Blessing and Dishonor

Author: Joseph

Date: April 22, 2018

A famine had come upon the land of Canaan again, so God told Isaac to go to Gerar and dwell among the Philistines. Isaac became increasingly wealthy while living in the land of Gerar. The Philistines became envious of his prosperity and their king, Abimelech, sent Isaac and his family away to the valley of Gerar.

"Isaac was not discouraged..."

As Isaac is travelling throughout the land, he finds that all the wells that Abraham had dug have now been filled in with earth. The Philistines in an act of defiance against Abraham’s successes, did this so to discourage Isaac from settling in the land. Isaac was not discouraged, however, and attempted to unearth the wells that were filled. Isaac even gave the wells the same names that Abraham had previously called them.

The first well his servants dug in the valley of Gerar was disputed over by the local herdsmen and so the well was called “Esek” which means “strife” or “contention.” The second attempt by Isaac’s servants to dig a well was again disputed and so it was called “Sitnah” which means “accusation” or “contention,” similarly to the first well’s name. It seemed that each time Isaac attempted to find a place to settle in the valley, there was an adversary waiting to dispute with him and discourage him from settling in the land.

God had told Isaac to settle in Gerar and although Isaac had initially become successful, now he was being met with the uncomfortable reality that the people of the land did not want him to settle there. Isaac, however, still trusted in God and had his servants search again.

The next attempt to dig a well was met with success. The well was not disputed over and no one else made claim to its ownership. Isaac then named this well “Rehoboth” which literally means “wide places,” implying the idea of openness of the land. Isaac understood that this was God’s provision and said, “At last the Lord has made room for us, and we will be fruitful in the land.” God then blessed Isaac and promised to multiply his descendants.

Obeying God brings blessing, but because of the envy from those around us, we can find ourselves unsettled and accused. God had not removed his blessing from Isaac when he faced adversity from the Philistines. What we need to understand is that if we see the accusations of others as a revocation of blessing, we misunderstand why we are being mistreated. The Philistines were envious and although they managed to chase Isaac away from their land, they did not chase away God from blessing Isaac. Isaac could have easily believed that God had lost favor with him because he was unable to settle in the land, but he did not, and held steadfast in his faith and in the promise of God’s blessing.

Do not become weary from the envy of others when you are blessed by God. False accusations and aimless strife do not benefit anyone and the one instigating will gain nothing from it. Humbly accept God’s blessing and pray that those who are envious of you would come to know God and be blessed as well.

Bible Passage: Genesis 26:1-33

Scripture quotations taken from the New American Standard Bible® (NASB). www.lockman.org

Photo Credit: Efraimstochter from Pixabay.com.