Genesis 26
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Isaac and Abimelech
26 Now there was a famine in the land, besides the former famine that had occurred in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went to Gerar, to King Abimelech of the Philistines.(A) 2 The Lord appeared to Isaac[a] and said, “Do not go down to Egypt; settle in the land that I shall show you.(B) 3 Reside in this land as an alien, 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 your father Abraham.(C) 4 I will make your offspring as numerous as the stars of heaven and will give to your offspring all these lands, and all the nations of the earth shall gain blessing for themselves through your offspring,(D) 5 because Abraham obeyed my voice and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.”
6 So Isaac settled in Gerar. 7 When the men of the place asked him about his wife, he said, “She is my sister,” for he was afraid to say “my wife,” thinking, “or else the men of the place might kill me for the sake of Rebekah, because she is attractive in appearance.”(E) 8 When Isaac had been there a long time, King Abimelech of the Philistines looked out of a window and saw him fondling his wife Rebekah. 9 So Abimelech called for Isaac and said, “So she is your wife! Why, then, did you say, ‘She is my sister’?” Isaac said to him, “Because I thought I might die because of her.” 10 Abimelech said, “What is this you have done to us? One of the people might easily have lain with your wife, and you would have brought guilt upon us.”(F) 11 So Abimelech warned all the people, saying, “Whoever touches this man or his wife shall be put to death.”
12 Isaac sowed seed in that land and in the same year reaped a hundredfold. The Lord blessed him,(G) 13 and the man became rich; he prospered more and more until he became very wealthy. 14 He had possessions of flocks and herds and a great household, so that the Philistines envied him.(H) 15 (Now the Philistines had stopped up and filled with earth all the wells that his father’s servants had dug in the days of his father Abraham.)(I) 16 And Abimelech said to Isaac, “Go away from us; you have become too powerful for us.”
17 So Isaac departed from there and camped in the Wadi Gerar and settled there. 18 Isaac dug again the wells of water that had been dug in the days of his father Abraham, for the Philistines had stopped them up after the death of Abraham, and he gave them the names that his father had given them.(J) 19 But when Isaac’s servants dug in the valley and found there a well of spring water, 20 the herders of Gerar quarreled with Isaac’s herders, saying, “The water is ours.” So he called the well Esek,[b] because they contended with him. 21 Then they dug another well, and they quarreled over that one also, so he called it Sitnah.[c] 22 He moved from there and dug another well, and they did not quarrel over it, so he called it Rehoboth,[d] saying, “Now the Lord has made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land.”(K)
23 From there he went up to Beer-sheba. 24 And that very night the Lord appeared to him and said, “I am the God of your father Abraham; do not be afraid, for I am with you and will bless you and make your offspring numerous for my servant Abraham’s sake.”(L) 25 So he built an altar there, called on the name of the Lord, and pitched his tent there. And there Isaac’s servants dug a well.(M)
26 Then Abimelech went to him from Gerar, with Ahuzzath his adviser and Phicol the commander of his army.(N) 27 Isaac said to them, “Why have you come to me, seeing that you hate me and have sent me away from you?”(O) 28 They said, “We see plainly that the Lord has been with you, so we say, let there be an oath between you and us, and let us make a covenant with you(P) 29 so that you will do us no harm, just as we have not touched you and have done to you nothing but good and have sent you away in peace. You are now the blessed of the Lord.” 30 So he made them a feast, and they ate and drank. 31 In the morning they rose early and exchanged oaths, and Isaac set them on their way, and they departed from him in peace.(Q) 32 That same day Isaac’s servants came and told him about the well that they had dug and said to him, “We have found water!” 33 He called it Shibah;[e] therefore the name of the city is Beer-sheba[f] to this day.(R)
Esau’s Hittite Wives
34 When Esau was forty years old, he married Judith daughter of Beeri the Hittite and Basemath daughter of Elon the Hittite,(S) 35 and they made life bitter for Isaac and Rebekah.(T)
Genesis 26
Common English Bible
Isaac and Rebekah visit Gerar
26 When a famine gripped the land, a different one from the first famine that occurred in Abraham’s time, Isaac set out toward Gerar and toward King Abimelech of the Philistines. 2 The Lord appeared to him and said, “Don’t go down to Egypt but settle temporarily in the land that I will show you. 3 Stay in this land as an immigrant, and I will be with you and bless you because I will give all of these lands to you and your descendants. I will keep my word, which I gave to your father Abraham. 4 I will give you as many descendants as the stars in the sky, and I will give your descendants all of these lands. All of the nations of the earth will be blessed because of your descendants. 5 I will do this because Abraham obeyed me and kept my orders, my commandments, my statutes, and my instructions.”
6 So Isaac lived in Gerar. 7 When the men who lived there asked about his wife, he said, “She’s my sister,” because he was afraid to say, “my wife,” thinking, The men who live there will kill me for Rebekah because she’s very beautiful. 8 After Isaac had lived there for some time, the Philistines’ King Abimelech looked out his window and saw Isaac laughing together with his wife Rebekah.
9 So Abimelech summoned Isaac and said, “She’s your wife, isn’t she? How could you say, ‘She’s my sister’?”
Isaac responded, “Because I thought that I might be killed because of her.”
10 Abimelech said, “What are you trying to do to us? Before long, one of the people would have slept with your wife; and you would have made us guilty.” 11 Abimelech gave orders to all of the people, “Anyone who touches this man or his wife will be put to death!”
Isaac’s treaty with the Philistines
12 Isaac planted grain in that land and reaped one hundred shearim[a] that year because the Lord had blessed him. 13 Isaac grew richer and richer until he was extremely wealthy. 14 He had livestock, both flocks and cattle, and many servants. As a result, the Philistines envied him. 15 The Philistines closed up and filled with dirt all of the wells that his father’s servants had dug during his father Abraham’s lifetime. 16 Abimelech said to Isaac, “Move away from us because you have become too powerful among us.”
17 So Isaac moved away from there, camped in the valley of Gerar, and lived there. 18 Isaac dug out again the wells that were dug during the lifetime of his father Abraham. The Philistines had closed them up after Abraham’s death. Isaac gave them the same names his father had given them. 19 Isaac’s servants dug wells in the valley and found a well there with fresh water. 20 Isaac’s shepherds argued with Gerar’s shepherds, each claiming, “This is our water.” So Isaac named the well Esek[b] because they quarreled with him. 21 They dug another well and argued about it too, so he named it Sitnah.[c] 22 He left there and dug another well, but they didn’t argue about it, so he named it Rehoboth[d] and said, “Now the Lord has made an open space for us and has made us fertile in the land.”
23 Then he went up from Gerar to Beer-sheba. 24 The Lord appeared to him that night and said, “I am the God of your father Abraham. Don’t be afraid because I am with you. I will bless you, and I will give you many children for my servant Abraham’s sake.” 25 So Isaac built an altar there and worshipped in the Lord’s name. Isaac pitched his tent there, and his servants dug a well.
26 But Abimelech set out toward him from Gerar, with Ahuzzath his ally and Phicol the commander of his forces. 27 Isaac said to him, “Why have you come after me? You resented me and sent me away from you.”
28 They said, “We now see that the Lord was with you. We propose that there be a formal agreement between us and that we draw up a treaty[e] with you: 29 you must not treat us badly since we haven’t harmed you and since we have treated you well at all times. Then we will send you away peacefully, for you are now blessed by the Lord.” 30 Isaac prepared a banquet for them, and they ate and drank. 31 They got up early in the morning, and they gave each other their word. Isaac sent them off, and they left peacefully.
32 That day Isaac’s servants informed him about the well that they had been digging and said to him, “We found water.” 33 He called it Shibah;[f] therefore, the city’s name has been Beer-sheba[g] until today.
Esau’s wives
34 When Esau was 40 years old, he married Judith daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Basemath daughter of Elon the Hittite. 35 They made life very difficult for Isaac and Rebekah.
Footnotes
- Genesis 26:12 An unknown measure of grain
- Genesis 26:20 Or quarrel
- Genesis 26:21 Or accusation
- Genesis 26:22 Or open spaces
- Genesis 26:28 Or covenant
- Genesis 26:33 Or giving one’s word or seven
- Genesis 26:33 Or Well of giving one’s word or Well of seven
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
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