Genesis 26

Genesis 26 is virtually the only chapter in which Isaac takes center stage. After Abraham's death and the birth of Esau and Jacob in Genesis 25, this chapter shows Isaac inheriting the promise his father had received.

Outline

• Verses 1–5 When famine strikes the land again, Isaac goes to Abimelech, king of the Philistines, at Gerar. The LORD tells him not to go down into Egypt and confirms the promise of land and descendants that He had sworn to Abraham.
• Verses 6–11 Isaac passes Rebekah off as his sister. When Abimelech discovers the truth, he rebukes Isaac and then orders that the couple be protected.
• Verses 12–16 Isaac reaps a hundredfold that year and becomes very wealthy. Out of envy, the Philistines stop up his wells, and Abimelech tells Isaac to leave.
• Verses 17–22 Isaac reopens the wells that had been dug in his father's time. He names the wells over which quarrels arise Esek and Sitnah, and the well over which there is no quarrel Rehoboth.
• Verses 23–25 The LORD appears to Isaac at Beersheba, and Isaac builds an altar there.
• Verses 26–33 Abimelech comes with Ahuzzath and Phichol and makes a covenant with Isaac. That same day Isaac's servants find water, and Isaac names the well Shebah.
• Verses 34–35 At the age of forty, Esau marries two Hittite women, who become a grief to his parents.

Key Verses

• Genesis 26:4 "And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed" — the promise given to Abraham passes to Isaac.
• Genesis 26:24 "I am the God of Abraham thy father: fear not" — God identifies Himself as the God of Abraham and reassures Isaac.

Characters and Places

• Isaac, Rebekah, Esau, Abraham
• Abimelech: the Philistine king of Gerar. Ahuzzath is his friend, and Phichol is the chief captain of his army.
• Judith and Bashemath: daughters of Beeri the Hittite and Elon the Hittite, respectively, and wives of Esau.
• Gerar: the Philistine territory where Isaac stayed during the famine.
• Esek, Sitnah, and Rehoboth: wells dug by Isaac. Their Hebrew names are interpreted as "contention," "hostility," and "broad places," respectively.
• Philistia, Beersheba, Egypt

Points for Reflection

• The account of passing off a wife as a sister resembles the stories of Abraham in Genesis 20 and Genesis 12. The origin of the name Beersheba is also given separately in Genesis 21. Traditional interpretation reads these as events that actually recurred, understanding Abimelech either as the same person or as a royal title. Historical-critical scholarship, by contrast, sometimes regards them as a single tradition transmitted in several forms.
• Verse 5 states that Abraham, who lived before the giving of the Law, kept "my commandments, my statutes, and my laws." Some rabbinic literature interpreted this to mean that Abraham observed the Law in advance. Christian interpretation generally understands the phrase as a broad expression of obedience to God's word.
• The promise that all nations would be blessed through Abraham's seed is connected with Christ in Acts 3:25 and Galatians 3:6–9.
• Esau's marriages are mentioned again at the end of Genesis 27.

In the Korean Church

• Isaac's willingness to move on rather than fight when his wells were taken is frequently cited in sermons on meekness and yielding.
• "Rehoboth" is sometimes used as the name of churches and Christian organizations.