Why did God punish Pharaoh if it was Abram's fault?

[TonyChanYT]

Genesis 12

10 Now there was a famine in the land. So Abram went down to Egypt to sojourn there, for the famine was severe in the land. 11 When he was about to enter Egypt, he said to Sarai his wife, “I know that you are a woman beautiful in appearance, 12and when the Egyptians see you, they will say, ‘This is his wife.’ Then they will kill me, but they will let you live.

Abram made a defensive move by deception.

13 Say you are my sister, that it may go well with me because of you, and that my life may be spared for your sake.” 14 When Abram entered Egypt, the Egyptians saw that the woman was very beautiful. 15 And when the princes of Pharaoh saw her, they praised her to Pharaoh. And the woman was taken into Pharaoh’s house.

Pharaoh was not exactly righteous, either. Did he give Sarai a choice?

16 And for her sake he dealt well with Abram; and he had sheep, oxen, male donkeys, male servants, female servants, female donkeys, and camels.

as predicted by Abram

17 But the LORD afflicted Pharaoh and his house with great plagues because of Sarai, Abram’s wife.

because of his taking of Sarai without asking first.

Neither Abram nor Pharaoh was innocent in this affair.

What did Abram learn from this?

Ironically, he did it again some twenty years later. This time, as Abraham and Sarah, Genesis 20:

1 Abraham journeyed toward the territory of the Negeb and lived between Kadesh and Shur; and he sojourned in Gerar. 2 And Abraham said of Sarah his wife, “She is my sister.” And Abimelech king of Gerar sent and took Sarah.

Again, a local king took Abraham's wife. Again, God personally intervened:

3 But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night and said to him, “Behold, you are a dead man because of the woman whom you have taken, for she is a man’s wife.”
4 Now Abimelech had not approached her. So he said, “Lord, will you kill an innocent people? 5 Did he not himself say to me, ‘She is my sister’? And she herself said, ‘He is my brother.’ In the integrity of my heart and the innocence of my hands I have done this.” 6 Then God said to him in the dream, “Yes, I know that you have done this in the integrity of your heart, and it was I who kept you from sinning against me. Therefore I did not let you touch her.

God was in control despite Abraham's actions.

Why did God punish Pharaoh if it was Abram's fault?

Pharaoh wasn't exactly innocent. In fact, God intervened to spare him and his people from further punishment.

 

[Jay Ross]

Perhaps, because of what was known about Abram at those times, that he was called by God to walk in His ways and for His purposes. Abram was a formidable threat to the pharaoh in Egypt and to Abimelech because of the numbers in his camp in comparison with the respective numbers in the towns where the Pharaoh and Abimelech lived.

In both cases, the Pharaoh and Abimelech became subject to die the second death for what they had done by their taking of Sarah as a wife so that there would be peace between Abram and them. A typical covenantal method of ensuring peace at that time.

In the case of the Pharaoh, when he realised what fate lay before him, i.e., the second death, he told Abram to leave immediately and gave Abram riches and a handmaid for Sarah who later became a stumbling block in Abram's life. What came out of this encounter between the pharaoh and Abraham was that the Egyptians developed a great hatred for the Hebrews, i.e., the descendants of Eber, which we were told about later in the book of Genesis when his brothers came down to buy food during the famine.

In Abimelech's case, because of his relationship with God, when he realised that he was now a candidate for the second death, he argued with God against the women in his care having their wombs closed up because he had taken Sarah to be his wife. Abimelech was told that Abraham was a prophet and that he had to ask Abraham to pray for him and his household to remove the curses of the second death from him. Over the years that followed Abimelech and Abraham developed a working relationship between them.

So, was the Pharaoh and Abimelech guilt free? No. Did Abraham contribute to what took place when Sarah was taken to be the Pharoah's and Abimelech's wife? Yes.

What does this teach us? That we can sabotage God's purposes in our lives by not having complete trust in Him to deliver what He has promised us.

Shalom

 

[Jack]

Romans 9:17-18
17 For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, "For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth." 18 Therefore He has mercy on whom He wills, and whom He wills He hardens.

 

[quietthinker]

Why did God punish Pharaoh if it was Abram's fault?​

Was it God doing the punishing?

 

[Jack]

Why did God punish Pharaoh if it was Abram's fault?​

Was it God doing the punishing?

Psalm 111:10
10 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom;

 

[quietthinker]

Psalm 111:10
10 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom;

what do you think that means Jack?

 

[Jack]

what do you think that means Jack?

It means what it says. The most important doctrine in the Bible.

 

[quietthinker]

It means what it says. The most important doctrine in the Bible.

Maybe you can decode it for me......cuz I'm not that smart?

 

[Jack]

Maybe you can decode it for me......cuz I'm not that smart?

You don't understand the fear of the Lord who drowned all but 8 on Earth "making them an example"? They didn't understand either.

 

[quietthinker]

You don't understand the fear of the Lord who drowned all but 8 on Earth "making them an example"? They didn't understand either.

I s'pose you feel it's a good thing to be scared of God. How scared are you?......let me see, on a scale of 1-10, 10 being so scared you have a loose bowel.......how do you rate yourself?

 

[Jack]

I s'pose you feel it's a good thing to be scared of God. How scared are you?......let me see, on a scale of 1-10, 10 being so scared you have a loose bowel.......how do you rate yourself?

2 Kings 17:25
25 They didn't fear God so He sent lions to kill them.

 

[quietthinker]

2 Kings 17:25
25 They didn't fear God so He sent lions to kill them.

sounds delicious......for the Lions!......you better be really scared then.....but my question is, how do you know if you're scared enough?

 

[Jack]

sounds delicious......for the Lions!......you better be really scared then.....but my question is, how do you know if you're scared enough?

I am SCARED! That's why I accept the LITERAL Christian Bible. Jesus is God and Hell Fire is EVERLASTING!

 

[quietthinker]

I am SCARED! That's why I accept the LITERAL Christian Bible. Jesus is God and Hell Fire is EVERLASTING!

Love casts out fear...I read that in the scriptures to. It appears you haven't known about love then Jack? Maybe you don't want to know about it? Wouldn't that define an unbeliever?

 

[Jack]

Love casts out fear...I read that in the scriptures to. It appears you haven't known about love then Jack? Maybe you don't want to know about it? Wouldn't that define an unbeliever?

Biblical love is pulling 'Christians' from the fire. You know, those who say Jesus is wrong about the Genesis Flood, for instance, calling Jesus a LIAR?

 

[Lambano]

 

[Lambano]

I am SCARED! That's why I accept the LITERAL Christian Bible. Jesus is God and Hell Fire is EVERLASTING!

Yep. God is big, and He's scary. But the commandment is to love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. He wants us to serve Him out of love, not fear. Children learn to be obedient out of fear of punishment. Adults obey and give of themselves willingly out of love.

You probably won't understand this now, but maybe someday you will.

 

[Behold]

The most important doctrine in the Bible.

The Most important Doctrine in the Bible would be the 1st Commandment, and Paul's Gospel.

 

[Lambano]

Why did God punish Pharaoh if it was Abram's fault?​

I think God was discouraging Pharoah from bedding Sarai.

 

[Jack]

Yep. God is big, and He's scary. But the commandment is to love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. He wants us to serve Him out of love, not fear. Children learn to be obedient out of fear of punishment. Adults obey and give of themselves willingly out of love.

You probably won't understand this now, but maybe someday you will.

Well that sure chops out one of the main doctrines of the Bible.

Ecclesiastes 12:13-14
13 Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.
14 For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.

A reminder of God drowning all on Earth but 8 "making them an example".