Lesson 55: Days of a Different Famine

26 Now there was a famine in the land, besides the former famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went to Gerar to Abimelech king of the Philistines. 2 And the LORD appeared to him and said, “Do not go down to Egypt; dwell in the land of which I shall tell you.

3 Sojourn in this land, and I will be with you and will bless you, for to you and to your offspring I will give all these lands, and I will establish the oath that I swore to Abraham your father. 4 I will multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven and will give to your offspring all these lands. And in your offspring all the nations of the earth shall be blessed,

5 because Abraham obeyed my voice and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.”

Isaac is on the move!He is a man of many flocks and herds, so all of the livestock does not tolerate famine very well. It’s as bad as the famine that drove his dad into Egypt, but it’s a different famine. He gets as far as Gerar and the Lord appears to him and stops him. God commands Isaac to not to go all the way to Egypt. We all remember the mess of that experience. The covenant is rehearsed before Isaac personally and it is based on him staying put: “Do not go down to Egypt…Sojourn in this land, and I will be with you. vs. 2 & 3”

We have seen this promise before but it bears repeating to the son, because the Son needs to accept some ownership of it. What God does for the Father, He can also do for the son. The son is a part of that living promise from God. In fact Isaac is the start.

English Standard Version (Chapter 26)

While Isaac may have been on the way to Egypt, God made it clear that he was not going to go the way of his parents. The stories are so similar, it is almost like the confrontation Abraham had with the Pharoah while he was in Egypt. Even in stopping short, Isaac thinks and acts like his dad.

Here’s verses 6-11.

English Standard Version (Chapter 26)

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 feared to say, “My wife,” thinking, “lest the men of the place should kill me because of Rebekah,” because she was attractive in appearance.

8 When he had been there a long time, Abimelech king of the Philistines looked out of a window and saw Isaac laughing with Rebekah his wife. 9 So Abimelech called Isaac and said, “Behold, she is your wife. How then could you say, ‘She is my sister’?” Isaac said to him, “Because I thought, ‘Lest I 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.” 11 So Abimelech warned all the people, saying, “Whoever touches this man or his wife shall surely be put to death.”

Some say Abimelech was a contemporary of Abraham. Some say this is not the same one. Go figure. At this point Isaac may be getting preferential treatment because of that family connection and because of God’s covenant. Matthew Henry says that Isaac is not a man accustomed to hardship and poverty so, the Lord stops him from the perils of Egypt. No matter what, The similarities are numerous:

There is a change of scenery in their lives like dad.

The King/Pharoah likes the looks of Rebekah and wants her for his wife.

Isaac fears for his life because the king wants his wife.

Isaac claims Rebekah is his sister. It was true with his mom and Dad but not entirely true with Rebekah. Rebekah was a cousin.

Rebekah was a babe. She was wanted by more than one man apparently.

But Abimelech observes Isaac sporting around with Rebekah in a clear PDA (public display of affection) and calls him out. (What in the world were they doing in public that King Abimelech would come to this conclusion?) He stops short of calling Isaac a liar, but says how could you say she is my sister? Good question. The answer is fear. God has told Isaac He would be with him and take care of him if he takes the correct way, and settles here in Gerar. Isaac still fears like his dad.

Abimelech’s anger is cooled very quickly and he tells Isaac, in so many words that He and his people did not appreciate being hung out to dry, or even get thrown under the bus on this wifey matter because of the sin and guilt it would have brought on their people. Then he puts a price on her head. Any one who touches this man or his wife will be put to death. So there! You are both safe. But isn’t that what God basically said. God said, I will be with you.

These people sure lived interesting lives. They were here, there, and everywhere. They had stuff, wore a little bling, and they mingled with royalty.

Go Away!

English Standard Version (Chapter 26)

12 And Isaac sowed in that land and reaped in the same year a hundredfold. The LORD blessed him, 13 and the man became rich, and gained more and more until he became very wealthy.

14 He had possessions of flocks and herds and many servants, so that the Philistines envied him. 15 (Now the Philistines had stopped and filled with earth all the wells that his father’s servants had dug in the days of Abraham his father.)

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

God honored his Word and Isaac and his family lived a blessed life while in Gerar. he still is the envy of all the “Gerar-iganders”, not just because of his wife, but because he became very rich whilst in Gerar. Rich, or wealthy?Whatever. The guy had cash like his dad. In this wealth, the envy became agitated. The Philistines had plugged up the wells his father’s servants had dug. You just have to have water out here. Why would they harm him or his cattle? Actually they could not touch him so they figured out ways to do a little provoking . But Isaac didn’t get the message. Somebody has to say something. Finally Abimelech has had enough and asks him to leave because his presence leaves the people of Gerar fearing him. Isaac, go away! Yikes, what a way to go!

English Standard Version (Chapter 26)

17 So Isaac departed from there and encamped in the Valley of Gerar and settled there. 18 And Isaac dug again the wells of water that had been dug in the days of Abraham his father, which the Philistines had stopped after the death of Abraham. And he gave them the names that his father had given them.

19 But when Isaac’s servants dug in the valley and found there a well of spring water, 20 the herdsmen of Gerar quarreled with Isaac’s herdsmen, saying, “The water is ours.” So he called the name of the well Esek, because they contended with him.

21 Then they dug another well, and they quarreled over that also, so he called its name Sitnah. 22 And he moved from there and dug another well, and they did not quarrel over it. So he called its name Rehoboth, saying, “For now the LORD has made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land.”

Isaac finds peace in the valley, Gerar that is, and he settles there. He re-dug the wells dad had commissioned. Renamed the wells as they had been before, and this time they found a spring. Perhaps this was a handful of purpose from God. Soon the peace becomes quarreling between herdsmen. Why can’t we just get along? The wells of Esek and Sitnah were wells of contention. The third well named Rehoboth, means it was in a spacious area and led Isaac to proclaim that the Lord has made room for us and we shall be fruitful in the land. Isaac is not going to rest on his riches. He is going to do better than before. Things are looking up as the Lord’s name is given credit for an abundance of water in a time of famine. This is going to be a time of fruit bearing. So it shall be done as God has promised, Isaac has believed and proclaimed.

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