GenèseChapitre 26

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There was a famine in the land, besides the earlier famine that had come in the days of Abraham, and Isaac went to Abimelech king of the Philistines, to Gerar.

The LORD appeared to him and said: "Do not go down to Egypt. Settle in the land I will tell you of.

Live in this land as a stranger, and I will be with you and bless you; for to you and to your offspring I will give all these lands, and I will fulfill the oath I swore to Abraham your father.

I will make your offspring as many as the stars of heaven, and I will give your offspring all these lands, and through your offspring all the nations of the earth will be blessed—

because Abraham obeyed my voice and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws."

So Isaac stayed in Gerar.

When the men of the place asked about his wife, he said, "She is my sister." He was afraid to say "my wife," thinking, "The men of the place might kill me over Rebekah, because she is beautiful."

After he had been there a long time, Abimelech king of the Philistines looked down through a window and saw Isaac caressing Rebekah his wife.

Abimelech summoned Isaac and said, "So she is your wife! How could you say, 'She is my sister'?" Isaac answered him, "Because I thought I might die on account of her."

Abimelech said, "What is this you have done to us? One of the people might easily have slept with your wife, and you would have brought guilt upon us."

So Abimelech gave orders to all the people: "Whoever touches this man or his wife shall surely be put to death."

Isaac sowed in that land, and that same year he reaped a hundredfold, for the LORD blessed him.

The man grew rich, and he kept growing richer until he became very wealthy.

He had flocks and herds and a large household, and the Philistines envied him.

All the wells his father's servants had dug in the days of Abraham his father the Philistines had stopped up and filled with earth.

Then Abimelech said to Isaac, "Move away from us, for you have become far too powerful for us."

So Isaac left there, camped in the Valley of Gerar, and settled there.

Isaac dug again the wells of water that had been dug in the days of Abraham his father, which the Philistines had stopped up after Abraham's death, and he gave them the same names his father had given them.

Isaac's servants dug in the valley and found there a well of fresh water.

But the herdsmen of Gerar quarreled with Isaac's herdsmen, saying, "The water is ours!" So he named the well Esek, because they contended with him. [Footnote: Esek means "contention."]

Then they dug another well, and they quarreled over that one too; so he named it Sitnah.

He moved on from there and dug another well, and over that one they did not quarrel. He named it Rehoboth, saying, "Now the LORD has made room for us, and we will be fruitful in the land."

From there he went up to Beersheba.

That night the LORD appeared to him and said, "I am the God of Abraham your father. Do not be afraid, for I am with you. I will bless you and multiply your offspring for the sake of Abraham my servant."

So he built an altar there and called on the name of the LORD. He pitched his tent there, and there Isaac's servants dug a well.

Then Abimelech came to him from Gerar with Ahuzzath his adviser and Phicol the commander of his army.

Isaac said to them, "Why have you come to me, since you hated me and sent me away from you?"

They answered, "We have seen clearly that the LORD has been with you, so we said: Let there be a sworn agreement between us—between us and you—and let us make a covenant with you,

that you will do us no harm, just as we did not touch you but did you nothing but good and sent you away in peace. You are now blessed by the LORD."

So he made them a feast, and they ate and drank.

Early in the morning they rose and exchanged oaths with one another. Then Isaac sent them off, and they left him in peace.

That same day Isaac's servants came and told him about the well they had dug, and said to him, "We have found water!"

He named it Shibah; therefore the name of the city is Beersheba to this day. [Footnote: Shibah sounds like the Hebrew words for "oath" and "seven"; Beersheba means "well of the oath" or "well of seven."]

When Esau was forty years old, he married Judith daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Basemath daughter of Elon the Hittite.

They were a bitter grief to Isaac and Rebekah.

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Résumé2

Chapitre 26

Main Theme: God confirms the Abrahamic covenant with Isaac and blesses him amid conflicts with the Philistines.

Content: During a famine, God instructs Isaac to remain in Gerar rather than go to Egypt, renewing the promises given to Abraham concerning land and numerous descendants. Like his father, Isaac, out of fear, passes off Rebekah as his sister, but Abimelech discovers the truth and rebukes him. Isaac experiences great material blessing, yet the Philistines' jealousy leads to well conflicts. After repeated disputes, Isaac finally finds peace in Rehoboth and Beersheba, where God reveals Himself again and Abimelech seeks a covenant with him. The chapter concludes with Esau marrying Hittite women at age forty, causing bitter grief to his parents.

Key Words/Images:

Covenant Renewal: God confirms the promises made to Abraham for Isaac—land, descendants as numerous as the stars, and blessing for all nations.
The Sister Deception: Isaac repeats Abraham's sin by calling Rebekah his sister, yet God protects them nonetheless.
The Wells (Esek, Sitnah, Rehoboth): Symbolize the conflict with the Philistines and God's final gift of space and peace.
Beersheba: The place where God reveals Himself, Isaac builds an altar, and the covenant with Abimelech is made—a center for worship and peace.

Contexte historique

Historical and Cultural Context for Genesis 26

People

Isaac appears in this chapter as the patriarch's heir and the main character of an independent narrative. His name (יִצְחָק, yitschaq) means "he laughs," which creates an interesting wordplay in verse 8 where Abimelech sees Isaac "playing" (מְצַחֵק, metsacheq) with Rebekah—the Hebrew verb shares the same root as his name.

Abimelech is a Philistine king in Gerar. The name is likely a dynastic title rather than a personal name, since it means "my father is king." It is debated whether this is the same person Abraham met (Genesis 20 and 21) or a successor holding the same title. Pikol, the army commander mentioned in verse 26, also bears the same name as in Abraham's time, which may indicate that this too was a title. Ahuzzat (אֲחֻזַּת) is referred to as "his friend" (מֵרֵעֵהוּ), a title likely designating an advisor or minister at the court.

Esau, Isaac's eldest son, is mentioned at the end of the chapter (verses 34–35). He takes two Hittite wives: Judith, daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Bashemath, daughter of Elon the Hittite. These marriages cause great grief to Isaac and Rebekah.

Places

Gerar was a significant city in the northwestern Negev region, likely identified with Tell Haror, about 25 km west of Beersheba. Archaeological excavations have revealed settlement from the Middle Bronze Age. The area was fertile enough for both agriculture and livestock herding, which explains why Isaac could sow and reap "a hundredfold" (verse 12).

Beersheba (בְּאֵר שֶׁבַע) lies in the northern Negev and traditionally marks the southern boundary of Israel's land. In verse 33, the well is called שִׁבְעָה (shiv'a), playing on the Hebrew root for both "seven" and "oath" (שְׁבוּעָה, shevu'a). The name can thus mean either "well of the oath" or "well of seven." Archaeological excavations at Tell Beersheba have uncovered wells and water installations from the Iron Age.

Events and Customs

Well conflicts described in verses 15–22 reflect a fundamental reality in the semiarid Middle East. Wells were vital resources representing significant investments of labor and could determine a clan's survival. The custom of filling others' wells with earth was a serious hostile act that could force people to move. The naming of the wells—Esek ("contention"), Sitnah ("enmity"), and Rehoboth ("broad places")—follows an ancient Semitic tradition where names recorded the ownership history of important resources.

Covenant-making with a feast (verses 26–31) follows a well-known pattern from the ancient Middle East. The meal was not merely hospitality but a ritual act that sealed the agreement. Eating together created a binding relationship between the parties. The oath sworn "each to his brother" (verse 31) followed similar covenant formulas known from contemporary texts from Mari and other places.

Esau's marriages (verses 34–35) with two Hittite women represent a break from the patriarchs' practice of seeking wives from their own kin. That these marriages caused Isaac and Rebekah "bitter grief" (מֹרַת רוּחַ) prepares for the conflict that unfolds in chapter 27.

Key Terms

The expression "a hundredfold" (מֵאָה שְׁעָרִים, me'a she'arim) in verse 12 describes an exceptionally rich harvest. In antiquity, yield was often measured as the ratio between seed sown and harvest reaped. A normal yield might be five to ten times the seed, so a hundredfold represents a miraculous blessing.

The term "living water" (מַיִם חַיִּים, mayim chayyim) in verse 19 technically refers to flowing or spring water as opposed to stagnant well water. Such water was more valuable because it was fresher and cleaner, and the expression also carries spiritual overtones in later biblical language.

Chapter-Specific Findings

Archaeological surveys in the Negev region have documented a network of wells and water systems confirming the central importance of water in the area's economy. At Tell Haror (possible Gerar), traces of both agriculture and pastoral economy from the Middle Bronze Age have been found, including silo installations and animal bones testifying to livestock herding—precisely the mixed economy described for Isaac in this chapter.

The presence of the Philistines in the area at this time has been debated among scholars.

Personnages11

Judith1 Ahaz1 Esau1 Pikol1 Beeri (Hittite, father of Judith, Esau's wife)1 Abimelech7 Isaac12 Basemath1 Rebecca2 Elon1 Abraham3

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Mots-clés9

Isaac — Son of Abraham and Sarah, an important patriarch in the Hebrew tradition and father to Jacob and Esau.
Abimelech — Philistine king with whom Isaac negotiated regarding wells and land rights.
Rebekah — Isaac's wife and mother of Jacob and Esau.
Jacob — Son of Isaac and Rebekah, twin brother to Esau and ancestor of the twelve tribes of Israel.
Esau — Son of Isaac and Rebekah, twin brother to Jacob and ancestor of the Edomites.
Covenant — A sacred agreement between God and people, often connected with promises and blessings.
Blessing — An expression of God's favor and protection over an individual or nation.
Well — A source of water that is vital for life and prosperity in desert environments.
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