1 N ow 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.

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

2 T he Lord appeared to him and said, “Do not go down to Egypt; stay in the land of which I shall tell you.

And Jehovah appeared to him and said, Go not down to Egypt: dwell in the land that I shall tell thee of.

3 S ojourn in this land and I will be with you and bless you, for to you and to your descendants I will give all these lands, and I will establish the oath which I swore to your father Abraham.

Sojourn in this land; and I will be with thee and bless thee; for unto thee, and unto thy seed, I will give all these countries; and I will perform the oath which I swore unto Abraham thy father.

4 I will multiply your descendants as the stars of heaven, and will give your descendants all these lands; and by your descendants all the nations of the earth shall be blessed;

And I will multiply thy seed as the stars of heaven, and unto thy seed will I give all these countries; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth bless themselves—

5 b ecause Abraham obeyed Me and kept My charge, My commandments, My statutes and My laws.”

because that Abraham hearkened to my voice, and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.

6 S o Isaac lived in Gerar.

And Isaac dwelt at Gerar.

7 W hen the men of the place asked about his wife, he said, “ She is my sister,” for he was afraid to say, “my wife,” thinking, “ the men of the place might kill me on account of Rebekah, for she is beautiful.”

And the men of the place asked about his wife. And he said, She is my sister; for he feared to say, my wife, Lest the men of the place slay me on account of Rebecca—because she was fair in countenance.

8 I t came about, when he had been there a long time, that Abimelech king of the Philistines looked out through a window, and saw, and behold, Isaac was caressing his wife Rebekah.

And it came to pass when he had been there some time, that Abimelech the king of the Philistines looked out of the window, and saw, and behold, Isaac was dallying with Rebecca his wife.

9 T hen Abimelech called Isaac and said, “Behold, certainly she is your wife! How then did you say, ‘She is my sister’?” And Isaac said to him, “Because I said, ‘I might die on account of her.’”

Then Abimelech called Isaac, and said, Behold, she is certainly thy wife; and how saidst thou, She is my sister? and Isaac said to him, Because I said, Lest I die on account of her.

10 A bimelech said, “What is this you have done to us? One of the people might easily have lain with your wife, and you would have brought guilt upon us.”

And Abimelech said, What is this thou hast done to us? But a little and one of the people might have lain with thy wife, and thou wouldest have brought a trespass on us.

11 S o Abimelech charged all the people, saying, “He who touches this man or his wife shall surely be put to death.”

And Abimelech charged all the people, saying, He that touches this man or his wife shall certainly be put to death.

12 N ow Isaac sowed in that land and reaped in the same year a hundredfold. And the Lord blessed him,

And Isaac sowed in that land, and received in the same year a hundredfold; and Jehovah blessed him.

13 a nd the man became rich, and continued to grow richer until he became very wealthy;

And the man became great, and he became continually greater, until he was very great.

14 f or he had possessions of flocks and herds and a great household, so that the Philistines envied him.

And he had possessions of flocks, and possessions of herds, and a great number of servants; and the Philistines envied him.

15 N ow 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.

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.

16 T hen Abimelech said to Isaac, “Go away from us, for you are too powerful for us.”

And Abimelech said to Isaac, Go from us; for thou art become much mightier than we.

17 A nd Isaac departed from there and camped in the valley of Gerar, and settled there. Quarrel over the Wells

And Isaac departed thence, and pitched his camp in the valley of Gerar, and dwelt there.

18 T hen Isaac dug again the wells of water which had been dug in the days of his father Abraham, for the Philistines had stopped them up after the death of Abraham; and he gave them the same names which his father had given them.

And Isaac dug again the wells of water that they had dug in the days of Abraham his father, and that the Philistines had stopped after the death of Abraham; and he called their names after the names by which his father had called them.

19 B ut when Isaac’s servants dug in the valley and found there a well of flowing water,

And Isaac's servants dug in the valley, and found there a well of springing water.

20 t he herdsmen of Gerar quarreled with the herdsmen of Isaac, saying, “The water is ours!” So he named the well Esek, because they contended with him.

But the shepherds of Gerar strove with Isaac's shepherds, saying, The water is ours. And he called the name of the well Esek, because they had quarrelled with him.

21 T hen they dug another well, and they quarreled over it too, so he named it Sitnah.

And they dug another well, and they strove for that also; and he called the name of it Sitnah.

22 H e moved away from there and dug another well, and they did not quarrel over it; so he named it Rehoboth, for he said, “ At last the Lord has made room for us, and we will be fruitful in the land.”

And he removed thence and dug another well; and they did not strive for that. And he called the name of it Rehoboth, and said, For now Jehovah has made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land.

23 T hen he went up from there to Beersheba.

And he went up thence to Beer-sheba.

24 T he Lord appeared to him the same night and said, “ I am the God of your father Abraham; Do not fear, for I am with you. I will bless you, and multiply your descendants, For the sake of My servant Abraham.”

And Jehovah appeared to 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.

25 S o he built an altar there and called upon the name of the Lord, and pitched his tent there; and there Isaac’s servants dug a well. Covenant with Abimelech

And he built an altar there, and called upon the name of Jehovah. And he pitched his tent there; and there Isaac's servants dug a well.

26 T hen Abimelech came to him from Gerar with his adviser Ahuzzath and Phicol the commander of his army.

And Abimelech, and Ahuzzath his friend, and Phichol the captain of his host, went to him from Gerar.

27 I saac said to them, “ Why have you come to me, since you hate me and have sent me away from you?”

And Isaac said to them, Why are ye come to me, seeing ye hate me, and have driven me away from you?

28 T hey said, “We see plainly that the Lord has been with you; so we said, ‘Let there now be an oath between us, even between you and us, and let us make a covenant with you,

And they said, We saw certainly that Jehovah is with thee; and we said, Let there be then an oath between us—between us and thee, and let us make a covenant with thee,

29 t hat you will do us no harm, just as we have not touched you and have done to you nothing but good and have sent you away in peace. You are now the blessed of the Lord.’”

that thou wilt do us no wrong, as we have not touched thee, and as we have done to thee nothing but good, and have let thee go in peace; thou art now blessed of Jehovah.

30 T hen he made them a feast, and they ate and drank.

And he made them a feast, and they ate and drank.

31 I n the morning they arose early and exchanged oaths; then Isaac sent them away and they departed from him in peace.

And they rose early in the morning, and swore one to another; and Isaac sent them away, and they departed from him in peace.

32 N ow it came about on the same day, that Isaac’s servants came in and told him about the well which they had dug, and said to him, “We have found water.”

And it came to pass the same day, that Isaac's servants came, and told him concerning the well that they had dug, and said to him, We have found water.

33 S o he called it Shibah; therefore the name of the city is Beersheba to this day.

And he called it Shebah; therefore the name of the city is Beer-sheba to this day.

34 W hen Esau was forty years old he married Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Basemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite;

And Esau was forty years old, when he took as wives Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Basmath the daughter of Elon the Hittite.

35 a nd they brought grief to Isaac and Rebekah.

And they were a grief of mind to Isaac and to Rebecca.