Genesis 26:1: “Now there was a famine in the land—besides the previous famine in Abraham’s time—and Isaac went to Abimelek king of the Philistines in Gerar.”
On account of a severe drought, Isaac and his young wife Rebekah left Beer Lahai Roi. They headed east, following the brook of Egypt until they reached Gerar where Abimelek, king of the Philistines, had his headquarters. Isaac’s plan was to join a caravan and head to Egypt. But the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said [Genesis 26:2-3]:
“Do not go down to Egypt; live in the land where I tell you to live. Stay in this land for a while, and I will be with you and will bless you. For to you and your descendants I will give all these lands and will confirm the oath I swore to your father Abraham.”
His wife looked puzzled when Isaac told her about the dream. “So we’re not supposed to move to Egypt after all?” she asked and Isaac paused briefly before answering her question. “We’ll stay here in Gerar for the time being”, he said. His face took on a worried look as he continued, “You have no idea how beautiful you are. I have to warn you about King Abimelek. He takes the women he likes, whether married or unmarried. Rumor has it that he kills the husband of the woman he desires.” Rebekah looked at Isaac in shock. “What do you suggest?” she asked and Isaac replied, “I suggest we keep a low profile – and should anybody ask for you, then we just say that you are my sister.”
Days turned into weeks, weeks into months, and months into years. It was hard to keep a low profile for such a long time. And so it happened that King Abimelek looked down from a window one day and caught Isaac having a private moment with his wife. He was fondling her, and seemed to whisper honeyed words into her ear. Immediately the king summoned Isaac into his court room and told him that his charade was a bad joke. “This reminds me very much of your father Abraham”, he said and scoffed: “Apparently, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree – like father, like son.” The king shook his head and exclaimed, “What is up with your family?! Do you want to bring bad luck upon us?” Then, turning to his court officials the king declared: “Anyone who harms this man Isaac or his wife shall be put to death.”
And so Isaac and Rebekah stayed in the land of the Philistines for a while. The Lord blessed them with extremely good crops and they became very wealthy, which didn’t sit well with the locals. They began to envy them and stopped up all the wells in their vicinity. “It’s time to move back to the west”, Rebekah said to her husband and added, “The drought is long over. We should have moved back to Beer Lahai Roi years ago.” Isaac agreed with her. “I think you’re right” he said. And a week later they packed and left Gerar for good.
In years to follow, Isaac and his wife were forced to move several times. Due to disputes over water rights, they were driven further and further northwest until they reached Beersheba – the Well of the Oath. This spring had been dug by his father Abraham a long time ago. And unfortunately, also this particular well had been a bone of contention – until the day when the fountain was officially deeded to his father by the king.
“Why is it so difficult to find peace?” Isaac asked his wife. “We don’t mean any harm. We just want to live on a piece of land making a living.” The following night the Lord appeared to Isaac and said [Genesis 26:24]:
“I am the God of your father Abraham. Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bless you and will increase the number of your descendants for the sake of my servant Abraham.”
When Isaac told his wife about his recent vision she looked at him a little skeptically. “After twenty years of marriage the Lord still promises you descendants as numerous as the stars? How? Obviously I can’t have any children.” Isaac shook his head and said, “I don’t know how – but here is what I do know: the Lord once intervened for my mother, and she gave birth to me when she was 90 years old. I believe He can do the same for you.” Rebekah sighed and said, “I know this story. I have heard about your mother’s miracle a million times, but I don’t think God sees me.”
Isaac became very quiet. It dawned on him that they had lost sight of God. Even though the Lord had confirmed many times that He saw them and that He was with them – they obviously had lost touch of Him in their trials and tribulations. Isaac hugged his wife and said, “God’s promises are real. This is no fantasy, Rebekah. We may find it hard to believe, but all we really have to do is not to lose hope.”
With renewed energy Isaac prayed on Rebekah’s behalf and slowly things began to look up – starting with their personal perspective. A ray of hope emerged in Rebekah’s heart. And gazing into the sky she wondered whether God indeed listened to what human beings have to say.