Genesis 26:12-22
12 And Isaac sowed in that land, and received in the same year a hundredfold; and Jehovah blessed him. 13 And the man became great, and he became continually greater, until he was very great. 14 And he had possessions of flocks, and possessions of herds, and a great number of servants; and the Philistines envied him. 15 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 And Abimelech said to Isaac, Go from us; for thou art become much mightier than we. 17 And Isaac departed thence, and pitched his camp in the valley of Gerar, and dwelt there. 18 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 And Isaac's servants dug in the valley, and found there a well of springing water. 20 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 And they dug another well, and they strove for that also; and he called the name of it Sitnah. 22 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.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Genesis 26:12-22
Commentary on Genesis 26:12-17
(Read Genesis 26:12-17)
God blessed Isaac. Be it observed, for the encouragement of poor tenants who occupy other people's lands, and are honest and industrious, that God blessed him with a great increase. The Philistines envied Isaac. It is an instance of the vanity of the world; for the more men have of it, the more they are envied, and exposed to censure and injury. Also of the corruption of nature; for that is an ill principle indeed, which makes men grieve at the good of others. They made Isaac go out of their country. That wisdom which is from above, will teach us to give up our right, and to draw back from contentions. If we are wrongfully driven from one place, the Lord will make room for us in another.
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.