One of the Bible's First Sexual Scandals---Abram, Sarai and Pharaoh In Genesis 12

HERE IN Genesis 12, we have the story of Abram, a married man chosen of God to one day be the father of a vast and great nation of God's people, succumb to fear and order his beautiful wife Sarai---then in her 70s---to pretend she's not really his wife but merely his sister when they enter the land of Egypt. Abram was trying to protect himself from being murdered by Pharaoh's men whom he feared would take Sarai for a wife and kill him if the Egyptians knew 'The Abrams' were married.

Did Pharaoh take Sarai and sleep with her?  Did Pharaoh expose himself against her will?  Did Sarai acquiesce in order to obey her real husband?  It's highly likely that all of this did happen.

In return, Pharaoh paid Abram in livestock for the company and companionship of his 'sister.' That is until God stepped in and interrupted this little ungodly peccadillo by punishing Pharaoh. Finally, it dawned on the head of Egypt that something was amiss and he returned Sarai to her rightful husband and ordered them to leave that land....but wait!  There's more sexual scandal with Sarai coming next Sunday with far reaching consequences.

Here Moses writes of this early Biblical scandal with Pharaoh in Genesis 12:


NOW THERE WAS A FAMINE in the land of Caanan. 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, ¹² and when the Egyptians see you, they will say, ‘This is his wife.’ Then they will kill me, but they will let you live. 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. 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.

¹⁷ But the Lord afflicted Pharaoh and his house with great plagues because of Sarai, Abram's wife.
¹⁸ So Pharaoh called Abram and said, “What is this you have done to me? Why did you not tell me that she was your wife? ¹⁹ Why did you say, ‘She is my sister,’ so that I took her for my wife? Now then, here is your wife; take her, and go.” ²⁰ And Pharaoh gave men orders concerning him, and they sent him away with his wife and all that he had.