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f j f i r f j f i c f and the pagan
by Dr. Herbert Henry Ehrenstein
Bible Study Hour and ETERN ITY Magazine Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
O ne of the things which we twentieth-century Chris tians sometimes forget is that Biblical personalities were really not much different from ourselves. They loved the Lord and sought to serve Him just as we do. They faced their times of disappointment and trial as we do. And sometimes they, like us, could be pretty small, cheap and deceitful in their relations toward others. The text we have for our consideration furnishes an illustration of this principle in the life of one of the great Old Testa ment saints — Abraham who was called the friend of God and praised in Scripture as a great man of faith. Yet Abraham was willing to sacrifice his wife’s honor to save his own skin. Abraham lied to a pagan ruler and then whimpered and whined when his deception was uncovered. The story opens after the destruction of Sodom. Genesis 19 records that gruesome account as a sort of parenthesis in the biography of Abraham. Now that the ugly picture has been painted, viewed and the lessons drawn from it, the episode is put away and the narrator returns to the chronicle of this outstanding man’s activ ities. Abraham was preparing to strike his tent and move on toward the Negev or south country of Palestine. He found a suitable grazing spot for his flocks and settled at Gerar, part of the domain of the Philistine king, Abim- elech. Thrust into a situation which might pose personal danger for himself, Abraham again resorted to deceit, showing the smallness of his character in putting his wife’s honor at stake. Actually, he had used this same trick with Pharaoh of Egypt some years before (Genesis 12). A famine had sent him scurrying to Egypt at that time to secure food. Then, lest Pharaoh’s men kill him and take his wife as their property, Abraham had ordered Sarah to say that she was his sister. The plan worked so well that Abraham became rich. Now that another similar situation had arisen, the patriarch was ready to try the same ruse again. In essence, he said to Sarah: “Tell them you are my sister. It worked before; it will work again.” Incidentally, we may wonder, perhaps, why Abime- lech was attracted to Sarah and desired her for his harem.
She was now over ninety years of age. Would a king be interested in an elderly woman for his collection of wives? Of course, we may assume that Sarah was still striking in appearance despite her age. Then too, recall that Oriental women wore veils and headdresses which hid their features and likely Abimelech had no way of know ing just how old Sarah was. And so Abraham, in his selfish, thoughtless way, caring only for his own skin, placed Sarah in jeopardy. Abimelech made a bargain, probably a handsome financial arrangement, and took Sarah for his wife. But God intervened in a dream (v. 3-7), issuing a warning to Abimelech. The frightened king replied that he had taken Sarah in all innocence (which he had!) without knowing that she was a man’s wife. Then in v. 6, we have a most important verse: “Yes,” said God, “ I know you have done this in all integrity. Indeed, it was I who restrained you from sinning against me by not permitting you to touch her.” Notice several things here. First, we have a picture of the sovereign power of God in action. Frequently, the question is asked, “ Does God control the affairs of men— particularly unregenerate men? True, we know He guides our lives as Christians. But does He take any interest in the affairs of those outside Christ?” The answer is found in our text. God spoke directly to pagan Abimelech and said, “ I have kept you from sinning against me. I did not let you touch Sarah.” Without doubt, God intervenes in the affairs of men to rule or overrule as it pleases Him. Nothing can happen in all His universe without His permission. Recall how God spoke of the pagan king Nebuchadnezzar as His ser vant (Jer. 25:9). And He called Cyrus, the pagan Persian ruler, “My anointed” and said: “ I have taken hold of your hand to subdue nations . . . and open doors before you . . . I call you by name . . . though you do not know me . . . I gird you, though you do not know me . . .” (Isa. 45:1-5). Clearly, even heathen rulers are subject to God’s direction, though they still act in free will. So, today, we listen to the ravings of a Nikita Khrush chev and anxiously wonder whether he will start a glo-
THE KING'S BUSINESS
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