Was Abraham Bad.....

[Jayyycuuup]

Genesis 20:12: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.

So did he commit incest ?

[Leonard]

Until the Law of Moses (about 600-650 years AFTER Abraham), there was no prohibition against marrying a half sister.

[other one]

the defination of an incestual relationship differs from different groups of people. There is a story in Samuel about a prince marrying his sister, and it seems to me that I remember it speaking as being odd rather than sinful.

It would definately be incest using the defination that most of us would consider today.

[Sevenseas]

No, Abram/Abraham was not bad. Not even close.

Further not only was he not living under the laws of marriage today (which are changing for the worse) but he

was not even living under the ten commandments

Instead of applying what we think we see or know, it is wiser to do a little research and learn a whole big buncha

stuff so that it can be applied next time around

“Prior to Moses’ time, incest in many of the forms later proscribed, were not thought to be wrong. Thus, even Moses’ own father, Amram, married an aunt, his father’s sister, Jochebed (Exodus 6:20)” (Kaiser, et al., p. 101).

In the early stages of human history, “marriage” among kinsmen was not deemed immoral. The fact is, such was a necessity from the nature of the situation. The children of Adam and Eve must have married kinsmen, for there were no other people on earth except those descended from the original pair.

In the Patriarchal period there were familial marriages that do not appear to have been censured by God, but which were prohibited in a later epoch of law.

Here is a link that explains it more or less and I do not agree with some of what is there (ie Paul santionning marriage between a father and his daugher..

I think that is just really bad interpretation of the text) but in the matter of explaining what we might call incest, I think the page does a decent job

http://www.christiancourier.com/articles/950-does-the-bible-conflict-with-itself-in-the-matter-of-incest

I do not know anything else about this site, so if you find something weird, I don't sanction it

[Matthitjah]

She was in fact his niece. Abraham was a sinner just like all of us. What saved him was that he believed God and it was accounted to him for righteousness.

[Sevenseas]

I have never heard anywhere that she was his niece rather than half sister

May I ask where you get this from please? not being contentious ...actually would like to know

Thanks

[Matthitjah]

From Family Bible Notes;

Ge 20:12

Not--of my mother; Terah, Abraham's father, is supposed by many interpreters to have had two wives; Haran, Sarah's father, to have been a son of the second; so that Sarah was his niece, and grandaughter of his father, but not of his mother. The term sister was then often given to a niece, and brother to a nephew, uncle, or near relative, Ge 20:5,13; 11:29; yet this use of these terms, in this case, was designed to deceive, and was wrong.From Family Bible Notes;

From Geneva Bible Notes;

Ge 20:12

And yet indeed she is my msister; she is the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother; and she became my wife.

m. By sister, he means his full cousin, and by daughter Abraham's niece, Ge 11:29 for so the Hebrews use these words.

[xero]

Genesis 20:12 "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."

Sarah was Abrahams half sister through his father.

OP it was a different time frame.

[georgedrw81]

She was in fact his niece. Abraham was a sinner just like all of us. What saved him was that he believed God and it was accounted to him for righteousness.

Right. We are all sinners and then God sent Christ to give each one of us a chance to save ourselves.

Blessings

[other one]

From Family Bible Notes;

Ge 20:12

Not--of my mother; Terah, Abraham's father, is supposed by many interpreters to have had two wives; Haran, Sarah's father, to have been a son of the second; so that Sarah was his niece, and grandaughter of his father, but not of his mother. The term sister was then often given to a niece, and brother to a nephew, uncle, or near relative, Ge 20:5,13; 11:29; yet this use of these terms, in this case, was designed to deceive, and was wrong.From Family Bible Notes;

From Geneva Bible Notes;

Ge 20:12

And yet indeed she is my msister; she is the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother; and she became my wife.

m. By sister, he means his full cousin, and by daughter Abraham's niece, Ge 11:29 for so the Hebrews use these words.

That last quote comes from the Talmud where it associates Sarai as the same person as Iscah. Iscah is the daughter of Abraham's brother.

However the Bible does not say this and says Sarai was the daughter of Abraham's father, not his brother.