Women in the Bible: A Paragon of Beauty
Now there was a famine in the land, and Abram went down to Egypt to dwell there, for the famine was severe in the land. And it came to pass, when he was close to entering Egypt, that he said to Sarai his wife, “Indeed I know that you are a woman of beautiful countenance. Therefore it will happen, when the Egyptians see you, that they will say, ‘This is his wife’; and they will kill me, but they will let you live. Please say you are my sister, that it may be well with me for your sake, and that I may live because of you.” – Genesis 12:10-13
The woman in the Bible whom we shall consider today is Sarah, the wife of Adam. Much has been said about Sarah’s virtues and qualities. She bested all other women before her in stature to be the first matriarch of note in the Bible. Of course, there were several women before her, but she was more prominent than they all. However, another side of Sarah that is often lost in the narratives about her is her comeliness. She was a paragon of beauty.
From the Bible passage we are considering today, we see how Abraham, in preparation to migrate to Egypt because of the famine ravaging the land of Canaan, prepped his wife as to how she would present herself to the Egyptians. The interesting thing about this is that Sarah was already in her mid-60s at this time. How did we know she was in her mid-60s? The Bible tells us in a later passage that she was 10 years younger than Abraham (Genesis 17:17). Also, Abraham left Haran for Canaan at age 75 (Genesis 12:4), stayed in Canaan for a while before the famine broke out, and he relocated to Egypt.
So, imagine how remarkably beautiful Sarah must have been that not only her husband, who was in his late 70s or early 80s, acknowledged her beauty at that advanced age, but even the courtiers of Egypt, the greatest nation of that time, also took notice of her charm and recommended her for Pharaoh, the undisputable leader of the world then, to marry. She must have been a stunner.
So it was, when Abram came into Egypt, that the Egyptians saw the woman, that she was very beautiful. The princes of Pharaoh also saw her and commended her to Pharaoh. And the woman was taken to Pharaoh’s house. He treated Abram well for her sake. He had sheep, oxen, male donkeys, male and female servants, female donkeys, and camels. – Genesis 12:14-16
It did not end there. Even when she was more advanced in age in her early 90s, Sarah was still an epitome of beauty, as the Egypt scenario played out again when she and her husband had to relocate to Gerar, and they had to lie again about her relationship to Abraham so that they could enjoy friendly reception, not to mention the fact that Abimelech, the king of Gerar also came for the hand of Sarah. Men could not resist the woman, and these were not men of small means. They were men with quality options.
And Abraham journeyed from there to the South, and dwelt between Kadesh and Shur, and stayed in Gerar. Now Abraham said of Sarah his wife, “She is my sister.” And Abimelech king of Gerar sent and took Sarah. – Genesis 20:1-2
Now, we do not know what kind of beauty treatments Sarah used to make her look so radiant, with a face and skin that were rare for anyone to miss. But from all indications, she was a paragon of beauty, and her beauty was not just in outward appearance alone; she was also beautiful inside. Moreover, her beauty was a leeway that paved the way for her family to be accepted in Egypt and a lifeline that helped them recoup some of the losses they might have incurred due to the famine in Canaan, as Pharaoh lavished Abraham with plenty gifts as a potential in-law.
Selah!
Also read:
- The Benefits of Wisdom: Safeguard from Evil
- Men in the Bible: A Man of the Altar
- Public Prayer
- Art Lessons
- When You Walk through the Fire
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