Genesis Chapter 20

1. And Abraham journeyed from thence toward the south country, and dwelled between Kadesh and Shur, and sojourned in Gerar.

2. And Abraham said of Sarah his wife, She is my sister: and Abimelech king of Gerar sent, and took Sarah.

3. But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night, and said to him, Behold, thou art but a dead man, for the woman which thou hast taken; for she is a man's wife.

4. But Abimelech had not come near her: and he said, LORD, wilt thou slay also a righteous nation?

5. Said he not unto me, She is my sister? and she, even she herself said, He is my brother: in the integrity of my heart and innocency of my hands have I done this.

6. And God said unto him in a dream, Yea, I know that thou didst this in the integrity of thy heart; for I also withheld thee from sinning against me: therefore suffered I thee not to touch her.

7. Now therefore restore the man his wife; for he is a prophet, and he shall pray for thee, and thou shalt live: and if thou restore her not, know thou that thou shalt surely die, thou, and all that are thine.

8. Therefore Abimelech rose early in the morning, and called all his servants, and told all these things in their ears: and the men were sore afraid.

9. Then Abimelech called Abraham, and said unto him, What hast thou done unto us? and what have I offended thee, that thou hast brought on me and on my kingdom a great sin? thou hast done deeds unto me that ought not to be done.

10. And Abimelech said unto Abraham, What sawest thou, that thou hast done this thing?

11. And Abraham said, Because I thought, Surely the fear of God is not in this place; and they will slay me for my wife's sake.

12. And yet indeed she is 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 God caused me to wander from my father's house, that I said unto her, This is thy kindness which thou shalt shew unto me; at every place whither we shall come, say of me, He is my brother.

14. And Abimelech took sheep, and oxen, and menservants, and womenservants, and gave them unto Abraham, and restored him Sarah his wife.

15. And Abimelech said, Behold, my land is before thee: dwell where it pleaseth thee.

16. And unto Sarah he said, Behold, I have given thy brother a thousand pieces of silver: behold, he is to thee a covering of the eyes, unto all that are with thee, and with all other: thus she was reproved.

17. So Abraham prayed unto God: and God healed Abimelech, and his wife, and his maidservants; and they bare children.

18. For the LORD had fast closed up all the wombs of the house of Abimelech, because of Sarah Abraham's wife.

Pray For the Peace of Jerusalem ~ Origins

Genesis Chapter 20

Oh LORD, You are Forever Holy and Righteous.
How Excellent is Your Name!
It is You Who Stretched out the Heavens,
And it is You Who laid the Foundations of the Earth.
You Alone Are Worthy of Praise,
and You Alone Are The One True God of Abraham!
Ancient of Days,
Rock of Ages,
Eternal, and Almighty,
We Can Do Nothing But
Fall On Our Faces Before You
in Endless Worship and Thanksgiving!
We Thank You For Your Mighty,
Exquisite, Holy, and Immutable Word!
We Thank You For Your Jewish People,
Who in Spite of Centuries of Exile and Persecution,
Have Kept Your Word Alive.
We Thank You For Giving Us a Glimpse
Into Your Eternal Mind,
And We Thank You For Your Provision
For Redemption and Wholeness,
Even Though None Of us deserve it!

1. And Abraham journeyed from thence toward the south country, and dwelled between Kadesh and Shur, and sojourned in Gerar.

2. And Abraham said of Sarah his wife, She is my sister: and Abimelech king of Gerar sent, and took Sarah.

LORD, when I first read this,
I thought, WHY , now that Abraham is justified by faith,
And carries the Witness of You in his own Name,
Would he make the SAME foolish mistake he made in Egypt years ago?

3. But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night, and said to him, Behold, thou art but a dead man, for the woman which thou hast taken; for she is a man's wife.

4. But Abimelech had not come near her: and he said, LORD, wilt thou slay also a righteous nation?

5. Said he not unto me, She is my sister? and she, even she herself said, He is my brother: in the integrity of my heart and innocency of my hands have I done this.

6. And God said unto him in a dream, Yea, I know that thou didst this in the integrity of thy heart; for I also withheld thee from sinning against me: therefore suffered I thee not to touch her.

7. Now therefore restore the man his wife; for he is a prophet, and he shall pray for thee, and thou shalt live: and if thou restore her not, know thou that thou shalt surely die, thou, and all that are thine.

8. Therefore Abimelech rose early in the morning, and called all his servants, and told all these things in their ears: and the men were sore afraid.

9. Then Abimelech called Abraham, and said unto him, What hast thou done unto us? and what have I offended thee, that thou hast brought on me and on my kingdom a great sin? thou hast done deeds unto me that ought not to be done.

10. And Abimelech said unto Abraham, What sawest thou, that thou hast done this thing?

Abba Father, You show us that Gentile kings can be turned around, if they would just Listen To You!
Thank You For This Incredible lesson,
So perfect and appropriate for today!

14. And Abimelech took sheep, and oxen, and menservants, and womenservants, and gave them unto Abraham, and restored him Sarah his wife.

15. And Abimelech said, Behold, my land is before thee: dwell where it pleaseth thee.

16. And unto Sarah he said, Behold, I have given thy brother a thousand pieces of silver: behold, he is to thee a covering of the eyes, unto all that are with thee, and with all other: thus she was reproved.

17. So Abraham prayed unto God: and God healed Abimelech, and his wife, and his maidservants; and they bare children.

18. For the LORD had fast closed up all the wombs of the house of Abimelech, because of Sarah Abraham's wife.

Abba Father, From the Very Day the Modern State of Israel was Founded,
She has had to defend herself against her neighbors.

I tremble for my Own Nation,
Dear Father,
as You Are so Clear in Your Word what happens to nations who stand
Against You and Your Beloved!

Father, We Thank You For The Remnant who Continue to
Support and Bless Israel,
despite the political Climate.
Number us NOT with those who whisper lies to Your People.
Those who say "Peace and Safety" out loud,
but who inwardly plot against You and Your Beloved!
We ask You to Intervene in the Affairs of Nations,
And Change the Direction of Our Own.
We Plead With You, That Our Leaders will be Led by Your Spirit
with regards to Our Own Country's Policies Towards Jerusalem,
Or That You Will Remove Them.
We Also Pray that you will remove the evil spirit of antisemitism
That has invaded the politics of our Nation.
We beg For You To Replace The leaders Who Seize Power
Only to feed Their own EGOS,
and NOT to Serve the People or the Constitution.

Even So, We Pray,
as Our Jewish and Christian Brethren have prayed for Centuries,
That Messiah Come Quickly.
Jerusalem is Indeed a Cup of Trembling.
Jerusalem is Indeed a Burdensome Stone to All Nations
How we Cry Out,
Ache, and Long to See You,
to Make Things Right.

Dear Father, Abba, We Pray for The Peace of Jerusalem, According to Your Will and Promise!

We Thank you for those who come to this "Gan Tefillah",
This Garden of Prayer,
Every Single Day
To Pray For Your People,
To Study Your Word,
To Share Insights,
To Gaze Upon Pictures of Your Land of Promise
And to Have Blessed Fellowship.
Please Bless Jim Rob for giving us this Opportunity,
and this little corner of FR.

We Pray For Bibi Netayahu, and the Leaders of Israel
May They Receive Wisdom from You to do the Right Thing.
We Pray For The Swift and Sure Coming of Messiah,
Blessed Be He,
To Establish His Kingdom,
and Make All Things Right.

Blessings To All Who Visit This Thread

Hallelujah and Amen

Pray For the Peace of Jerusalem ~ Origins

Israel Surrounded by Her Enemies

Yesterday, I was in a store, and there was a Bible on a table.
I casually flipped it open, and it OPENED RIGHT TO THIS CHAPTER!
I knew it was the Text for the next day, so I read it in the store, and became very frustrated! Here was Abraham, after ALL he had been through, playing this stupid GAME again with a Gentile king, saying that Sarah was his SISTER!

After yesterday's Thread on Sodom and Gomorrah, I was very puzzled and confused.

It was not till this morning when I was getting dressed that the LORD spoke to me about the meaning of this passage.
It is not so much about Abraham's mistake, as it is about God's MERCY towards Abimelech!
And when does that Mercy come?

When Abimelech restores to Abraham THAT WHICH IS HIS, and BLESSES HIM.

Notice also that Abimelech, a pagan, begs Abraham to PRAY for HIM.

So what I thought was going to be a strange little break in the vast sweep of our Story turns out to be Possibly the Most Relevant Chapter for TODAY that The LORD could have chosen!

May you be Blessed as You Bless Israel.

“2. And Abraham said of Sarah his wife, She is my sister: and Abimelech king of Gerar sent, and took Sarah.

3. But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night, and said to him, Behold, thou art but a dead man, for the woman which thou hast taken; for she is a man's wife.

4. But Abimelech had not come near her: and he said, LORD, wilt thou slay also a righteous nation?

5. Said he not unto me, She is my sister? and she, even she herself said, He is my brother: in the integrity of my heart and innocency of my hands have I done this.

6. And God said unto him in a dream, Yea, I know that thou didst this in the integrity of thy heart; for I also withheld thee from sinning against me: therefore suffered I thee not to touch her.

7. Now therefore restore the man his wife; for he is a prophet, and he shall pray for thee, and thou shalt live: and if thou restore her not, know thou that thou shalt surely die, thou, and all that are thine.” ...

__________________________________________________________

” ...
6. And God said unto him in a dream, Yea, I know that thou didst this in the integrity of thy heart; for I also withheld thee from sinning against me: therefore suffered I thee not to touch her.”
...

God withheld him from sinning as he was acting in the integrity of his heart (Abimilech).

Very.

Father God, we come before you with humility and contrite heart. We walk around often blindly not realizing our thoughts and deeds are amiss. We fail to remember and know Your Word. Forgive us Father for our pride, willfulness, ignorance. Fill us with the Holy Spirit that our understanding grows and our mind is transformed. In Your Faithfulness, Holiness, Grace, Righteousness, Mercy, and loving kindness we trust. May we ever grow in the knowledge and wisdom and power of Your Word. Awesome, is the LORD GOD ALLMIGHTY, MAJESTIC, MAGNIFICENT, WORTHY, WORTHY, WORTHY ARE THOU! forgive us Father for our stubborn hearts. Create in us a clean heart,mind, body, spirit and soul. Bless the Chosen people, the nation of Israel, America, China, the Muslims, the persecuted believers, the lost, the broken hearted, the captives in prisons trapped and dying. HOLY! HOLY! HOLY! art THOU. Let us sing Your praise all day long in our heart and mind. Forgive us and draw us closer to You, in Jesus name, amen.

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