July 23, 2023
Reading: Genesis 26:1-33
Focus: Genesis 26:12-13 – Isaac planted crops in that land and the same year reaped a hundred-fold, because the Lord blessed him. The man became rich, and his wealth continued to grow until he became very wealthy.
Father, we have been studying Your word. We want to learn more of You. Show us Your Truth. Open our minds to what You want us to learn. In Jesus Name, Amen.
Isaac had been live south of Beersheba and Gerar, in Beer Lahai Roi, the “Well of the Living One who sees.” The well where Hagar and Ishmael met God, at the edge of the desert. Isaac’s sons had been born and grown up there.
Now the land was struck by famine. Isaac was moving his people toward Egypt but stopped in Gerar to meet with Abimelek of the Philistines. This Abimelek was not the same one that Abraham had dealt with. He was probably the son of the one who had dealt with Abraham. Abimelek means “my father is king.” So, it is more than likely it was a title of the leading member of the dynasty. God had appeared to Isaac and warned him not to go to Egypt but to stay where he was. He reaffirmed His promise to Abraham; He would be with Isaac and bless him. So, Isaac stayed near Gerar, the land of the Philistines.
Ironically, Isaac suffered from the same lack of confidence in God’s personal protection that Abraham had. He feared that he would be killed so that Rebekah could be taken by another man. So, Isaac did the same thing his father had. He called Rebekah his sister. One would think that he would have learned from his father’s experiences. Surely Abraham had told Isaac of his experiences with Pharoah in Egypt and with the Abimelek in Gerar. And you would think that Isaac would remember the lesson that those experiences taught but he didn’t. However, children learn by what they see their parents do. He repeated the same lie. They had been there for quite a while when the king caught him caressing Rebekah. Abimelek rebuked Isaac and his reply was the same as his father’s “I was afraid you would kill me to take her.” Abimelek issued a proclamation that no one would harm Isaac or Rebekah upon pain of death.
God did indeed bless Isaac, so much so that the Philistines were jealous and probably afraid of him. It seemed that everything Isaac touched flourished. The scripture tells us that he planted crops and reaped a hundred-fold harvest. A hundred times more than he had planted. His flocks and herds were so large that the Philistine shepherds and herdsmen were jealous and started disputes over the wells. So much so that they filled the wells with dirt. Then, Abimelech sent him away from their lands because “. . . you have become too powerful for us.”
Now, the area around Gerar was arid, desert land. So, water was a precious commodity. To stop up someone’s well was a serious crime and could well start a war. But Isaac moved everything and everyone he had to the Valley of Gerar. He reopened the wells that his father had dug but moved again because Philistine shepherds continued to dispute his ownership of them, not once but twice. Isaac and his men dug a new well. The Philistines again claimed it. So, he moved again and dug another well with the same result. Finally, he moved again and dug a third well. When that third well was dug there were no disputes. Isaac knew that God had given them room to grow and flourish. He named it Rehoboth: “Now the Lord has given us room and we will flourish.”
Then they spread further eastward, to Beersheba. The Lord met with Isaac there and again gave him the same promises He had made to Abraham. Isaac built an altar and called on the name of the Lord there. As his servants began to dig another well, Abimelech came to him with the intent to make a treaty with him as had been made with Abraham. Isaac questioned Abimelek for the reason he came to him when he had sent him away from Gerar in anger.
The Philistines knew that God was with him and blessed him, and they wanted there to be peace between them. The oath was made and a feast was eaten. Ironically, The Philistines would be the people that would trouble the Hebrews after the 12 tribes returned from slavery in Egypt. These Philistines plagued the Israelites for centuries. Philistine means ‘sea people’. They were originally a migrating people from the sea, arriving in Gerar by way of Crete and Cyprus. They were often used a mercenaries by the Canaanites. They were known as ferocious warriors.
That same day, the servants found water in the well they were digging in the valley. This well was named Shibah, and the town that grew up around it was named Beersheba. There, Isaac built an altar there and called on the Name of the Lord. God met him there and affirmed the promise He made to Abraham to Isaac.
Isaac chose peace instead of conflict. He moved when wells he had dug were disputed. Water was a commodity as precious as gold. When a well was dug, the digger was staking his possession of the land. And filling the well of another with dirt was an act of war. All the wells Abraham had dug had been filled with dirt. Isaac reopened them but would not fight over them. Could you be as patient as Isaac and be a peacemaker?
God still blesses us today. When we stay in His will our blessings will be many. We may not all build treasure up on earth, nor will our lives be perfect and free of trouble. God will bless us with the things we need rather than what we want. Our idea of wealth may not be God’s idea of wealth for us. He blesses each of us according to His Will, not ours. I have often prayed to win things big money sweepstakes. I told God I wanted to do big things for him with the money. But God knows my weaknesses and knows that money will not make me happy or content. I thankful that I have never won. I have found that I am content in my circumstances, content where God has me and content that bills are paid, food is on the table and a roof is over our heads. Too much might not be good for our family. The prosperity He has given us is enough for our needs.
Are you satisfied with God’s blessings?
Food for Thought
- Why do you think Isaac tell the same exact lie to the Philistines his father had?
- Why do you think God told Isaac not to go to Egypt?
- What kind of example are you setting for your own children?
- Would you be willing to give up something important or a valuable possession to have peace? Why or Why not?
- Are you counting the possessions and positions that you have as blessings from God? Or do you want more than He has already given you? Why or why not?
