18 Then 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. 19 But when Isaac's servants dug in the valley and found there a well of flowing water , 20 the herdsmen of Gerar quarreled with the herdsmen of Isaac , saying , "The water is ours!" So he named e the well Esek , because they contended with him. 21 Then they dug another well , and they quarreled over it too , so he named e it Sitnah . 22 He moved away from there and dug another well , and they did not quarrel over it; so he named e it Rehoboth , for he said , " At last e the Lord has made room for us, and we will be fruitful in the land ." 23 Then he went up from there to Beersheba . 24 The 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 ." 25 So 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 .
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Genesis 26:18-25
Commentary on Genesis 26:18-25
(Read Genesis 26:18-25)
Isaac met with much opposition in digging wells. Two were called Contention and Hatred. See the nature of worldly things; they make quarrels, and are occasions of strife; and what is often the lot of the most quiet and peaceable; those who avoid striving, yet cannot avoid being striven with. And what a mercy it is to have plenty of water; to have it without striving for it! The more common this mercy is, the more reason to be thankful for it. At length Isaac digged a well, for which they strove not. Those that study to be quiet, seldom fail of being so. When men are false and unkind, still God is faithful and gracious; and his time to show himself so is, when we are most disappointed by men. The same night that Isaac came weary and uneasy to Beer-sheba, God brought comforts to his soul. Those may remove with comfort who are sure of God's presence.