(vv. 1-12) And Abraham departed thence into the south country, and dwelt between Kadesh and Shur, and was a stranger in Gerar. And he said of Sarah his wife, She is my sister. Then Abimelech king of Gerar sent for her, and sent for her. But God came to Abimelech by night in a dream, and said unto him, Behold, thou art dead, because of the woman whom thou hast taken; for she is a man's wife. But Abimelech had not yet touched her, and said, Lord, wilt thou slay even a righteous people? Did he not say to me, she is my sister? And she also said, He is my brother. Have I done this with a simple heart and innocent hands? And God said to him in a dream, "I also know that you have done this with a simple heart; therefore I have also put you on Luthrr's works. Vol. 111.
strangle me for the sake of my wife. She is also truly my sister, for she is my father's daughter, but not my mother's daughter, and has become my wife.
(1) In this chapter there are a number of things that belong to the scholars, which we want to explore further. It is a bad history to see that God Almighty deals so strangely with Abraham, keeps his wife, and creates her again for him, yet lets her be taken from him before. When it comes before reason, it is a bad lesson; there it tastes nothing, has neither juice nor strength, that it must say: Has this been so necessary to describe? How many more miseries are there in the world, that someone should come to a shameful loss of husband, wife and child, that would be more pitiful to read than this story!
(2) I have also said before, and I still say, that these histories are therefore to be exalted and set above all the histories that have ever been written, not because they were done by men, Abraham or others, but because they were done by the word and work of God. Therefore we shall hear even more hereafter of such lowly works and foolish things, that it is almost vexatious to read, since he speaks so much of them as if they were the most delicious things; all because God is hostile to reason with its conceit, and it thinks that what it esteems great, God must also esteem great.
(3) Therefore let it be seen, and all the works that are described be divided into two ways. One is done without spirit, which are sometimes beautiful, sometimes horrible and shameful, like the Roman, Persian, Greek and other histories, so that they are almost fun to read. Reason then falls on this, and considers it delicious, measures it according to history, if it is only a great, beautiful, brave work, it asks no further who did it; again, if it is small, it despises it, whether the person is great.
4 The other time they are done by and in the spirit. The Scriptures alone guide us in these matters; they also speak of great works, but they judge and evaluate them solely according to the faith in which they are done. Therefore, the precious jewel, God's word, which is to be found in
of others is not found. For this reason, such works may seem small, but when viewed with spiritual eyes, they are excellent, simply because they have been done in the good faith of God's Word and the Holy Spirit, of which I have said often enough.
(5) But it is still necessary that it be well blued until it is grasped (for it is too deeply torn, and blued to men that they see no more than what is great), that one may know rightly to judge what is best in a work, namely, that it goeth in the Spirit of God, not considering how long, great, or heavy it is, or who hath done it. Just throw everything to the wind, and see here if God has commanded it, and if it is done in faith. For this is the treasure, measure, and weight by which God measures and weighs all works; again, if it does not walk in faith and God's word, let it immediately wake up its dead, live as chaste and pure as the mother of God, and it is no better before God than public sin and shame.
(6) Thus the man Abraham is greatly praised and exalted in the sight of Abimelech, that God so highly esteems him, and smites the whole land for the sake of one man. How strange it is that a poor man's wife and daughter should be taken away from him, since no one writes about it, nor is it smelled, and no one pays attention to it. If it happened to another, without faith and God's word, who did not go by God's commandment, but went by reason, if he still suffered as much as all the saints, he would not respect it.
Item 7: Abraham is wandering in the land, has no certain place, sets out from Hebron in the middle of the land, goes to the south, between Egypt; the wandering must also be described, Moses must be concerned about it. How many are they that go astray, and are sore displeased, that put their wives and children, and their bodies and goods, into the way! Therefore Abraham was driven to go astray, not of his own will, it did not seem so good to him, he did not follow his own mind, but God told him to. The GOt"
1) In the issues: none.
t is the goodness and nobility of the work, which God cannot forget, he] has it written as far as the world is, precisely because he does not want to suffer anyone to do a work before him that he has not commanded.
008 Now therefore, behold not the work, which is little in itself, but the faith and heart of Abraham, and also of his wife, how he giveth Sarah, and let it be commanded of God, how he may keep her in honor, and bring her again to him, after that he had promise that he should have a son of her. For no reason can dare to make such a fresh journey to God and be satisfied with it. No one can see such a treasure, but the spirit sees it, therefore he also marks it out masterfully. If it were another who had such a pious wife, he would stake his life and limb, his property and honor, to save and protect her himself; if he could not bring it to that, he could not break himself that he would be satisfied and give it home to God.
(9) Now therefore judge of every work that seemeth great, that thou mayest say, Outwardly I let the work be greater than Abraham's work; but when it is weighed in the spirit, that is heavy, and outweigheth all the works of the earth. The devil with the damned must also suffer much; item, the wicked still here on earth must have two kinds of misfortune, that it is much more sour for them, that they deserve hell, than for the pious, that they deserve heaven. Look at the soldiers, what trouble they have, that they let themselves be strangled, how they kick against sword, spear and guns, and respect neither honor nor property nor life. Which saint dares so much for the sake of God, as those for the sake of a guilder? Nor do such works and sufferings all count for nothing, for they have no weight, that is, God's word and favor.
(10) So we conclude from this history that we should beware of all things, so that no one goes in some state or being unless he knows that it is God's will and can say that it pleases him. In the conjugal state it shall also be so. Whoever feels that he cannot be a virgin, he has
1) "his" is missing in the Erlanger.
his profession, that he may be married, and is sure that God wills it so, since he is so created. What these things are, then, are vain works, which are sure of God's word, and where they are not sure, they are good for nothing. This is often said often enough, without one seeing how the holy scripture showers us, as with a downpour, is always one example on another, which admonishes and strengthens us enough not to do anything without his word and command. This is a piece of history.
(11) Secondly, it is also written for the comfort of all who believe in God and should still believe. For if God did not show himself friendly, who would or could trust in him? If he always thundered and thundered, and let pestilence come, and did not also do good, everyone would become hostile to him. That is why he has written so many examples, both of those who believe and of those who do not believe, and all the examples are directed to show us how diligently he respects us, so that we may be sure and bold that he will not leave us. He does this, as if he wanted to pull off his hand and leave us in the lurch, but he only does it to test us to see if we hold fast to the faith.
(12) So he does here also. What harm would it have done if he had received Abraham's wife without the ride, as he could have done if she had not been taken from him? What would he have liked to put her in the car and make him grieve, as if he wanted to have his wife taken away from him? and the greatest thing is that he had promised him that he would give him a child by Sarah; after the consolation, only the accident would come that he would doubt whether he would keep his word? No doubt he would have liked to stay in Hebron, he would not have wandered out of pride, but he had to escape because of evil people; so God lets him take his wife in a foreign land, so that he may say: You promised me that my wife would bring me a son for more than a year, and now you let her be taken away: where is it then that you said?
(13) Thus all the works of God go. If the strongest promises are given to us, we think that it should go as we think; but this is what he says: I will make it unknowable over your thinking.
I want to make sense of it, as if I wanted to lie and do just the opposite. This is how it will be when you die, or when you fight against God's word: then you will feel that you would like it to be otherwise. Why does he do this? So that we may learn to believe righteously; he wants to leave us in the lurch and pull off his hand, so that we will not doubt, but only become more certain that he will not leave us, and so comfort us: I know that he will keep what he has said.
14 So here. Although the king has sent for his wife and taken her to him, he could not think otherwise than that it is lost, the wife is gone; still he must believe that she will stay there or go away, yes, if she died right now before my eyes, I would still not doubt that he would give me a child; let it be as it may with Sarah, he cannot lie to me, even if she were already dead. He can make honor to all disgraces and all disgraces to honor, for he is almighty. Therefore he remains in faith, lets go of what is going on; thinks he is true; commands him the way he should do it, which no reason can ever do. She thinks no further than this: If I am to have a child by her, she must ever remain with me; now she is gone, and becomes a disgrace to me. So God says, "Not so, but so it shall be, as I have promised; but how it shall be, you shall not know; I will do it as I think best.
(15) Behold, this is our consolation, that we see how he sustains them that trust in him with simple hearts, under such appearance and appearance as if he were not there, and we know no counsel in our matters, and stand alone against the devil, death, and all things, and yet are sure that it must come true which he hath spoken. So now he does here, lets the king take the woman, but takes care of her and her husband in such a way that he seeks and punishes the sin that he did not do, as horribly as Abraham should not have wanted nor desired, so that he is not satisfied that he has given him back the woman.
(16) These are God's deeds and counsel, how we should conduct ourselves in such temptations. For with this he has indicated what his
And how he is minded toward the faithful, that he cannot bear what is done unto them: therefore saith he, He that toucheth you toucheth the apple of mine eye; but that we do nothing, we ask him. Despite that he had touched his wife; ser] had her with him in the house, nor could he go to her. Hence it is written in the Psalm [Ps. 105:14], "He let no man offend her, and punished kings for her sake."
(17) So do thou also now. Let us go whithersoever we go; let come and go whatsoever cometh and goeth, and he is with us, and will prove that he is able to keep his own, as an almighty Lord. This is the example of this chapter, written for our comfort and instruction in faith.
18 Now there are also several questions to be dealt with here. The first is that this Abimelech boasts before God that he did this with a simple heart. And he goes on to say, "Will you also slay a righteous people?" What a simple heart is, I let go. That our Latin text is called before porkoetum, a perfect heart, is not to be understood according to the way of the sophists, as they dream of perfection. But what shall we say to this, that God Himself says: "I also know that with a simple heart (that is, with a righteous heart and good mind) you have done this, therefore I have exalted you, that you sin not."
19 This is a great praise and argument to strengthen the papacy against us, for free will. There they say: Abimelech was a pagan king, did sin, and yet was not sin, and is punished, and yet God gives him testimony that he has a righteous mind: so it follows from this text that besides grace, the pagans may also be righteous before God, as he says here, not only before men; so we must leave it that he is innocent in this matter, even before God.
020 Answer: We cannot be sure from the Scriptures that Abimelech was God's child and a true saint, but it almost resembles him. But answer thus: The reason, which we have often said, thou seest, as it runs through all Scripture, namely, that without
Jesus Christ is neither a shell nor a mercy, he helped us for nothing; because we are all sinners, it cost his own blood and life. That is our reason. Now whatever pleas are made against it, if thou canst not answer them, be silent; for it is better that thou shouldest therefore deny such a clear and certain reason. Whoever then will, let him say that either he has been righteously holy, or that he alone is innocent in this matter.
(21) For it should not be denied that there have often been truly devout Christians among the Gentiles, as we also read [Dan. 3:26] about the king Nabuchodonosor, item, Naaman of Syria [2 Kings 5:17], who were also devout people, and many more among the Gentiles. Therefore it is believable that he was also a believer. For let it not be a reproach where God does such grace as to this king, that he comes to him and reveals himself, speaks to him, warns him of harm. It must ever not be a small man. He lets the heathen go in their reason; but to whom he draws so near, it is a sign that he has an eye on him, and is respected before him. One does not have to condemn the Gentiles who lived around the Jews, that some were also pious, like the queen of Sheba [1 Kings 10:9,1 and Hiram, the king of Tyro [1 Kings 5:7].
(22) Therefore, I will answer that Abimelech was a very pious man and knew God well and served Him well. But just as God sometimes causes other saints to stumble, as we have heard of Lot, so it is with the king. Nevertheless, he is so honest that if he had known that she was a wife, he would not have taken her to himself. Which piece also credibly indicates that he was a pious king, but sinned like other saints, and God also mercifully punishes him like other saints. For he punishes the wicked into hell.
If anyone does not like this, let him say, as St. Augustine did, that God does not bear witness to anything but the work. For it may well be that he was evil in other things, but not in this. But the fact that God bears witness to this does not mean that he
He has a righteously pure heart before him, but only in this case and works; so that even though he is a knave, he can still boast that he has not done this, with a good conscience. This is how St. Augustine interprets it. But I wanted to stick to the first answer, so that God's grace may also be shown among the pagans, and I consider it a great blessing and grace that God warns him and appears Himself. But, as I said, I leave it up to each person to decide.
(24) The other question is, how Abraham says of his wife, "She is truly my sister, for she is my father's daughter, but not my mother's daughter, and has become my wife"? This is what he means, that she is not his biological sister, but his stepsister. Moses speaks this with circumlocutory words, as if he should say: "My father has not begotten her, she is not of her mother's womb, be it stepmother or real mother; therefore he wants to say that she is not a sister by birth, but an adopted child, whom my father has taken to himself for his daughter, so that she also calls Abraham's father father, without him not having begotten her. Now we have heard above [Cap. 11, ยง 32] that she was Abraham's brother's daughter.
(25) For the scripture hath not so stretched the members, as the pope, who suffereth not that any man take a wife in the fourth member, much less in the third, yet is so gracious, that if money were brought, he suffereth it to be done. But it is called knavery when one sells women's flesh for sale, and sells it for money. But according to the Scriptures I may well take my wife to be reckoned downward, not upward, that is, my brother's or sister's daughter, but not my father's or mother's brother nor sister, though they are both in the same member, mother or wife, young and old. This is what God has decreed, that he will have more honor toward the old than toward the young, so that the young people will be instructed and taught by the old. I say this so that one may know how far one may be free according to the Scriptures. It would not be necessary to confuse it; it confuses itself more than it can be judged. Now, if in that case a couple wanted to be together, or given
If it were done with God and a good conscience, it would also be the best thing. I do not think too much of friendship that is so far away; it is better that the friendship and the good remain close to each other, as it happened among the Jews; but it is enough for us that we know from the Scriptures to instruct the consciences. Thus Abraham speaks further:
V. 13. And when God had sent me away from my father's house, I said to her, "Have mercy on me, so that wherever we go you will say of me that I am your brother.
26 This is spoken in Hebrew, which is a very divine, friendly language, gives the thing fine names, that [it] is pleasure, has the prettiest, most beautiful words of love and knowledge. So now a good work, which we call friendship, is called "mercy" in their language. So you will find it through and through; for this we say, Do to me friendship and love, or, Do to me so much benefit. Therefore, the grace that God pours into our hearts and makes us sincere is also called in their language Chesed, mercy; therefore, as one does a work freely for nothing, out of pure friendship, not that one is obligated to do it. So it is also with God, what He gives is nothing but mercy, gift, present, pure friendship, and comes from free, pure goodness, favor and love, without and against our merit. We must get used to such language in the Old Testament. There is one more thing that the text speaks:
V.14. 15. Then Abimelech took sheep and oxen, menservants and maidservants, and gave them to Abraham, and restored his wife Sam to him, saying, Behold, my land is open to thee; dwell where it pleaseth thee.
27. there must ever have been a pious king and have recognized god wphl, without him, as said, having stumbled here. However, he does not remain on it, the good man, or his son, as we will see hereafter. Further follows:
v. 16-18. And said unto Sarah, Behold, I have given thy brother a thousand silver pieces. Behold, the 1) shall be a lid of the eyes unto thee.
1) Wittenberg and Jena: der; Erlanger: er. Compare s 33.
be in the presence of all who are with you, and in the presence of all who are with you, and be an accountant. And Abraham prayed unto God, and God healed Abimelech, and his wife, and his handmaids, that they should bring forth children. For the LORD had shut up all the mothers of the house of Abimelech, because of Sarah Abraham's wife.
28 Then he himself also calls him her brother. It should also be so among the married, and much friendlier than brothers and sisters, it is one body and two souls. The thousand pieces of silver, however, according to the Jewish Seckel to count (which was almost as much, as with us a place of a guilder), the same thousand make almost three and a half hundred guilders; is a royal gift. This he gave her over the sheep, cattle, servants and maids, which are also all serfs' goods, like other cattle, that they sold as they wished. It would be best if they were still there, since no one else can force or tame the livestock.
029 And here thou seest that this Abraham and Abimelech keep this, and let the servants remain in the service. It would have been great friendship and mercy for him to let them go. How could love suffer that they kept it this way? Just as it can suffer that people are hanged on gallows or otherwise judged; think that one must also keep the physical, worldly regiment in the swing, so that one tames and forces the people.
(30) So they also dealt with it. For their part they would have let it go; but it would not be good, [they] should soon have become too proud, if one gave them so much right, or held them as oneself or a child. One must keep every one in his station, as God ordains, son, daughter, servant, maid, husband, wife 2c. He will not have it broken; nor can anyone keep the people in check except by the constraint of outward rule.
(31) Therefore there is such a great complaint about servants and servants in the world. It is the devil's and the pope's fault, and the princes' fault, that there is no government; everyone does as he pleases. But if there were a fist and restraint, as the time has been, no one would be allowed to rebel.
If they take women, they are naughty people, wild and savage, whom no one can use or handle. If they take wives, they are naughty people, wild and savage, whom no one can use or handle.
32 But it is in vain that we say it; only that we know that these have been pious, holy people, have had fine rule, even among the heathen; now it is nothing at all. In those days a servant was worth one guilder or eight, a maid one guilder or six, and had to do what the woman did with her. And if the world were to stand still for a long time, it would not be possible to keep it going again; it would have to be set up again. The Jews had the advantage that they sold themselves for six years, and in the seventh year they went free, as everything was finely arranged by God.
33 Lastly, that Abimelech says, "Behold, he shall be to thee a lid of thine eyes, and an answerer," is a dark text, siU do not know if we will meet it. That is, your husband and brother, or the 1) money that I give you there (for it is not certain whether it is said of Abraham, or of the gift), shall be a lid to you, that you may have your eyes
1) "that" is missing in the Erlanger.
and gloss over yourself. That this is the opinion: I have taken you, and meant that you were the man's sister, not his wife, and have now been in my house; so that you now bring a testimony that you are unaffected by your honor, then you keep the gift, and the man with it, that he sees it and listens, so that he thereby answers for your honor. So the king will say that he has done it, that he has atoned for the sin honestly, but he has done it unknowingly; and he will say that he cannot put anything on him, and she will cover her eyes, that is, she will adorn herself and make herself beautiful in front of everyone, so that her honor will remain intact. If this is not the opinion, then I know nothing else; however, there is not much power involved here.
(34) So God healed the strange punishment and plague of Abimelech's wives, who had been beaten before, as heard above, with a great and terrible terror, so that he felt death and hell. His wife and maidservants, or his own people with their children, who were also the Lord's, were all afflicted by God, so that they could not get rid of the fruit; so that the fruit and the time, when they were to lie down (but could not), were in motion, and death was before their eyes.