Today's passage begins with a famine, and the writer took pains to distinguish it from "the former famine that was in the days of Abraham" (v1). The rest of the passage records for us Isaac's response, and his own journey of faith, but is careful to set up an important parallel to events in the life of Abraham.
(A) Isaac is included in the same covenant as his father (Gen 26:1-5)
Isaac is now the new spiritual head and the patriarch. In light of the famine, he left and went to Gerar. Even in the opening verse of this chapter, we see plainly that God's chosen are not spared from difficulties in life. Isaac also employed simple common sense by going in search for new sources of food.
God used this famine and movement as an opportunity to appear to Isaac and reiterate instructions and promises (Gen 26:2-4). God specifically told him not to go down to Egypt (for Egypt was a picture of spiritual slavery, an anti-God world) and instead head to the land God would direct him to. God also promised to be with him, bless him and establish the oath sworn to Abraham (Gen 26:3-4). Through this, God was renewing the promise first established with his father, but now made personal to Isaac.
This is a God with a grand covenantal promise, but at each step of the way, he personalized and established a relationship with each individual.
(B) Isaac is experiencing the same sin, grace and waiting as his father (Gen 26:6-16)
There were many parallels in Genesis 26 to previous events in Abraham's life.
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>Theme |
Isaac’s Case |
Events |
Abraham’s Case |
What can we learn? |
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Sin does not merely refer to actions, but is a stance of the heart towards God. |
Gen 26:6-11 |
Both husbands scheme to have their wife hide their relations because of her beauty Isaac trusted in his own craftiness and common sense and once again, there is a manipulation of marital relations. And God had just renewed the covenant in the verses before! At the root of it is anti-covenant living, where he questioned the wisdom, power and goodness of God. |
Gen 12:10-20 (Egypt) God’s promise to him was a promise of great security! Yet, he did not live by faith, and he wavered because of the circumstances. |
“sin which clings so closely” “the fear of man lays a snare, but whoever trusts the LORD is safe” (Prov 29:25 ) |
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Grace Grace refers to the goodness of God to those who absolutely lost it, and are totally undeserving |
Gen 26:12-14 |
They cheat death and walk away after the deception with protection
(v.11).They were also incredibly blessed and wealthy. Grace and mercy are shown here, for they did not get what they deserved, and also received so much more. This is not a reward, but undeserved blessings. |
Gen 12:16 |
“Beware lest you say in your heart, ‘My power and the
might of my hand have gotten me this wealth.’ You shall remember theLordyour God, for it is he who gives you
power to getwealth…” (Deut 8:17-18)
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Waiting |
Gen 26:15-16 |
He was sojourning (i.e. wander around) without arriving at home, and met with conflicts with the locals. Isaac was waiting for the day when he could finally stop wandering. |
Gen 12:20, 13:1-7 |
"By faith he went to live
in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with
Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise. " (Hebrews 11:9, ESV)
"For here we have no lasting
city, but we seek the city that is to come." |
Isaac, like Abraham, sought our ways to preserve his own life instead of depending on God's protection. Isaac, like his father, was a recipient of God's abundant grace and love though he was undeserving. Isaac, ultimately, was also a wandering sojourner, dwelling in tents, without a home in the city. His life was not yet secure, permanent or stable.
And this is a picture of our lives too. We are sinners and recipients of God's grace, and this world is not our home, we are merely passing through. Do we remember these things?
(C) Isaac must discover his father’s God for himself (Gen 26:17-35)
Following the incident with Rebekah, Abimelech sent Isaac away (Gen 26:16). However, he had two quarrels with the Philistines over wells in the desert (Esek, which means contention in Gen 26:20 and Sitnah, which means enmity in Gen 26:21). Not only did Isaac have to deal with external conflict with the people around him, Gen 26:34-35 record for us a bitter life for Isaac and Rebekah because of Esau's marriage. Esau married not one, but two Hittite women, clearly breaking God's command of monogamy. The Bible paints for us a realistic picture of life. The Christian should not be surprised by problems from outside and also within the family. Life is hard and people are always going to give you trouble, even within the family of faith.
In Gen 26:22, we learn of how Isaac found a third well, Rehoboth, and no one came to contend with him for it. However, in the following verse, Isaac did not settle there, and instead, went up to Beersheba (Gen 26:23). Why was this so? Up till now, these three wells were not new wells but wells previously dug by Abraham. Isaac was merely following in the footsteps of his father and had not yet seen God's provision and promise clearly and in new ways in his life. Isaac could have settled comfortably in Rehoboth, but he did not.
When Isaac arrived in Beersheba, God showed up immediately (Gen 26:23-24). God promised his presence and blessing, and Isaac responded in worship (Gen 26:25). In this place too, he dug up a new well, Shibah (Gen 26:25,32). His status as one blessed of the Lord was recognised by Abimelech, and like what happened to his father, Isaac made a covenant with the king of the land (Gen 26:28-31).
Isaac could have been a passive inheritor of the promise and live in comfort in Rehoboth, content with whatever has been provided. Instead, he sought to discover the God of his father for himself. God had shown him grace and blessing despite his sins, but that was not enough. In Jer 9:23-24, we are reminded that the only thing worth boasting in, is not wisdom, might or riches, but that we understand and know the Lord. This is the priority of all human life.
What about us today? Are we content with living in comfort, in the Rehoboths of our lives? Judges 2:10 provides a clear and stern warning that it is not enough to 'inherit' the faith or to dwell in the past, for "there arose another generation after them who did not know the Lord". Each generation, each individual has to make the choice for themselves.
Genesis has reminded us that we live in a broken world. Our generation is one that does not know the Lord, and so many of us are trapped in the pursuit of wisdom, might and riches. Do we care for the things of God? Do we care that those around us might now know the things of God, or God himself?
John Piper puts it succinctly, but gravely:
"The critical question for our generation—and for every generation—is this:
If you could have heaven, with no sickness, and with all the friends you ever had on earth, and all the food you ever liked, and all the leisure activities you ever enjoyed, and all the natural beauties you ever saw, all the physical pleasures you ever tasted, and no human conflict or any natural disasters, could you be satisfied with heaven, if Christ were not there?"
This journey of faith out of comfort is nothing new, because Jesus undertook the ultimate journey by coming in the form of man, to seek and save the lost. Today, as we consider the same call to faith, let us take heart that we are led away from Rehoboth, a place of comfort to discover a new well that is infinitely better, one that provides Living Water -- Jesus Christ himself.