A reading from the book of Genesis. From there, Abraham journeyed toward the territory of the

Negeb, and lived between Kadesh and Sher, and a sojourn in Garar. And Abraham said of Sarah his wife,

she is my sister, and Abimelech, king of Garar sent and took Sarah. But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night,

and said to him, Behold, you are a dead man because of the woman whom you have taken, for she is a man's

wife. Now Abimelech had not approached her, so he said, Lord, will you kill an innocent people?

Did he not himself say to me she is my sister, and she herself said he is my brother,

and the integrity of my heart and the innocence of my hands I have done this. Then God said to him

in the dream, as I know that you have done this in the integrity of your heart, and it was I who

kept you from sinning against me. Therefore I did not let you touch her. Now then return the man's wife, for he is a prophet,

so that he will pray for you, and you shall live. But if you do not return her, know that you shall

surely die, you and all who are yours. So Abimelech rose early in the morning and called all his

servants, and told them all these things, and the men were very much afraid. Then

Abimelech called Abraham and said to him, What have you done to us? And how have I sinned against

you that you have brought on me in my kingdom a great sin? You have done to me things that ought not to be

done. And Abimelech said to Abraham, what did you see that you did this thing?

Abraham said, I did it because I thought, there is no fear of God at all in this place,

and they will kill me because of my wife.

Besides, she is indeed my sister, the daughter of my father, though not the daughter of my mother,

and she became my wife.

And when God caused me to wander from my father's house, I said to her,

this is the kind that she must do to me, at every place to which we come, say of me he is my brother.

Then Abimelech took sheep and oxen, and male servants and female servants, and gave them to Abraham,

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