Verse Lens · Expanded explanation
Genesis 20:9 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 9. 9Then Abimelech called Abraham, and said unto him, What hast thou done unto us? and what have I offended thee, that thou hast brought on me and on my kingdom a great sin? thou hast done deeds unto me that ought not to be done.
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
Abimelech asks Abraham what he has done, what wrong Abimelech committed against him, and why Abraham brought a great sin upon the king and kingdom. He says Abraham has done deeds that should not be done, making the passage's ethical rebuke unmistakable.
Read It With
- Genesis 20:1–18
Read verses 2, 6–11. Verse 2 shows the concealment and taking; verses 6–7 explain prevention and restoration; verse 8 makes the response public; verses 9–10 give the rebuke; verse 11 exposes Abraham's fear-based assumption. Reading only Abraham's later defense could mute the harm named here.
Why This Verse Appears Here
The ruler names the danger and moral wrong before asking Abraham to explain himself.
Read Genesis 20:8–13 together
Why these verses belong together: Public fear and royal rebuke lead into Abraham's fear, kinship defense, and disclosure of the standing sister strategy.
Verse 8. 8 Therefore Abimelech rose early in the morning, and called all his servants, and told all these things in their ears: and the men were sore afraid.
Verse 9. 9 Then Abimelech called Abraham, and said unto him, What hast thou done unto us? and what have I offended thee, that thou hast brought on me and on my kingdom a great sin? thou hast done deeds unto me that ought not to be done.
Verse 10. 10 And Abimelech said unto Abraham, What sawest thou, that thou hast done this thing?
Verse 11. 11 And Abraham said, Because I thought, Surely the fear of God is not in this place; and they will slay me for my wife’s sake.
Verse 12. 12 And yet indeed she is my sister; she is the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother; and she became my wife.
Verse 13. 13 And it came to pass, when God caused me to wander from my father’s house, that I said unto her, This is thy kindness which thou shalt shew unto me; at every place whither we shall come, say of me, He is my brother.
Follow the Context
- Abraham travels into the Negev, settles between Kadesh and Shur, and sojourns in Gerar (20:1).
- Abraham says of Sarah his wife, 'She is my sister,' and Abimelech sends for and takes Sarah (20:2).
- God comes to Abimelech in a night dream, identifies Sarah as a married woman, and warns him of death (20:3).
- Abimelech, who has not approached Sarah, appeals to a righteous nation, Abraham's and Sarah's statements, integrity of heart, and innocence of hands (20:4–5).
- God affirms Abimelech's integrity regarding the deception, says that divine restraint prevented him from sinning and touching Sarah, and commands him to restore the prophet's wife so Abraham may pray and he may live (20:6–7).
- Abimelech rises early, tells his servants, and the household fears greatly; he summons and rebukes Abraham for bringing a great sin on the kingdom and doing what should not be done (20:8–10).
- Abraham explains his assumption that the place lacked fear of God, his fear of being killed, Sarah's paternal half-sister relationship, and the standing sister strategy he asked Sarah to use wherever they traveled (20:11–13).
- Abimelech gives Abraham livestock and enslaved male and female servants, restores Sarah, offers land, and announces a thousand-silver gift whose 'covering of eyes' wording is difficult (20:14–16).
- Abraham prays; God heals Abimelech, his wife, and his female servants, and the narrator explains that the LORD had completely closed every womb because of Sarah, Abraham's wife (20:17–18).
Phrase-by-Phrase Explanation
“What hast thou done unto us?”
In plain language: Abimelech demands an account of Abraham's action and its consequences.
The foreign king exposes the danger created by concealment.
Why it matters: The narrative gives moral speech to the outsider Abraham misjudged.
How certain? very strong“a great sin”
In plain language: Serious guilt threatening king and kingdom.
The concealed marriage exposed others to adultery and judgment.
Why it matters: The phrase names risk, not completed sexual contact.
How certain? very strong“deeds that ought not to be done”
In plain language: Actions outside acceptable conduct.
Abimelech directly condemns Abraham's treatment of him.
Why it matters: This supplies strong ethical evaluation within the narrative.
How certain? very strongWhat This Verse Is Not Saying
Abimelech's rebuke does not prove he was flawless, but Abraham's imperfection does not invalidate the rebuke.
The phrase great sin does not establish that sexual intercourse occurred; God prevented contact.
The kingdom's exposure does not authorize punishing every dependent as personally guilty.
Abraham's prophetic title does not make deeds that should not be done acceptable.
What Remains True
A person harmed by deception may rightly name the danger and demand an account, even when the deceiver holds religious authority or vulnerable outsider status.
How It Can Shape Life
- Receive a harmed person's questions without hiding behind your title, fear, good intention, or technical wording. Name the risk created, apologize truthfully, and repair what can be repaired.
Teach It Back
Explain Genesis 20:9's contribution to Genesis 20:1–18. Include why the nearby verses are required, what the verse clearly says, and one conclusion it does not justify.
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Continue in Context
The full thought-unit study remains the final contextual authority for this Verse Lens.
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 ↗peer reviewed open biblical ethical and gender study
'Like Father, Like Son'? The Woman as a Bargaining Object in Gen 20:1-18 and Gen 26:1-11
Gesila Uzukwu
Old Testament Essays 34.1, 2021
Supports: Repeated deception, ethical rebuke, Sarah's limited narrated agency, patriarchal power, objectification, bargaining, and outsider moral correction; inferred consent rejected.
Exact location: Old Testament Essays 34.1, complete open article, especially sections B–D on Genesis 20 and 26
Open source ↗