The Book of Jasher, a non-canonical Jewish text that fills in gaps in the biblical narrative, offers some fascinating glimpses. Let's dive into one particularly dramatic episode from Chapter 15.
The story begins with a severe famine gripping the land of Canaan. As we read in Jasher, "the inhabitants of the land could not remain on account of the famine for it was very grievous." So, Abram, Sarai, and their entire household decide to seek refuge in Egypt.
As they approach the border, near the brook Mitzraim (Egypt), Abram is struck by Sarai's extraordinary beauty. A thought creeps into his mind, a fear actually: "Since God has created thee with such a beautiful countenance, I am afraid of the Egyptians lest they should slay me and take thee away, for the fear of God is not in these places.”
He comes up with a plan, a rather unsettling one. Abram asks Sarai to tell everyone she is his sister. "Say thou art my sister to all that may ask thee, in order that it may be well with me, and that we may live and not be put to death." He instructs his entire entourage, including his nephew Lot, to do the same.
But even with this deception in place, Abram is uneasy. The text tells us, "Abram did not put confidence in them, but he took Sarai and placed her in a chest and concealed it amongst their vessels." Can you imagine? Hiding your wife in a chest! It speaks volumes about his anxiety and the perceived dangers of the time.
Upon entering Egypt, they encounter the king's guards, who demand a tithe – a tenth of their possessions – before allowing them entry. They pay, but the guards are suspicious of the chest. "What hast thou here in this chest which we have not seen? Now open thou the chest and give tithe to the king of all that it contains." Abram tries to negotiate, offering to pay whatever they want, but refusing to open the chest.
The officers, persistent, force the chest open. And there, in all her glory, is Sarai.
The Egyptians are awestruck. Her beauty is so captivating that word quickly reaches Pharaoh himself. He orders her to be brought to him, and Sarai is taken to the royal house.
Imagine Abram's distress! He prays to God for Sarai's deliverance. Sarai, too, cries out to God, reminding Him of His promise to protect Abram. "O Lord God thou didst tell my Lord Abram to go from his land...and thou didst promise to do well with him...now therefore, O Lord God, deliver us and save us from the hand of this oppressor."
God hears her plea. An angel is sent to protect Sarai. When Pharaoh approaches her, intending to make her his wife, the angel strikes him. The text says the angel "smote him heavily" and continued to do so throughout the night. The entire royal household suffers as well.
Terrified, Pharaoh realizes the source of his misfortune. He asks Sarai about Abram, and she finally reveals the truth: "This man is my husband, and I said to thee that he was my brother for I was afraid, lest thou shouldst put him to death through wickedness."
The next morning, Pharaoh confronts Abram, furious at the deception. “‘What is this thou hast done to me? Why didst thou say, She is my sister, owing to which I took her unto me for a wife, and this heavy plague has therefore come upon me and my household.’" He orders them to leave Egypt immediately, returning Sarai to Abram and showering them with gifts of livestock, servants, silver, and gold. He even gives them his daughter as a handmaid, saying, "It is better for thee my daughter to be a handmaid in this man's house than to be mistress in my house."
Abram and his company leave Egypt, richer than before, and return to Canaan.
The story doesn't end there. Back in Canaan, tensions rise between Abram's and Lot's herdsmen. Their possessions are too great for the land to sustain them together, and their herdsmen begin encroaching on the fields of others, angering the local population.
According to Jasher, "the herdsmen of Lot did otherwise, for they were suffered to feed in the fields of the people of the land. And the people of the land saw this occurrence daily, and they came to Abram and quarrelled with him on account of Lot's herdsmen."
Abram confronts Lot, urging him to separate. "Now I beseech thee let there be no more quarrelling between us, for we are kinsmen... I pray thee separate from me, go and choose a place where thou mayest dwell with thy cattle." Lot chooses the well-watered plain of Jordan and settles in Sodom, while Abram remains in Hebron.
What can we take away from this episode? It's a complex story filled with deception, divine intervention, and human fallibility. We see Abram, a man of great faith, also capable of fear and questionable choices. We see Sarai, a woman of incredible beauty and faith, caught in a dangerous situation. And we see the beginnings of a separation that will have significant consequences for the future. It reminds us that even the most revered figures in our tradition faced challenges and made difficult decisions, and that their stories, even in these less familiar tellings, continue to resonate with us today.