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 consists of three encounters between Isaac and the Philistines and in particular their king, who goes by the title “Abimelech.” 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). The chapter begins with Isaac facing famine in the land of Canaan and having little security and ends with him possessing security and riches. Of course, this is not the case and simply demonstrates that the sin nature trends of the father are passed to the son. 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. So in this chapter, we see that like his father, Isaac receives divine promises and reassurance, faces adversity tests, fails tests, and ultimately triumphs.Īll these parallels between Isaac and Abraham confirm to the reader that Isaac’s God is the God of Abraham (Genesis 26:24). 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. 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. 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. The parallels between Abraham and Isaac are quite noticeable.įor 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.Īlso, 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. In fact, in this chapter, we see Isaac walking in his father Abraham’s footsteps. This is the only chapter in the Bible where Isaac is the main focus. In this passage, we see an affirmation of the transfer of divine blessing from Abraham to Isaac. 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. Please turn in your Bibles to Genesis 26:1. Genesis: Genesis 26:1-Like His Father Abraham, Isaac Faces Adversity Test
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