Genesis 20
New English Translation
Abraham and Abimelech
20 Abraham journeyed from there to the Negev[a] region and settled between Kadesh and Shur. While he lived as a temporary resident[b] in Gerar, 2 Abraham said about his wife Sarah, “She is my sister.” So Abimelech, king of Gerar, sent for Sarah and took her.
3 But God appeared[c] to Abimelech in a dream at night and said to him, “You are as good as dead[d] because of the woman you have taken, for she is someone else’s wife.”[e]
4 Now Abimelech had not gone near her. He said, “Lord,[f] would you really slaughter an innocent nation?[g] 5 Did Abraham[h] not say to me, ‘She is my sister’? And she herself said,[i] ‘He is my brother.’ I have done this with a clear conscience[j] and with innocent hands!”
6 Then in the dream God replied to him, “Yes, I know that you have done this with a clear conscience.[k] That is why I have kept you[l] from sinning against me and why[m] I did not allow you to touch her. 7 But now give back the man’s wife. Indeed[n] he is a prophet[o] and he will pray for you; thus you will live.[p] But if you don’t give her back,[q] know that you will surely die[r] along with all who belong to you.”
8 Early in the morning[s] Abimelech summoned[t] all his servants. When he told them about all these things,[u] they[v] were terrified. 9 Abimelech summoned Abraham and said to him, “What have you done to us? What sin did I commit against you that would cause you to bring such great guilt on me and my kingdom?[w] You have done things to me that should not be done!”[x] 10 Then Abimelech asked[y] Abraham, “What prompted you to do this thing?”[z]
11 Abraham replied, “Because I thought,[aa] ‘Surely no one fears God in this place. They will kill me because of[ab] my wife.’ 12 What’s more,[ac] she is indeed my sister, my father’s daughter, but not my mother’s daughter. She became my wife. 13 When God made me wander[ad] from my father’s house, I told her, ‘This is what you can do to show your loyalty to me:[ae] Every place we go, say about me, “He is my brother.”’”
14 So Abimelech gave[af] sheep, cattle, and male and female servants to Abraham. He also gave his wife Sarah back to him. 15 Then Abimelech said, “Look, my land is before you; live wherever you please.”[ag]
16 To Sarah he said, “Look, I have given 1,000 pieces of silver[ah] to your ‘brother.’[ai] This is compensation for you so that you will stand vindicated before all who are with you.”[aj]
17 Abraham prayed to God, and God healed Abimelech, as well as his wife and female slaves so that they were able to have children. 18 For the Lord[ak] had caused infertility to strike every woman[al] in the household of Abimelech because he took[am] Sarah, Abraham’s wife.
Footnotes
- Genesis 20:1 tn Or “the South [country]”; Heb “the land of the Negev.”sn Negev is the name for the southern desert region in the land of Canaan.
- Genesis 20:1 tn Heb “and he sojourned.”
- Genesis 20:3 tn Heb “came.”
- Genesis 20:3 tn Heb “Look, you [are] dead.” The Hebrew construction uses the particle הִנֵּה (hinneh) with a second person pronominal particle הִנֵּה (hinneh) with by the participle. It is a highly rhetorical expression.
- Genesis 20:3 tn Heb “and she is owned by an owner.” The disjunctive clause is causal or explanatory in this case.
- Genesis 20:4 tn The Hebrew term translated “Lord” here is אֲדֹנָי (ʾadonay).
- Genesis 20:4 tn Apparently Abimelech assumes that God’s judgment will fall on his entire nation. Some, finding the reference to a nation problematic, prefer to emend the text and read, “Would you really kill someone who is innocent?” See E. A. Speiser, Genesis (AB), 149.
- Genesis 20:5 tn Heb “he”; the referent has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- Genesis 20:5 tn Heb “and she, even she.”
- Genesis 20:5 tn Heb “with the integrity of my heart.”
- Genesis 20:6 tn Heb “with the integrity of your heart.”
- Genesis 20:6 tn Heb “and I, even I, kept you.”
- Genesis 20:6 tn Heb “therefore.”
- Genesis 20:7 tn Or “for,” if the particle is understood as causal (as many English translations do) rather than asseverative.
- Genesis 20:7 sn For a discussion of the term prophet see N. Walker, “What is a Nabhi?” ZAW 73 (1961): 99-100.
- Genesis 20:7 tn After the preceding jussive (or imperfect), the imperative with vav conjunctive here indicates result.sn He will pray for you that you may live. Abraham was known as a man of God whose prayer would be effectual. Ironically and sadly, he was also known as a liar.
- Genesis 20:7 tn Heb “if there is not you returning.” The suffix on the particle becomes the subject of the negated clause.
- Genesis 20:7 tn The imperfect is preceded by the infinitive absolute to make the warning emphatic.
- Genesis 20:8 tn Heb “And Abimelech rose early in the morning and he summoned.”
- Genesis 20:8 tn The verb קָרָא (qaraʾ) followed by the preposition ל (lamed) means “to summon.”
- Genesis 20:8 tn Heb “And he spoke all these things in their ears.”
- Genesis 20:8 tn Heb “the men.” This has been replaced by the pronoun “they” in the translation for stylistic reasons.
- Genesis 20:9 tn Heb “How did I sin against you that you have brought on me and on my kingdom a great sin?” The expression “great sin” refers to adultery. For discussion of the cultural background of the passage, see J. J. Rabinowitz, “The Great Sin in Ancient Egyptian Marriage Contracts,” JNES 18 (1959): 73, and W. L. Moran, “The Scandal of the ‘Great Sin’ at Ugarit,” JNES 18 (1959): 280-81.
- Genesis 20:9 tn Heb “Deeds which should not be done you have done to me.” The imperfect has an obligatory nuance here.
- Genesis 20:10 tn Heb “And Abimelech said to.”
- Genesis 20:10 tn Heb “What did you see that you did this thing?” The question implies that Abraham had some motive for deceiving Abimelech.
- Genesis 20:11 tn Heb “Because I said.”
- Genesis 20:11 tn Heb “over the matter of.”
- Genesis 20:12 tn Heb “but also.”
- Genesis 20:13 tn The Hebrew verb is plural. This may be a case of grammatical agreement with the name for God, which is plural in form. However, when this plural name refers to the one true God, accompanying predicates are usually singular in form. Perhaps Abraham is accommodating his speech to Abimelech’s polytheistic perspective. (See GKC 463 §145.i.) If so, one should translate, “when the gods made me wander.”
- Genesis 20:13 tn Heb “This is your loyal deed which you can do for me.”
- Genesis 20:14 tn Heb “took and gave.”
- Genesis 20:15 tn Heb “In the [place that is] good in your eyes live!”
- Genesis 20:16 sn A thousand pieces [Heb “shekels”] of silver. The standards for weighing money varied considerably in the ancient Near East, but the generally accepted weight for the shekel is 11.5 grams (0.4 ounce). This makes the weight of silver here 11.5 kilograms, or 400 ounces (about 25 pounds).
- Genesis 20:16 sn To your ‘brother.’ Note the way that the king refers to Abraham. Was he being sarcastic? It was surely a rebuke to Sarah. What is amazing is how patient this king was. It is proof that the fear of God was in that place, contrary to what Abraham believed (see v. 11).
- Genesis 20:16 tn Heb “Look, it is for you a covering of the eyes, for all who are with you, and with all, and you are set right.” The exact meaning of the statement is unclear. Apparently it means that the gift of money somehow exonerates her in other people’s eyes. They will not look on her as compromised (see G. J. Wenham, Genesis [WBC], 2:74).
- Genesis 20:18 tn In the Hebrew text the clause begins with “because.”
- Genesis 20:18 tn Heb had completely closed up every womb.” In the Hebrew text infinitive absolute precedes the finite verb for emphasis.sn The Lord had closed up every womb. This fact indicates that Sarah was in Abimelech’s household for weeks or months before the dream revelation was given (20:6-7). No one in his household could have children after Sarah arrived on the scene.
- Genesis 20:18 tn Heb “because of the matter of.” The words “he took” are used in the translation for clarity.
创世记 20
Chinese Contemporary Bible (Simplified)
亚伯拉罕与亚比米勒
20 亚伯拉罕从幔利迁往南地，住在加低斯和书珥之间。在基拉耳寄居期间， 2 他称妻子撒拉是自己的妹妹。基拉耳王亚比米勒派人带走了撒拉。
3 晚上，上帝在梦中对亚比米勒说：“你的死期到了，因为你带来的那个女人是别人的妻子。” 4 亚比米勒还没有亲近撒拉，因此他说：“主啊，难道你要毁灭一个无辜的国家吗？ 5 那人亲口对我说这女人是他妹妹，她也说那人是她哥哥。我问心无愧，没有做错。” 6 上帝在梦中对他说：“我知道你问心无愧，所以我才阻止你，不让你亲近她，免得你得罪我。 7 现在你要把那人的妻子还给他，他是个先知，他会为你祷告，使你活命。要知道，如果你不这样做，你和你的人民都必死。”
8 亚比米勒清早起来召来他的臣仆，把这件事情告诉他们，他们听了都十分害怕。 9 亚比米勒召见亚伯拉罕，对他说：“你为什么要害我们？我什么地方得罪了你？你竟使我和我的人民陷入大罪！你不该这样做。” 10 又说：“你为什么这样做？” 11 亚伯拉罕回答说：“因为我想这里的人不敬畏上帝，他们必为了夺我妻子而杀我。 12 况且，她真是我的妹妹，与我同父异母，后来做了我的妻子。 13 上帝吩咐我离开家乡到外面漂泊的时候，我对她说，‘无论我们到哪里，你都要说我是你哥哥，这就是你对我的恩情。’”
14 于是，亚比米勒带来牛、羊和男女仆婢送给亚伯拉罕，并把他妻子撒拉还给他， 15 又对他说：“我的国土就在你面前，你想住在哪里都可以。” 16 亚比米勒对撒拉说：“我给你哥哥十一公斤银子，在你家人面前证明你是清白的，你没有做错什么。”
17 亚伯拉罕祈求上帝，上帝就治好了亚比米勒，也使他妻子和众婢女恢复了生育能力。 18 原来耶和华因为亚伯拉罕的妻子撒拉这件事，使亚比米勒宫中所有的妇女都不能生育。
Genesis 20
New King James Version
Abraham and Abimelech
20 And Abraham journeyed from (A)there to the South, and dwelt between (B)Kadesh and Shur, and (C)stayed in Gerar. 2 Now Abraham said of Sarah his wife, (D)“She is my sister.” And Abimelech king of Gerar sent and (E)took Sarah.
3 But (F)God came to Abimelech (G)in a dream by night, and said to him, (H)“Indeed you are a dead man because of the woman whom you have taken, for she is [a]a man’s wife.”
4 But Abimelech had not come near her; and he said, “Lord, (I)will You slay a righteous nation also? 5 Did he not say to me, ‘She is my sister’? And she, even she herself said, ‘He is my brother.’ (J)In the [b]integrity of my heart and innocence of my hands I have done this.”
6 And God said to him in a dream, “Yes, I know that you did this in the integrity of your heart. For (K)I also withheld you from sinning (L)against Me; therefore I did not let you touch her. 7 Now therefore, restore the man’s wife; (M)for he is a prophet, and he will pray for you and you shall live. But if you do not restore her, (N)know that you shall surely die, you (O)and all who are yours.”
8 So Abimelech rose early in the morning, called all his servants, and told all these things in their hearing; and the men were very much afraid. 9 And Abimelech called Abraham and said to him, “What have you done to us? How have I [c]offended you, (P)that you have brought on me and on my kingdom a great sin? You have done deeds to me (Q)that ought not to be done.” 10 Then Abimelech said to Abraham, “What did you have in view, that you have done this thing?”
11 And Abraham said, “Because I thought, surely (R)the fear of God is not in this place; and (S)they will kill me on account of my wife. 12 But indeed (T)she is truly my sister. She is the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother; and she became my wife. 13 And it came to pass, when (U)God caused me to wander from my father’s house, that I said to her, ‘This is your kindness that you should do for me: in every place, wherever we go, (V)say of me, “He is my brother.” ’ ”
14 Then Abimelech (W)took sheep, oxen, and male and female servants, and gave them to Abraham; and he restored Sarah his wife to him. 15 And Abimelech said, “See, (X)my land is before you; dwell where it pleases you.” 16 Then to Sarah he said, “Behold, I have given your brother a thousand pieces of silver; (Y)indeed this [d]vindicates you (Z)before all who are with you and before everybody.” Thus she was [e]rebuked.
17 So Abraham (AA)prayed to God; and God (AB)healed Abimelech, his wife, and his female servants. Then they bore children; 18 for the Lord (AC)had closed up all the wombs of the house of Abimelech because of Sarah, Abraham’s wife.
Footnotes
- Genesis 20:3 Lit. married to a husband
- Genesis 20:5 innocence
- Genesis 20:9 sinned against
- Genesis 20:16 Lit. is a covering of the eyes for you to all
- Genesis 20:16 Or justified
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Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
