Genesis 20:1

THE BEAUTY OF SARAH. — And Abraham said concerning Sarah his wife, She is my sister, for he feared to say, She is my wife, lest at any time the men of the city should kill him for her sake. It is commonly questioned how Abraham could still be afraid of being in danger because of the beauty of Sarah, given his age. The answer is that one must admire more the vigor of that beauty, which could still be desired, than not think that it is a difficult question. [

And he sojourned in Gerar. For by both the word of sojourning and the name of Gerar, that is, of lodging, the life of the holy ones is aptly depicted, which, as much as it is devoted to divine commands, so much it is alienated from temporal joys; whence also the Apostle, glorifying the life of the same patriarchs, said: By faith, Abraham sojourned in the land of promise as in a foreign land, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, co-heirs of the same promise; for he was looking for a city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God (Heb. XI, 9). And a little later: According to faith, all these died, not having received the promises, but having seen them from afar and greeted them, and confessing that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth (Ibid., 13). For those who say such things signify that they are seeking a homeland; but Gerar was formerly the border of the Canaanites to the south, and a metropolis city of Palestine, situated between Kadesh and Shur, that is, between two deserts, one of which is joined to Egypt, to which the people arrived after crossing the Red Sea, and the other extends from Kadesh to the desert of the Saracens. It follows:

Abraham departed from there to the southern land, lived between Kadesh and Shur, and sojourned in Gerar. That Abraham came to the southern land suggests a celestial progress of the mind through his earthly journey, by which he always used to ascend to more perfect works of virtues, as did the other saints. The southern land, being nearer to the light and heat of the sun, often indicates that life of the faithful which, shedding the stupor of worldly desire, used to be renewed more and more daily by the inner light of heavenly love. And Abraham, having destroyed Sodom, sought the southern land, since each chosen person, witnessing the destruction of the wicked, more devotedly girds himself in the service of his Creator so that having been inwardly granted to transcend the perdition of the wicked, he might merit to partake eternally in the joys of the good. "When the scourge is inflicted, the little one will become more prudent." The following words, too, which state that Abraham lived between Kadesh and Shur and sojourned in Gerar, aptly suit the spiritual progress of the elect. For Kadesh means Holy, or Changed, Shur means Strong, and Gerar means Sojourning. Therefore, Abraham having journeyed to the southern land, dwelt between Kadesh and Shur, hence, surely, all the chosen, being inwardly enlightened by the recognition of truth and inflamed with love for the divine vision, strive together to exercise works of holiness; they endeavor to lead a life changed among men, that is, heavenly for earthly, angelic for human, and continually adhere to Him who is uniquely strong with the invincible strength of faith, saying individually, saying together: "But as for me, it is good to be close to God" (Ps. 73:28). Notably, Shur among the Hebrews is one of the ten names for God, by which the power of the Almighty is commonly signified. Therefore, he dwells between Kadesh and Shur, who, through works of virtues, daily yearns for the vision of his Creator; and since this vision is usually to come in the future, but in the present age they confess themselves to be sojourners who have learned to hope for an eternal homeland in the heavens, it rightly follows: