Genesis 12:10-

Chad Myhre

Genesis • Sermon • Submitted 4 years ago

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Intro:

We are in the beginning phases of the story of Abraham… we are so early into it, that his name is not even Abraham yet.

For now, he is Abram… a man born ten generations from Noah… who himself was born ten generations from Adam.

In Abram, we find a pretty common man.

God did not find him as a person who was faithful to the ways of Yahweh.

Joshua 24:2 ESV

2 And Joshua said to all the people, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘Long ago, your fathers lived beyond the Euphrates, Terah, the father of Abraham and of Nahor; and they served other gods.

Abram’s family came from the the line of Shem, one of Noah’s three sons.

His was the line, that the promise came through… but this does not mean that these generations lives according to the promise.

According to Joshua’s speech to the people… they served other gods.

Also, even as we will see Abraham being a man who at times practices great faith… this is also a man who at times practices great stupidity.

In the verses that follow… he behaves stupidly. He practices, with pre-meditation, full on faithlessness. He doesn’t even bring God into the equation as he enters into the land of Egypt with a beautiful wife in tow.

Genesis 12:10–13 ESV

10 Now there was a famine in the land. So Abram went down to Egypt to sojourn there, for the famine was severe in the land. 11 When he was about to enter Egypt, he said to Sarai his wife, “I know that you are a woman beautiful in appearance, 12 and when the Egyptians see you, they will say, ‘This is his wife.’ Then they will kill me, but they will let you live. 13 Say you are my sister, that it may go well with me because of you, and that my life may be spared for your sake.”

Going to Egypt during a time of famine was not an uncommon thing to do. The land was fertile and the rivers provided plenty of water. When things went completely dry to the north… Egypt still had food.

This will not be the first time that the Abram’s family will go to Egypt in a time of need.

years later, his grandson Jacob would take his sons into Egypt during a time of trouble. 70 of them would go,

At this time, Abram was 75 years old. Later, we find out that Sarai is 9 or 10 years younger than him… so… at 65 years old, she was beautiful to the eye, and desirable to men.

Abram knew this.

It must have been common knowledge that the Pharaoh was always on the prowl for new, attractive, foreign women.

He even had dignitaries… or officers of the crown who did his bidding in this area.

This being common knowledge, and Abram knowing in advance the kind of thing that happened in Egypt, he proposed this plan to his wife.

… tell the Egyptians you are my sister.

If they know you are my wife, they will kill me.

But if they think I’m just your brother, they will let me live.

A few things to take note of, right off the bad.

There was famine in the land where Abram was… so he decided to go a country where food was plentiful.... - But he went knowing, that he could very well lose his wife.