THREAD: Wife-Sister narratives in Genesis.
3x in Genesis a patriarch claims his beautiful wife is his sister, from fear of being killed by locals out to get her (chs 12, 20, 26).
Stories are united by the word הָרַג ‘kill’ which does not occur in the intervening narratives.
3x in Genesis a patriarch claims his beautiful wife is his sister, from fear of being killed by locals out to get her (chs 12, 20, 26).
Stories are united by the word הָרַג ‘kill’ which does not occur in the intervening narratives.
The narratives are also united by the rebuke of the pagan king to the patriarch:
12:18 ‘What is this you’ve done to us?’ מַה־זֹּ֖את עָשִׂ֣יתָ לִּ֑י
20:9 ‘What have you done to us?’ מֶֽה־עָשִׂ֤יתָ לָּ֙נוּ֙
26:10 ‘What is this you have done to us?’ מַה־זֹּ֖את עָשִׂ֣יתָ לָּ֑נוּ
12:18 ‘What is this you’ve done to us?’ מַה־זֹּ֖את עָשִׂ֣יתָ לִּ֑י
20:9 ‘What have you done to us?’ מֶֽה־עָשִׂ֤יתָ לָּ֙נוּ֙
26:10 ‘What is this you have done to us?’ מַה־זֹּ֖את עָשִׂ֣יתָ לָּ֑נוּ
Each story shares significant features with one other story, but not with both:
They also show significant progression in portraying the lessening degrees to which the wife is exposed to the predations of the local males.
In Genesis 12 Sarai is not only ‘taken into Pharaoh’s house’ (v. 15), but Abr(ah)am gains wealth & power from Pharaoh because of her (v. 16), & Pharaoh says ‘I took her for my wife’ (v. 19). The length of stay & language suggest, without explicitly stating, sexual involvement.
If so, the fact that Pharaoh—who might be thought of as the most potent man on the planet—was unable to get Sarai pregnant may emphasize the miracle of Isaac’s birth later.
20:2 shares with 12:15 the language of Sarah being ‘taken’ by the king, but the chapter lacks any reference to her becoming the king’s ‘wife’ and in contrast to ch. 12 sexual relationships are explicitly denied (20:4).
Ch. 26 contrasts with the two preceding stories because Rebecca is not even ‘taken’. The king finds out that Rebecca is Isaac’s wife when he sees Isaac laughing/sporting/playing with Rebecca (יִצְחָק מְצַחֵק in 26:8, where 'Isaac' and 'play' share the same Hebrew root).
Each successive story shows an improvement on what God allows to happen relative to the previous one, even though the patriarch seems to make no contribution to this improvement.
God favours Abraham and Isaac *despite* their behaviour.
God favours Abraham and Isaac *despite* their behaviour.
Abraham becomes wealthy through pimping his wife (12:16) and God sent great plagues on the Egyptians (12:17), making this a prequel to Exodus.
In 20:3 God tells Abimelech that he’s going to die for taking Sarah. Abimelech repeatedly stresses his innocence (20:4, 5), which God admits & says he actually stopped Abimelech sinning (20:6).
Abimelech also points out, with evidence, Abraham’s guilt (20:9, 10) while Abraham claims, without evidence, Abimelech’s lack of fear of God (20:11), and denies guilt (20:12), while lapsing into polytheism (20:13).
The phrase usually translated ‘when God made me wander from my father’s house’ has a plural verb & uses a word for ‘wander’ which more often means ‘stray’. So Abraham is saying that when the gods sent him out on his aimless journey, he agreed with Sarah to call her his sister.
Abimelech gives gifts to Abraham (20:14), offers him land (20:15) and financial compensation (20:16).
If it were just a question of moral performance, I'd put Abimelech here above Abraham.
But, as Paul later notes, people aren't justified in Genesis by their good deeds.
If it were just a question of moral performance, I'd put Abimelech here above Abraham.
But, as Paul later notes, people aren't justified in Genesis by their good deeds.
God had meanwhile caused sterility in Gerar, which was only removed through Abraham’s intercession (20:17-18). Sterility in Gerar occurs in the two verses immediately prior to the two verses about Sarah’s conception and birth of Isaac (21:1-2).
Highlighting God's favour.
Highlighting God's favour.
So Abimelech and Abraham don’t get equal treatment. God favours Abraham by far and blesses him despite his faults.
In Genesis 12:9-20 God doesn’t speak, but he acts to plague the Egyptians.
In Genesis 20 God twice speaks to the pagan king, not to the patriarch.
In Genesis 26 God speaks to the patriarch immediately before the incident (26:2-5).
In Genesis 20 God twice speaks to the pagan king, not to the patriarch.
In Genesis 26 God speaks to the patriarch immediately before the incident (26:2-5).
Thus God is constantly outperforming the last story, even though the patriarchs are showing no such moral improvement.
CONCLUSIONS:
The stories aren't pointless repeats
They can be read comparatively
They teach God’s repeated and increasing unmerited grace
They teach the constancy of human error, even by those God specially favours
The stories aren't pointless repeats
They can be read comparatively
They teach God’s repeated and increasing unmerited grace
They teach the constancy of human error, even by those God specially favours
Here God treats his chosen ones far better than those they encounter.
God has decided to favour Abraham & his offspring & thus to benefit every family on earth (Genesis 12:2-3).
Nothing & no one can stand in the way of that.
Not even the stupidity of God's own people.
God has decided to favour Abraham & his offspring & thus to benefit every family on earth (Genesis 12:2-3).
Nothing & no one can stand in the way of that.
Not even the stupidity of God's own people.
