1 A nd there was a famine in the land, besides the first famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went unto Abimelech king of the Philistines, unto Gerar.

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.

2 A nd Jehovah appeared unto him, and said, Go not down into Egypt. Dwell in the land which I shall tell thee of.

The Lord showed Himself to Isaac, and said, “Do not go to Egypt. Stay in the land I will tell you about.

3 S ojourn in this land, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee. For unto thee, and unto thy seed, I will give all these lands, and I will establish the oath which I sware unto Abraham thy father.

Live in this land and I will be with you and bring good to you. For I will give all these lands to you and your children. I will keep the promise I made to your father Abraham.

4 A nd I will multiply thy seed as the stars of heaven, and will give unto thy seed all these lands. And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed.

I will make your children and all your children’s children as many as the stars of heaven. I will give these lands to them.

5 B ecause that Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.

For Abraham obeyed Me. He did what I told him to do. He kept My Word and My Law.”

6 A nd Isaac dwelt in Gerar.

So Isaac stayed in Gerar.

7 A nd the men of the place asked him of his wife. And he said, She is my sister. For he feared to say, My wife. Lest, said he, the men of the place should kill me for Rebekah. Because she was fair to look upon.

When the men of the place asked him about his wife, he said, “She is my sister.” He was afraid to say, “She is my wife,” because he thought to himself, “The men of this place might kill me because of Rebekah, for she is beautiful.”

8 A nd it came to pass, when he had been there a long time, that Abimelech king of the Philistines looked out at a window, and saw, and, behold, Isaac was sporting with Rebekah his wife.

When Isaac had been there a long time, Abimelech king of the Philistines looked out of the window. And he saw Isaac loving his wife Rebekah.

9 A nd Abimelech called Isaac, and said, Behold, of a surety she is thy wife. And how saidst thou, She is my sister? And Isaac said unto him, Because I said, Lest I die because of her.

So Abimelech called Isaac and said, “See, she is your wife! How could you say, ‘She is my sister’?” Isaac said to him, “Because I thought I would die because of her.”

10 A nd Abimelech said, What is this thou hast done unto us? One of the people might easily have lain with thy wife, and thou wouldest have brought guiltiness upon us.

Abimelech said, “What is this you have done to us? One of the men might have lain with your wife. And you would have brought guilt upon us.”

11 A nd Abimelech charged all the people, saying, He that toucheth this man or his wife shall surely be put to death.

So Abimelech told all the people, “Whoever touches this man or his wife will be put to death.”

12 A nd Isaac sowed in that land, and found in the same year a hundredfold. And Jehovah blessed him.

Isaac planted seeds in that land. And he gathered in the same year a hundred times as much as he had planted. The Lord brought good to him.

13 A nd the man waxed great, and grew more and more until he became very great.

Isaac became rich and kept getting richer until he became a great man.

14 A nd he had possessions of flocks, and possessions of herds, and a great household. And the Philistines envied him.

For he had flocks and many cattle and many people working in his house. The Philistines became jealous of him.

15 N ow 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.

They filled all the wells with dirt that his father’s servants had dug in the days of his father Abraham.

16 A nd Abimelech said unto Isaac, Go from us. For thou art much mightier than we.

Then Abimelech said to Isaac, “Go away from us. For you are too powerful for us.”

17 A nd Isaac departed thence, and encamped in the valley of Gerar, and dwelt there.

So Isaac left that place. He put up his tents in the valley of Gerar, and lived there.

18 A nd 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.

And Isaac dug again the wells of water that had been dug in the days of his father Abraham. For the Philistines had closed them up after the death of Abraham. And he gave them the same names that his father had given them.

19 A nd Isaac's servants digged in the valley, and found there a well of springing water.

Now Isaac’s servants dug in the valley and found a well of flowing water there.

20 A nd the herdsmen of Gerar strove with Isaac's herdsmen, saying, The water is ours. And he called the name of the well Esek, because they contended with him.

The men who took care of the cattle of Gerar argued with the men who took care of Isaac’s cattle. They said, “The water belongs to us!” So Isaac gave the well the name Esek, because they argued with him.

21 A nd they digged another well, and they strove for that also. And he called the name of it Sitnah.

Then his servants dug another well. And they argued about it also. So he gave it the name Sitnah.

22 A nd he removed from thence, and digged another well. And for that they strove not. And he called the name of it Rehoboth. And he said, For now Jehovah hath made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land.

He moved away from there and dug another well. And they did not argue about it. So he gave it the name Rehoboth. For he said, “Now the Lord has made a large place for us. We will grow much in this land.”

23 A nd he went up from thence to Beer-sheba.

Then he went from there to Beersheba.

24 A nd Jehovah appeared unto him the same night, and said, I am the God of Abraham thy father. Fear not, for I am with thee, and will bless thee, and multiply thy seed for my servant Abraham's sake.

The Lord showed Himself to Isaac that same night, and said, “I am the God of your father Abraham. Do not be afraid, for I am with you. I will bring good to you, and add many to the number of your children and their children’s children, because of My servant Abraham.”

25 A nd he builded an altar there, and called upon the name of Jehovah, and pitched his tent there. And there Isaac's servants digged a well.

So Isaac built an altar there. And he called upon the name of the Lord. He put up his tent there. And there Isaac’s servants dug a well.

26 T hen Abimelech went to him from Gerar, and Ahuzzath his friend, and Phicol the captain of his host.

Then Abimelech came to him from Gerar, with his friend Ahuzzath, and Phicol, the leader of his army.

27 A nd Isaac said unto them, Wherefore are ye come unto me, seeing ye hate me, and have sent me away from you?

Isaac said to them, “Why have you come to me when you hate me and have sent me away from you?”

28 A nd they said, We saw plainly that Jehovah was with thee. And we said, Let there now be an oath betwixt us, even betwixt us and thee, and let us make a covenant with thee,

They said, “It is easy for us to see that the Lord is with you. So we said, ‘Let there now be a promise between us, between you and us. Let us make an agreement with you,

29 t hat thou wilt do us no hurt, as we have not touched thee, and as we have done unto thee nothing but good, and have sent thee away in peace. Thou art now the blessed of Jehovah.

that you will not hurt us in any way. For we have not touched you, and have done nothing to you but good. We sent you away in peace. And you now have the Lord’s favor.’”

30 A nd he made them a feast, and they did eat and drink.

So Isaac made a special supper for them, and they ate and drank.

31 A nd they rose up betimes in the morning, and sware one to another. And Isaac sent them away, and they departed from him in peace.

They got up early in the morning and made promises to each other. Then Isaac sent them away, and they left him in peace.

32 A nd it came to pass the same day, that Isaac's servants came, and told him concerning the well which they had digged, and said unto him, We have found water.

That same day Isaac’s servants came and told him about the well they had dug. They said to him, “We have found water.”

33 A nd he called it Shibah. Therefore the name of the city is Beer-sheba unto this day.

So he gave the well the name Shibah. So the name of the city is Beersheba to this day.

34 A nd when Esau was forty years old he took to wife Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Basemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite.

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

35 A nd they were a grief of mind unto Isaac and to Rebekah.

And they made life full of sorrow for Isaac and Rebekah.