First.....
Abraham was not told to go to Egypt. There is a famine, yes. But Abraham takes it upon himself to go to a nation of false gods, a deity for everything under the sun, and the sun too.
And Abraham knows there will be trouble. He warns Sarah, "There might be trouble." He knows his wife is beautiful and that there may be men who want her and will even be willing to kill for her.
Now I have read some scathing words regarding this whole situation. They accuse Abraham of being a cowardly pimp, and Sarah his whore that he gladly sends out to have relationships with others and takes their money when he shames them with the truth that she belongs to him. Sadly, I have written this 'theory' down in much nicer verbiage than they used.
BUT I don't think that is what is going on here.
Perhaps you have seen some old westerns? Think.... Clint Eastwood in The Outlaw Josey Wales.
Pretty?
No.
But... accurate for times and places where there is no real moral authority with the will and power to protect the masses.
Consider....
Right now, if you have something that others would want, such as a nice truck, copper wire, a horse, or a beautiful daughter, how do you protect them? Many would call the police when trouble occurred. Perhaps they would arrive in time to salvage the property or precious life. Perhaps not. Perhaps you have weaponry and skill. And perhaps, if there aren't too many opponents, and luck/favor is yours on that day you will survive and keep what is yours.
But what if there are no police? And what if there were more opponents than you could handle? What if they were just as armed and skilled as you, and outnumbered you a hundred to one?
Abraham was going INTO Egypt. He would be surrounded by 'opponents'.
He probably thought that if they played their parts well, that anyone who desired Sarah would go through the act of courtship and betrothal before accosting her. Or he was unsure what to do and thought this would buy him time. He probably assumed that they would be able to get the food and goods they needed and then leave.
Do I think he did the 'right thing'? No.
But I think he probably didn't know what to do.
And that is precisely what happens when we don't look to YHWH for direction. We do stupid things.
Sometimes YHWH can and will still protect us in our stupidity. He certainly protected Abraham and Sarah. Although she was taken first into the home of Pharoah and then Abimelech, she was not sexually assaulted. And when they became aware that Sarah was in fact Abraham's wife, she was returned to him, in addition to gifts as they apologized for their taking her without leave. Abraham was not only protected, but given favor in the eyes of these men in the midst of this. By their gracious and apologetic attitudes, the plagues and troubles that YHWH placed over their house were lifted.
Unfortunately, though it was not directly discussed in scripture, it was during this jaunt to Egypt, outside of the will of YHWH, that Sarah gained a handmaiden... Hagar. We know that later, once again showing a mistrust of the FULLNESS and AWESOMENESS of YHWH, that Sarah offered Hagar to Abraham in the hopes of gaining a child through her, which led to trouble.
As Psalm 118:8 says, "It is better to trust in YHWH Than to put confidence in man."
When you step out on your own without your head (Y'shua being our head, ie The Angel of the Lord) then you are bound to make mistakes.
We should all pray for YHWH's protection and mercy in our stupidity. And we should all cleave harder to His will to avoid mistakes which make us and YHWH the point of ridicule for those around us.
***
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