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Genesis 26
1599 Geneva Bible
Genesis 26
1599 Geneva Bible
26 1 God provideth for Isaac in the famine. 3 He reneweth his promise. 9 The King blameth him for denying his wife. 14 The Philistines hate him for his riches. 15 Stop his wells. 16 And drive him away. 24 God comforteth him.
1 And there was a famine in the [a]land besides the first famine that was in the days of Abraham. Wherefore Isaac went to Abimelech King of the Philistines unto Gerar.
2 For the Lord appeared unto him, and said, [b]Go not down into Egypt, but abide in the land which I shall show thee.
3 Dwell in this land, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee: for to thee, and to thy seed I will give all these (A)countries, and I will perform the oath which I swear unto Abraham thy father.
4 Also I will cause thy seed to multiply as the stars of heaven, and will give unto thy seed all these countries: and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be (B)blessed,
5 Because that Abraham [c]obeyed my voice and kept mine [d]ordinance, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.
6 ¶ So Isaac dwelt in Gerar.
7 And the men of the place asked him of his wife, and he said, She is my sister: for he [e]feared to say, she is my wife, lest, said he, the men of the place should kill me, because of Rebekah, for she was beautiful to the eye.
8 So after he had been there a long time, Abimelech King of the Philistines looked out at a window, and lo, he saw Isaac [f]sporting with Rebekah his wife.
9 Then Abimelech called Isaac, and said, Lo, she is of a surety thy wife, and why saidest thou, She is my sister? To whom Isaac answered, Because I thought this, It may be that I shall die for her.
10 Then Abimelech said, Why hast thou done this unto us? one of the people had almost lain by thy wife, so shouldest thou have brought [g]sin upon us.
11 Then Abimelech charged all his people, saying, He that toucheth this man, or his wife, shall die the death.
12 Afterward Isaac sowed in that land, and found in the same year an [h]hundredfold by estimation: and so the Lord blessed him.
13 And the man waxed mightily, and [i]still increased, till he was exceeding great.
14 For he had flocks of sheep, and herds of cattle, and a mighty household: therefore the Philistines had [j]envy at him,
15 Insomuch that the Philistines stopped, and filled up with earth all the wells, which his father’s servants dug in his father Abraham’s time.
16 Then Abimelech said unto Isaac, Get thee from us, for thou art mightier than we a great deal.
17 ¶ Therefore Isaac departed thence and pitched his tent in the [k]valley of Gerar, and dwelt there.
18 And Isaac returning, dug the wells of water, which they had dug in the days of Abraham his father, for the Philistines had stopped them after the death of Abraham, and he gave them the same names, that his father gave them.
19 Isaac’s servants then dug in the valley and found there a well of [l]living water.
20 But the herdsmen of Gerar did strive with Isaac’s herdsmen, saying, The water is ours, therefore called he the name of the well [m]Esek, because they were at strife with him.
21 Afterward they dug another well, and strove for that also, and he called the name of it [n]Sitnah.
22 Then he removed thence, and dug another well, for which they strove not: therefore called he the name of it [o]Rehoboth, and said, Because the Lord hath now made us room, we shall increase upon the earth.
23 So he went up thence to Beersheba.
24 And the Lord appeared unto him the same night, and said, I am the God [p]of Abraham thy father: fear not, I am with thee, and will bless thee, and multiply thy seed for my servant Abraham’s sake.
25 Then he built an [q]altar there, and called upon the Name of the Lord, and there spread his tent: where also Isaac’s servants dug a well.
26 ¶ Then came Abimelech to him from Gerar, and Ahuzzath one of his friends, and Phichol the captain of his army.
27 To whom Isaac said, Wherefore come ye to me, seeing ye hate me and have put me away from you?
28 Who answered, We saw certainly that the Lord was with thee, and we thought thus, Let there be now an oath between us, even between us and thee, and let us make a covenant with thee.
29 [r]If thou shalt do us no hurt, as we have not touched thee, and as we have done unto thee nothing but good, and sent thee away in peace: thou now, the blessed of the Lord, do this.
30 Then he made them a feast, and they did eat and drink.
31 And they rose up betimes in the morning, and swear one to another: then Isaac let them go, and they departed from him in peace.
32 And that same day Isaac’s servants came and told him of a well, which they had dug, and said unto him, We have found water.
33 So he called it [s]Shebah: therefore the name of the city is called [t]Beersheba unto this day.
34 ¶ Now when Esau was forty years old, he took to wife Judith, the daughter of Beeri an Hittite, and Basemath the daughter of Elon an Hittite also.
35 And they (C)were [u]a grief of mind to Isaac and to Rebekah.
Footnotes
- Genesis 26:1 In the land of Canaan.
- Genesis 26:2 God’s providence always watcheth to direct the ways of his children.
- Genesis 26:5 He commendeth Abraham’s obedience, because Isaac should be the more ready to follow the like: for as God made this promise of his free mercy, so doth the confirmation thereof proceed of the same fountain.
- Genesis 26:5 Hebrew, my keeping.
- Genesis 26:7 Whereby we see that fear and distrust is found in the most faithful.
- Genesis 26:8 Or showing some familiar sign of love, whereby it might be known that she was his wife.
- Genesis 26:10 In all ages men were persuaded that God’s vengeance should light upon wedlock breakers.
- Genesis 26:12 Or, an hundred measures.
- Genesis 26:13 Hebrew, he went forth going and increasing.
- Genesis 26:14 The malicious envy always the graces of God in others.
- Genesis 26:17 The Hebrew word signifieth a flood, or valley, where water at any time runneth.
- Genesis 26:19 Or, springing.
- Genesis 26:20 Or, contention, strife.
- Genesis 26:21 Or, hatred.
- Genesis 26:22 Or, largeness, room.
- Genesis 26:24 God assureth Isaac against all fear by rehearsing the promise made to Abraham.
- Genesis 26:25 To signify that he would serve none other God, but the God of his father Abraham.
- Genesis 26:29 The Hebrews in swearing begin commonly with If, and understand the rest, that is, that God shall punish him that breaketh the oath: here the wicked show that they are afraid lest that come to them which they would do to others.
- Genesis 26:33 Or, oath.
- Genesis 26:33 Or, the well of the oath.
- Genesis 26:35 Or, disobedient and rebellious.
Genesis 26
New International Version
Genesis 26
New International Version
Isaac and Abimelek(A)
26 Now there was a famine in the land(B)—besides the previous famine in Abraham’s time—and Isaac went to Abimelek king of the Philistines(C) in Gerar.(D) 2 The Lord appeared(E) to Isaac and said, “Do not go down to Egypt;(F) live in the land where I tell you to live.(G) 3 Stay in this land for a while,(H) and I will be with you(I) and will bless you.(J) For to you and your descendants I will give all these lands(K) and will confirm the oath I swore to your father Abraham.(L) 4 I will make your descendants(M) as numerous as the stars in the sky(N) and will give them all these lands,(O) and through your offspring[a] all nations on earth will be blessed,[b](P) 5 because Abraham obeyed me(Q) and did everything I required of him, keeping my commands, my decrees(R) and my instructions.(S)” 6 So Isaac stayed in Gerar.(T)
7 When the men of that place asked him about his wife, he said, “She is my sister,(U)” because he was afraid to say, “She is my wife.” He thought, “The men of this place might kill me on account of Rebekah, because she is beautiful.”
8 When Isaac had been there a long time, Abimelek king of the Philistines(V) looked down from a window and saw Isaac caressing his wife Rebekah. 9 So Abimelek summoned Isaac and said, “She is really your wife! Why did you say, ‘She is my sister’?(W)”
Isaac answered him, “Because I thought I might lose my life on account of her.”
10 Then Abimelek said, “What is this you have done to us?(X) One of the men might well have slept with your wife, and you would have brought guilt upon us.”
11 So Abimelek gave orders to all the people: “Anyone who harms(Y) this man or his wife shall surely be put to death.”(Z)
12 Isaac planted crops in that land and the same year reaped a hundredfold,(AA) because the Lord blessed him.(AB) 13 The man became rich, and his wealth continued to grow until he became very wealthy.(AC) 14 He had so many flocks and herds and servants(AD) that the Philistines envied him.(AE) 15 So all the wells(AF) that his father’s servants had dug in the time of his father Abraham, the Philistines stopped up,(AG) filling them with earth.
16 Then Abimelek said to Isaac, “Move away from us;(AH) you have become too powerful for us.(AI)”
17 So Isaac moved away from there and encamped in the Valley of Gerar,(AJ) where he settled. 18 Isaac reopened the wells(AK) that had been dug in the time of his father Abraham, which the Philistines had stopped up after Abraham died, and he gave them the same names his father had given them.
19 Isaac’s servants dug in the valley and discovered a well of fresh water there. 20 But the herders of Gerar quarreled(AL) with those of Isaac and said, “The water is ours!”(AM) So he named the well Esek,[c] because they disputed with him. 21 Then they dug another well, but they quarreled(AN) over that one also; so he named it Sitnah.[d] 22 He moved on from there and dug another well, and no one quarreled over it. He named it Rehoboth,[e](AO) saying, “Now the Lord has given us room(AP) and we will flourish(AQ) in the land.”
23 From there he went up to Beersheba.(AR) 24 That night the Lord appeared to him and said, “I am the God of your father Abraham.(AS) Do not be afraid,(AT) for I am with you;(AU) I will bless you and will increase the number of your descendants(AV) for the sake of my servant Abraham.”(AW)
25 Isaac built an altar(AX) there and called on the name of the Lord.(AY) There he pitched his tent, and there his servants dug a well.(AZ)
26 Meanwhile, Abimelek had come to him from Gerar, with Ahuzzath his personal adviser and Phicol the commander of his forces.(BA) 27 Isaac asked them, “Why have you come to me, since you were hostile to me and sent me away?(BB)”
28 They answered, “We saw clearly that the Lord was with you;(BC) so we said, ‘There ought to be a sworn agreement between us’—between us and you. Let us make a treaty(BD) with you 29 that you will do us no harm,(BE) just as we did not harm you but always treated you well and sent you away peacefully. And now you are blessed by the Lord.”(BF)
30 Isaac then made a feast(BG) for them, and they ate and drank. 31 Early the next morning the men swore an oath(BH) to each other. Then Isaac sent them on their way, and they went away peacefully.
32 That day Isaac’s servants came and told him about the well(BI) they had dug. They said, “We’ve found water!” 33 He called it Shibah,[f] and to this day the name of the town has been Beersheba.[g](BJ)
Jacob Takes Esau’s Blessing
34 When Esau was forty years old,(BK) he married Judith daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and also Basemath daughter of Elon the Hittite.(BL) 35 They were a source of grief to Isaac and Rebekah.(BM)
Footnotes
- Genesis 26:4 Or seed
- Genesis 26:4 Or and all nations on earth will use the name of your offspring in blessings (see 48:20)
- Genesis 26:20 Esek means dispute.
- Genesis 26:21 Sitnah means opposition.
- Genesis 26:22 Rehoboth means room.
- Genesis 26:33 Shibah can mean oath or seven.
- Genesis 26:33 Beersheba can mean well of the oath and well of seven.
1599 Geneva Bible (GNV) 
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New International Version (NIV) 
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