After Abraham had reached the Promised Land, there was famine. So, instead of staying in the Promised Land, Abraham took his family and possessions and fled to Egypt. Abraham previously let misguided family loyalty take precedence over God's will. His move to Egypt during the famine shows him disobeying God's will again because of fear and human reasoning. He was afraid because there was not enough food. So, he used his best human reasoning to figure out what he should do next rather than trusting God.
It is not like Sarah's beauty was a brand-new revelation to Abraham. They had been married for a long time. He waited until right before they got to Egypt to remind her of her beauty. He was about to follow it up with something. There is a reason why he started his statement like he did.
Once again, fear motivated Abraham's actions. Upon seeing Sarah's beauty, Abraham was deeply concerned that the Egyptians would find her so attractive that they would kill him to acquire her. If left unchecked, fear can lead to sinful actions, as in Abraham's case.
Abraham's fear led him to sin. He instructed Sarah to tell a half-truth, claiming she was his sister. A half-truth is still a lie. They shared the same father but had different mothers. The fear-driven lie only served to multiply the sin. This instance underscores the importance of honesty and transparency, even in the face of difficulty. God values these virtues, even if they lead to a challenging path towards blessings.
Abraham correctly stated that the Egyptians would immediately notice Sarah's beauty. They did. The wrongness of his fear-based actions did not make his initial observation incorrect.
The Egyptians acted upon the best information they had and, recognizing Sarah's beauty, alerted the Pharaoh so he could take Sarah into his harem. At the moment, Abraham might have felt short-term satisfaction that his deceptive plan paid off by sparing his life and leading to his exceptional material blessing. “I got away with it!” However, the long-term consequences of sin always outweigh the short-term benefits.
Abraham might have fooled the Egyptians, but no one can fool God. God was aware that Sarah was Abraham's wife. As a result, the Lord struck the king and everyone in his palace with terrible diseases. Their ignorance of their transgression did not negate their responsibility for it.
The legal principle of "ignorantia juris non excusat" is a Latin term that means "ignorance of the law excuses not." This principle holds that an individual unaware of a law cannot escape liability for violating it by merely being ignorant of its content. The logic behind this doctrine is that if ignorance were an excuse, then individuals accused of criminal offenses or involved in civil lawsuits could claim that they were unaware of the law to avoid liability, even if they were aware of it. Therefore, the law expects all individuals to know the law, no matter how briefly they may be present. God has similar expectations of his moral law, which he says is written on every human heart. The conscience is like a law written in the human heart. It will show whether we are forgiven or condemned (Romans 2:15).
We see an example of that with the Egyptians and Sarah. The Egyptians were unaware that Sarah was Abraham's wife, but they were still guilty. The lesson is that you cannot avoid accountability to God by avoiding knowledge of his expectations or not thoroughly investigating a situation before proceeding. If the laws of the universe did not work that way, a child who touches a hot stove would never burn their hand because their scientific unawareness would protect them. Our life experiences teach us that to believe that would be foolish. Therefore, a loving parent--or anyone more knowledgeable that cares--does what they can to protect the ignorant, usually by teaching them the knowledge they lack. Abraham's fear compounded his sin and dragged others into it by lying, spreading the consequences of his guilt to others.
Pastor Skip Heitzig says that a husband who is out of God's will is dangerous to his family and himself. Here, this man puts his wife in jeopardy because God still has his hand upon Abraham and Sarah, and he also puts the pharaoh and his household in jeopardy because of this disobedient man. If your doubt leads to disobedience to God, you are dangerous.
The Pharaoh was justifiably angry with Abraham for deceiving him. Even if Abraham had said nothing and just let the events unfold, cowardly silence is not an acceptable means of avoiding uncomfortable conversations. Revelation 21:8 lists people who will be thrown into the Lake of Fire and burning sulfur. Cowards are the first on that particular list. God does not look favorably upon cowardice.
Pharaoh demonstrated the principle of repentance. Once he became aware of his wrongdoing, he immediately rectified the situation. He did not use his previous ignorance to justify continued sin. He also chastised Abraham, who knew better.
Genesis records nothing about Abraham acknowledging his sin or seeking to make things right. The last verse of the chapter shows Pharaoh kicking Abraham out of Egypt. That goes back to what I said before about the short-term benefits of sin vs. the long-term consequences. Quoting Skip again, God told Abraham at the beginning of Genesis 12 that Abraham would be a blessing. By the end of the chapter, he had, albeit temporarily, become a curse. Thankfully, Abraham’s story does not end there, although it does for today.