Genesis 26 - Lexham English Bible (LEB)

Isaac and Abimelech

26 And there was a famine in the land, besides the former famine which was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went to Abimelech, king of the Philistines, to Gerar. 2 And Yahweh appeared to him and said, “Do not go down to Egypt; dwell in the land which I will show to you. 3 Dwell as an alien in this land, and I will be with you, and will bless you, for I will give all these lands to you and to your descendants, and I will establish the oath that I swore to Abraham you father. 4 And I will multiply your descendants like the stars of heaven, and I will give to your descendants all these lands. And all nations of the earth will be blessed through your offspring, 5 because Abraham listened to my voice and kept my charge: my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.”

6 So Isaac settled in Gerar. 7 When the men of the place asked concerning his wife, he said, “She is my sister,” for he was afraid to say, “my wife,” thinking[a] “the men of the place will kill me on account of Rebekah, for she was beautiful.”[b] 8 And it happened that, when he had been there a long time,[c] Abimelech the king of the Philistines looked through the window, and saw—behold—Isaac was fondling Rebekah his wife. 9 And Abimelech called Isaac[d] and said, “Surely she is your wife. Now why did you say ‘She is my sister’?” And Isaac said to him, “Because I thought I would die on account of her.” 10 And Abimelech said, “What is this you have done to us? One of the people might easily have slept with your wife! Then you would have brought guilt upon us!” 11 Then Abimelech instructed all the people, saying, “The one who touches this man or his wife shall certainly die.”

12 And Isaac sowed in that land and reaped in that same year a hundredfold, and Yahweh blessed him. 13 And the man became wealthier and wealthier[e] until he was exceedingly wealthy. 14 And he possessed sheep and cattle and many servants, so that the Philistines envied him. 15 And the Philistines stopped up all the wells that the servants of his father had dug in the days of Abraham his father. They filled them with earth. 16 And Abimelech said to Isaac, “Go away from us, for you have become much too powerful for us.” 17 So Isaac departed from there and camped in the valley of Gerar, and settled there. 18 And Isaac dug again the wells of water which they had dug in the days of his father Abraham, which the Philistines had stopped up after the death of Abraham. And he gave[f] to them the same names[g] which his father had given[h] them. 19 And when the servants of Isaac dug in the valley, they found a well of fresh water there. 20 Then the herdsmen of Gerar quarreled with the herdsmen of Isaac, saying, “The water is ours.” And he called the name of the well Esek, because they contended with him. 21 And they dug another well, and they quarreled over it also. And he called its name Sitnah. 22 Then he moved from there and dug another well, and they did not quarrel over it. And he called its name Rehoboth, and said, “Now Yahweh has made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land.” 23 And from there he went up to Beersheba. 24 And Yahweh appeared to him that night and said, “I am the God of your father Abraham. Do not be afraid, for I am with you, and I will bless you and make your descendants numerous for the sake of my servant Abraham.” 25 And he built an altar there and called on the name of Yahweh. And he pitched his tent there, and the servants of Isaac dug a well there. 26 Then Abimelech went to him from Gerar with Ahuzzath his friend and Phicol his army commander. 27 And Isaac said to them, “Why have you come to me? You hate me and sent me away from you.” 28 And they said, “We see clearly that Yahweh has been with you, so we thought[i] let there be an oath between us—between us and you—and let us make[j] a covenant with you 29 that you may not do us harm just as we have not touched you, but have only done good to you and sent you away in peace. You are now blessed by Yahweh.” 30 So he made a meal for them, and they ate and drank. 31 And they arose early in the morning and each one swore to the other,[k] and Isaac sent them away. And they left him in peace. 32 And it happened that on that same day the servants of Isaac came and told him about the well that they had dug. And they said, “We have found water!” 33 And he called it Sheba. Therefore the name of the city is Beersheba unto this day.

34 And when Esau was forty years old he took as wife Judith, daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Basemath, daughter of Elon the Hittite. 35 And they made life bitter[l] for Isaac and Rebekah.

Footnotes

  1. Genesis 26:7 Or “lest”
  2. Genesis 26:7 Literally “good of appearance”
  3. Genesis 26:8 Literally “when the days there were long to him”
  4. Genesis 26:9 Or “to Isaac”
  5. Genesis 26:13 Literally “became great and went, going and became great”
  6. Genesis 26:18 Or “called”
  7. Genesis 26:18 Literally “names as names”
  8. Genesis 26:18 Or “called”
  9. Genesis 26:28 Or “said”
  10. Genesis 26:28 Literally “cut”
  11. Genesis 26:31 Or “to his brother”
  12. Genesis 26:35 Literally “they caused bitterness of spirit”

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Genesis 26 - Young's Literal Translation (YLT)

26 And there is a famine in the land, besides the first famine which was in the days of Abraham, and Isaac goeth unto Abimelech king of the Philistines, to Gerar. 2 And Jehovah appeareth unto him, and saith, `Go not down towards Egypt, tabernacle in the land concerning which I speak unto thee, 3 soj...
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Genesis 26 - Wycliffe Bible (WYC)

26 Forsooth for hunger rose on the land, after that barrenness that befelled in the days of Abraham, Isaac went forth to Abimelech, king of Palestines, in Gerar. (And another famine arose in the land, like the one which had come in Abraham’s days, and Isaac went to Abimelech, the king of the Philist...
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Genesis 26 - World English Bible (WEB)

26 There was a famine in the land, in addition to the first famine that was in the days of Abraham. Isaac went to Abimelech king of the Philistines, to Gerar. 2 Yahweh appeared to him, and said, “Don’t go down into Egypt. Live in the land I will tell you about. 3 Live in this land, and I will be w...
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Genesis 26 - The Voice (VOICE)

26 Once again, a famine spread through the land, similar to the one that occurred in Abraham’s time. Isaac went to the land of Gerar to appeal to King Abimelech of the Philistines. 2 The Eternal appeared in a vision to Isaac.Eternal One: Don’t go down to Egypt, Isaac. Instead settle in the land I w...
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Genesis 26 - Tree of Life Version (TLV)

Confirming the Covenant with Isaac26 Now there was a famine in the land—aside from the previous famine that happened in Abraham’s days. So Isaac went to King Abimelech of the Philistines, to Gerar. 2 Then Adonai appeared to him and said, “Do not go down to Egypt. Dwell in the land about which I tel...
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Genesis 26 - Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (RSVCE)

Isaac and Abimelech26 Now there was a famine in the land, besides the former famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went to Gerar, to Abim′elech king of the Philistines. 2 And the Lord appeared to him, and said, “Do not go down to Egypt; dwell in the land of which I shall tell you. 3 So...
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Genesis 26 - Revised Standard Version (RSV)

Isaac and Abimelech26 Now there was a famine in the land, besides the former famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went to Gerar, to Abim′elech king of the Philistines. 2 And the Lord appeared to him, and said, “Do not go down to Egypt; dwell in the land of which I shall tell you. 3 So...
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Genesis 26 - New Revised Standard Version, Anglicised (NRSVA)

Isaac and Abimelech26 Now there was a famine in the land, besides the former famine that had occurred in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went to Gerar, to King Abimelech of the Philistines. 2 The Lord appeared to Isaac[a] and said, ‘Do not go down to Egypt; settle in the land that I shall show you. ...
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Genesis 26 - New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

Isaac and Abimelech26 Now there was a famine in the land, besides the former famine that had occurred in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went to Gerar, to King Abimelech of the Philistines.(A)2 The Lord appeared to Isaac[a] and said, “Do not go down to Egypt; settle in the land that I shall show you....
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Genesis 26 - New Living Translation (NLT)

Isaac Deceives Abimelech26 A severe famine now struck the land, as had happened before in Abraham’s time. So Isaac moved to Gerar, where Abimelech, king of the Philistines, lived. 2 The Lord appeared to Isaac and said, “Do not go down to Egypt, but do as I tell you. 3 Live here as a foreigner in thi...
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Genesis 26 - New Life Version (NLV)

Isaac and Abimelech26 Now there was another time when there was no food in the land, after the time of no food in the days of Abraham. So Isaac went to Gerar, to Abimelech king of the Philistines. 2 The Lord showed Himself to Isaac, and said, “Do not go to Egypt. Stay in the land I will tell you ab...
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Genesis 26 - New King James Version (NKJV)

Isaac and Abimelech26 There was a famine in the land, besides (A)the first famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went to (B)Abimelech king of the Philistines, in Gerar. 2 Then the Lord appeared to him and said: (C)“Do not go down to Egypt; live in (D)the land of which I shall tell you. ...
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Genesis 26 - New International Version - UK (NIVUK)

Isaac and Abimelek26 Now there was a famine in the land – besides the previous famine in Abraham’s time – and Isaac went to Abimelek king of the Philistines in Gerar. 2 The Lord appeared to Isaac and said, ‘Do not go down to Egypt; live in the land where I tell you to live. 3 Stay in this land for...
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Genesis 26 - New International Version (NIV)

Isaac and Abimelek(A)26 Now there was a famine in the land(B)—besides the previous famine in Abraham’s time—and Isaac went to Abimelek king of the Philistines(C) in Gerar.(D) 2 The Lord appeared(E) to Isaac and said, “Do not go down to Egypt;(F) live in the land where I tell you to live.(G) 3 Stay i...
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Genesis 26 - New International Reader's Version (NIRV)

Isaac and Abimelek26 There was very little food in the land. The same thing had been true earlier, in Abraham’s time. Isaac went to Abimelek in Gerar. Abimelek was the king of the Philistines. 2 The Lord appeared to Isaac and said, “Do not go down to Egypt. Live in the land where I tell you to live...
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Genesis 26 - New English Translation (NET)

Isaac and Abimelech26 There was a famine in the land, subsequent to the earlier famine that occurred[a] in the days of Abraham.[b] Isaac went to Abimelech king of the Philistines at Gerar. 2 The Lord appeared to Isaac and said, “Do not go down to Egypt;[c] settle down in the land that I will point ...
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