Genesis Vol 3.pdf - College Press

12 : 10-20 GENESIS
fines of Egypt, which was the greatest primeval kingdom
in the world, Abram began to feel uneasy. Increasing
signs of civilization, grandeur, and power, met his eye on
every side; and as the immigration of so numerous a tribe
as his from the neighboring desert would certainly arrest
public attention, the prospect of encounteging the author-
ities of Egypt, so different from the simple nomads of
Asia, to whom his experience had hitherto been limited,
filled him with awe. But all other anxieties were forgotten
and absorbed in one cause of alarm. . . . He entertained
a bad opinion of the morals and manners of the country;
and anticipating that Sarai, whose style of beauty was far
superior to that of the Egyptian women, might captivate
some proud noble, who would try by any means to obtain
possession of her, Abram became apprehensive of his life.
The idea so completely unnerved him that his fortitude and
faith alike gave way; and he formed an artful plan, which,
while it would retain his wife beside him, would, he hoped,
by leading to betrothal and other negotiations connected
with the dowry, put off the evil day. The counsel of
Abram to Sarai was true in words: but it was a deception,
intended to give an impression that she was no more than
his sister. His conduct was culpable and inconsistent with
his character as a servant of God; it showed a reliance on
worldly policy more than a trust in the, promise; and he
not only sinned himself, but tempted Sarah to sin also.”
Leupold (EG, 424): “Abram knows how little the rights
of foreigners were respected in olden times. He also knows
how beautiful women would be sought out when they
came to a foreign land. He also understands that marriage
was respected sufficiently that men felt they must dispose
of the husband before they could take his wife. Egyptian
parallels prove that men had no hesitation about commit-
ting murder in order to secure their object. There was
nothing beside the point in the estimate that he makes of
the situation except the morals of the patriarch. Though
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