Our daily reflections follow the M'Cheyne Bible reading plan, designed for those who want to read the whole Bible in one year. Each reflection focuses on one of the chapters from that day's readings. Darllenwch rhain yn Gymraeg.
Lord, prepare me to receive your word. Clear my mind and warm my heart. Assure me of your loving purposes for me, and speak into my life today.
One of the shocking things about some of the Old Testament stories is how routinely women are treated as property. This was normal in the ancient world, but implicit in the way these stories are told in the Bible is God's condemnation of this behaviour. So here, Abraham is willing to prostitute his wife for his own safety, passing her off as his (full) sister so that it would be acceptable for Abimelech to take her into his household (though even this demonstrates how little control women had over their destiny). Abraham shows no respect for her honour and no regard for her safety. He makes her complicit in the deception by telling her it is a test of her loyalty to him.
Abraham doesn't come out of this story well. The wise statesman, powerful warrior and ancestor of all Israel has a terrible moral failure. God himself intervenes to save the situation.
At one level, this is an example of shameful behaviour of a kind to which we're very sensitive today. In the New Testament, Paul tells husbands to 'love your wives just as Christ loved the church and gave his life for it' (Ephesians 5.25); Abraham fell far short of this.
At another level, it tells us that doing the right thing sometimes requires moral and even physical courage. If we let ourselves be corrupted by fear, the consequences can be terrible.
God, I'm sorry for the times when I've been too afraid to do right. Forgive me for the words I've left unsaid and the things I've left undone, and the times I've taken the easy way instead of the right way.
This reflection was written by Mark Woods, Bible Society's Editor
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