Genesis 20
1 Abraham left Mamre and moved southwest to the Negev desert and lived in a place named Gerar, between Kadesh and Shur.
And Abraham journeys from there toward the land of the south, and dwells between Kadesh and Shur, and sojourns in Gerar;
2 While he was there, he told people that Sarah was his sister, not his wife. Then King Abimelech of Gerar sent some of his men to Sarah, and they brought her to him to be his wife.
and Abraham says concerning his wife Sarah, “She is my sister”; and Abimelech king of Gerar sends and takes Sarah.
3 But God appeared to Abimelech in a dream during the night and said to him, “Listen to me! You are going to die because the woman you took is another man’s wife.”
And God comes to Abimelech in a dream of the night and says to him, “Behold, you [are] a dead man, because of the woman whom you have taken—and she married to a husband.”
4 But Abimelech had not had sex [EUP] with her, so he said, “God, since the people of my nation and I am innocent; will you kill me?
And Abimelech has not drawn near to her, and he says, “Lord, do you also slay a righteous nation?
5 He told me, ‘She is my sister,’ and she also said, ‘He is my brother.’ I did this with pure motives and I [SYN] have not done anything wrong yet.”
Has he not himself said to me, She [is] my sister! And she, even she herself, said, He [is] my brother; in the integrity of my heart, and in the innocence of my hands, I have done this.”
6 God said to him in another dream, “Yes, I know that your motives were pure. That is why I truly prevented you from sinning against me. I did not allow you to have sex [EUP] with her.
And God says to him in the dream, “Indeed, I have known that in the integrity of your heart you have done this, and I withhold you, even I, from sinning against Me, therefore I have not permitted you to come against her;
7 Now, return this man’s wife to her husband, because he is (a prophet/a man who receives messages from me). He will pray for you, and you will (remain alive/not die). But if you do not return her to him, you will certainly die, and all the members of your household will also certainly die.”
and now send back the man’s wife, for he [is] inspired, and he prays for you, and you live; and if you do not send back, know that dying you die, you and all that you have.”
8 Early the next morning, Abimelech summoned all his officials, and told them everything that had happened. When they heard that [MTY], his men were very afraid [that God would punish them].
And Abimelech rises early in the morning, and calls for all his servants, and speaks all these words in their ears; and the men fear exceedingly;
9 Abimelech then summoned Abraham, and said to him, “You should not have done that to us [RHQ]! Did I do something wrong to you, with the result that you are causing me and the people in [MTY] my kingdom to be guilty of committing a great sin [RHQ]? You have done things to me that (should not be done/you should not have done)!”
and Abimelech calls for Abraham and says to him, “What have you done to us? And what have I sinned against you, that you have brought on me, and on my kingdom, a great sin? Works which are not done you have done with me.”
10 Abimelech asked Abraham, “What was your reason for doing this?”
Abimelech also says to Abraham, “What have you seen that you have done this thing?”
11 Abraham replied, “I said that because I thought, ‘They certainly do not respect God in this place. If they don’t respect God, they will not respect relationships with others. [If I say she is my sister, they will try to pay me a bride price] to get her. But if I say she is my wife, they will kill me to get her.’
And Abraham says, “Because I said, Surely the fear of God is not in this place, and they have slain me for the sake of my wife;
12 Besides, she really [can be considered] my sister, because she is the daughter of my father, although she is not the daughter of my mother. She is the daughter of another woman, and I married her.
and also, she is truly my sister, daughter of my father, only not daughter of my mother, and she becomes my wife;
13 Later, when God told me to move away from my father’s household, I said to her, ‘This is the way you can show that you love me: Everywhere we go, say about me, “This is my brother.”’”
and it comes to pass, when God has caused me to wander from my father’s house, that I say to her, This [is] your kindness which you do with me: at every place to where we come, say of me, He [is] my brother.”
14 So Abimelech brought some sheep and cattle and male and female slaves and gave them to Abraham. And he returned his wife Sarah to him.
And Abimelech takes sheep and oxen, and servants and handmaids, and gives to Abraham, and sends back his wife Sarah to him;
15 And Abimelech said to him, “Look! All my land is here in front of you. Live in whatever place you like!”
and Abimelech says, “Behold, my land [is] before you, where it is good in your eyes, dwell”;
16 And he said to Sarah, “Look here, I am giving 1,000 pieces of silver to your brother. This is to insure that no one will [bring up this matter again and] say that I have done something wrong. [EUP, IDM]”
and to Sarah he has said, “Behold, I have given one thousand pieces of silver to your brother; behold, it is to you a covering of eyes, to all who are with you”; and by all this she is reasoned with.
17 Then Abraham prayed to God, and God healed Abimelech’s wife and his slave girls so that they could become pregnant.
And Abraham prays to God, and God heals Abimelech and his wife, and his handmaids, and they bear:
18 This was because Yahweh had caused it to be impossible for any of the women in Abimelech’s household to bear children, because Abimelech had taken Abraham’s wife Sarah.
for YHWH restraining had restrained every womb of the house of Abimelech, because of Sarah, Abraham’s wife.
