Verse Lens · Concise explanation
Genesis 20:14 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 14. 14And Abimelech took sheep, and oxen, and menservants, and womenservants, and gave them unto Abraham, and restored him Sarah his wife.
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
Abimelech gives Abraham livestock and enslaved male and female servants, then restores Sarah his wife. Restitution and restoration are central, but the human beings listed among the gifts reveal an ancient coercive economy rather than a moral model.
The sister strategy again, and a king warned
This verse is one part of that explanation in Genesis 20:1–18. The complete section carries the connected meaning and how it should shape life.
Read It With
- Genesis 20:1–18
Read verses 7, 9, and 14–16. Verse 7 commands Sarah's return; verse 9 names the danger; verse 14 restores Sarah and gives wealth; verses 15–16 add land and silver. Reading only the gifts could turn repair into prosperity or sanitize slavery.
Why This Verse Appears Here
Abimelech turns warning and rebuke into concrete restoration, while the gift list exposes the ancient economy's coercion.
Read Genesis 20:14–16 together
Why these verses belong together: Sarah's restoration, gifts, land, and the silver statement together narrate material and public repair.
Verse 14. 14 And Abimelech took sheep, and oxen, and menservants, and womenservants, and gave them unto Abraham, and restored him Sarah his wife.
Verse 15. 15 And Abimelech said, Behold, my land is before thee: dwell where it pleaseth thee.
Verse 16. 16 And unto Sarah he said, Behold, I have given thy brother a thousand pieces of silver: behold, he is to thee a covering of the eyes, unto all that are with thee, and with all other: thus she was reproved.
What This Verse Is Not Saying
The gifts do not prove that Abraham's deception was rewarded or that wealth indicates divine approval.
The servants are not modern employees, and their transfer does not make slavery morally good.
Restoring Sarah does not mean money can erase the danger or speak for her unreported experience.
What Remains True
When deception creates danger, restoration should return the person and repair public harm, but no person's humanity may be reduced to property or compensation.
How It Can Shape Life
- Make restitution in ways that center the harmed person's safety and dignity. Do not use money, staff, dependents, or coerced labor as substitutes for truth and accountability.
Continue in Context
Read the complete section for the connected explanation and how it should shape life. This verse is a doorway into that passage, not a saying that stands alone.
Read Genesis 20:1–18 — God Protects Sarah in GerarSources used for this Verse Lens
How certain is this explanation? very strong
These are the sources used directly for this lens. Language, grammar, disagreements, and the complete source shelf remain attached to the full thought-unit research record.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Displayed wording, boundary, repeated wife-sister pattern, explicit non-contact, rebuke, restoration, prayer, healing, promise placement, and later kinship law.
Exact location: Genesis 20:1–18 in the pinned eng-kjv2006 source; compared with Genesis 12:10–20; 18:1–33; 21:1–7; 26:1–11; Leviticus 18:9, 11; 20:17
Open source ↗hebrew text morphology and lemma data
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible — Genesis
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible Project
Open Scriptures, Version 2.2 released 2021; repository inspected 2026
Supports: Marriage language, integrity, innocence, divine restraint, non-contact, prophet and prayer, fear, loyal-kindness request, plural wandering verb, difficult silver phrase, healing, giving birth, and emphatic womb closure.
Exact location: Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible, wlc/Gen.xml, Genesis 20:1–18; lemmas and morphology for ishah, be'ulat ba'al, tom-levav, niqyon kappayim, chasakh, naga, navi, palal, yare, hesed, ta'ah, kesut einayim, yakach, rapha, yalad, atsar, and rechem
Open source ↗Translation and textual notes
NET Bible — Genesis with translators' notes
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press, Digital edition accessed 2026
Supports: Prophet and intercession syntax, emphatic death warning, plural verb, silver weight, difficult covering-of-eyes idiom, vindication, emphatic womb closure, and proposed timeline.
Exact location: NET Bible, Genesis 20:1–18 and translator notes, especially 20:7, 13, 16–18
Open NET Genesis 20 ↗