Peter called Lot “righteous” even though he lived among the wicked and came to a very bitter end. God called Noah Righteous even though he came to a disgraceful end as well. Abraham is another man that God calls righteous. He’s righteous not because he’s perfect (thank you, Lord!), but because he trusted God. Abraham was far from perfect. The story in Genesis chapter 20 is another “perfect” example of Abraham’s imperfections! He lies to Abimelech about Sarah just like he previously did with Pharoah, and lets him take her for his wife. Now, if our God is the God of a “second chance” then Abraham used his up in this episode. But thankfully, God doesn’t relate to us in ways to manipulate our behavior. He wants a relationship with us, not legal obedience. Duguid says, “God continued to be gracious to Abraham. He didn’t come down with a big stick and beat him up for failing again. He didn’t say, ‘That’s it! I’ve had it with you; I’m going to find someone else to fulfill my promises through. You’ve had your chance and you blew it!’ No, God convicted him of his sin—but gently.” 1
So in spite of Abraham’s second failure in this same way, God intercedes and protects Abimelech from Abraham’s lie. Then he blesses Abimelech and Abimelech responds by blessing Abraham with great wealth. Genesis 20:14 says, “Then Abimelech took sheep and oxen, and male servants and female servants, and gave them to Abraham, and returned Sarah his wife to him.” Clearly we see the truth of Romans 8:28, “God works all things together for good, to those who love Him.” He even uses our sins for His own purposes. God doesn’t love us for what we can do for Him. His love for us is unconditional. Most of you have heard the children’s hymn, “Jesus loves me. This I know for the bible tells me so. Little ones to him belong, I am weak but he is strong, Yes, Jesus loves me.” There’s another verse that we don’t sing very often. It says, “Jesus loves me when I’m good, when I do the things that I should. Jesus loves me when I’m bad, even though it makes him sad.” Yes, Jesus Loves me. And you! Quoting from Oswald Chambers, Hughes says, “It is so common to think that God will love us more if we perform some great work, some external achievement. But the Bible (and here the story of Abraham and Abimelech) focuses on making a great heart. Here God was working in Abraham to create an unusual dependence upon him, because “He chose and used somebodies only when they renounced dependence on their natural abilities and resources.”2
When we think about the two episodes of Abraham sending his wife off with Pharoah and then with Abimelech you can’t help to wonder what exactly was on his mind. Sarah had colluded with her husband Abraham previously to bring about an heir for Abraham with her handmaid Hagar. But God had rejected Hagar as the mother of Abraham’s son and Ishmael from being the promised seed. Abraham had no seed and after some time, even after the promise that he’d have one, he tried to claim his servant as his heir. God said “No, Eliezer is not the chosen heir.” Then Abraham seems to claim Lot, his blood nephew as his heir and God said no to Lot. Sarah and Abraham collude to bring about the birth if Ishmael, but God also rejects him. Maybe Abraham was putting Sarah in a position to be impregnated by Pharoah or Abimelech because Abraham was unable to do so. But, God (great little phrase, “but God”) said absolutely not and he prevented any intercourse between other men and Sarah. He was about to work his miracle with Sarah and Abraham. They were about the have the son of promise with made them both laugh so hard they named their legitimate son, Laughter.
1 Iain M. Duguid, Living in the Gap between Promise and Reality: The Gospel according to Abraham, ed. Tremper Longman III and J. Alan Groves, The Gospel according to the Old Testament (Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R Publishing, 1999), 117.
2 R. Kent Hughes, Genesis: Beginning and Blessing, Preaching the Word (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 2004), 290.