Why Abraham Was Not Wrong to Lie

Authors

Duane Boyce

Keywords

book of Genesis, Old Testament studies, Abraham, Sarah, wife, sister, Genesis 12, Genesis 20

Abstract

The book of Genesis contains two well-known accounts of Abraham lying about his wife, Sarah (Gen. 12:10–20; 20:1–18).1 In each of them, Abraham reports that Sarah is his sister, 2 Sarah is then taken from Abraham, trouble ensues for those who have taken her, and Sarah is then returned to Abraham. The account in Genesis 20 also explicitly tells us that the Lord protected Sarah from being “touched” in the circumstances (v. 6), and the account in Genesis 12, too, tells us that the Lord intervened, presumably for the same purpose (v. 17).

Recommended Citation

Boyce, Duane (2022) "Why Abraham Was Not Wrong to Lie," BYU Studies Quarterly: Vol. 61: Iss. 3, Article 2.
Available at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/byusq/vol61/iss3/2