As recorded in Genesis 12:1-4, God commanded Abraham (who at that time was known by the name Abram) to move his household to a different land (Genesis 12:5). In return, God promised to give Abraham and his descendants a great blessing. During their travels, Abraham’s household traveled through a land then known as Gerar (Genesis 20:1). Gerar’s king was named Abimelech. Abimelech took an interest in Abraham’s wife, Sarah. When asked, Abraham did not admit Sarah was his wife. Instead, he told Abimelech that Sarah was his sister. 

In a dream, God told Abimelech that he was to be punished for taking another man’s wife (Genesis 20:3). In the dream, Abimelech declares that he is innocent, because both Abraham and Sarah did not tell him that they were married. Instead, both told Abimelech that they were brother and sister (Genesis 20:5). God then instructs Abimelech to return Sarah to Abraham, which he does (Genesis 20:6-9). 

Returning to Abraham, Abimelech questions him about why Abraham deceived him, and expresses his feelings about the deception that caused him to commit the sin, however unaware, of taking another man’s wife (Genesis 20:9-10). Abraham confesses that he withheld the fact that Sarah was his wife because he was afraid that the people of Gerar, perhaps even Abimelech himself, would kill him to obtain Sarah if they knew he was Sarah’s husband (Genesis 20:11). He then explains that what he told Abimelech wasn’t a lie, because while he (Abraham) and Sarah had different mothers, they shared the same father (Genesis 20:12). Thus, although they were married, they were also half-brother and half-sister. Afterward, Abimelech not only returns Sarah to Abraham, but also gives Abraham livestock and servants (Genesis 20:14).

Although Abraham had such an abundance of faith that God chose to deal with him specifically and offer him great promises, Abraham’s fear still caused him to intentionally withhold the complete truth in his interaction with Abimelech. This put both Abraham and Abimelech in difficult positions. Those seeking to serve and please God need to constantly strive to have complete trust in Him and His ability and willingness to overrule all situations, as well to strive to be honest and genuine in interactions with all those encountered in life. 

Additional Resources:
Audio Sermon: “A Lying Tongue,” Michael Nekora

Christian Questions Podcast
Episode #1178: “Is There a Difference Between Exaggerating and Lying?”
Calling out the damage of misrepresentation and exaggeration
Preview Video
CQ Rewind Show Notes