And Isaac’s servants digged in the valley, and found there a well of springing water.
A famine brought Isaac, as heir of the covenant after Abraham's death, to dwell in Gerar in the land of the Philistines, where he received abundant blessing from God. There he re-dug his father's wells that the Philistines had stopped and filled with earth, calling them by the old names his father had given them. The digging belongs to God's providential dealings with Abraham's chosen family through whom the Seed would come. It shows God's special providence over Isaac as one of the progenitors of the promised Seed.
His servants dug in the valley, the valley of Gerar, and found there a well of spring water. It was springing or flowing water, an artesian or flowing well, living water that is continually moving and thereby manifests life. The well was a valuable addition to his possessions, supplying water for his flocks and herds.
The well was doubly his by inheritance from Abraham and by digging it again as new. It was even more his because the Philistines by filling it when open had shown they did not want it. Yet the Philistines claimed the water as theirs and contended with Isaac's herdsmen over it. With lamb-like submission and refusal to strive Isaac yielded the well rather than fight for what was altogether his by every right. He yielded even at great inconvenience and apparent loss and more than justice required, the opposite of what Ishmael would do. He named it Esek, meaning strife, and the episode belongs to his life marked by peace and meekness in yielding wells and rights rather than contending.
Because Isaac refused to contend for his rights and committed his cause to God, God worked for him and made his work succeed. His faithful, practical work and life guided by God's instruction brought success and led others to recognize that the Lord was with him. God rewarded and encouraged him with peace with his enemies and with room and prosperity away from his tormentors, while guiding his judgment. This yielding shows which of Abraham's two sons a person belongs to, for these are the two covenants.
A famine brought Isaac, as heir of the covenant after Abraham's death, to dwell in Gerar in the land of the Philistines, where he received abundant blessing from God. There he re-dug his father's wells that the Philistines had stopped and filled with earth, calling them by the old names his father had given them. The digging belongs to God's providential dealings with Abraham's chosen family through whom the Seed would come. It shows God's special providence over Isaac as one of the progenitors of the promised Seed.
His servants dug in the valley, the valley of Gerar, and found there a well of spring water. It was springing or flowing water, an artesian or flowing well, living water that is continually moving and thereby manifests life. The well was a valuable addition to his possessions, supplying water for his flocks and herds.
The well was doubly his by inheritance from Abraham and by digging it again as new. It was even more his because the Philistines by filling it when open had shown they did not want it. Yet the Philistines claimed the water as theirs and contended with Isaac's herdsmen over it. With lamb-like submission and refusal to strive Isaac yielded the well rather than fight for what was altogether his by every right. He yielded even at great inconvenience and apparent loss and more than justice required, the opposite of what Ishmael would do. He named it Esek, meaning strife, and the episode belongs to his life marked by peace and meekness in yielding wells and rights rather than contending.
Because Isaac refused to contend for his rights and committed his cause to God, God worked for him and made his work succeed. His faithful, practical work and life guided by God's instruction brought success and led others to recognize that the Lord was with him. God rewarded and encouraged him with peace with his enemies and with room and prosperity away from his tormentors, while guiding his judgment. This yielding shows which of Abraham's two sons a person belongs to, for these are the two covenants.