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.
Parallel translations
- WEB Abraham said, “Because I thought, ‘Surely the fear of God is not in this place. They will kill me for my wife’s sake.’
- BSB Abraham replied, “I thought to myself, ‘Surely there is no fear of God in this place. They will kill me on account of my wife.’
- NKJV And Abraham said, “Because I thought, surely the fear of God is not in this place; and they will kill me on account of my wife.
- NASB Abraham said, “Because I thought, surely there is no fear of God in this place, and they will kill me because of my wife.
- NLT Abraham replied, “I thought, ‘This is a godless place. They will want my wife and will kill me to get her.’
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Abraham explains he assumed there was no fear of God in Gerar and feared being killed. His reasoning exposes his unbelieving fear of man.
Overview
Abraham reveals that he acted out of a faithless assumption about the people of Gerar and a fear for his own life. Ironically, Abimelech's household had shown more reverence for God than Abraham credited them with. His confession lays bare how fear of man, rather than trust in God's protection, drove him into deceit, a snare against which Scripture repeatedly warns.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 14
- Gen 26:7And the men of the place asked him of his wife; and he said, She is my sister: for he feared to say, She is my wife; lest, said he, the men of the place should kill me for Rebekah; because she was fair to look upon.
- Gen 12:12Therefore it shall come to pass, when the Egyptians shall see thee, that they shall say, This is his wife: and they will kill me, but they will save thee alive.
- Prov 2:5Then shalt thou understand the fear of the LORD, and find the knowledge of God.
- Job 28:28And unto man he said, Behold, the fear of the LORD, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.
- Prov 16:6By mercy and truth iniquity is purged: and by the fear of the LORD men depart from evil.
- Neh 5:15But the former governors that had been before me were chargeable unto the people, and had taken of them bread and wine, beside forty shekels of silver; yea, even their servants bare rule over the people: but so did not I, because of the fear of God.
- Gen 22:12And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me.
- Ps 36:1–4The transgression of the wicked saith within my heart, that there is no fear of God before his eyes.
- Gen 42:18And Joseph said unto them the third day, This do, and live; for I fear God:
- Rom 3:18There is no fear of God before their eyes.
- Prov 8:13The fear of the LORD is to hate evil: pride, and arrogancy, and the evil way, and the froward mouth, do I hate.
- Prov 1:7The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.
- Ps 14:4Have all the workers of iniquity no knowledge? who eat up my people as they eat bread, and call not upon the LORD.
- Job 1:1There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and eschewed evil.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
From the first promise that the seed of the woman would crush the serpent (3:15), through Abraham's blessing to all nations and Judah's coming ruler, Genesis sows every seed that flowers in Christ — the true offspring, the better Adam, the ram caught for Isaac.
How Genesis 20:11 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.