Preface: There are 2 basic sections and an informative postscript to this chapter. To move away from a drought, God guides Isaac to Gerar, where he deceives the Abimelech, the leader of that region. Isaac is forgiven by the leadership, but his success provokes jealousy among the Philistines, and Isaac and his family are forced to move further and further away. In the second related section, Abimelech and two associates hunt down Isaac to make an alliance with him, recognizing that Gerar was blessed by his presence. The postscript simply names the two Hittite wives of Esau and suggests that they were troublesome daughters-in-law.

There are many chapter commentaries on the book of Genesis. This will be the most extensive analysis of Genesis 26, where you will be able to examine in depth every word of the original text. Very careful attention is given first to the correct translation and then to the proper interpretation of the text. This is integrated into a system of theology which is consistent, orthodox and Christ-centered. Wherever appropriate, modern-day applications are made.

Every attempt has been made to make this both a complete and self-contained study. Therefore, all references, vocabulary, and related concepts should be found within this extensive study. Easy access links to more in-depth studies of some vocabulary words, concepts and doctrines are also provided.

Outline of Chapter 26:

Introduction

         vv.     1–5           God Gives Special Guidance to Isaac

         vv.     6–11         Isaac Deceives Abimelech about Rebekah

         vv.    12–16         The Jealousy of the Philistines

         vv.    17–22         Even Though Isaac Moves Further from Gerar, Philistines Continue to Harass Him

         vv.    23–25         God Speaks to Isaac in Beersheba

         vv.    26–31         Abimelech and Phicol, of Gerar, Make a Pact with Isaac

         vv.    32–33         The New Well

         vv.    34–35         Esau’s Hittite Wives

Addendum

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines:

         Preface               Quotations

         Introduction         God’s Promise to Isaac Graphic

         Introduction         The Prequel of Genesis 26

         Introduction         The Principals of Genesis 26

         Introduction         Peter Pett on Isaac

         Introduction         The Places of Genesis 26 (map)

         Introduction         The Places of Genesis 26

         Introduction         The Patriarchal Timeline for Genesis 26

         Introduction         Ballinger on the Timing of Genesis 26

         Introduction         A Synopsis of Genesis 26 (by James Burton Coffman)

         Introduction         Matthew Henry Outlines Genesis 26

         Introduction         Alternate Outline by Jack Ballinger

         Introduction         One More Outline (from Arno Gaebelein)

         v.       1              Ron Snider on Famine

         v.       1              Three Separate Incidents

         v.       1              3 Separate Incidents Chart

         v.       1              Keith Krell on the Similarities between Abraham and Isaac in Gerar

         v.       1              Wenstrom on the Time Frame

         v.       1              The Bible Query on, “is this the same Abimelech as found in Genesis 20?”

         v.       1              The Bible Query on, what does Abimelech mean?

         v.       1              Commentators on the Philistines

         v.       2              The Bible Query on, were Israelites to go down to Egypt or not?

         v.       2              Wenstrom on Identifying the Voice of God (edited)

         v.       3              Wenstrom on the Hebrew Word Gûwr

         v.       3              The Bible Query on, does God bless Abraham because of works?

         v.       4              The Palestinian Covenant (from Wenstrom)

         v.       4              Genesis 26:4 (graphic)

         v.       4              The Seed of Abraham

         v.       4              Blessings from the Seed of Abraham

         v.       4              Ron Snider on God’s Promises to Isaac

         v.       5              Introductory Points on Genesis 26:5

         v.       5              Various Commentators on, Abraham listening to the voice of God

         v.       5              Parallel and Related Passages to Genesis 26:2–5

         v,       5              Questions about Genesis 26:4–5: What does it means for Abraham to keep God’s charge, commandments, statutes and laws

         v.       5              2Kings 17:37 graphic

         v.       5              Chart of the Ages of the Patriarchs

         v.       5              Commentators on, My charge, My commandments, My statutes, and My laws

         v.       5              God’s Covenants with Abraham

         v.       5              The Patriarch Overlap Chart

         v.       5              The Shortened Doctrine of Laws, Commandments, Ordinances and Statutes

         v.       5              The American English Bible on the Commandments, Statutes and Laws

         v.       6              A Map of Isaac’s Journeys

         v.      10              The Thinking of Abimelech

         v.      11              Snider Summarizes Genesis 26:8–11

         v.      13              God Blesses Isaac (and the Growing Believer) During a Crisis

         v.      14              The Politics of Envy

         v.      14              The Abbreviated Doctrine of Envy

         v.      14              Socialism and Envy

         v.      14              Wenstrom’s Doctrine of Envy

         v.      15              Various Commentators on Stopping Up the Wells (Genesis 26:15)

         v.      15              Repositioning Genesis 26:15

         v.      15              Applications of Genesis 26 to life today; liberals, money and government regulations

         v.      16              The Relativity of Wealth

         v.      16              Snider Summarizes Genesis 26:12–16

         v.      18              Water well (picture)

         v.      18              The Abbreviated Doctrine of Mental Attitude Sins

         v.      20              Isaac Overseeing the Construction of a Well (graphic)

         v.      21              Wenstrom on Isaac’s Undeserved Suffering

         v.      21              Names Had Meaning (graphic)

         v.      22              Genesis 26:22 (graphic)

         v.      22              Scofield on the Names of the Wells

         v.      22              Snider Summarizes Genesis 26:17–22

         v.      22              Why Didn’t God Simply Tell Isaac, “Go to Beersheba”?

         v.      23              Isaac’s Journeys (map)

         v.      23              Smith on Beersheba

         v.      25              Snider Summarizes Genesis 26:23–25

         v.      26              Hajime Murai’s Chiasmos of Genesis 26:26-33

         v.      26              James Burton Coffman on Abimelech and Phicol

         v.      26              Genesis 26 and Chronology

         v.      27              Relocating to Attend a Doctrinal Church

         v.      27              The Best Use of our Time

         v.      28              That Goofy Notation G–d

         v.      29              Abimelech Preserves the Philistine Countries

         v.      29              Problems with the Current Democratic Party

         v.      31              The Series of Events for Genesis 26:26–31

         v.      31              B. H. Carroll on Isaac

         v.      33              When Critics Ask: Did Abraham or Isaac name Beersheba?

         v.      33              Abraham and Isaac’s Covenants with the Philistines

         v.      33              Isaac in the New Testament

         v.      33              How to live your life...

         v.      34              When Critics Ask on, Esau’s Wives

         v.      34              The Bible Query on, Esau’s Four Wives

         v.      35              Biblical Warnings About Marriage to the Wrong Kind of Women

         v.      35              3 Reasons for this Brief Section on Esau’s Wives (Constable)

         v.      35              Commentary on Esau’s Wives

         v.      35              Snider Summarizes Genesis 26:34–35

         v.      35              Snider on the Hittites

         Addendum          Ballinger Summarizes Genesis 26

         Addendum          Why Genesis 26 is in the Word of God

         Addendum          What We Learn from Genesis 26

         Addendum          Josephus’ History of this Time Period

         Addendum          Edersheim Summarizes Genesis 26

         Addendum          A Complete Translation of Genesis 26

         Addendum          Word Cloud from a Reasonably Literal Paraphrase of Genesis 26

         Addendum          Word Cloud from Exegesis of Genesis 26

——————————

An Introduction to Genesis 26

I ntroduction: Genesis 26 is primarily about the interaction between Isaac and his family with the heathen of the land. Because there is a drought, Isaac is about to move to Egypt, but God guides him to Gerar instead, where Isaac appears to have a good relationship with the leadership there (with Abimelech). However, the people force Isaac to leave and their mischief push Isaac and family further and further away. However, Abimelech, Phicol and another associate seek the banished Isaac out in order to establish an alliance with him. At the end of the chapter, Esau, one of Isaac and Rebekah’s sons, marries two Hittite women, and they make life difficult for Isaac and Rebekah.

As one who does not believe that Moses wrote Genesis (at best, he edited it); Abraham’s trusted servant probably wrote Gen. 24 and Isaac was likely the author of Gen. 25–26.

Gen. 26 opens with their being a famine in the land, and Isaac makes plans to move temporarily to Egypt. God speaks to Isaac directly and tells him not to. In fact, God reiterates some promises to Isaac that He had previously made to Abraham, and then makes a very unusual statement which I will endeavor to explain.

“I’ll tell you where to move to,” God promises; and Isaac and family move to Gerar, an area populated by Philistines.

God’s Promise to Isaac Graphic is from Portage Church, accessed August 3, 2015.

Chapter 26 deals only with Isaac and Rebekah in a situation which parallels the past of Abraham. Abraham recorded in Scripture how he deceived men in the past by claiming that Sarah was his sister. Isaac will do the exact same thing in this chapter. This is not the kind of thing that his father Abraham would have talked about and it occurred before he was born; so what makes the most sense is that he had the beginning of the Bible, much of it written by Abraham, which he carried with him (possibly, Isaac carried this with him in his own head). This is possibly where this idea came from.

There are 3 very similar narratives in Genesis. Abraham twice lies about his relationship with his wife to strangers that he is worried about; and Gen. 26 is about Isaac doing the exact same thing. There are many significant differences between these narratives; but it is interesting that God the Holy Spirit chose these events to record.

Sometimes, we learn a lot about a person when we see them in the same circumstance, but years later; or when we see two different people in the same circumstance. We are going to also learn a lot about the Philistines. The narrative of Abraham and Isaac both going into the land of the Philistines indicates that there have been sociological changes among the Philistines themselves. However, it is going to take us some time before we get there. One verse is going to stop us dead in our tracks. It is a verse you may have read many times, but did not realize just how out of place it is.

Although Isaac clearly mends his relationship with Abimelech, the king of Gerar; the people of Gerar are very jealous of Isaac’s success, and they push the king to remove Isaac from their midst. Isaac moves out of town, but Philistines continue to harass him by filling in the wells which he digs; so Isaac moves further and further away until the harassment ends. Isaac continues to dig wells and the Philistines continue to fill them in. Isaac finally puts enough distance between himself and the Philistines to where this behavior stops.

After this, God again speaks to Isaac and gives more assurances to Isaac. As a result, Isaac stops there and builds an altar to God.

Sometime after this—we don’t know if it is weeks, months or years later, Abimelech and his general Phicol hunt down Isaac and make peace with him. It is clear that Abimelech recognizes the blessing that he received by being associated with Isaac, and he tells him this. They share a meal of fellowship and Abimelech and company leave on good terms.

The final interaction between Isaac and his family and the heathen of the land is, Esau, their son, marries two Hittite women. These women make life difficult for Isaac and Rebekah (although it is not clear how).

You may not realize it by the introduction, but this chapter is very up-to-date; the events of this chapter have many contemporary applications. We have a political party whose philosophy, in part, on jealousy. No political movement based upon a mental attitude sin will prosper. Either it will become greatly weakened or they will destroy the country.

Griffith-Thomas: ALTHOUGH Isaac lived the longest of all the patriarchs less is recorded of him than of the others. This is the only chapter exclusively devoted to his life. His was a quiet, peaceful, normal life. He was the ordinary son of a great father, and the ordinary father of a [dynamic and colorful]...son. We are accustomed to speak of such lives as commonplace and ordinary, and yet the ordinary life is the "ordered" life, and in the truest sense the "ordained" life. Like the rest of us, Isaac's experiences were marked by light and shade, by sin and discipline, by grace and mercy.

Steven Cole: Isaac...wasn’t bold like his father Abraham, who made a daring raid against the kings of the east. He wasn’t shrewd like his son, Jacob, or a gifted leader like his grandson, Joseph. Yet God used him to work out His covenant promises. His life shows us that there’s hope in the Lord for all us ordinary people.

The Places of Genesis 26 (map); a google map from News you can believe; accessed July 31, 2015

There was a famine in the land, but God spoke to Isaac and told him to go to a place He would show him, and not down to Egypt. Isaac went to Gerar of the Philistines.

It appears that Isaac moved from Beer-lahai-roi (Gen. 24:62 25:11), which would have been found perhaps 50 miles southwest of Beersheba. He would not have been too far from a trading route that ran from Gerar and Bathsheba down to Egypt. If he went west, he would end up in Egypt; and if Isaac went northeast, he would end up in Gerar (which is how God directs him in this chapter).

Isaac was forced out of Gerar many years later by envious Philistines. He established a well that he named Rehoboth and eventually moved back to Beersheba.

The Patriarchal Timeline for Genesis 26

Keith Krell and Scott Grant both suggest that this chapter occurs earlier in time to Gen. 25:21–34 (the birth of Jacob and Esau). Isaac will tell Abimelech that Rebekah is his sister rather than his wife; and having twins would make that a less believable story. I could, however, propose a scenario by which she could have children and he is still her brother; but Isaac will express husband-like affection towards Rebekah in this chapter, and that is hard to do with twins. For that reason, Krell is probably correct. Whether there is some overlap in these chapters (Isaac and Rebekah in Gerar, they leave Gerar, Rebekah gives birth to twins, Abimelech and Phicol seek out Abraham) we don’t know. The pieces of Gen. 25 fit together well as do the pieces of Gen. 26. Both could have been recorded by Isaac at two different times (and by recorded, I mean that Isaac could have remembered these things and then passed them along to Esau and/or Jacob).

Actually, this leads to some interesting speculation: assuming that the patriarchs themselves recorded their own history and passed it along from generation to generation, the handoff to Jacob may possibly have occurred by means of his mother, Rebekah (Gen. 27). However, the handoff may have occurred after Jacob returns from Syria with his wives (Gen. 33).

This is interesting, as it appears at the end of Gen. 25 that we are next going to enter into the Jacob narrative (as it ends with the twins being born); but then there is suddenly more narrative about Isaac. However, Gen. 25 appears to be mostly about the Arabic line from Abraham. Abraham’s wife is mentioned along with their children (as discussed, she probably came along after the death of Sarah). Abraham’s death is recorded, which indicates that there will be no more children from him directly; and this leads into the line of Ishmael and his half-brother Isaac (both men gather together for Abraham’s funeral). If Isaac is the author of Gen. 25 (and I believe that he is), he is a man concerned with consequential matters: births and deaths and appearances of God. So, his visit with Ishmael would, no doubt, result in finding out about Ishmael’s children (more Arabs).

Logically, if one is going to talk about Ishmael’s children, then Isaac ought to speak of his own children; and, logically, because Isaac is speaking of the Arabs who were descendants of Abraham, then there is one more to name, and that is Esau. So, that is how Gen. 25 all hangs together—it is the Arab chapter, where the entire line of Arabs is covered.

But, Isaac, being a man interested with things of consequence, must also tell about his relationship to God, and how God spoke to him. Therefore, God speaking to him begins this chapter, and comes in at the end of this chapter. Isaac records all of the circumstances around God speaking to him.

So, whereas Gen. 25 is the Arab chapter; Gen. 26 is the God speaks to Isaac chapter. Both chapters were probably written by Isaac; and they individually hold together as cohesive units (with the exception of the final two verses of this chapter).

Interestingly enough, Gen. 27 will indicate that Isaac is old and blind; but additional passages indicate that he will live for a very long time (longer than any of the other patriarchs). So much of his life was continued in a state of blindness and probably in close association with Esau.

Given that, logically, Isaac knew and recited the book of Genesis on up to Gen. 24, and then added two chapters of his own. Who would he have spoken these chapters to? His wife and his son Esau. His wife Rebekah may have impressed these on the mind of Jacob before he left.

When it comes to passing along the Scriptures and writing them, we have clues as to the latter (the very personal nature of the passages related to Jacob and his life); but we have absolutely no outright statements that I can find. My premise has been, chapters would be written (perhaps in the mind of a patriarch) and then passed along to his son or sons, who would add to that. Each generation would have The History of Man and God taught to him; and each generation would add a few chapters to that.

However, my only evidence is, the Exodus generation appears to know God, to know who God is; and they know who Abraham and his sons were (and they knew this early on; they did not learn it from Moses). The only way that this could happen is for the Scriptures (Genesis and probably Job) to have been passed down from generation to generation in some way.

One needs to bear in mind, as these Scriptures are passed along from generation to generation, that it slowly became clear, both to Jacob and to Esau, that the blessing of God would go through the line of Jacob. This was not something that was easy for Esau to take. However, as this became clear, God also clearly blessed Esau. Furthermore, Esau was given a great deal of time with Isaac, so Gen. 1–26 could be impressed upon his mind.

God speaks to Isaac twice in this chapter; and Isaac interacts with a number of Philistines (primarily from the area of Gerar).

J. Vernon McGee: When I was a much younger preacher, this chapter did not seem to be very exciting. It is quite colorless and uninteresting, which is especially noticeable after we have studied a man like Abraham and an exciting man like Jacob who is to follow. This chapter is about Isaac. In fact, it is the only chapter that is really about Isaac, and it just isn't very thrilling. All he does is dig wells. However, in later years I've come to examine these chapters and have found that God has a message for us in this also. In fact, it is a very important message, and Paul stated it quite accurately: "For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope" ( Rom. 15:4 ). This is a chapter that teaches patience, and some of us need that - certainly I am in that category. Yet, we would not have you get the impression that patience is all that God wants of us. The Lord also had men like Abraham, like Jacob, and like David, men who were real go-getters and who were aggressive. God can use that also. But the life of Isaac has a great message for many of us.

There are many things that we will get from this chapter, which may not be apparent at first. This chapter is very much related to the will of God and to the geographic will of God. However, it takes a bit of study to understand how to apply this to your own life.

Many teachers begin this chapter with a personal story that has the tag line, like father, like son. Although that is going on in this chapter, there is a specific reason why; and it is not because Isaac is doing what he has observed his father doing (Isaac was not yet born). In v. 7, this will be explained. However, the importance of the father-son relationship to this chapter is pointed out by Keith Krell, who observed that the word Abraham is found 8 times in this chapter; and the word father 6 times.

I noticed about two-thirds of the way through that some of the Pulpit Commentary was really a translation with some additional information added in between the phrases. So I included some of that under translations.

Throughout this chapter, I allude to current political and historical events and note what year that this was written. I began writing this material in 2013; I completed the writing in 2015. That will explain the disparity of the dates.

With this chapter, I introduce some excellent commentary by Jack M. Ballinger, a pastor-teacher in Oklahoma. His site incorrectly linked to his studies in various books (which I have attempted to inform them of), so I was unable to refer to his work until now. The correct links are found in the footnotes.

——————————

God Gives Special Guidance to Isaac

Here is how others have translated this verse:

Ancient texts:                       Note: I compare the Hebrew text to English translations of the Latin, Syriac and Greek texts, using the Douay-Rheims translation; George Lamsa’s translation, and Sir Lancelot Charles Lee Brenton’s translation as revised and edited by Paul W. Esposito, respectively. I often update these texts with non-substantive changes (e.g., you for thou, etc.). I often use the text of the Complete Apostles’ Bible instead of Brenton’s translation, because it updates the English text.

The Septuagint was the earliest known translation of a book (circa 200 b.c.). Since this translation was made before the textual criticism had been developed into a science and because different books appear to be translated by different men, the Greek translation can sometimes be very uneven.

When there are serious disparities between my translation and Brenton’s (or the text of the Complete Apostles’ Bible), I look at the Greek text of the Septuagint (the LXX) to see if a substantive difference actually exists (and I reflect these changes in the English rendering of the Greek text). I use the Greek LXX with Strong’s numbers and morphology available for e-sword. The only problem with this resource (which is a problem for similar resources) is, there is no way to further explore Greek verbs which are not found in the New Testament. Although I usually quote the Complete Apostles’ Bible here, I have begun to make changes in the translation when their translation conflicts with the Greek and note what those changes are.

The Masoretic text is the Hebrew text with all of the vowels (vowel points) inserted (the original Hebrew text lacked vowels). We take the Masoretic text to be the text closest to the original. However, differences between the Masoretic text and the Greek, Latin and Syriac are worth noting and, once in a great while, represent a more accurate text possessed by those other ancient translators.

In general, the Latin text is an outstanding translation from the Hebrew text into Latin and very trustworthy (I say this as a non-Catholic). Unfortunately, I do not read Latin—apart from some very obvious words—so I am dependent upon the English translation of the Latin (principally, the Douay-Rheims translation).

Underlined words indicate differences in the text.

Bracketed portions of the Dead Sea Scrolls are words, letters and phrases lost in the scroll due to various types of damage. Underlined words or phrases are those in the Dead Sea Scrolls but not in the Masoretic text.

The Targum of Onkelos is actually the Pentateuchal Targumim, which are The Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan Ben Uzziel. On the Pentateuch With The Fragments of the Jerusalem Targum From the Chaldee by J. W. Etheridge, M.A. Taken from http://targum.info/targumic-texts/pentateuchal-targumim/ and first published in 1862.

Ancient texts:

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        And so is a famine in the land from to a separation the famine the first which was in days of Abraham. And so goes Isaac unto Abimelech, king of Philistines, Gerar-ward.

Targum (trans. By Cook)        And there was a mighty famine in the land of Kenaan, besides the former famine which had been in the days of Abraham; and Izhak went to Abimelek king of the Philistaee at Gerar.

Latin Vulgate                          And when a famine came in the land, after that barrenness which had happened in the days of Abraham, Isaac went to Abimelech, king of the Palestines, to Gerara.

Peshitta (Syriac)                    AND there was a famine in the land, besides the first famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went to Gadar, to Abimeleck king of the Philistines.

Septuagint (Greek)                And there was a famine in the land, besides the former famine, which was in the time of Abraham; and Isaac went to Abimelech the king of the Philistines to Gerar.

Significant differences:           Barrenness in the Latin probably refers to the famine.

Limited Vocabulary Translations:

Bible in Basic English             Then came a time of great need in the land, like that which had been before in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went to Abimelech, king of the Philistines, at Gerar.

Easy English                          Isaac and Abimelech

Now there was a *famine in Canaan. There had been a *famine in the time when Abraham was alive. But this was another *famine. Isaac went to the place called Gerar. He went to Abimelech, the king of the *Philistines.

Easy-to-Read Version            Once there was a famine [A time when there is no rain and no crops can grow. People and animals often die from lack of food and water.]. This was like the famine that happened during Abraham’s life. So Isaac went to the town of Gerar, to Abimelech the king of the Philistine people.

The Message                         There was a famine in the land, as bad as the famine during the time of Abraham. And Isaac went down to Abimelech, king of the Philistines, in Gerar.

NIRV                                      Isaac and Abimelech

There was very little food in the land. The same thing had been true earlier, in Abraham's time. Isaac went to Abimelech in Gerar. Abimelech was the king of the Philistines.

Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

Common English Bible           Isaac and Rebekah visit Gerar

When a famine gripped the land, a different one from the first famine that occurred in Abraham's time, Isaac set out toward Gerar and toward King Abimelech of the Philistines.

Contemporary English V.       Once during Abraham's lifetime, the fields had not produced enough grain, and now the same thing happened. So Isaac went to King Abimelech of the Philistines in the land of Gerar,...

New Berkeley Version           A famine visited the land in addition to the earlier famine in Abraham’s day, so Isaac moved to Gerar, to Abimelech [The name Abimelech, like the name Pharaoh in Egypt, seems to have been a title that applied to successive rulers.] the Philistine king.

New Century Version             Isaac Lies to Abimelech

Now there was a time of hunger in the land, besides the time of hunger that happened during Abraham's life. So Isaac went to the town of Gerar to see Abimelech king of the Philistines.

New Life Bible                        Now there was another time when there was no food in the land, after the time of no food in the days of Abraham. So Isaac went to Gerar, to Abimelech king of the Philistines.

New Living Translation           Isaac Deceives Abimelech

A severe famine now struck the land, as had happened before in Abraham's time. So Isaac moved to Gerar, where Abimelech, king of the Philistines, lived.

Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

American English Bible          There came a famine in the land, which was greater than past famines in the time of AbraHam. So IsaAc went to GeraRa to [see] AbiMelech, the king of the Philistines.

International Standard V        Isaac Lives in Philistia for a While

Later on, a famine swept through the land. This famine was different from the previous famine that had occurred earlier, during Abraham's lifetime. So Isaac went to Abimelech, king of the Philistines, at Gerar.

New Advent Bible                  When a famine came upon the land again, like the famine which had visited it in Abraham's time, Isaac was for leaving it; and he had reached the court of Abimelech, king of the Philistines, in Gerara,...

Today’s NIV                          The land was stricken by a famine—not the earlier famine which happened in Abraham’s time—and Isaac went to Abimelech the Philistine king at Gerar.

Translation for Translators                                 Isaac deceived King Abimelech

Some time later there was a severe ◂famine/scarcity of food► in the land. That was different from the famine that occurred when Abraham was alive. So Isaac went southeast to Gerar town, to talk to Abimelech, the king of the Philistine people-group. What happened was this: Isaac considered going to Egypt, but Yahweh appeared to him and said, "Do not go down to Egypt! Live in the land where I will tell you to go! V. 2 is included for context.

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

Ancient Roots Translinear      Famine was in the land, the first famine that had claimed the days of Abraham. Isaac went to King Abimelech of Palestine (Gaza Strip) in Gerar.

Conservapedia                       Famine struck the land, a different event from the former famine that had happened in the days of Abraham. Isaac went to Abimelech king of the Avvites, toward Gerar. Traditionally translated as "king of the Philistines." Deuteronomy 2:23 says that the Avvites lived in the Gaza Strip until a later "Caphthorite" or Mycenaean invasion (probably from Crete) drove them out; the Cretans or "Sea Peoples" continued as the "Philistines" that contended with Judges Shamgar, Jephthah, and Samson, and Kings Saul and David. In fact, the name Philistine (Hebrew פלישתי or philisth) means "one who invades or overruns or makes inroads into a territory", hence an "immigrant."

Ferar-Fenton Bible                 Isaac During a Famine Goes to Gherar

Afterwards there was a famine in the land, beside the former famine which was in the days of Abraham, so Isaac went to Abimalek, king of the Philistines of Gherar.

Lexham English Bible            Isaac and Abimelech

And there was a famine in the land, besides the former famine which was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went to Abimelech, king of the Philistines, to Gerar.

NIV – UK                                Isaac and Abimelek

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.

Catholic Bibles (those having the imprimatur):

Christian Community Bible     There was a famine in the land—a second one after the famine that had taken place in the time of Abraham—and Isaac went to Gerar, the land of Abimelech, king of the Philistines.

The Heritage Bible                 And there was a famine in the land, separate from the first famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac walked to Abimelech, king of the Palestinians, to Gerar.

New American Bible R.E.       Isaac and Abimelech.

There was a famine in the land [Gn 12:10-20.], distinct from the earlier one that had occurred in the days of Abraham, and Isaac went down to Abimelech, king of the Philistines in Gerar. The promise of land and numerous descendants given to Abraham (12:1-3; 15; 17; 22:17-18) is renewed for his son Isaac. The divine blessing to Isaac is mentioned also in vv. 12, 24, and 29.

New Jerusalem Bible             There was a famine in the country -- different from the previous famine which took place in the time of Abraham -- and Isaac went to Abimelech, the Philistine king at Gerar.

Jewish/Hebrew Names Bibles:

Complete Jewish Bible           A famine came over the land, not the same as the first famine, which had taken place when Avraham was alive. Yitz'chak went to G'rar, to Avimelekh king of the P'lishtim.

exeGeses companion Bible   YISCHAQ AND ABI MELECH

And there is a famine in the land,

apart from the first famine in the days of Abraham:

and Yischaq goes to Abi Melech

sovereign of the Peleshethiym to Gerar.

Hebrew Names Version         There was a famine in the land, besides the first famine that was in the days of Avraham. Yitzchak went to Avimelekh king of the Pelishtim, to Gerar.

Kaplan Translation                 Isaac and the Philistines

There was a famine in the land, aside from the first famine in the time of Abraham [Genesis 12:10. This chapter is the only place where we see Isaac without Abraham or Jacob, and it is here that we see Isaac's life literally as a carbon copy of Abraham's (see Genesis 26:18). While it had been Abraham's task to blaze spiritual trails, it was Isaac's mission to consolidate them.]. Isaac went to Abimelech [Probably not the same as the one involved with Abraham; see note on Genesis 20:2. According to one source, this was the previous Abimelekh's son (Targum on 26:28).] king of the Philistines in Gerar. See Genesis 20:1. It was on the boundary of the Holy Land, 10:19. From the context, it seems that Isaac was headed toward Egypt. This is difficult to understand, since Isaac lived in Beer LaChai Roi (Genesis 25:11), which is to the west of Gerar, on the way to Egypt. It is possible that Isaac went to Gerar because of Abraham's previous treaty (cf. Ramban). Alternatively, this is connected to the following sentence, and Isaac went to Gerar at God's command (Josephus, Antiquities 1:18:2). However, see note on Genesis 20:1.

Orthodox Jewish Bible           And there was a ra'av (famine) in ha'aretz, besides the ra'av harishon that was in the days of Avraham. And Yitzchak went unto Avimelech Melech Pelishtim (Philistines) unto Gerar.

The Scriptures 1998              And there was a scarcity of food in the land, besides the first scarcity of food which was in the days of Araham. And Yitsḥaq went to Aimele, sovereign of the Philistines, in Gerar.

Expanded/Embellished Bibles:

The Expanded Bible              Isaac Lies to Abimelech

Now there was a ·time of hunger [^Lfamine] in the land, besides the ·time of hunger [^Lformer famine] that happened during Abraham's life. So Isaac went to the town of Gerar [20:1] to see Abimelech king of the Philistines.

The Geneva Bible                  And there was a famine in the land [In the land of Canaan], beside the first famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went unto Abimelech king of the Philistines unto Gerar.

Kretzmann’s Commentary    Verses 1-5

The Lord Blesses Isaac

And there was a famine in the land, beside the first famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went unto Abimelech, king of the Philistines, unto Gerar. The adventures of Isaac, as related in this Chapter, have their parallels in the life of Abraham, and show that human nature does not change, but remains selfish and sinful from one generation to the next. A famine having struck Canaan, Isaac found it advisable to journey down to the land of the Philistines, the hereditary title of whose king was Abimelech.

NET Bible®                             There was a famine in the land, subsequent to the earlier famine that occurred [Heb "in addition to the first famine which was."] in the days of Abraham [This account is parallel to two similar stories about Abraham (see Gen 12:10-20; 20:1-18). Many scholars do not believe there were three similar incidents, only one that got borrowed and duplicated. Many regard the account about Isaac as the original, which then was attached to the more important person, Abraham, with supernatural elements being added. For a critique of such an approach, see R. Alter, The Art of Biblical Narrative, 47-62. It is more likely that the story illustrates the proverb "like father, like son" (see T. W. Mann, The Book of the Torah, 53). In typical human fashion the son follows his father's example of lying to avoid problems. The appearance of similar events reported in a similar way underscores the fact that the blessing has now passed to Isaac, even if he fails as his father did.]. Isaac went to Abimelech king of the Philistines at Gerar. When it comes to making an actual material change to the text, the NET Bible® is pretty good about indicating this. Since most of these corrections will be clear in the more literal translations below and within the Hebrew exegesis itself, I will not continue to list every NET Bible® footnote. Some of their notes will be reproduced in the exegesis of the chapter.

The Pulpit Commentary         And there was a famine in the land (of Canaan), beside the first (i.e. first recorded) famine that was in the days of Abraham at least a century previous. (vide Gen. 12:10) And Isaac who, since his father"s death, had been residing at Hagar"s well in the wilderness of Beersheba (Gen. 25:11) went unto Abimelech king of the Philistines unto Gerar (cf. Gen. 20:1, 2 21:22) Seventy or eighty years having elapsed since Abraham"s sojourn in Gerar, it is scarcely probable that this was the monarch who then reigned. [I did not notice until this chapter that The Pulpit Commentary essentially gives an expanded translation for each verse.]

The Voice                               Once again, a famine spread through the land, similar to the one that occurred in Abraham's time. Isaac went to the land of Gerar to appeal to King Abimelech of the Philistines.

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

Concordant Literal Version    And coming is a famine in the land, aside from the first famine which came in the days of Abraham. And going is Isaac to Abimelech, king of the Philistines, to Gerar.

Context Group Version          And there was a famine in the land { or earth }, besides the first famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went to Abimelech king of the Philistines, to Gerar.

English Standard Version      God’s Promise to Isaac

Now there was a famine in the land, besides the former famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went to Gerar to Abimelech king of the Philistines.

H. C. Leupold                                            (a) Sojourn in Philistaea (v. 1-11)

And there came a famine in the land, other than the first famine that was in the days of Abraham; and Isaac went to Abimelech, king of the Philistines, to Gerar.

NASB                                     Isaac Settles in Gerar

Now there was a famine in the land, besides the previous famine that had occurred in the days of Abraham. So Isaac went to Gerar, to Abimelech king of the Philistines.

World English Bible                There was a famine in the land, besides the first famine that was in the days of Abraham. Isaac went to Abimelech king of the Philistines, to Gerar.

Young’s Updated LT             And there is a famine in the land, besides the first famine which was in the days of Abraham, and Isaac goes unto Abimelech king of the Philistines, to Gerar.

The gist of this verse:          Because of a famine in the land, Isaac goes to Gerar, to Abimelech, the king of the Philistines.

Translation: There was a famine in the land... In the ancient world, a famine was simply a year or more with little or no rain. Without the rain, the crops did not grow or produce, so it is called a famine. As a result, there is little to eat.

Today, a recession or depression would be very similar. However, we have famines even today; and the great dust bowl of the mid-west was a time of great famine in the United States. We have a famine in portions of California—something which is in part a manmade famine—where water is not being supplied to many of the central Californian farmers. It is manmade because there is enough water; but millions of gallons of freshwater simply run out into the sea for environmental concerns.

God often uses a famine (or a recession) as one of the early stages of divine discipline on a national entity.

Nearly all of the references to the land are to the plot of ground that God gave to Abraham; over a small portion of which Abraham, and later, Isaac, traveled.

My first instinct was to say that this famine is possibly designed to cause Isaac to move to another area; but, since God speaks directly to Isaac in this chapter, using the famine may not be necessary (I am assuming that Isaac would have moved if instructed by God). So, which is it? Is it the famine or is it God speaking to Isaac? We already know that when God first told Abraham to separate from his family and move to Canaan, that he half obeyed both orders. He moved with half of his family halfway to Canaan. So, maybe God decides to move Isaac, for a whole host of reasons, but He does not first start out by saying, “Isaac, you are moving to Gerar. Saddle up.” We already know that a direct order from God is not always followed. So, God, by means of a famine, gets Isaac ready to move; then God steps in and says, “But not to Egypt; you will move where I tell you to.”

Application: When I realized that I needed to move from my home city, where I was raised, it was not, “I can’t find a job here; why not move to Texas?” I considered two other options first. God had to get me to the point where I realized, I cannot stay here and spin my wheels. Then, when my mind was focused on moving (trying hard not to move too far away), Houston, TX loomed large as a possible destination. My point was, it was a two-step process: (1) I have to move; (2) Why not consider Houston?

That is the case for Isaac. (1) he has to move; (2) but not to Egypt. Circumstances made Isaac realize that he needed to move, and then God guided him from there.

A famine, by its very nature, affects a large number of people; and it may have been God’s purpose to move these people around. It does appear that, when a large number of people are grouped together, that degeneracy can be a result. God often uses economic situations in order to move people around—many times away from these degenerate situations. In this case, we know nothing about this famine except that it causes Isaac to pick up and move elsewhere.

Steven Cole: But the interesting thing is to note that there was a famine in the land. Which land? The promised land! The land God had promised to Abraham and his descendants, later described as flowing with milk and honey. There was a famine in that land. While God easily could have supplied Isaac with plenty of food in spite of the famine around him, He did not do that. God’s chosen man had to suffer along with all his pagan Canaanite neighbors. Trials are the ordinary lot of God’s people; they always have been and always will be, until Jesus returns. Isaac did not question, “God, why are You allowing this famine in the promised land?” Isaac didn’t rebuke the famine in the name of the Lord. Granted, he didn’t respond properly. But this wasn’t the first nor would it be the last trial of this sort to come on God’s people in the promised land.

Cole continues: Trials are the normal experience of God’s people, even when they’re right where He wants them to be. Somehow we’ve picked up the notion that if God has called us to a place or to a certain ministry, we won’t encounter any problems...Former Supreme Court justice, Louis Brandeis, once said to his frustrated, impatient daughter, “My dear, if you would only recognize that life is hard, things would be so much easier for you.” 

Translation: ...apart from the first famine in the days of Abraham. This writer is clearly aware of a previous famine which occurred in the time of Abraham, which caused Abraham to go to Abimelech, the king of the Philistines in Gerar. Isaac’s knowledge of this previous event suggests that he knows what is in the Bible (up until his time in history). Much of that was written by Abraham.

This simple reference to the days of Abraham suggest that Abraham is no longer alive (which is in keeping with our timeline).

Steven Cole: Critics argue that Genesis 26 is some editor’s confused combination of the stories about Abraham’s going down into Egypt during the famine or of his going to Abimelech (see Gen. 12:10-20; 20:1-18). But the text is careful to distinguish this situation from the earlier famine, and many details differ, so there’s no reason to doubt the historical accuracy of these events.

The casual mention here signifies familiarity with the history—probably with the Scriptures—although it may not be understood by Isaac that these are the words of God. Even if Isaac recognizes that he has in his possession (in his brain) The History of God and Man from the Beginning of the World; he may not view the Bible as we do today. He accepts it as truth; he knows that it is true; but it strikes me as unlikely that he had a full understanding of the doctrine of inspiration worked out in his own mind.

In the context of that incident, the Bible does not tell us that Abraham moved there because of a famine. However, here, we are told that Abraham moved there because of a famine in the land. What is going to be clear is, there are several similar incidents which occur in both narratives, so the writer here is clearly distinguishing this as being a separate incident. There was a famine in both cases; Abraham and Isaac moved to the land of the Philistines in both cases. There was a king there known as Abimelech in both cases.

James Burton Coffman: To allege that these are simply variants of "an old folk story,"is comparable in every way to the proposition that World War I and World War II, as found in our histories, are merely variants of the old struggle between Rome and the Huns! 

Application: It ought to be quite clear that sometimes, God uses circumstances in order to move us from point A to point B.

The Pulpit Commentary estimates there to be 70–80 years between the incidents of Abraham and then Isaac going to Gerar. Reese’s Chronological Bible would give the same time frame (see The Patriarch Timeline). Thomas Constable suggests 70–97 years have elapsed between Abraham and Isaac’s time in Gerar.

In order to determine the time frame here, we make two general assumptions (1) Abraham and Sarah went to Gerar before she is impregnated with Isaac. So, we accept this narrative’s location in the Bible as also the time during which it took place. (2) Isaac and Rebekah would have gone to Gerar before Jacob and Esau are born. This means it takes place before some of the narrative back in Gen. 25. So, Abraham is 99 or 100 when they both go to Gerar; Isaac is 40 when he marries Rebekah; and Rebekah bears twins when Isaac is 60. Given these two assumptions, that places the time between these two events at 40–60 years.

Like many things in life, to come to this or that conclusion, assumptions must be made. Most people have no idea what assumptions they are making upon which they base their conclusions. Wenstrom assumes a different set of assumptions.

Translation: Isaac went to Abimelech, the king of the Philistines, to Gerar. Abimelech is a cognomen applied to a ruler of the Philistines just as Pharaoh is a cognomen of the rulers of Egypt. This is not the same person as we saw in Gen. 20, although it is the same area. Whether this was a nephew or son (or grandson or even unrelated), we are not told. This is almost a hundred years later. There are many people who, by human viewpoint, are in the most enviable positions; and, insofar as the divine viewpoint of history is concerned, we do not even know who they are by name.

ʾĂbiymelek^e (אֲבִימֶלֶךְ) [pronounced u^b-vee-MEH-lek] means, my father is Melek, my father is king; transliterated Abimelech. Strong’s #40 BDB #4. Although we do not know if this is a family name, or whether this is the designation of a king of the Philistines. However, since this is 40–100 years later, it is unlikely that this is the same person that Abraham dealt with. Because this name occurs in Genesis and Judges and Samuel (see Psalm 34 inscription); it seems mostly likely that this is an official title, just like pharaoh is.

Just as Abraham had done, Isaac moved to the land of the Philistines, apparently aware that, not really that far away, there was land that was receiving a sufficient amount of rain to avoid the famine that they were experiencing.

V. 1: And there was a famine in the land, besides the famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went to Abimelech king of the Philistines to Gerar. Isaac has been living in the Negev (which is the south portion of Judah); he has lived in Beer-lahai-roi (where God appeared to Hagar before), and appears to live there at this time (see Gen. 25:11). Gill estimates this to be only 8 miles from Gerar. Gill also suggests that Beersheba is either equivalent to Beer-lahai-roi or that these two places are very close to one another.

William Wenstrom, Jr.: “Gerar” was near the coast about twelve miles south of Gaza and about fifty miles south of Hebron, in the land of the Philistines. According to archaeological excavations, “Gerar” was a prosperous city, controlling a lucrative caravan route.

This verse is carefully worded so that we do not think that this is simply a recycled story about Abraham, but with Isaac’s name in its place. There will be several similarities. They both lived in the land during a famine; they both went to another place where the drought had not been as destructive; and they both lied about their wives to the authorities of that place. Because of these similarities, critics of Scripture would make the unwarranted claim that these are just stories floating about, and that the Bible used the same story twice, but just plugged in different names instead. However, the person recording this information (probably Isaac) knew that this was a famine in the lifetime of Isaac and that this was different from the famine which occurred during the life of Abraham. Therefore, the differences between these accounts are pointed out from the very beginning.

A famine in the land is going to be based upon a drought. Sometimes these droughts can continue for years, which increases the severity of the famine; and sometimes they continue only for a few years. But a famine in the Old Testament is equivalent to an economic downturn in modern times. Many times when such a thing occurs, it is a result of God’s judgment on the land or upon a specific population.

In such economic downturns, people often move from one place to another. We have thousands of people moving out of California and New York to Texas and Florida.

I should also point out that we do not have a time frame here. Are Jacob and Esau young adults at this point? If so, where are they? Or, have they simply not been born yet? I don’t see anything yet in this narrative to tie it to a specific point in time. Assuming that most of Genesis is in chronological order, this is taking place after Jacob and Esau have been born.

V. 1 gives us the big picture: And there was a famine in the land, besides the famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went to Abimelech king of the Philistines to Gerar. Isaac has gone to Gerar because of what God told him (which is in the next verse). Why did God send Isaac to Gerar? Possibly as God’s witness.