Isaac and Abimelech

Story: Isaac and Abimelech

Passage: Genesis 26:6-35

Characters: Isaac, Rebekah, Abimelech, God, Esau

Summary: Isaac settled in the land of the philistines. He told them that Rebekah was his sister so they wouldn’t kill him. Abimelech saw the two of them “laughing” which told him they were married. He was mad at Isaac for lying to them since his men could have sinned. He commanded the people to not touch Rebekah or Isaac or they would be killed! God blessed Isaac. Abimelech sent him away because Isaac was more powerful than he was. Isaac left and settled nearby. He dug up the wells of his father, but the first two wells were contested by local herdsmen. The third well was not contested so Isaac knew there was room for him. God came to Isaac and made the same promise to him He had been making to Abraham. Isaac dug a well in that spot and stayed there. Abimelech came to Isaac and set up a covenant of peace since he saw that God was with Isaac and he did not want to be destroyed. Isaac made a covenant with Abimelech. Esau married two Hittite women and they made life bitter for Isaac and Rebekah.

Notes: Isaac learned from his father about how to deal with having a pretty wife in a foreign land. You tell them she’s your sister! Poor Abimelech fell for it again! Once again though, God did not let Abimelech or his people actually touch Rebekah. Instead of God telling him what was going on, this time Abimelech saw the Isaac and Rebekah together and knew that they were married. Apparently, Isaac did a poor job treating Rebekah like his sister. Once again, God blessed Isaac through his deceit. He sowed and reaped one hundredfold. That’s a good profit! It still amazes me that God would bless Isaac and Abraham for this situation but it has now happened three times. Abimelech truly respected Isaac though. When he heard they were married his law protected both Rebekah and Isaac. Abimelech was intimidated by Isaac. God’s blessings made him stand out so much that Abimelech sent him away. Isaac did not travel far though. I suspect he was very well aware that he was in the land God intended to give him. Every time he dug a well though, the local herdsmen claimed it was their water. If you remember, this happened to Abraham as well. God used this frustrating event to lead Isaac to where He wanted him to live. When Isaac dug a well that was not contested, God appeared to him and told him once again that He would multiply his offspring for Abraham’s sake. This blessing is still a result of Abraham’s obedience. Abimelech came and spoke to Isaac with the commander of his army on much the same way he met with Abraham. He wanted to make a covenant with Isaac that Isaac would do them no harm. I find it interesting that he says that the Philistines did nothing but good to Isaac since his herdsmen had been a huge pain for a while. But either way, Isaac made the deal and Abimelech went on his way. Isaac threw a feast for Abimelech. This would have solidified his good intentions. Esau’s marriages with Hittite women caused Isaac and Rebekah great pain. Esau may have been Isaac’s favorite, but Isaac obviously did not support this decision by his son. Marriage inside the family was obviously very important for Abraham and Isaac and Esau completely ignored this and married whomever he saw fit. We are also supposed to marry within our family, the family of God through Christ. We are not supposed to be yoked to unbelievers. When we marry a nonbeliever, I wonder if it causes sadness in our heavenly father.

Questions: Why did Isaac think lying about his wife was a good idea? How did Rebekah feel about this? Why did God bless Isaac through his deceit? Why did Abimelech feel threatened by Isaac? Did Abimelech fear God or did he just realize and acknowledge the work of God in Isaac’s life? Why did Isaac make a deal with Abimelech if he really was so much stronger than him? Why did Esau feel theneed to marry two Hittite women?

Lessons: God can bless us even through our mistakes. God rarely makes sense. This figures since what we use to make sense of life was created by God and is therefore only capable of finite understanding. Another lesson here is the importance of who you marry. Esau’s marriage caused strain within his family and it may have caused him to compromise values that should not have been compromised.