Genesis 26:15

Easy-to-Read Version

So they destroyed all the wells that Isaac's father Abraham and his servants had dug many years before. They filled them with sand.

Parallel Translations

English Standard Version
(Now the Philistines had stopped and filled with earth all the wells that his father's servants had dug in the days of Abraham his father.)

Update Bible Version
Now all the wells which his father's slaves had dug in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines had stopped, and filled with earth.

New Century Version
So they stopped up all the wells the servants of Isaac's father Abraham had dug. (They had dug them when Abraham was alive.) The Philistines filled those wells with dirt.

New English Translation
So the Philistines took dirt and filled up all the wells that his father's servants had dug back in the days of his father Abraham.

Webster's Bible Translation
For all the wells which his father's servants had digged in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines had stopped them, and filled them with earth.

World English Bible
Now all the wells which his father's servants had dug in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines had stopped, and filled with earth.

Amplified Bible
Now all the wells which his father's servants had dug in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines stopped up by filling them with dirt.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
and thei stoppiden in that tyme and filliden with erthe alle the pittis whiche the seruauntis of Abraham his fadir hadden diggid,

Young's Literal Translation
and all the wells which his father's servants digged in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines have stopped them, and fill them with dust.

Berean Standard Bible
So the Philistines took dirt and stopped up all the wells that his father's servants had dug in the days of his father Abraham.

Contemporary English Version
and they stopped up the wells that Abraham's servants had dug before his death.

Complete Jewish Bible
Now the P'lishtim had stopped up and filled with dirt all the wells his father's servants had dug during the lifetime of Avraham his father.

American Standard Version
Now all the wells which his father's servants had digged in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines had stopped, and filled with earth.

Bible in Basic English
Now all the water-holes, which his father's servants had made in the days of Abraham, had been stopped up with earth by the Philistines.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
For the Philistines stopped and fylled vp with earth all the welles which his seruauntes had digged in his father Abrahams tyme.

Darby Translation
And all the wells that his father's servants had dug in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines stopped them and filled them with earth.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
Now all the wells which his father's servants had digged in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines had stopped them, and filled them with earth.

King James Version (1611)
For all the wels which his fathers seruants had digged in the dayes of Abraham his father, the Philistims had stopped them, & filled them with earth.

King James Version
For all the wells which his father's servants had digged in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines had stopped them, and filled them with earth.

New Life Bible
They filled all the wells with dirt that his father's servants had dug in the days of his father Abraham.

New Revised Standard
(Now the Philistines had stopped up and filled with earth all the wells that his father's servants had dug in the days of his father Abraham.)

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And as for all the wells which the servants of his father digged, in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines stepped them up, and filled them with dust.

Geneva Bible (1587)
In so much that the Philistims stopped and filled vp with earth all the welles, which his fathers seruantes digged in his father Abrahams time.

George Lamsa Translation
For all the wells which his fathers servants had dug in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines had polluted them and filled them with earth.

Good News Translation
So they filled in all the wells which the servants of his father Abraham had dug while Abraham was alive.

Douay-Rheims Bible
Stopped up at that time all the wells, that the servants of his father, Abraham, had digged, filling them up with earth:

Revised Standard Version
(Now the Philistines had stopped and filled with earth all the wells which his father's servants had dug in the days of Abraham his father.)

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And all the wells which the servants of his father had dug in the time of his father, the Phylistines stopped them, and filled them with earth.

English Revised Version
Now all the wells which his father's servants had digged in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines had stopped them, and filled them with earth.

Christian Standard Bible®
Philistines stopped up all the wells that his father’s servants had dug in the days of his father Abraham, filling them with dirt.

Hebrew Names Version
Now all the wells which his father's servants had dug in the days of Avraham his father, the Pelishtim had stopped, and filled with eretz.

Lexham English Bible
And the Philistines stopped up all the wells that the servants of his father had dug in the days of Abraham his father. They filled them with earth.

Literal Translation
And all the wells which the slaves of his father dug in the days of his father Abraham, the Philistines had stopped them and filled them with dirt.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
and stopped all the welles, that his fathers seruauntes had dygged in the tyme of Abraham his father, and fylled them with earth,

New American Standard Bible
Now all the wells which his father's servants had dug in the days of his father Abraham, the Philistines stopped up by filling them with dirt.

New King James Version
Now the Philistines had stopped up all the wells which his father's servants had dug in the days of Abraham his father, and they had filled them with earth.

New Living Translation
So the Philistines filled up all of Isaac's wells with dirt. These were the wells that had been dug by the servants of his father, Abraham.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
Now all the wells which his father's servants had dug in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines stopped up by filling them with earth.

Legacy Standard Bible
Now all the wells which his father's servants had dug in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines stopped up by filling them with earth.

Contextual Overview

¹² Isaac planted fields in that place, and that year he gathered a great harvest. The Lord blessed him very much. ¹³ Isaac became rich. He gathered more and more wealth until he became a very rich man. ¹⁴ He had many flocks and herds of animals. He also had many slaves. All the Philistines were jealous of him. ¹⁵ So they destroyed all the wells that Isaac's father Abraham and his servants had dug many years before. They filled them with sand. ¹⁶ Abimelech said to Isaac, "Leave our country. You have become much more powerful than we are." ¹⁷ So Isaac left that place and camped near the little river of Gerar. He stayed there and lived. ¹⁸ Long before this time, Abraham had dug many wells. After he died, the Philistines filled the wells with sand. So Isaac went back and dug those wells again. He gave them the same names his father had given them. ¹⁹ Isaac's servants also dug a well near the little river and found fresh water. ²⁰ But the men who herded sheep in the Valley of Gerar argued with Isaac's servants. They said, "This water is ours." So Isaac named that well Esek. He gave it that name because it was the place where they had argued with him. ²¹ Then Isaac's servants dug another well. But there was an argument over this well too. So Isaac named that well Sitnah.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

his father's: Genesis 21:30

had stopped: In those countries, a well of water was a great acquisition; and hence, this mode of injuring new settlers, or revenging themselves on their enemies, is still resorted to among the inhabitants.

Reciprocal: Genesis 21:25 - reproved Genesis 26:29 - not Exodus 2:17 - shepherds 2 Kings 3:25 - stopped

Cross-References

Genesis 21:25
Then Abraham complained to Abimelech because Abimelech's servants had captured a well of water.

Genesis 21:30
Abraham answered, "When you accept these lambs from me, it will be proof that I dug this well."

Gill's Notes on the Bible

For all the wells which his father's servants had digged, in the days of Abraham his father,.... For the watering of his flocks and herds, see Genesis 21:25:

the Philistines had stopped them, and filled them with earth; that they might be of no use; and this they did through envy to him, and is mentioned as a proof of it.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

- The Events of Isaac’s Life

5. משׁמרת mı̂shmeret, “charge, ordinance.” מציה mı̂tsvâh, “command,” special order. חק choq, “decree, statute,” engraven on stone or metal. תירה tôrâh, “law,” doctrine, system of moral truth.

10. עשׂק ‛êśeq, ‘Eseq, “strife.”

21. שׂטנה śı̂ṭnâh, Sitnah, “opposition.”

22. רחבית r^echobôt, Rechoboth, “room.”

26. אחזת 'ǎchuzat, Achuzzath, “possession.”

33. שׁבעה shı̂b‛âh, Shib’ah, “seven; oath.”

34. יהוּדית y^ehûdı̂yt, Jehudith, “praised.” בארי b^e'ērı̂y, Beeri, “of a well.” בשׂמת bāś^emat, Basemath, “sweet smell.” אילן 'êylon, Elon, “oak.”

This chapter presents the leading events in the quiet life of Isaac. It is probable that Abraham was now dead. In that case, Esau and Jacob would be at least fifteen years of age when the following event occurred.

Genesis 26:1-5

Renewal of the promise to Isaac. “A famine in the land.” We left Isaac, after the death of Abraham, at Beer-lahai-roi Genesis 25:11. The preceding events have only brought us up to the same point of time. This well was in the land of the south Genesis 24:62. The present famine is distinguished from what occurred in the time of Abraham Genesis 12:10. The interval between them is at least a hundred years. The author of this, the ninth document, is, we find, acquainted with the seventh document; and the famine to which he refers is among the earliest events recorded in it. There is no reason to doubt, then, that he has the whole history of Abraham before his mind. “Unto Abimelek unto Gerar.” The Abimelek with whom Abraham had contact about eighty years before may have been the father of the present sovereign. Both Abimelek and Phikol seem to have been official names. Gerar Genesis 10:19 was apparently on the brook of Mizraim Numbers 34:5, the Wady el-Arish, or the Wady el-Khubarah, a northern affluent of the former, or in the interval between them. It is on the way to Egypt, and is the southern city of the Philistines, who probably came from Egypt Genesis 10:14. Isaac was drawing toward Egypt, when he came to Gerar.

Genesis 26:2-5

Isaac is now the heir, and therefore the holder, of the promise. Hence, the Lord enters into communication with him. First, the present difficulty is met. “Go not down into Mizraim,” the land of corn, even when other lands were barren. “Dwell in the land of which I shall tell thee.” This reminds us of the message to Abraham Genesis 12:1. The land here spoken of refers to “all these lands” mentioned in the following verses. “Sojourn in this land:” turn aside for the present, and take up thy temporary abode here. Next, the promise to Abraham is renewed with some variety of expression. “I will be with thee” Genesis 21:22, a notable and comprehensive promise, afterward embodied in the name Immanuel, “God with us. Unto thee and unto thy seed.” This was fulfilled to his seed in due time. All these lands, now parcelled out among several tribes. “And blessed in thy seed” Genesis 12:3; Genesis 22:18.

This is the great, universal promise to the whole human race through the seed of Abraham, twice explicitly announced to that patriarch. “All the nations.” In constancy of purpose the Lord contemplates, even in the special covenant with Abraham, the gathering in of the nations under the covenant with Noah and with Adam Genesis 9:9; Hosea 6:7. “Because Abraham hearkened to my voice,” in all the great moments of his life, especially in the last act of proceeding on the divine command to offer Isaac himself. Abraham, by the faith which flows from the new birth, was united with the Lord, his shield and exceeding great reward Genesis 15:1, with God Almighty, who quickened and strengthened him to walk before him and be perfect Genesis 17:1. The Lord his righteousness worketh in him, and his merit is reflected and reproduced in him Genesis 22:16, Genesis 22:18. Hence, the Lord reminds Isaac of the oath which he had heard at least fifty years before confirming the promise, and of the declaration then made that this oath of confirmation was sworn because Abraham had obeyed the voice of God. How deeply these words would penetrate into the soul of Isaac, the intended victim of that solemn day! But Abraham’s obedience was displayed in all the acts of his new life. He kept the charge of God, the special commission he had given him; his commandments, his express or occasional orders; his statutes, his stated prescriptions, graven on stone; his laws, the great doctrines of moral obligation. This is that unreserved obedience which flows from a living faith, and withstands the temptations of the flesh.

Genesis 26:6-11

Rebekah preserved from dishonor in Gerar. Gerar was probably a commercial town trading with Egypt, and therefore Isaac’s needs during the famine are here supplied. “The men of the place” were struck with the appearance of Rebekah, “because she was fair.” Isaac, in answer to their inquiries, pretends that she is his sister, feeling that his life was in peril, if she was known to be his wife. Rebekah was at this time not less than thirty-five years married, and had two sons upwards of fifteen years old. She was still however in the prime of life, and her sons were probably engaged in pastoral and other field pursuits. From the compact between Abraham and Sarah Genesis 20:13, and from this case of Isaac about eighty years after, it appears that this was a ready pretence with married people among strangers in those times of social insecurity.

Genesis 26:8-11

Abimelek observes Isaac sporting with Rebekah as only husband and wife should, constrains him to confess that she is his wife, charges him with the impropriety of his conduct, and commands his people to refrain from harming either of them on pain of death. We see how insecure a female’s honor was in those days, if she was in a strange land, and had not a band of men to keep back the hand of violence. We perceive also that God mercifully protects his chosen ones from the perils which they bring upon themselves by the vain self-reliance and wicked policy of the old corrupt nature. This remnant of the old man we find in the believers of old, as in those of the present time, though it be different and far less excusable in its recent manifestations.

Genesis 26:12-16

The growing prosperity of Isaac. “And Isaac sowed in that land.” This does not imply a fixed property in the soil, but only an annual tenancy. “A hundred-fold.” The rates of increase vary from thirty to a hundred. Sixty-fold is very good, and was not unusual in Palestine. A hundred-fold was rare, and only in spots of extraordinary fertility. Babylonia, however, yielded two hundred and even three hundred-fold, according to Herodotus (I. 193). Thus, the Lord began to “bless him.” The amazing growth of the stranger’s wealth in flocks and herds and servants awakens the envy of the inhabitants. The digging of the well was an enterprise of great interest in rural affairs. It conferred a sort of ownership on the digger, especially in a country where water was precious. And in a primeval state of society the well was the scene of youthful maidens drawing water for domestic use, and of young men and sometimes maidens watering the bleating flocks and lowing herds, and therefore the gathering center of settled life. Hence, the envious Philistines were afraid that from a sojourner he would go on to be a settler, and acquire rights of property. They accordingly took the most effectual means of making his abiding place uncomfortable, when they stopped up the wells. At length the sovereign advised a separation, if he did not enjoin the departure of Isaac.

Genesis 26:17-22

Isaac retires, and sets about the digging of wells. He retreats from Gerar and its suburbs, and takes up his abode in the valley, or wady of Gerar. These wadys are the hollows in which brooks flow, and therefore the well-watered and fertile parts of the country. He digs again the old wells, and calls them by the old names. He commences the digging of new ones. For the first the herdmen of Gerar strive, claiming the water as their property. Isaac yields. He digs another; they strive, and he again yields. He now removes apparently into a distinct region, and digs a third well, for which there is no contest. This he calls Rehoboth, “room” - a name which appears to be preserved in Wady er-Ruhaibeh, near which is Wady esh-Shutein, corresponding to Sitnah. “For now the Lord hath made room for us.” Isaac’s homely realizing faith in a present and presiding Lord here comes out.

Genesis 26:23-25

Isaac now proceeds to Beer-sheba. “Went up.” It was an ascent from Wady er-Ruhaibeh to Beer-sheba; which was near the watershed between the Mediterranean and the Salt Sea. “In that night” - the night after his arrival, in a dream or vision. “I am the God of Abraham thy father.” Isaac is again and again reminded of the relation in which his father stood to God. That relation still subsists; for Abraham still lives with God, and is far nearer to him than he could be on earth. “The God of Abraham” is another name for Yahweh. “Fear not,” as he had said to Abraham after his victory over the four kings Genesis 15:1. Then follow the reasons for courage: I, with thee, blessing thee, multiplying thy seed; a reassurance of three parts of the promise involving all the rest. Then comes the instructive reason for this assurance - “for the sake of Abraham my servant.” “An altar” - the first on record erected by Isaac. “Called on the name of the Lord” - engaged in the solemn and public invocation of Yahweh Genesis 4:26; Genesis 12:8. “His tent there.” It was hallowed ground to his father Genesis 21:33, and now to himself. “Digged a well,” and thereby took possession of the soil at least for a time. We hear of this well again in the next passage.

Genesis 26:26-33

The treaty with Abimelek. This is an interview similar to what Abraham had with the king of Gerar; and its object is a renewal of the former league between the parties. Besides Phikol, the commander-in-chief, he is now accompanied by Ahuzzath, his privy counsellor. Isaac upbraids him with his unkindness in sending him away, and his inconsistency in again seeking a conference with him. “We clearly saw.” His prosperity was such as to be a manifest token of the Lord’s favor. Hence, they desired the security of a treaty with him by an oath of execration on the transgressor. “Do us no hurt.” The covenant is one-sided, as expressed by Abimelek. “As we have not touched thee.” This implies the other side of the covenant. “Thou art now blessed of Yahweh.” This explains the one-sidedness of the covenant. Isaac needed no guarantee from them, as the Lord was with him. Abimelek is familiar with the use of the name Yahweh. Isaac hospitably entertains and lodges the royal party, and on the morrow, after having sworn to the treaty, parts with them in peace. On the same day Isaac’s servants report concerning the well they had digged Genesis 26:25 that they had found water. This well he calls Sheba, “an oath,” and hence the town is called Beer-sheba, “the well of the oath.” Now the writer was aware that this place had received the same name on a former occasion Genesis 21:31. But a second well has now been dug in like circumstances in the same locality. This gives occasion for a new application of the name in the memories of the people. This is another illustration of the principle explained at Genesis 25:30. Two wells still exist at this place to attest the correctness of the record.

Gen 25:34-35

Esau at forty years of age forms matrimonial connections with the Hittites. Heth was the second son of Kenaan, and had settled in the hills about Hebron. Esau had got acquainted with this tribe in his hunting expeditions. From their names we learn that they spoke the same language with himself. They belonged to a family far gone in transgression and apostasy from God. The two wives chosen from such a stock were a source of great grief to the parents of Esau. The choice manifested his tolerance at least of the carnal, and his indifference to the spiritual.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Genesis 26:15. For all the wells - the Philistines had stopped them — In such countries a good well was a great acquisition; and hence in predatory wars it was usual for either party to fill the wells with earth or sand, in order to distress the enemy. The filling up the wells in this case was a most unprincipled transaction, as they had pledged themselves to Abraham, by a solemn oath, not to injure each other in this or any other respect. See Genesis 21:25-31.