2 Abraham 39
Abraham moves to Gerar where Abimelech tries to take Sarah to wife. Abimelech is warned in a dream and returns Sarah to her husband. Abraham is invited to settle in Gerar. The three angels return and Isaac is born. Abraham holds a great feast to celebrate Isaac's weaning.
1. After the destruction of the cities of the plains I, Abraham, journeyed toward the south country between Kadesh and Shur, and dwelt in Gerar. Now the king of the land of Gerar was Abimelech. And I said of Sarah my wife unto Abimelech; she is my sister. And this I did to preserve my life again, and the seed of the Covenant which Yahweh had promised me, and for a wise purpose.
2. And Abimelech, king of Gerar, took my wife Sarah that he might satisfy the lust of his heart, for even in old age she was exceedingly beautiful. But Yahweh appeared unto Abimilech in a night dream, and said unto him: Behold, thou art a dead man, for the woman which thou hast taken is another man's wife.
3. But Abimelech, king of Gerar, had not come near her, nor gone in unto her, and therefore he said: Wilt Thou slay a righteous nation? Did not Abraham say unto me: She is my sister? And she, even herself, said: He is my brother. In the integrity of my heart and innocence of my hands have I done this!
4. And Yahweh said unto him the the dream: Yea, I know that thou didst this in the integrity of thy heart; for I also kept thee back from her that thou mightest not sin against Me and My Law, which was established from the beginning. Therefore I suffered thee not to touch her, nor to defile the bed of Abraham.
5. Now therefore return the man his wife, for he is a prophet, and he shall pray for thee and thou shalt live. And if thou return her not, and defile her, know that thou shalt surely die, and all thy household, for adultery is an abomination, and its wages are death.
6. Therefore Abimelech rose early in the morning, and called all his servants, and related his dream unto them. And his household was sore afraid. Then Abimilech called me and said unto me: What hast thou done unto us? Why hast thou lied unto me? For what cause have I offended thee, that thou hast brought on me and on my kingdom this great sin? Thou hast done deeds unto me that ought not to be done.
7. And Abimelech said unto me: What sawest thou, that thou hast done this thing? And I said unto him: Because I thought the fear of Elohim was not in this place, nor His laws and statutes; for I feared that thy household would slay me for my wife's sake. And yet indeed she is my sister, for she is the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother; and she became my wife.
8. And it came to pass that when Yahweh caused me to wander from my father's house, that I said unto her: Do this for my sake; at every place we shall journey, say of me that I am thy brother.
9. And Abimelech took sheep and oxen, and menservants, and womenservants, and gave them unto me, and returned my wife Sarah unto me. And Abimelech said; Behold, my land is before thee; dwell where it pleaseth thee. And to my wife Sarah he said: Behold I have given thy husband a thousand pieces of silver. Behold, he is to thee a covering of the eyes, unto all that are with thee, and with all others. Thus he reproved her.
10. So I prayed unto Yahweh my Elohim and He healed Abimelech and his wife, and his maidservants; and they bare him children. For Yahweh had quickly closed up all the wombs of the house of Abimelech, because of Sarah, my wife.
11. We had dwelt in Gerar nine months when the three holy men of Elohim again visited us and Sarah gave birth to a son. And on the eighth day he was circumcised according to the commandment of Yahweh to me; and I called his name Isaac. The child grew and when he was three years old he was weaned; and I made a great feast the day he was weaned.
12. And Melchizedek [Shem] king of Salem with Eber his heir, and Abimelech king of Gerar with his son Abimelech, and Pharaoh king of Egypt, father to Hagar and Ishmael, and all the mighty princes in the land, came to the feast which I prepared, for these were the men whom I loved, with my brethren Aneram, Eshcol and Mamre.
13. My father Terah also and my brother Nahor came unto the feast having heard that Sarah had given birth to a son. And we all rejoiced before Yahweh for many days that my son Isaac had reached the age of weaning from his mother. And from that time forth Sarah and I introduced the lad into the tabernacle and began to instruct him in the mysteries of godliness, that he might be prepared in his youth to enter into the Holy of Holies and be instructed there.
14. For Shem had instructed me in the City of Salem that children should be instructed in the temple from the age of weaning which is three years old, that they should be instructed in the Holy of Holies from the age of puberty which is fourteen years old, and that they should be endowed with power from on high from the age of maturity which is twelve years.
15. But inasmuch as I had not journeyed unto the City of Salem until I was ten years old, I was prepared from the blessings of Yahweh's House in only a few years.
16. My son Ishmael I did not introduce into Yahweh's House in his childhood because he was not spiritual in his nature, but he was a hunter proficient in the use of the bow and other instruments of death. Nevertheless Yahweh was with Ishmael and blessed him for my sake in all to which he put his hand.
Authors: JB, LThE, SBSK et al
First created in 1990
Updated on 9 June 2016
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