Genesis 12:1-20.
Genesis 12:1-20 (GNT)
Called to be Free to Trust in God's Promises
Introduction
Genesis 12:1-20: This passage marks the beginning of the story of God's
people, the Israelites. God chooses Abram (Abraham) and tells him to go to
Canaan. He and his wife, Sarai (Sarah), obey. Because of a famine in the
land, Abram travels to Egypt and asks Sarai to pretend she is his sister.
Sarai is taken into the king's home because of her beauty. God rejects
this and strikes the king's palace with disease.
Today's Reading
1The Lord said to Abram, Leave your country, your relatives, and your
father's home, and go to a land that I am going to show you. 2I will give
you many descendants, and they will become a great nation. I will bless
you and make your name famous, so that you will be a blessing.
3I will bless those who bless you,
But I will curse those who curse you.And through you I will bless all the
nations. 4When Abram was seventy-five years old, he started out from
Haran, as the Lord had told him to do; and Lot went with him. 5Abram took
his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, and all the wealth and all the slaves they
had acquired in Haran, and they started out for the land of Canaan.When
they arrived in Canaan, 6Abram traveled through the land until he came to
the sacred tree of Moreh, the holy place at Shechem. (At that time the
Canaanites were still living in the land.) 7The Lord appeared to Abram and
said to him, This is the country that I am going to give to your
descendants. Then Abram built an altar there to the Lord, who had appeared
to him. 8After that, he moved on south to the hill country east of the city
of Bethel and set up his camp between Bethel on the west and Ai on the
east. There also he built an altar and worshiped the Lord. 9Then he moved
on from place to place, going toward the southern part of Canaan. 10But
there was a famine in Canaan, and it was so bad that Abram went farther
south to Egypt, to live there for a while. 11When he was about to cross
the border into Egypt, he said to his wife Sarai, You are a beautiful
woman. 12When the Egyptians see you, they will assume that you are my
wife, and so they will kill me and let you live. 13Tell them that you are
my sister; then because of you they will let me live and treat me well.
14When he crossed the border into Egypt, the Egyptians did see that his
wife was beautiful. 15Some of the court officials saw her and told the
king how beautiful she was; so she was taken to his palace. 16Because of
her the king treated Abram well and gave him flocks of sheep and goats,
cattle, donkeys, slaves, and camels. 17But because the king had taken
Sarai, the Lord sent terrible diseases on him and on the people of his
palace. 18Then the king sent for Abram and asked him, What have you done
to me? Why didn't you tell me that she was your wife? 19Why did you say
that she was your sister, and let me take her as my wife? Here is your
wife; take her and get out! 20The king gave orders to his men, so they
took Abram and put him out of the country, together with his wife and
everything he owned.
Reflect
The king of Egypt took Sarai into his palace, where she was expected to be
part of the community of woman who were the king's wives (a harem). By
letting the king think that Sarai was his sister, Abram put God's
promise-the promise to make Abram's descendants into a great nation-at
risk. Why would Sarai becoming one of the king's wives have put the nation
of Israel at risk?
Pray
God of Israel, you guided Abraham and Sarah's paths to help them become the
father and mother of Israel. Guide my path this day, that I may fully live
as the person you call me to be. In your name I pray, Amen.
God bless you.
Introduction
Genesis 12:1-20: This passage marks the beginning of the story of God's
people, the Israelites. God chooses Abram (Abraham) and tells him to go to
Canaan. He and his wife, Sarai (Sarah), obey. Because of a famine in the
land, Abram travels to Egypt and asks Sarai to pretend she is his sister.
Sarai is taken into the king's home because of her beauty. God rejects
this and strikes the king's palace with disease.
Today's Reading
1The Lord said to Abram, Leave your country, your relatives, and your
father's home, and go to a land that I am going to show you. 2I will give
you many descendants, and they will become a great nation. I will bless
you and make your name famous, so that you will be a blessing.
3I will bless those who bless you,
But I will curse those who curse you.And through you I will bless all the
nations. 4When Abram was seventy-five years old, he started out from
Haran, as the Lord had told him to do; and Lot went with him. 5Abram took
his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, and all the wealth and all the slaves they
had acquired in Haran, and they started out for the land of Canaan.When
they arrived in Canaan, 6Abram traveled through the land until he came to
the sacred tree of Moreh, the holy place at Shechem. (At that time the
Canaanites were still living in the land.) 7The Lord appeared to Abram and
said to him, This is the country that I am going to give to your
descendants. Then Abram built an altar there to the Lord, who had appeared
to him. 8After that, he moved on south to the hill country east of the city
of Bethel and set up his camp between Bethel on the west and Ai on the
east. There also he built an altar and worshiped the Lord. 9Then he moved
on from place to place, going toward the southern part of Canaan. 10But
there was a famine in Canaan, and it was so bad that Abram went farther
south to Egypt, to live there for a while. 11When he was about to cross
the border into Egypt, he said to his wife Sarai, You are a beautiful
woman. 12When the Egyptians see you, they will assume that you are my
wife, and so they will kill me and let you live. 13Tell them that you are
my sister; then because of you they will let me live and treat me well.
14When he crossed the border into Egypt, the Egyptians did see that his
wife was beautiful. 15Some of the court officials saw her and told the
king how beautiful she was; so she was taken to his palace. 16Because of
her the king treated Abram well and gave him flocks of sheep and goats,
cattle, donkeys, slaves, and camels. 17But because the king had taken
Sarai, the Lord sent terrible diseases on him and on the people of his
palace. 18Then the king sent for Abram and asked him, What have you done
to me? Why didn't you tell me that she was your wife? 19Why did you say
that she was your sister, and let me take her as my wife? Here is your
wife; take her and get out! 20The king gave orders to his men, so they
took Abram and put him out of the country, together with his wife and
everything he owned.
Reflect
The king of Egypt took Sarai into his palace, where she was expected to be
part of the community of woman who were the king's wives (a harem). By
letting the king think that Sarai was his sister, Abram put God's
promise-the promise to make Abram's descendants into a great nation-at
risk. Why would Sarai becoming one of the king's wives have put the nation
of Israel at risk?
Pray
God of Israel, you guided Abraham and Sarah's paths to help them become the
father and mother of Israel. Guide my path this day, that I may fully live
as the person you call me to be. In your name I pray, Amen.
God bless you.
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