Genesis 26:12-22

¹² And Isaac soweth in that land, and findeth in that year a hundredfold, and Jehovah blesseth him; ¹³ and the man is great, and goeth on, going on and becoming great, till that he hath been very great, ¹⁴ and he hath possession of a flock, and possession of a herd, and an abundant service; and the Philistines envy him, ¹⁵ and all the wells which his father's servants digged in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines have stopped them, and fill them with dust. ¹⁶ And Abimelech saith unto Isaac, 'Go from us; for thou hast become much mightier than we;' ¹⁷ and Isaac goeth from thence, and encampeth in the valley of Gerar, and dwelleth there; ¹⁸ and Isaac turneth back, and diggeth the wells of water which they digged in the days of Abraham his father, which the Philistines do stop after the death of Abraham, and he calleth to them names according to the names which his father called them. ¹⁹ And Isaac's servants dig in the valley, and find there a well of living water, ²⁰ and shepherds of Gerar strive with shepherds of Isaac, saying, 'The water 'is' ours;' and he calleth the name of the well 'Strife,' because they have striven habitually with him; ²¹ and they dig another well, and they strive also for it, and he calleth its name 'Hatred.' ²² And he removeth from thence, and diggeth another well, and they have not striven for it, and he calleth its name Enlargements, and saith, 'For—now hath Jehovah given enlargement to us, and we have been fruitful in the land.'

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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.