John Calvin Commentary Genesis 20:13

"and it came to pass, when God caused me to wander from my father`s house, that I said unto her, This is thy kindness which thou shalt show unto me. At every place whither we shall come, say of me, He is my brother." — Genesis 20:13 (ASV)

When God caused me to wander: Because the verb here is plural, I freely interpret the passage as referring to the angels who led Abraham through his various wanderings. Some, with too much subtlety, infer from it a Trinity of Persons, as if it had been written: The gods caused me to wander.

I grant, indeed, that the noun אלהים (Elohim,) is frequently taken for God in Scripture, but the verb with which it is connected is always singular. Wherever a plural verb is added, it then signifies angels or rulers. Some think that Abraham, because he was speaking with someone not rightly instructed, spoke in this manner in accordance with the common custom of pagans; but, in my opinion, this is completely erroneous.

For to what purpose did he, by erecting altars, make it clear that he was devoted to the service of the only true God, if he were permitted later to deny, in words, the very God whom he had worshipped? We have previously addressed this subject, as the situation required.

Abraham, however, does not complain about the angels, that he had been led astray by their misleading guidance; instead, he points out what his own condition previously was—namely, that having left his own country, he had not only migrated to a distant land but had also been constantly compelled to change his dwelling place.

Therefore, it is no wonder that necessity drove him to new plans. If anyone should ask why he makes angels the guides of his pilgrimage, the answer is clear: although Abraham knew that he was wandering by the will and providence of God alone, he still refers to angels, who, as he elsewhere acknowledges, were given to him as guides for his journey.

The main point of his statement was to show Abimelech that Abraham was equally free from malicious cunning and from falsehood, and also that, because he was living a wandering and unsettled life, Sarah, by agreement, had always said the same thing she had said in Gerar. This distressing anxiety of the holy man might then move Abimelech to compassion, causing his anger to cease.