More conflict (vv. 34-35). Isaac was at peace with his neighbors, but he had war at home. His worldly son Esau had married two heathen wives who caused grief to Isaac and Rebekah. (Later, just to provoke his parents, he married a third heathen wife. See 28:8-9.) In view of Esau’s sinful lifestyle, we wonder that Isaac wanted to give him the patriarchal blessing (chap. 27).

All of us would like to find our Rehoboth (enlargement) where we have plenty of room and no contention, but Isaac’s Rehoboth was found only after he endured conflict. It’s through difficulties that God enlarges us for the larger places He prepares for us. “Thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress” (Ps. 4:1). When the troubles of our hearts are enlarged and we trust God, then the Lord can enlarge us (25:17) and bring us “into a large place” (18:19). If we want room, we have to suffer, because that’s the only way we can grow and feel at home in the larger place God gives us when we’re ready for it.

Questions for Personal Reflection or Group Discussion

1. In what ways are you like your parents? In what ways are you different?
2. Describe Abraham’s preferential treatment of his son Isaac (25:5-6). Why did he do this?
3. In what ways is Isaac like those who have trusted Christ? In what ways is Ishmael like those who have not?
4. What evidence is there of the spiritual heritage Isaac received from Abraham?
5. Isaac prayed “not to get [his] will done in heaven but to get God’s will done on earth.” What are some things God wants us to pray for in this way?
6. How were the lies Abraham and Isaac told about their wives signs of unbelief? How is this true of the lies we tell?
7. Why would God bless people who live less-than-perfect lives?
8. Isaac surrendered wells to the Philistines in order to avoid conflicts. When is the tendency to defer a strength, and when is it a weakness?
9. Why is it not enough merely to have parents who are rich in wisdom, spiritual matters, or wealth?
10. What wells that have been filled in by the enemy do you need to dig out again?