Why Did Abraham Tell Lies?

In Genesis there are a few times when Abraham tells lies.  For example in Genesis 13 Abraham is in Egypt and tells Pharaoh that his wife is his sister.  Later in Genesis 20 he does the same thing to Abimelech, the king of the Philistines.

But why?  Why is it ok for Abraham to lie?

Many Christians and quite a few commentators have struggled with Abraham’s lies.  He is the father of faith, and should be a good example.  So why does he do such an obviously wrong thing, and in addition, why does the Bible mention it, but not criticise it.

The reality is that the context of the lies, are something quite different from the context of our lives.  Once we take that context into account, and apply a little grace, his actions don’t seem as different to what we ourselves might do.

Here are a few things to know about Abraham’s situation:

1. The Bible had not been written yet, and the clarity we have about what is right and wrong was less clear.

2. The Ten Commandments didn’t exist, and there had been no explicit statement made by God saying, ‘thou shalt not lie.’

3. Abraham’s life was in actual danger.  Men married to beautiful women were killed so that their wives could be taken as a prize.

4. Sarah actually was Abraham’s half-sister.

In the context of the late bronze age, early iron age, a man with a beautiful woman was treated well so as to win her hand, but a man married to a beautiful woman was in danger of being killed to get her.  The background to the peril Abraham found himself in, was not explicit in the Bible, but just understood by those at the time.  It doesn’t seem so bad to us now.

Some commentators have questioned why he didn’t just trust God to keep him safe.  It’s true, he could have, but given that he really did trust God for so much, and even gave us Isaac when tested, demonstrates that trust wasn’t Abraham’s problem.

The reality is that today, with our greater knowledge of the Bible, and clearer sense of right and wrong, many people would still like to save a life.  Consider Corrie Ten Boom or many others like her who have lied to save the life of someone.  This very similar to what Abraham did.

Lying isn’t ok, but the situation Abraham found himself in was complicated.  And the clear point about it all is that the Lord loved Abraham, even though he wasn’t perfect.  And thankfully that is how he treats us too.

Imagine having to be perfect to be righteous?  Instead think of how it actually is, we are saved by grace, through faith just as Abraham actually was.  And then having been saved, we seek to please the Lord.  And we do put aside falsehood as the Bible teaches.  (Ephesians 4:25)

Thank you Florencia for the image of Pinnochio: