Genesis 26

1 And there came to be a famine in the land, besides the first famine which happened in the days of Abraham, —so Isaac went his way unto Abimelech, king of the Philistines towards Gerar;

And when a famine came in the land, after that barrenness which had happened in the days of Abraham, Isaac went to Abimelech king of the Palestines to Gerara.

2 and Yahweh appeared unto him, and said, do not go down towards Egypt, —Make thy habitation in the land, which I may name unto thee:

And the Lord appeared to him and said: Go not down into Egypt, but stay in the land that I shall tell thee.

3 Sojourn in this land, that I may be with thee and bless thee, —for, to thee, and to thy seed, will I give all these lands, So will I establish the oath which I sware to Abraham thy father;

And sojourn in it, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee: for to thee and to thy seed I will give all these countries, to fulfill the oath which I swore to Abraham thy father.

4 and will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heavens, and will give to thy seed, all these lands, —And all the nations of the earth shall bless themselves in thy seed:

And I will multiply thy seed like the stars of heaven: and I will give to thy posterity all these countries: and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed.

5 Because that Abraham hearkened unto my voice, —and so kept my charge, my commandments my statutes and my laws.

Because Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my precepts and commandments, and observed my ceremonies and laws.

6 So Isaac dwelt in Gerar.

So Isaac abode in Gerara.

7 Then asked the men of the place as to his wife, and he said, My sister, is she, —For he feared to say My wife, lest [said he] the men of the place should slay me on account of Rebekah, for fair to look on, she is.

And when he was asked by the men of that place, concerning his wife, he answered: She is my sister; for he was afraid to confess that she was his wife, thinking lest perhaps they would kill him because of her beauty.

8 And it came to pass when the days had lengthened out to him there, that Abimelech king of the Philistines, looked out through the lattice of a window, —and he beheld and lo! Isaac—laughing with Rebekah his wife.

And when very many days were passed, and he abode there, Abimelech king of the Palestines looking out through a window, saw him playing with Rebecca his wife.

9 So Abimelech called for Isaac, and said, But lo she is, thy wife! How then, saidst thou, She is, my sister? And Isaac said unto him, Because, I said, Lest I die on her account.

And calling for him, he said: It is evident she is thy wife: why didst thou feign her to be thy sister? He answered: I feared lest I should die for her sake.

10 Then, said, Abimelech, What is this thou hast done to us? A little more, and one of the people might have lien with thy wife, so shouldst thou have brought upon us, guilt.

And Abimelech said: Why hast thou deceived us? Some man of the people might have lain with thy wife, and thou hadst brought upon us a great sin. And he commanded all the people, saying:

11 And Abimelech commanded all the people saying, —He that toucheth this man or his wife, shall surely be put to death

He that shall touch this man’s wife, shall surely be put to death.

12 And Isaac sowed in that land, and found in the same year, a hundredfold, —seeing that Yahweh had blessed him.

And Isaac sowed in that land, and he found that same year a hundredfold: and the Lord blessed him.

13 So the man waxed great, —and went on and on waxing great until that he had waxed exceeding great.

And the man was enriched, and he went on prospering and increasing, till he became exceeding great:

14 So he came to have possessions of flocks and possessions of herds, and a large body of servants, —and the Philistines envied him.

And he had possessions of sheep and of herds, and a very great family. Wherefore the Palestines envying him,

15 And as for all the wells which the servants of his father digged, in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines stopped them up, and filled them with dust.

Stopped up at that time all the wells, that the servants of his father Abraham had digged, filling them up with earth:

16 And Abimelech said unto Isaac, —Get thee from us, for thou hast become far mightier than we.

Insomuch that Abimelech himself said to Isaac: Depart from us, for thou art become much mightier than we.

17 So Isaac went from thence, —and encamped in the valley of Gerar, and dwelt there.

So he departed and came to the torrent of Gerara, to dwell there:

18 And Isaac again digged the wells of water which they had digged in the days of Abraham his father, and which the Philistines stopped up after the death of Abraham, —and he called their names, after the names which his father called them.

And he digged again other wells, which the servants of his father Abraham had digged, and which, after his death, the Palestines had of old stopped up: and he called them by the same names by which his father before had called them.

19 And Isaac’s servants digged in the valley, —and found there a well of living water.

And they digged in the torrent, and found living water.

20 And the herdmen of Gerar disputed with the herdmen of Isaac saying, Ours, is the, water! So he called the name of the well Esek, because they had stirred up a quarrel with him.

But there also the herdsmen of Gerara strove against the herdsmen of Isaac, saying: It is our water. Wherefore he called the name of the well, on occasion of that which had happened, Calumny.

21 And they digged another well, and they disputed over that also, —so he called the name thereof Sitnah.

And they digged also another; and for that they quarrelled likewise, and he called the name of it, Enmity.

22 And he moved on from thence and digged another well, and they disputed not for it, —so he called the name thereof. Rehoboth, and said, For, now, hath Yahweh made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land.

Going forward from thence, he digged another well, for which they contended not: therefore he called the name thereof, Latitude, saying: Now hath the Lord given us room, and made us to increase upon the earth.

23 And he went up from thence, to Beer-sheba.

And he went up from that place to Bersabee,

24 And Yahweh appeared unto him the same night, and said, I, am the God of Abraham thy father, —Do not fear for with thee, am, I, And I will bless thee and multiply thy seed, For the sake of Abraham my servant.

Where the Lord appeared to him that same night, saying: I am the God of Abraham thy father; do not fear, for I am with thee: I will bless thee, and multiply thy seed for my servant Abraham’s sake.

25 So he builded there all altar and called on the name of Yahweh, and spread out there, his tent, —and the servants of Isaac cut out there a well.

And he built there an altar: and called upon the name of the Lord, and pitched his tent: and commanded his servants to dig a well.

26 And, Abimelech, came unto him from Gerar, with Ahuzzath his friend, and Phicol, commander of his host.

To which place when Abimelech, and Ochozath his friend, and Phicol chief captain of his soldiers came from Gerara,

27 And Isaac said unto them, Wherefore have ye come in mite me, seeing that, ye, hated me, and sent me away from you?

Isaac said to them: Why are ye come to me, a man whom you hate, and have thrust out from you?

28 And they said: We, saw plainly, that Yahweh was with thee, so we said, Let there be we pray thee an oath betwixt us both, betwixt us and thee, —and let us solemnise a covenant with thee: —

And they answered: We saw that the Lord is with thee, and therefore we said: Let there be an oath between us, and let us make a covenant,

29 That, thou wilt not do wrong by us, according as we touched not thee, and according as we did by thee nothing but good, and then sent thee away in peace, thee who, now, art blessed of Yahweh!

That thou do us no harm, as we on our part have touched nothing of thine, nor have done any thing to hurt thee: but with peace have sent thee away increased with the blessing of the Lord.

30 So he made for them a banquet, and they did eat and drink, —

And he made them a feast, and after they had eaten and drunk:

31 and rose up early in the morning, and took an oath each man to his brother, so Isaac let them go, and they departed from him in peace.

Arising in the morning, they swore one to another: and Isaac sent them away peaceably to their own home.

32 And it came to pass, on the same day, that the servants of Isaac came in, and told him concerning the well which they had digged, and said to him, We have found water!

And behold the same day the servants of Isaac came, telling him of a well which they had digged, and saying: We have found water.

33 So he called it, Shibah. For this cause, hath the name of the city, been Beer-sheba, unto this day.

Whereupon he called it Abundance: and the name of the city was called Bersabee, even to this day.

34 And when Esau was forty years old, he took to wife Judith, daughter of Beeri. the Hittite; and Basemath, daughter of Elon, the Hittite;

And Esau being forty years old, married wives, Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hethite, and Basemath the daughter of Elon of the same place.

35 and they became a bitterness of spirit, to Isaac and to Rebekah.

And they both offended the mind of Isaac and Rebecca.