Another well

Genesis 26: 23-25: “And he went up from thence to Beersheba. And the LORD 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. And he builded an altar there, and called upon the name of the LORD, and pitched his tent there: and there Isaac’s servants digged a well”

Isaac made sure that the well was secure and was confident in his actions because the Lord was with him. However, he moved from Rehoboth to Beersheba. At Rehoboth there was just one well that Isaac could use but Beersheba had plenty of water. Abraham had dug this well and made a contract with Abimelech that was consummated by the exchange of seven ewes. (Gen 21: 29-33 “And Abimelech said unto Abraham, What mean these seven ewe lambs which thou hast set by themselves? And he said, For these seven ewe lambs shalt thou take of my hand, that they may be a witness unto me, that I have digged this well. Wherefore he called that place Beersheba; because there they sware both of them. Thus they made a covenant at Beersheba: then Abimelech rose up, and Phichol the chief captain of his host, and they returned into the land of the Philistines. And Abraham planted a grove in Beersheba, and called there on the name of the LORD, the everlasting God.”) It is interesting to note that the road to Jerusalem was opened during the First World War when Beersheba was taken by Allied troops. The capture of Jerusalem led to the defeat of the Turkish Empire. These places are ancient places but they are important places. God dealt with Isaac in the same that He had dealt with Abraham, with compassion and blessing. The Lord reaffirmed His promise to Isaac after this and then Isaac built and altar and worshipped the Lord. God hadn’t forgotten His promise to Abraham and his descendants it was just that Isaac needed some confirmation so God gave Him that confirmation. Isaac felt confident enough to settle again and he dug another well to ensure the supply of water.

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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Let him look after himself

Genesis 26: 21-23: “And they digged another well, and strove for that also: and he called the name of it Sitnah. And 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 the LORD hath made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land. And he went up from thence to Beersheba.”

When Isaac faced opposition he kept trusting the Lord and got on with his business. His enemies fought over the well that he had dug so he let them have the well and dug another well. After this they left him alone so he called that place “wide open space”. There was plenty of room for everyone now. This is a reminder of Judges 6: 29-31 “And they said one to another, Who hath done this thing? And when they enquired and asked, they said, Gideon the son of Joash hath done this thing. Then the men of the city said unto Joash, Bring out thy son, that he may die: because he hath cast down the altar of Baal, and because he hath cut down the grove that was by it. And Joash said unto all that stood against him, Will ye plead for Baal? will ye save him? he that will plead for him, let him be put to death whilst it is yet morning: if he be a god, let him plead for himself, because one hath cast down his altar.” In that case Gideon had destroyed an idol and the people wanted to kill him because he had destroyed that idol. However, his father told the people that if Baal was a god then he should kill Gideon for destroying the idol. If you trust in the true God of heaven then He will take care of you, as He took care of Isaac. What is the use of having a god who can’t do anything to help himself? It must be very hard work fighting hard to look after your own god. If you do have to look after your own god then you have to wonder if there is any time left to enjoy living the life that God had given you. In the final analysis, there is the true God or everyone is their own god trying to make sure that everything happens using their own strength. If I am my own god and I die then what happens to me? There is no hope of everlasting life at all.

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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Living water

Genesis 26: 16-20: “And Abimelech said unto Isaac, Go from us; for thou art much mightier than we. And Isaac departed thence, and pitched his tent in the valley of Gerar, and dwelt there. 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. And Isaac’s servants digged in the valley, and found there a well of springing water. And the herdmen of Gerar did strive with Isaac’s herdmen, saying, The water is ours: and he called the name of the well Esek; because they strove with him.”

The Lord blessed Isaac as He had promised Abraham in Genesis 12: 2 (“And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:”) Isaac had a great name and the local king understood that when he told Isaac that he was much mightier than they were. However, the Lord also told Abraham that anyone who cursed him or his descendants would be cursed. In this case Abimelech forced Isaac to leave and thus cursed him instead of blessing him. About 400 years later, Abimelech’s descendants were driven out of the land or forced to be slaves because they had done this to Isaac all these years earlier. Of course, these people had a chance to repent of this sin; the Lord let them hear about the great things that He did when He delivered Israel from slavery in Egypt for forty years before they finally came to the Promised Land but they chose to fight rather than submitting to God. This area, in the southern part of Israel, is very dry and water is important. These people believed that if they could stop Isaac from having access to water they would rob him of his riches. The Lord Jesus Christ has promised us access to living water (see John 4: 14 “But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.”) This well of water that springs up inside people who believe in the Only Begotten Son is living water because it gives everlasting life. However, the great enemy, Satan, seeks to take this living water away from everyone who believes in the Only Begotten Son. If we know the Word of God and read it daily then Satan won’t be able to do this. (compare James 4: 7 “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”)

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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A time to stay

Genesis 26: 12-15: “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. For all the wells which his father’s servants had digged in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines had stopped them, and filled them with earth.”

This is the first time that we read about sowing seeds in the Bible. After being a nomad for many years, Isaac began a more settled life. If a person sows seeds they have to wait for the seed to grow and ripen into crops before they can reap the harvest. If a person is strictly nomadic then they can’t wait long enough for the harvest. They also don’t have the same security of food as a person who sows seeds and then keeps the crops. Slowly but surely the Lord was bringing a sense of security to Abraham’s son. Abraham didn’t take possession of any part of the land except for his wife’s grave site. Now Isaac has taken possession of enough land to grow crops. When God makes a promise, He always keeps that promise even though we have to wait for His perfect timing. However, as soon as God began to bless Isaac, his enemies tried to stop the blessing. They were jealous of the fact that the Lord blessed Isaac and they tried to make life hard for him by stopping all the wells. This is just another example to show us that hardship or delay in our lives is not necessarily a sign from God telling us that we are being punished by the Lord. There are times to wait and there are times to go forward.

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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You choose what you think

Genesis 26: 7-11: “And the men of the place asked him of his wife; and he said, She is my sister: for he feared to say, She is my wife; lest, said he, the men of the place should kill me for Rebekah; because she was fair to look upon. And 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. And 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 for her. And Abimelech said, What is this thou hast done unto us? one of the people might lightly have lien with thy wife, and thou shouldest have brought guiltiness upon us. 11 And Abimelech charged all his people, saying, He that toucheth this man or his wife shall surely be put to death.”

It is interesting to note how the son followed the same pattern as his father. Even though Isaac was not born when Abraham asked Sarah to pretend that she was his sister he still did just as his father had done in the same circumstances. Children grow up believing that their own circumstances are normal. If you, as a parent, complain about everything then your children will believe that it is right to complain. If you spend your time committing character assassination against other people then your children will believe that is the right way to behave. If a parent is depressed when their child is young then the child will grow up with a much greater chance of being depressed. If you are a control freak then your children will believe that it is right to be a control freak. However, it is only possible for one member of a couple to be a control freak. In spite of this there is a passage in Deuteronomy that informs us on our own responsibilities in these circumstances (Deut 24: 16 “The fathers shall not be put to death for the children, neither shall the children be put to death for the fathers: every man shall be put to death for his own sin.”) It doesn’t matter what happens to you when you are a child. When you are an adult you choose what you think and you, therefore, become responsible for your own actions. No one can ever blame their parents for actions that they have chosen to do themselves.

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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A famine

Genesis 26: 1-6: “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. And the LORD appeared unto him, and said, Go not down into Egypt; dwell in the land which I shall tell thee of: Sojourn 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 countries, and I will perform the oath which I sware unto Abraham thy father; And I will make thy seed to multiply as the stars of heaven, and will give unto thy seed all these countries; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; Because that Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws. And Isaac dwelt in Gerar:”

Famines and wilderness years always speak of training periods in the Bible When a person experiences a famine it is designed to bring them to a deeper relationship with the Lord. Some people try to tell us that hardship is a consequence of a particular sin in our lives but this is not the case for “He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him.” (Psalm 103: 10, 11) God’s mercy occurs when we don’t receive something that we deserve while God’s grace occurs when we receive something that we don’t deserve. However, when Moses spoke to the Israelites before they went into the Land he told them, inspired by God, that they had been in the wilderness for three reasons: “And thou shalt remember all the way which the LORD thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or no... Who fed thee in the wilderness with manna, which thy fathers knew not, that he might humble thee, and that he might prove thee, to do thee good at thy latter end; (Deut 8: 2, 16) The first reason was to humble them, not so that they would feel bad about themselves but so that they would feel good about God. The second reason was to prove them so that they would learn to keep the Lord’s commandments. God doesn’t test us to make us fail, He tests us to make us stronger. The third reason was sot that it would be good for them in the end. The same is as true today as it was when Moses spoke those words. God brings us into testing times so that we will have a deeper and richer relationship with Him, based on faith and trust in His Almighty ability. Isaac experienced a famine but God used this experience to make His promise personal for Isaac rather than just a second hand promise that God gave to his father. There was one important condition, that is, he was not to go down to Egypt. In our Christian lives we should never go back or even look back.

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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Pearls and swine

Genesis 25: 29-34: “And Jacob sod pottage: and Esau came from the field, and he was faint: And Esau said to Jacob, Feed me, I pray thee, with that same red pottage; for I am faint: therefore was his name called Edom. And Jacob said, Sell me this day thy birthright. And Esau said, Behold, I am at the point to die: and what profit shall this birthright do to me? And Jacob said, Swear to me this day; and he sware unto him: and he sold his birthright unto Jacob. Then Jacob gave Esau bread and pottage of lentiles; and he did eat and drink, and rose up, and went his way: thus Esau despised his birthright.”

We have seen that Jacob was a cheat and would do anything to get the rights that belonged to his brother. Now we find that Esau didn’t value the precious promises from God that should have been his by birth. He saw Jacob cooking some lentils one day and he was feeling hungry. Although, as a hunter, he should have had enough food for himself and extra to supply others. He was so unconcerned about the things that God was able to give him that he changed all the precious promises for a plate of food. Jacob might have been a cheat and a liar but Esau was a fool. In Matthew 7: 6 we read “Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you” Esau was given pearls but he behaved like a pig and trampled the precious things under his feet. Anyone who hears the precious message of salvation but faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and rejects it is just like Esau.

(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)

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