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Genesis 20:11

Abraham said, “I’m sorry. I thought that nobody here respected God, so I was frightened of you mob. I reckoned that you would kill me so that you can marry Sarah.

Plain English Version

In The King James Version

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.

In Context

10Why did you do that? Why did you tell us that Sarah is your sister?”

12But anyway, Sarah really is my sister. We have the same father, but different mothers.” You see, in Abraham’s culture, men could marry their half-sisters.

Read all of Genesis 20

Cross References

Genesis 12:12I reckon the men in Egypt will see you, and they will say, ‘That beautiful woman is Abram’s wife. Let’s kill Abram, so that we can have her for ourselves.’ Then they will kill me, but they will let you live.

Genesis 26:7The men in Gerar saw Isaac’s wife Rebekah, and they asked Isaac, “Who is that woman?” You know, Rebekah was very beautiful. So Isaac got worried about those men. He thought, “Maybe those men want to marry Rebekah. If I tell them that she is my wife, maybe they will kill me to get her.” So Isaac lied and said, “She is my sister.”

Matthew Henry on Genesis 20:9-14

Abimelech's Conduct Towards Abraham. ( b. c. 1898.) 8 Therefore Abimelech rose early in the morning, and called all his servants, and told all these things in their ears: and the men were sore afraid. 9 Then Abimelech called Abraham, and said unto him, What hast thou done unto us? and what have I offended thee, that thou hast brought on me and on my kingdom a great sin? thou hast done deeds unto me that ought not to be done. 10 And Abimelech said unto Abraham, What sawest thou, that thou hast done this thing? 11… Read the whole commentary →

This Verse In Other Editions

King James VersionBíblia Almeida (Português)Luther Bibel (Deutsch)Bible Louis Segond (Français)Библия (Русский)聖經 (中文)성경 (한국어)الكتاب المقدس (العربية)बाइबल (हिन्दी)Biblia (Kiswahili)Bibbia Diodati (Italiano)Alkitab (Bahasa Indonesia)Kinh Thánh (Tiếng Việt)

Study Genesis 20:11

Matthew HenryJamieson-Fausset-BrownAdam ClarkeJohn WesleyJohn CalvinKeil and DelitzschScofieldFamily Bible NotesGeneva Bible Notes (1599)
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