Genesis 26.1-Like His Father Abraham, Isaac Faces Adversity Test
Tuesday May 16, 2006
Genesis: Genesis 26:1-Like His Father Abraham, Isaac Faces Adversity Test
Lesson # 145
Please turn in your Bibles to Genesis 26:1.
This evening we will begin a study of Isaac’s encounter with the Philistines and their king, Abimelech, which is recorded in Genesis 26:1-33.
In this passage, we see an affirmation of the transfer of divine blessing from Abraham to Isaac.
This is the only chapter in the Bible where Isaac is the main focus.
In fact, in this chapter, we see Isaac walking in his father Abraham’s footsteps.
The parallels between Abraham and Isaac are quite noticeable.
For example, in Genesis 26:2-6, Isaac receives God’s call and promises, which parallels Genesis 12:1-3, which records Abraham receiving God’s call and promises.
Also, in Genesis 26:7-11, Isaac, out of fear, of the Philistines, says that his beautiful wife Rebekah is his sister, which parallels the same mistake made by Abraham, who out of fear of the Egyptians, said that his beautiful wife Sarah was his sister, which is recorded in Genesis 12:10-20.
Then, in Genesis 26:14-22, Isaac and his men quarrel with the Philistines over wells and move rather than fight, which parallels the account recorded in Genesis 13:1-12 where Abraham’s men quarrel with his nephew Lot’s men over land and move rather than fight.
In Genesis 26:23-25, Isaac receives divine reassurance and builds an altar and prays, which parallels Genesis 15:1-21 where Abraham receives divine reassurance and builds an altar and prays to the Lord.
Lastly, in Genesis 26:26-33, Isaac forges a treaty with Abimelech at Beersheba, which parallels the account recorded in Genesis 21:22-24 where Abraham forges a treaty with another Abimelech at Beersheba.
So in this chapter, we see that like his father, Isaac receives divine promises and reassurance, faces adversity tests, fails tests, and ultimately triumphs.
All these parallels between Isaac and Abraham confirm to the reader that Isaac’s God is the God of Abraham (Genesis 26:24).
The narrative of Isaac lying about his wife Rebekah and endangering her so closely parallels the failure of his father Abraham with his wife Sarah in Egypt (Genesis 12:10-20) and in Gerar (20:1-18) that the critics of the Bible claim the three encounters are variations of the same historical event.
Of course, this is not the case and simply demonstrates that the sin nature trends of the father are passed to the son.
The chapter begins with Isaac facing famine in the land of Canaan and having little security and ends with him possessing security and riches.
We see Isaac going from famine (26:1) to a well of plenty (26:33), from fear of violence with the Philistines (26:6-7) to forging a treaty with them (26:28-31) and from conflict and confrontation to peace (26:31).
This chapter consists of three encounters between Isaac and the Philistines and in particular their king, who goes by the title “Abimelech.”
These three encounters are marked by changes in setting: (1) At Gerar (26:1-16) (2) At Wadi of Gerar (26:17-22) (3) At Beersheba (26:23-33).
This chapter is “chronological” meaning it follows the events recorded in Genesis 25 and is “not” a digression as some expositors of Genesis suggest.
Those who claim that Genesis 26 is a digression, argue that it would be obvious to Abimelech that Isaac and Rebekah were married and had children, and consequently would not have taken Rebekah into his harem.
But this argument fails to take into consideration that Genesis 26:15 and 18 record that the Philistines plugged up the wells that Abraham dug “after” his death.
According to Genesis 25:7, Abraham died when he was one hundred and seventy-five years of age, which would make Isaac seventy-five when Abraham died since according to Genesis 21:5 Abraham was one hundred years of age when Isaac was born.
Also, according to Genesis 25:20, Isaac married Rebekah when he was forty and according to Genesis 25:26, Isaac was sixty when Jacob and Esau were born.
Therefore, we can see that Abraham lived to see his grandchildren Esau and Jacob grow up to be fifteen years of age since Isaac was sixty years of age when Esau and Jacob were born according to Genesis 25:26 and he was seventy-five when his father Abraham died.
So it would “not” be obvious to Abimelech that Rebekah was married since she would not be nursing children or parenting toddlers at the time of her encounter with Abimelech since Esau and Jacob were in their late teens and possibly early twenties when the events of Genesis 26 took place.
Genesis 26:1, “Now there was a famine in the land, besides the previous famine that had occurred in the days of Abraham. So Isaac went to Gerar, to Abimelech king of the Philistines.”
Genesis 26:2, “The LORD appeared to him and said, ‘Do not go down to Egypt; stay in the land of which I shall tell you.’”
Genesis 26:3, “Sojourn in this land and I will be with you and bless you, for to you and to your descendants I will give all these lands, and I will establish the oath which I swore to your father Abraham.”
Genesis 26:4-5, “I will multiply your descendants as the stars of heaven, and will give your descendants all these lands; and by your descendants all the nations of the earth shall be blessed because Abraham obeyed Me and kept My charge, My commandments, My statutes and My laws.”
Genesis 26:6, “So Isaac lived in Gerar.”
In Genesis 26:1, the narrator (Moses) makes a distinction between the famine recorded that Isaac faced with the one his father Abraham faced, which is recorded in Genesis 12:10 and took place when Abraham was seventy-five years old (See Genesis 12:4).
The famine recorded in Genesis 26:1 took place “after” the death of Abraham since we have already established that Genesis 26:15 and 18 records that the Philistines plugged up the wells Abraham dug “after” his death.
As we have already established, Abraham died when he was one hundred seventy-five years of age according to Genesis 25:7, which would place the famine that Isaac faced one hundred years after the one his father Abraham encountered.
The famine that Isaac faced took place in the land of Canaan whose natural boundaries of Canaan as expressed in the Bible extend from the Negev in the South to the northern reaches of the Lebanon Range in Syria and the land west of the range and of the Jordan to the Mediterranean Sea.
According to Genesis 25:11, after Abraham died, Isaac lived at “Beer-lahai-roi,” which was located between Kadesh and Bered, according to Genesis 16:14, about fifty miles southwest of Beersheba.
Isaac faces an adversity test in the form of famine, which parallels the test that his father Abraham faced, which is recorded in Genesis 12:10-20.
The famine was a test of Isaac’s faith just like the famine that Abraham faced was a test of his faith.
Abraham failed his test but Isaac passes his test.
Biblical faith is trusting in the promises of God regardless of the circumstances or consequences and resting in them.
True Biblical faith is confident obedience to God’s Word in spite of circumstances and consequences.
The principle of faith operates quite simply: (1) God speaks and we hear His Word. (2) We trust His Word and act on it no matter what the circumstances are or what the consequences may be.
The circumstances may be impossible, and the consequences frightening and unknown but we obey God’s Word just the same and believe Him to do what is right and what is best.
God permits the believer to go through adversity and problems in order to test the believer as to whether or not he will trust Him in the adversity and problems.
Jeremiah 20:12, “Yet, O LORD of hosts, You who test the righteous, who see the mind and the heart.”
God permits His children to undergo adversity in order to develop character in His children and build in them a greater dependence upon Him and draw them closer to Himself.
God also permits His children to suffer in order to glorify Himself and to demonstrate that His grace is sufficient in any and every circumstance by manifesting His life and power in our human impotence.
2 Corinthians 12:7, “Because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, for this reason, to keep me from exalting myself, there was given me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me -- to keep me from exalting myself!”
2 Corinthians 12:8, “Concerning this I implored the Lord three times that it might leave me.”
2 Corinthians 12:9, “And He has said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.’ Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.”
2 Corinthians 12:10, “Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ's sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong.”
1 Peter 4:12, “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you.”
1 Peter 4:13, “but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that also at the revelation of His glory you may rejoice with exultation.”
James 1:2-3, “Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.”
2 Corinthians 4:8-10, “We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed but not despairing; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.”
2 Corinthians 4:17, “For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison.”
Hebrews 2:18, “For since He Himself was tested in that which He has suffered, He is able to come to the aid of those who are tested.”
Hebrews 5:8, “Although He was a Son, He learned obedience from the things which He suffered.”
1 Corinthians 10:13, “No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it.”
Genesis 26:1, “Now there was a famine in the land, besides the previous famine that had occurred in the days of Abraham. So Isaac went to Gerar, to Abimelech king of the Philistines.”
“Gerar” was near the coast about twelve miles south of Gaza and about fifty miles south of Hebron, in the land of the Philistines.
According to archaeological excavations, “Gerar” was a prosperous city, controlling a lucrative caravan route.
The name “Abimelech” means, “my father is king” and is not a proper name but rather a title for royalty among the Philistines, just as the term “Pharaoh” and “Caesar” were.
This is not the same “Abimelech” that Abraham encountered as recorded in Genesis 20:1-18 and 21:22-34.
Abraham’s encounter with “Abimelech” in Genesis 20:1-18 took place just prior to the birth of Isaac and Abraham was one hundred years of age when Isaac was born.
Abraham died at one hundred seventy-five years of age.
The events of Genesis 26 took place after the death of Abraham.
Therefore, the events of Genesis 26 took place some seventy-five years after the events of Genesis 20:1-18.
Also, Abraham’s encounter with “Abimelech” in Genesis 21:22-34 took place right at the time when Sarah died at the age of one hundred twenty-seven.
Abraham was one hundred thirty-seven years of age when Sarah died since he was ten years older than her.
Therefore, we see that the events of Genesis 21:22-34 took place approximately forty years prior to the events of Genesis 26.
So we can conclude that Isaac was dealing with a different “Abimelech” and one who was not aware or chose not to honor the agreement Abraham made with his predecessor regarding the wells Abraham dug.
The Philistines of Abraham and Isaac’s day were peaceful and reasonable as demonstrated by Abimelech whereas during the period of the judges and monarchy of Israel, they are highly aggressive warriors.
They were ruled by a king whereas during Israel’s period of judges and the monarchy they were ruled by five lords.
Later on history, “the Philistines” were Israel’s greatest enemies during the period of the judges and early monarchy and it appears that they originated from the islands and coastlines of the Aegean Sea.