The second crisis Abram faced arose because of a famine in Canaan. Abram chose to sojourn in the Nile Valley until it was past. In this incident Abram tried to pass Sarai off as his sister because he feared for his life. By doing so, he jeopardized his blessing since he lost his wife temporarily to Pharaoh. However, Yahweh intervened to deliver Abram and Sarai from Egypt.
"The account of Abraham's sojourn' in Egypt bears the stamp of having been intentionally shaped to parallel the later account of God's deliverance of Israel from Egypt (Gen 41--Exod 12). Both passages have a similar message as well. Thus, here, at the beginning of the narratives dealing with Abraham and his seed, we find an anticipation of the events that will occur at the end. . . . Behind the pattern stands a faithful, loving God. What he has done with Abraham, he will do for his people today and tomorrow."430
There is not enough information in the text to condemn Abram for leaving Canaan and entering Egypt, as some commentators have done.431Moses did not record a divine prohibition. Furthermore, God blessed Abram in Egypt and then returned him to the Promised Land. Another severe famine (v. 10) later forced Jacob and his family to sojourn in Egypt (47:4). It was evidently necessity rather than choice that made Abram leave the Promised Land.
"It is unrealistic to regard Egypt as necessarily forbidden territory to God's people at this stage, for it was soon to be expressly allotted to them as a refuge and their presence there would not invalidate their claim to Canaan. Abraham had to feel his way forward (vv. 8, 9) without a special revelation at every step, guided like us largely by circumstances (cf. Ruth 1:1; Matt. 12:14, 15). In a famine it might well seem of providence that Egypt was nearby, watered by the flooding of the Nile."432
"Throughout Gen. 12-50 Egypt is a symbol of safety and provision for the patriarchs and their families. If anything, Egypt is the oppressed in Genesis. Note that it is Sarai who dealt harshly' with her Egyptian maidservant, forcing her to flee' (16:6). Later she urges her husband to cast out' this Egyptian."433
Allen Ross charted several parallels between the experiences of Abram and the nation of Israel as follows.434
Some commentators have concluded that in dealing with Sarai as he did Abram was relying on a custom of the land from which he had come to protect him. They suggest that this custom was evidently unknown in Egypt. Because he failed to perceive this, Abram got into trouble.
"The thrice repeated story [involving Abraham in 12:10-20 and 20:1-18, and Isaac in 26:6-12] has been the subject of much discussion by commentators through the ages, but only with the discoveries at Nuzi has it become clear that Abraham and Isaac were not involved in any trickery, but were endeavoring to protect their respective wives from molestation by invoking the Hurrian custom or law of wife-sistership. According to the Nuzi tablets a woman having the status of wife-sister rather than that of just an ordinary wife, enjoyed superior privileges and was better protected. The status was a purely legal one, a wife-sister being quite distinct from the physical relationship usually understood by the word sister.' In order to create the status of wife-sistership two documents were prepared--one for marriage and the other for sistership. Thus, we find a Nuzi tablet, according to which a person by the name of Akkuleni, son of Akiya, contracted with one Hurazzi, son of Eggaya, to give to Hurazzi in marriage his sister Beltakkadummi. Another tablet records that the same Akkuleni sold his sister Beltakkadummi as sister to the same Hurazzi. If such a marriage was violated, the punishment was much more severe than in the case of a straightforward ordinary marriage. It would appear that the actions of Abraham and Isaac reflect this custom."435
In the Hurrian culture from which Abram came people evidently viewed the husband wife-sister relationship as even more sacred than the husband wife relationship. According to this view, when Abram went to Egypt he assumed that the Egyptians also regarded the husband wife-sister relationship as more sacred than the husband wife relationship. Therefore he presented Sarai as his wife-sister and expected that the Egyptians would not interfere with his relationship with Sarai. However proponents of this view assume the husband wife-sister relationship was foreign to Pharaoh. He took Sarai because he believed that she was Abram's physical sister. When he discovered that Sarai was also Abram's wife he returned Sarai to Abram because Pharaoh regarded the husband wife relationship as sacred. He was angry with Abram because in Pharaoh's eyes Abram had misrepresented his relationship with Sarai.
Those who hold this view see this incident as an example of failure to adjust to a foreign culture and failure to trust God. They usually understand Abram's motivation as having been confidence in a cultural custom from his past rather than faith in God.436
Most interpreters have concluded that Abram, on the contrary, was not being completely honest and straightforward about his relationship with Sarai, but was telling a half-truth to save his own life (cf. 20:12). Evidently it was possible for brothers to fend off suitors of their sisters with promises of marriage without really giving them away (cf. 24:55; 34:13-17). How would God fulfill His promises if Abram died now? His fears were understandable; Pharaoh did take Sarai into his harem. Nevertheless God intervened supernaturally to reunite Abram with Sarai and to return them to the Promised Land (by deportation).437
Abram's fear for his physical safety in a strange land (v. 2) led him to take an initiative that was not God's will. He should have told the truth and kept trusting God. Yet even in his disobedience and lack of faith God blessed Abram (v. 16) and preserved him (v. 20) because of His promises (12:1-3).
"One cannot miss the deliberate parallelism between this sojourn of Abram in Egypt and the later event in the life of the nation in bondage in Egypt. The motifs are remarkably similar: the famine in the land (12:10; 47:13), the descent to Egypt to sojourn (12:10; 47:27), the attempt to kill the males but save the females (12:12; Ex. 1:22), the plagues on Egypt (Gen. 12:17; Ex. 7:14-11:10), the spoiling of Egypt (Gen. 12:16; Ex. 12:35-36), the deliverance (Gen. 12:19; Ex. 15), and the ascent to the Negev (Gen. 13:1; Num. 13:17, 22). The great deliverance out of bondage that Israel experienced was thus already accomplished in her ancestor, and probably was a source of comfort and encouragement to them."438
We sometimes feel tempted to fear for our welfare, especially in a foreign environment. This fear sometimes leads us to seize the initiative and disobey God. We can count on God to fulfill His promises to us in spite of threatening circumstances. We should remain faithful and honest.
"The integrity and honesty of a child of God are among his most potent weapons in spreading the gospel."439
The Pharaoh Abram dealt with in Egypt was probably Inyotef II (2117-2069 B.C.), a ruler of the eleventh dynasty, Middle Kingdom period. His capital was in Memphis, very near modern Cairo.
Identifications of Significant Pharaohs in the Genesis Period440
PREHISTORY (to ca. 3100 BC)
EARLY DYNASTIES (dynasties 1-2; ca. 3100-2686 BC)
Menes(first Pharaoh) united upper and lower Egypt.
OLD KINGDOM (dynasties 3-6; ca. 2686-2181 BC) Capital: Memphis (Noph). Period of absolute power. Age of pyramid building (archaeologists have identified almost 80).
Djoser(Zoser; 2nd Pharaoh of 3rd dynasty) built the first stepped pyramid (south of Cairo).
Cheops(Khufu; 2nd Pharaoh of 4th dynasty) built the Great (largest) Pyramid at Gizeh (near Cairo).
Chephren(Khafre; 4th Pharaoh of 4th dynasty) built the still capped pyramid near the Sphinx (near Cairo).
FIRST INTERMEDIATE PERIOD (dynasties 7-10; ca. 2181-2040 BC) Capital: Thebes (No)
MIDDLE KINGDOM (dynasties 11-14; ca. 2033-1603 BC) Capital: Memphis (Noph). Period of culture and civilization.
Inyotef II(2117-2069 BC; 3rd Pharaoh of 11th dynasty) entertained Abram (Gen. 12:15).
Ammenemes II(1929-1895 BC; 3rd Pharaoh of 12th dynasty) ruled when Joseph arrived in Egypt (Gen. 37:36).
Sesostris II(1897-1878 BC; 4th Pharaoh of 12th dynasty) had his dreams interpreted by Joseph and exalted Joseph (Gen. 40:2; 41:1).
Sesostris III(1878-1843 BC; 5th Pharaoh of 12th dynasty) ruled when Jacob entered Egypt and received a blessing from Jacob (Gen. 46:31; 47:10).
Ammenemes III(1842-1797 BC; 6th Pharaoh of 12th dynasty) ruled when Joseph died (Gen 50:26).
The first reference to camels in Scripture occurs in verse 16. For many years, scholars believed that the ancients did not domesticate camels until much later in history than the patriarchal period. They believed that references to camels in Genesis indicated historical inaccuracies. However, the archaeological evidence for the early domestication of camels has proved these critics wrong.442
God will protect His plan even when His people complicate it with deception. Consequently believers should not try to deliver themselves from threatening situations by deceptive schemes but should continue to trust and obey God.
"Here Abram's failure in the face of hostility, like Israel's sinfulness in the wilderness, is surely recorded as a warning for later generations (cf. 1 Cor 10:11) and as an illustration of the invincibility of the divine promises (cf. Rom 11:29)."443
