God Steps In

The Pharaoh was quite pleased with himself. He was ruler over prosperous, growing city-states. And because of the famine, people from other lands turned to his kingdom for help. This increased his fame and might.

“And now I have in my harem one of the most beautiful women I have ever seen,” he thought. “Soon, she will be one of my many wives.”

Believing that Abram was only Sarai’s brother and not her husband, Pharaoh treated Abram with kindness and favor. He gave him many gifts of cattle, servants and other possessions.

In turn, Abram taught the Egyptian mathematics, astronomy (which is the study of stars and other heavenly bodies), and other sciences.
This pleased Pharaoh even more. With such great knowledge, his men would build massive water projects to water their farmlands. Also, they would build giant structures, such as royal palaces, grand temples and gigantic pyramids.

“Truly this man Abram is a blessing to me,” Pharaoh said to his officials.
But what the Egyptian king did not know was that he would soon regret his words.
Pharaoh may have been pleased, but God was far from happy. He did not intend for Sarai to be married to anyone but Abram. God planned to produce vast, powerful nations and peoples through Abram and Sarai—and that could not happen if Sarai was married to another man.

So the Eternal decided to step in.
As Pharaoh and his court of princes and rulers celebrated his upcoming wedding to Sarai, something strange happened. One of Pharaoh’s servants fell ill. And then another. Soon, the whole palace was filled with sick and dying people. God had struck them with a plague!
Backed by the powers of demons, Pharaoh’s physicians tried to use their black magic and evil chants to get rid of the plague.

The Egyptians used Abram’s knowledge of mathematics and other sciences to build giant structures, such as palaces, temples and pyramids. Many of these buildings still exist today.

Power of God is far stronger than the power of puny men and demons.
The sickness would not go away.
It did not take long for Pharaoh to find out the reason why—and he was mad!

Before all of the officials and servants that were left alive, Pharaoh looked down from his throne and pointed his finger at Abram.

“You are the reason why my people suffer from this plague!” he said.
Abram did not know what to say.
Pharaoh continued. “What is this you have done to me? Why did you not tell me that Sarai was your wife?”
Again, Abram was silent.

“Sarai said that she was your sister, but neither of you said anything about being husband and wife. Why? Because of you, I might have married her, when you knew that it would have been wrong. And now your God has put a plague on my house!”
Abram looked around him and saw the angry Egyptian faces, and wondered if the king was about to put him to death.
Then Pharaoh said, “Abram, take your wife and your possessions and leave Egypt at once!” (Genesis 12:18-19).
Before Abram could say a word, Pharaoh’s men surrounded him.
Then they escorted Abram, Sarai and their caravan out of Egypt.

Pharaoh blames Abram for the mysterious plague that has struck his people.
During the journey, Abram had much to think about. He knew that these events happened because he failed to trust God. He did not rely on his Creator to work out his problems. Abram had relied on himself.
Relying on yourself and following the desires of carnal nature, rather than trusting in God, always leads to disaster.

Abram Calls Upon God
Abram was shaken by these events. He knew that he needed to get close to God. Abram decided to lead his caravan to the altar he had built between Ai and Bethel. Once there, he offered animal sacrifices— the very best of his possessions—and called upon God’s name.

God listened to Abram’s pleas for forgiveness and mercy. The Eternal understood that it was natural for human beings to give in to their carnal nature and Satan’s rebellious attitudes (Romans 12:5-8).

When He saw that Abram truly wanted to change and build godly character, God knew that He could still work through him.

No matter how great a person’s sin, God will always listen to those who repent—change their wrong thoughts and attitudes—and wholeheartedly follow His ways.

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