Genesis 26

1 There was a famine in the country—not the one that happened before in Abraham's time, but a later one. So Isaac moved to Gerar in the territory of Abimelech, king of the Philistines.

Now a famine happened in the land, besides the first famine that had been in the days of Abraham. Isaac went to Abimelech, king of the Philistines at Gerar.

2 The Lord appeared to Isaac and told him, “Don't go to Egypt—live in the country that I tell you to.

Now Yahweh appeared to him and said, “Do not go down to Egypt; live in the land that I tell you to live in.

3 Stay here in this country. I will be with you and I will bless you, because I'm going to give you and your descendants all these lands. I will keep the solemn promise that I swore to Abraham your father.

Stay in this very land, and I will be with you and will bless you; for to you and to your descendants, I will give all these lands, and I will fulfill the oath that I swore to Abraham your father.

4 I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars of heaven and I will give them all these lands. All the nations of the earth will be blessed by your descendants,

I will multiply your descendants like the stars of heaven, and will give to your descendants all these lands. Through your descendants all the nations of the earth will be blessed.

5 because Abraham did what I told him, and kept my requirements, my commands, my regulations, and my laws.”

I will do this because Abraham obeyed my voice and kept my instructions, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.”

6 So Isaac stayed in Gerar.

So Isaac settled in Gerar.

7 When the men there asked him about his wife, he told them, “She's my sister,” because he was afraid. He said to himself, “If I say she's my wife, the men here will kill me to get Rebekah, because she's so beautiful.”

When the men of the place asked him about his wife, he said, “She is my sister.” He feared to say, “She is my wife,” because he thought, “The men of this place will kill me to get Rebekah, because she is so beautiful.”

8 But later on, after he'd been there a while, Abimelech, king of the Philistines, happened to look out the window and saw Isaac lovingly fondling his wife Rebekah.

After Isaac had been there a long time, Abimelech king of the Philistines happened to look out of a window. He saw, behold, Isaac was caressing Rebekah, his wife.

9 Abimelech sent for Isaac and complained. “From what I saw she's clearly your wife!” he said. “Why on earth did you say, ‘She's my sister’?” “Because I thought I'd be killed because of her,” Isaac replied.

Abimelech called Isaac to him and said, “Look, certainly she is your wife. Why did you say, 'She is my sister'?” Isaac said to him, “Because I thought someone might kill me to get her.”

10 “Why would you do this to us?” Abimelech asked. “One of the men here might have slept with your wife, and you would have made us all guilty!”

Abimelech said, “What is this you have done to us? One of the people might easily have slept with your wife, and you would have brought guilt upon us.”

11 Abimelech issued orders to all the people, warning them, “Anyone who touches this man or his wife will be executed.”

So Abimelech warned all the people and said, “Whoever touches this man or his wife will surely be put to death.”

12 Isaac sowed grain that year, and the Lord blessed him with a harvest that was a hundred times what he planted.

Isaac planted crops in that land and reaped in the same year a hundredfold, because Yahweh blessed him.

13 He became a rich man, and his wealth steadily increased until he was very rich.

The man became rich, and grew more and more until he became very great.

14 He owned many flocks of sheep and herds of cattle, as well as many slaves. He had so much that the Philistines became jealous of him.

He had many sheep and cattle, and a large household. The Philistines envied him.

15 So the Philistines used dirt to block up all the wells his father Abraham's servants had dug.

Now all the wells that his father's servants had dug in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines stopped them up by filling them with earth.

16 Then Abimelech told Isaac, “You have to leave our country, because you've become much too powerful for us.”

Abimelech said to Isaac, “Go away from us, for you are much mightier than we.”

17 So Isaac moved away and set up his tents in the Gerar Valley where he settled down.

So Isaac departed from there and settled in the Valley of Gerar, and lived there.

18 He unblocked the wells that had been dug in his father Abraham's time—the ones the Philistines had blocked after the death of Abraham. He gave them the same names his father had.

Once again Isaac dug out the wells of water, which they had dug in the days of Abraham his father. The Philistines had stopped them up after Abraham's death. Isaac called the wells by the same names that his father had called them.

19 Isaac's servants also dug a new well in the valley and found spring water.

When Isaac's servants dug in the valley, they found there a well of flowing water.

20 But the herdsmen from Gerar argued with Isaac's herdsmen, claiming, “That's our water!” So Isaac named the well, “Argument,” because they argued with him.

The herdsmen of Gerar quarreled with Isaac's herdsmen, and said, “This water is ours.” So Isaac called that well “Esek,” because they had quarreled with him.

21 He had another well dug, and they argued over that one too. He named the well, “Opposition.”

Then they dug another well, and they quarreled over that, too, so he gave it the name of “Sitnah.”

22 So they moved on from there and he had another well dug. This time there was no argument so he named the well, “Freedom,” saying, “Now the Lord has given us freedom to expand and be successful in this land.”

He left there and dug yet another well, but they did not quarrel over that one. So he called it Rehoboth, and he said, “Now Yahweh has made room for us, and we will prosper in the land.”

23 From there he moved on to Beersheba.

Then Isaac went up from there to Beersheba.

24 That night the Lord appeared to him and said, “I am the God of Abraham your father. Don't be afraid, for I am with you. I will bless you and give you many descendants for the sake of my servant Abraham.”

Yahweh appeared to him that same night and said, “I am the God of Abraham your father. Do not fear, for I am with you and will bless you and multiply your descendants, for my servant Abraham's sake.”

25 Isaac built an altar and worshiped the Lord. He also set up his tent, and his servants dug a well there.

Isaac built an altar there and called on the name of Yahweh. There he pitched his tent, and his servants dug a well.

26 Sometime later Abimelech came from Gerar to see Isaac, along with Ahuzzath his advisor, and Phicol the commander of his army.

Then Abimelech went to him from Gerar, with Ahuzzath, his friend, and Phicol, the captain of his army.

27 “Why have you come to see me?” Isaac asked them. “Previously you hated me and told me to leave!”

Isaac said to them, “Why are you coming to me, since you hate me and have sent me away from you?”

28 “Now we realize that the Lord is with you,” they replied. “So we agreed that we should make a sworn agreement with you.

Then they said, “We have clearly seen that Yahweh has been with you. So we decided that there should be an oath between us, yes, between us and you. So let us make a covenant with you,

29 You'll promise not to harm us in the same way we've never hurt you. You'll agree that we've always treated you well, and when we asked you to leave we did so kindly. Now look at how the Lord is blessing you!”

that you will do us no harm, just as we have not harmed you, and as we have treated you well and have sent you away in peace. Indeed, you are blessed by Yahweh.”

30 So Isaac had a special meal prepared to celebrate the agreement. They ate and drank,

So Isaac made a feast for them, and they ate and drank.

31 and got up early in the morning and they each swore oaths to one other. Then Isaac sent them on their way, and they left in peace.

They rose early in the morning and swore an oath with each other. Then Isaac sent them away, and they left him in peace.

32 It was that very day when Isaac's servants who'd been digging a well came and told him, “We've found water!”

That same day Isaac's servants came and told him about the well that they had dug. They said, “We have found water.”

33 So Isaac named the well, “Oath,” and that's why the name of the town is “Well of the Oath” (Beersheba) to this day.

He called the well Shibah, so the name of that city is Beersheba to this day.

34 When Esau was 40, he married Judith, daughter of Beeri the Hittite, as well as Basemath, daughter of Elon the Hittite.

When Esau was forty years old, he took a wife, Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and also Basemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite.

35 They caused Isaac and Rebekah a great deal of grief.

They brought sorrow to Isaac and Rebekah.