
of the serpent, so it is requisite that
that wisdom be ever tempered with the
innocence of the dove. It may, for aught I
know, be suggested that God denied to Abraham
and Sarah the blessing of children so
long to punish them for this sinful compact
if they will not own their marriage, why
should God own it? But we may suppose
that, after this reproof which Abimelech gave
them, they agreed never to do so again, and
then presently we read
that Sarah conceived.
14 And Abimelech took sheep, and
oxen, and menservants, and womenservants,
and gave them unto Abraham,
and restored him Sarah his wife.
15 And Abimelech said, Behold, my
land is before thee: dwell where it
pleaseth thee.
16 And unto Sarah he
said, Behold, I have given thy brother
a thousand pieces of silver: behold,
he is to thee a covering of the eyes,
unto all that are with thee, and with
all other: thus she was reproved.
17 So Abraham prayed unto God: and
God healed Abimelech, and his wife,
and his maidservants; and they bare children.
18 For the LORD had fast
closed up all the wombs of the house
of Abimelech, because of Sarah Abraham’s
wife.
Here is, I. The kindness of a prince which
Abimelech showed to Abraham. See how
unjust Abraham’s jealousies were. He fancied
that if they knew that Sarah was his wife they
would kill him; but, when they did know it,
instead of killing him they were kind to him,
frightened at least to be so by the divine
rebukes they were under.
1. He gives him
his royal licence to dwell where he pleased
in his country, courting his stay because he
gives him his royal gifts
(v. 14),
sheep and oxen, and
(v. 16)
a thousand pieces of silver.
This he gave when he restored Sarah, either,
[1.] By way of satisfaction for the wrong he
had offered to do, in taking her to his house:
when the Philistines restored the ark, being
plagued for detaining it, they sent a present
with it. The law appointed that when restitution
was made something should be added
to it,
Or,
[2.] To engage Abraham’s
prayers for him; not as if prayers
should be bought and sold, but we should
endeavour to be kind to those of whose spiritual
things we reap,
Note,
It is our wisdom to get and keep an interest
with those that have an interest in heaven,
and to make those our friends who are the
friends of God.
[3.] He gives to Sarah good
instruction, tells her that her husband (her
brother he calls him, to upbraid her with
calling him so) must be to her for a covering of
the eyes, that is, she must look at no other,
nor desire to be looked at by any other.
Note, Yoke-fellows must be to each other
for a covering of the eyes. The marriage-covenant
is a covenant with the eyes, like
Job’s,
II. The kindness of a prophet which Abraham
showed to Abimelech: he prayed for
him,
v. 17, 18.
This honour God would put
upon Abraham that, though Abimelech had
restored Sarah, yet the judgment he was
under should be removed upon the prayer of
Abraham, and not before. Thus God healed
Miriam, when Moses, whom she had most
affronted, prayed for her
(Num. xii. 13),
and was reconciled to Job’s friends when Job,
whom they had grieved, prayed for them
and so did, as it were, give
it under his hand that he was reconciled to
them. Note, The prayers of good men may
be a kindness to great men, and ought to be
valued.
|
[Previous] [Next] |
Matthew Henry |
|
Back to Bibles Net . Com – Online Christian Library Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary – Free Download |
Copyright 2008. Bibles Net. Com. All Rights Reserved.