⁶ So Isaac settled in Gerar.

Isaac’s Deception

⁷ When the men of the place asked about his wife, he said, “She is my sister,”^(A) for he was afraid to say “my wife,” thinking,^(B) “The men of the place will kill me on account of Rebekah, for she is a beautiful woman.”^{(C) 8} When Isaac had been there for some time, Abimelech king of the Philistines looked down from the window and was surprised to see^[a] Isaac caressing his wife Rebekah.

⁹ Abimelech sent for Isaac and said, “So she is really your wife! How could you say, ‘She is my sister’?”

Isaac answered him, “Because I thought I might die on account of her.”

¹⁰ Then Abimelech said, “What is this you’ve done to us? One of the people could easily have slept with your wife, and you would have brought guilt on us.”^{(D) 11} So Abimelech warned all the people with these words: “Whoever harms this man or his wife will certainly die.”