Bible Commentaries
Genesis 26

Introduction

THE WISDOM OF ISAAC

(Genesis 26)

In Genesis 24 there is written the record of a very important and meaningful event in the life of

Abraham and his son Isaac. Abraham had been blessed with great material riches and was now concerned

that his son Isaac should marry a bride of whom he could approve. With careful instruction he sent his

chief servant on a mission into his old homeland to find a bride for Isaac.

And I will make thee swear by the Lord, the God of heaven, and the God of the earth, that thou shalt not

take a wife unto my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell: But thou shalt go unto

my country, and to my kindred, and take a wife unto my son Isaac (Gen. 24:3-4).

Abraham did not want Isaac to return to the land from which he himself had come, because God had

promised to bless him in the country in which he dwelt.

The Lord God of heaven, which took me from my father’s house, and from the land of my kindred, and

which spake unto me, and that sware unto me, saying, Unto thy seed will I give this land; he shall send

his angel before thee, and thou shalt take a wife unto my son from thence. And if the woman will not be

willing to follow thee, then thou shalt be clear from this my oath: only bring not my son thither again

(24:7-8).

In this incident in the Old Testament there is a profound application for Christians. (p.102)

Spiritually speaking every human being is born into this world in the flesh, but when anyone accepts

Christ he enters into the realm of the spirit, and does not remain in his human nature in which the flesh

controls the spirit. The Church, that is all believers, is spoken of in the Bible as "the bride of Christ." In

the Genesis account the bride was to leave her country and come away from her kindred to become the

bride of Isaac. Here is a type of the call of the Gospel. In response to the Gospel a man must leave the

situation he is in, in order to come to the Lord. More specifically he must leave his old nature, he must

leave himself, in answering the call of the Gospel.

The story unfolds to record that the servant of Abraham prayed for divine guidance.

And he said, O Lord God of my master Abraham, I pray thee, send me good speed this day, and shew

kindness unto my master Abraham. Behold, I stand here by the well of water; and the daughters of the men

of the city come out to draw water: And let it come to pass, that the damsel to whom I shall say, Let down

thy pitcher, I pray thee, that I may drink; and she shall say, Drink, and I will give thy camels drink also:

let the same be she that thou hast appointed for thy servant Isaac; and thereby shall I know that thou bast

shewed kindness unto my master (24:12-14).

It is refreshing to read how wonderfully and explicitly God answered his prayer.

And it came to pass, before be had done speaking, that, behold, Rebekah came out, who was born to

Bethuel, son of Mileah, the wife of Nahor, Abraham’s brother, with her pitcher upon her shoulder. And the

damsel was very fair to look upon, a virgin, neither had any man known her: and she went down to the

well, and filled her pitcher, and came up. And the servant ran to meet her, and said, Let me, I pray thee,

drink a little water of thy pitcher. And she said, Drink, my lord: and she basted, and let down her pitcher

upon her hand, and gave him drink. And when she had done giving him drink, she said, I will draw water

for thy camels also, until they have done drinking. And she basted, and emptied her pitcher into the

trough, and ran again unto the well to draw water, and drew for all his camels (24:15-20). (p.103)

He was taken aback and bewildered at the instant answer to his prayer.

And it came to pass, as the camels had done drinking, that the man took a golden earring of half a shekel

weight, and two bracelets for her hands of ten shekels weight of gold; And said, Whose daughter art thou?

tell me, I pray thee: is there room in thy father’s house for us to lodge in? And she said unto him, I am the

daughter of Bethuel the son of Milcah, which she bare unto Nahor. She said moreover unto him, We have

both straw and provender enough, and room to lodge in. And the man bowed down his head, and

worshipped the Lord. And he said, Blessed be the Lord God of my master Abraham, who hath not left

destitute my master of his mercy and his truth: I being in the way, the Lord led me to the house of my

master’s brethren. And the damsel ran, and told them of her mother’s house these things (24:22-28).

As we read the record of how the servant of Abraham thus met Rebekah and was brought into the

home of her family by the overruling providence of God we can see the guidance of God about which

there is so much to be learned.

The conduct of the servant is very meaningful. The humility and thanksgiving of this man is notable,

as is also his diligence. He did not waste any time in stating his mission. He told the parents of his

prayer for guidance, of the sign he had asked from God, and of the way his prayer had been answered.

Her parents left the decision of going to Isaac to be his bride with Rebekah; and she said, "I will go." Her

parents wanted her to stay for at least ten more days, but the servant said, "Hinder me not, seeing the

Lord hath prospered my way; send me away that I may go to my master." This is an important lesson

for anyone becoming a Christian. It is a temptation upon hearing the call of God to hesitate, because

answering His call will involve separation. But it is important that men freely, respond promptly to

God’s call.

There is yet more to be learned in this account. Abraham’s desire was to find a bride for his son. God

desires to seek and to save souls. God sends evangelists with precious gifts of (p.104) eternal blessing

offered to all who will respond. Those who would be numbered among the "bride of Christ" must accept

the call to come, and leave all else immediately to meet the Bridegroom. So it was with Rebekah, and so it

must be with believers.

The Book of Genesis is largely composed of the biographies of great men of faith. It is common to hear

of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Of these three the impression is gained that Abraham and Jacob were the

great men and that Isaac was less important, less favored of God. Abraham was the great man of faith,

who was known as the "friend of God." Jacob, whose name was changed to Israel, was a prince of God,

because of his power in prevailing prayer. There is nothing exceptional about the life of Isaac. He may be

seen as a plain between two mountain peaks, Abraham and Jacob. He was notable for his wisdom. He

was actually a great man.

Then Isaac sowed in that land, and received in the same year an hundredfold: and the Lord blessed him.

And the man waxed great, and went forward, and grew until he became very great: For he had possession

of flocks, and possession of herds, and great store of servants: and the Philistines envied him (26:12-14).

Isaac had the problem of any young person who is the son of a prominent father. Abraham was great,

capable, and successful. Isaac was wise. He walked in the footsteps of his father Abraham. His father

was great, so Isaac did things as his father had done them.

And Isaac digged again the wells of water, which they had digged in the days of Abraham his father; for

the Philistines had stopped them after the death of Abraham: and he called their names after the names by

which his father had called them (26:18).

The Philistines plugged up those wells; Isaac came along and restored them. Here is a profound lesson

for young believers. Water is scarce in that arid land, and since Abraham had found an underground

source of water, Isaac was smart enough to dig there.

The Holy Bible has been considered the Word of God for (p.105) generations. There is an enemy who

has infiltrated the churches and has tried to obscure the power of the Word. Critics of the Bible have

handled it in such a way as to stop the water coming into the well. So what should be done? Turn to the

Bible again and look to God. Disregarding the critics, open the Bible and read it. For centuries no one in

the churches doubted the doctrine of the virgin birth. The Bible taught it, Christians believed it, and

every time the Apostles’ Creed was recited, this truth was confessed. Present-day Philistines have

cluttered this up with skeptical unbiblical unbelief and false arguments. What should be done today?

Christians should remember the words of Gabriel, who said, "With God nothing is impossible," and

reaffirm their faith in the virgin birth. The Bible tells us about the miracles that Jesus performed;

Christians have believed them as they were written. Today scientific ideas are being offered implying

that miracles are impossible. This hinders the flow of the water of life from the Bible. What shall be

done? Look to God as other Christians have done and believe. The Bible speaks of salvation, of souls

being saved through Christ’s atoning death on Calvary. The "Philistines" today have come with

psychology and social sciences and have so cluttered up our thinking that the word saved has been

largely discredited. What should be done? Look at those whose lives have been changed by the Gospel

and believe the Gospel. Not only should the wells our fathers digged be reopened, but the same language

should be used. Once again Christians should talk about "saved by the blood," "there is power in the

blood," and "the blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth from all sin." Christians today should use the words

their forefathers used and mean them with all their hearts. Isaac digged again the wells of water that

Abraham his father digged and called them by the names that Abraham his father had called them.