Genesis 26:1, commentary and pictures

There was a famine in the land in Isaac's time after Abraham's death, distinct from the first famine in the days of Abraham. Because of the famine Isaac went to Gerar in Philistine territory to Abimelech its king to seek relief. The Lord told him not to go down into Egypt but to sojourn and dwell where He would show him, and Isaac remained there, sowed, prospered, and was abundantly blessed because God was with him. The verse introduces the renewal to Isaac in person of the oath and everlasting covenant first made to Abraham, that God would be with him, give all these countries to him and his seed, multiply his seed as the stars of heaven, and bless all nations in his seed. That same promise rested on the same condition as with Abraham, obedience to God's voice, charge, commandments, statutes, and laws, showing God's law was already the basis of His covenant long before Sinai and remains the rule of righteousness for inheriting Abraham's blessing.

Famine and Journey to Gerar

A famine arose in the land in Isaac's time, beside and distinct from the first famine that had been in the days of Abraham. It struck Canaan in the region of Hebron after Abraham's death. Because of the famine Isaac went to Gerar in Philistine territory, in the land of the Philistines, unto Abimelech king of the Philistines to seek relief. The famine was the reason for his journey, and the verse begins the account of his going into the country of the Philistines.

The Lord directed him not to go down into Egypt but to sojourn and dwell in the land He would tell him of and to remain in that Philistine land. Isaac sowed there and prospered and became great, and God was with him and blessed him abundantly there.

His circumstances in Gerar echoed Abraham's earlier stay in Gerar, and the verse begins the account of his life as following in his father Abraham's way. The verse belongs to God's special providences over the progenitors of the promised Seed. It introduces the account of Isaac and his family, including the defects of his two sons and Jacob's eventual victory when he became Israel, prevailer with God.

Covenant Promise Renewed to Isaac

Genesis 26:1 introduces the explicit renewal to Isaac in person of the promise, oath, and everlasting covenant of the inheritance of the earth first made to Abraham, with all that the original promises involved. When famine came beside the first famine in the days of Abraham and Isaac went unto Abimelech king of the Philistines unto Gerar, the Lord appeared to him and told him not to go down into Egypt but to dwell and sojourn in the land He would tell him of, promising to be with him and bless him. God promised to give unto Isaac and unto his seed all these countries and to perform the oath sworn unto Abraham his father, to multiply his seed as the stars of heaven and give unto his seed all these countries, and that in his seed all the nations of the earth would be blessed. The inclusion of his seed shows Isaac alone was not the seed referred to in the promise to Abraham. Because the promise of the land was spoken to Isaac himself in person, its fulfillment cannot be the later possession of Canaan by his descendants under Joshua but must give the land to Isaac himself, requiring a future inheritance beyond what Joshua led Israel into.

The promised inheritance is everlasting and future, not merely a temporary possession of Canaan, since Abraham died without receiving it. The everlasting covenant renewed to Isaac carried all that the original promises involved, especially God's gift of His Son in human flesh as the power by which all things would be restored. During the famine when Isaac went to Gerar, the central promise renewed to him was the gift of the Son of God in human flesh, through whom God would restore all things. The promises to Isaac, together with God's promises to Abraham and Jacob, are given as a reason Judah was spared.

Since the same promise made to Abraham was made to Isaac, it rested on the same stated condition that Abraham obeyed God's voice and kept His charge, commandments, statutes, and laws. Abraham's obedience included teaching his children to follow the same way of life, and the blessing came upon Isaac on that account. The law is the basis of the covenant and the rule of righteousness, and those who transgress it and remain under its curse cannot inherit Abraham's blessing.

Genesis 26:1-5 proves there was law from Adam to Moses, and that God's law was already the basis of His covenant with Abraham and was not first introduced at Sinai. The law in view is the word commanded to a thousand generations, confirmed to Jacob for a law and to Israel for an everlasting covenant, where commanded to a thousand generations denotes perpetuity as in showing mercy to thousands of them that love God and keep His commandments. As the law is the condition of the blessings, transgressors under its curse cannot inherit them unless the curse is removed, the blessing of Abraham is identical with the blessing of the gospel, and people now stand related to God's commanded covenant just as Abraham did.

Witness and Missionary Example

Genesis 26:1 places Isaac in Gerar among the Philistines, come to Abimelech king of the Philistines, during a famine after Abraham's death like the earlier famine in Abraham's time. His life there stands as a missionary example, for he followed divine instruction in farming and fruit raising. His faithful, practical life led others to recognize that God was with him. His abundant harvest and greatness showed the surrounding people that his God was greater than their gods.

Their envy led them to ask him to leave, yet Abimelech later came to make peace with him, acknowledging again the superiority of Isaac's God. Facing that famine and going to Gerar shows a patriarch preserved during famine in Africa.