After the destruction of Sodom Abraham began to travel down toward the south again. This time he settled in a place called Gerar where Philistines lived. Abraham told them that Sarah was his sister. Then Abimelech, king of Gerar, sent and took Sarah for himself. But God appeared to Abimelech in a dream and told him, "You are now about to die because of the woman whom you have taken, for she is a man's wife."
Abimelech protested that he had done nothing wrong. Abraham and Sarah had both told him that they were brother and sister so he was innocent of any wrongdoing. God agreed that Abimelech had done nothing wrong so far but now he must return Sarah to Abraham and ask him to pray for him. If he didn't he and all his people would die.
Early in the morning Abimelech told all his servants about the dream. They all became very afraid. Then Abimelech called Abraham and asked him why he had done this. He rebuked Abraham for bringing a great sin on him and his people.
Abraham replied that he was afraid because he thought that no one in Gerar feared God. He thought that someone would kill him to get his wife. Besides, Sarah was his half sister so he wasn't telling a complete lie. He had already asked Sarah to help him in this deception when they first began to follow the Lord.
Abimelech gave Abraham sheep, oxen, servants and a thousand pieces of silver so that no one could say that he had wronged him in any way. Then Abraham prayed to God for Abimelech and his household and God healed them because He had already begun to judge them for taking Sarah.
After this the Lord visited Sarah as he had promised. And Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the time of which God had spoken to him. And Abraham called the name of his son, Isaac. And Abraham circumcised Isaac his son when he was eight days old, as God had commanded him. Abraham was a hundred years old when Isaac his son was born to him and Sarah was ninety years old. Sarah was so happy she was laughing after Isaac was born. No one would have said that she could bear a son to Abraham when they were both so old here he was.
The day Isaac was weaned Abraham made a great feast. But Sarah saw Hagar's son mocking Isaac so she told Abraham to cast out Hagar and her son. She didn't want Ishmael to have any part of Isaac's inheritance. Abraham didn't want to cast them out because Ishmael was also his son. But God told him to listen to Sarah; Isaac would be the one counted by God as Abraham's descendant. Nevertheless, God promised Abraham that Ishmael would become another nation because he was also a seed of Abraham. So Abraham sent Hagar and Ishmael away with bread and water and they went into the wilderness of Beersheba.
When the water was all gone Hagar left Ishmael under a bush and went a fair distance away and wept. She thought they were going to die and didn't want to watch Ishmael's death. But God heard Ishmael's voice and called to Hagar out of heaven. He told her not to be afraid but help Ishmael up for God would make him a great nation. He also showed her a well of water so that they could drink. From then on they lived in the wilderness and Ishmael became an archer.
At that time Abimelech and the captain of his army came to visit Abraham. They saw that God was with Abraham and they wanted him to make a covenant with them so that Abraham would deal with them and their descendants with kindness. So they made a covenant by the well of Beersheba where Abraham was dwelling. So Abraham lived there for many days and called on the name of Jehovah, the Eternal God.
What hidden weakness was exposed when Abraham went down to the land
of the Philistines?
Why did the Lord wait so long to answer Abraham's prayer for an heir?
Verses in the Bible that refer to this story: Gen. 20:1-18; 21:1-34; Acts 7:8; Rom. 9:7-9; Gal. 4:22-31; Heb. 11:9-16;