Genesis · Bible in Basic English
Genesis 26 Bible in Basic English
Audio: World English Bible (WEB), read by Winfred W. Henson · About the recordings
1 Then came a time of great need in the land, like that which had been before in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went to Abimelech, king of the Philistines, at Gerar.
1 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 And the Lord came to him in a vision and said, Do not go down to Egypt; keep in the land of which I will give you knowledge:
2 Yahweh appeared to him, and said, “Don’t go down into Egypt. Live in the land I will tell you about.
3 Keep in this land, and I will be with you and give you my blessing; for to you and to your seed will I give all these lands, giving effect to the oath which I made to your father Abraham;
3 Live in this land, and I will be with you, and will bless you. For I will give to you, and to your offspring, all these lands, and I will establish the oath which I swore to Abraham your father.
4 I will make your seed like the stars of heaven in number, and will give them all these lands, and your seed will be a blessing to all the nations of the earth;
4 I will multiply your offspring as the stars of the sky, and will give all these lands to your offspring. In your offspring all the nations of the earth will be blessed,
5 Because Abraham gave ear to my voice and kept my words, my rules, my orders, and my laws.
5 because Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my requirements, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.”
6 So Isaac went on living in Gerar;
6 Isaac lived in Gerar.
7 And when he was questioned by the men of the place about his wife, he said, She is my sister; fearing to say, She is my wife; for, he said, the men of the place may put me to death on account of Rebekah; because she is very beautiful.
7 The men of the place asked him about his wife. He said, “She is my sister,” for he was afraid to say, “My wife”, lest, he thought, “the men of the place might kill me for Rebekah, because she is beautiful to look at.”
8 And when he had been there for some time, Abimelech, king of the Philistines, looking through a window, saw Isaac playing with Rebekah his wife.
8 When he had been there a long time, Abimelech king of the Philistines looked out at a window, and saw, and, behold, Isaac was caressing Rebekah, his wife.
9 And he said to Isaac, It is clear that she is your wife: why then did you say, She is my sister? And Isaac said, For fear that I might be put to death because of her.
9 Abimelech called Isaac, and said, “Behold, surely she is your wife. Why did you say, ‘She is my sister’?” Isaac said to him, “Because I said, ‘Lest I die because of her.’”
10 Then Abimelech said, What have you done to us? one of the people might well have had connection with your wife, and the sin would have been ours.
10 Abimelech said, “What is this you have done to us? One of the people might easily have lain with your wife, and you would have brought guilt on us!”
11 And Abimelech gave orders to his people that anyone touching Isaac or his wife was to be put to death.
11 Abimelech commanded all the people, saying, “He who touches this man or his wife will surely be put to death.”
12 Now Isaac, planting seed in that land, got in the same year fruit a hundred times as much, for the blessing of the Lord was on him.
12 Isaac sowed in that land, and reaped in the same year one hundred times what he planted. Yahweh blessed him.
13 And his wealth became very great, increasing more and more;
13 The man grew great, and grew more and more until he became very great.
14 For he had great wealth of flocks and herds and great numbers of servants; so that the Philistines were full of envy.
14 He had possessions of flocks, possessions of herds, and a great household. The Philistines envied him.
15 Now all the water-holes, which his father's servants had made in the days of Abraham, had been stopped up with earth by the Philistines.
15 Now all the wells which his father’s servants had dug in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines had stopped, and filled with earth.
16 And Abimelech said to Isaac, Go away from us, for you are stronger than we are.
16 Abimelech said to Isaac, “Go away from us, for you are much mightier than we.”
17 So Isaac went away from there, and put up his tents in the valley of Gerar, making his living-place there.
17 Isaac departed from there, encamped in the valley of Gerar, and lived there.
18 And he made again the water-holes which had been made in the days of Abraham his father, and which had been stopped up by the Philistines; and he gave them the names which his father had given them.
18 Isaac dug again the wells of water, which they had dug in the days of Abraham his father, for the Philistines had stopped them after the death of Abraham. He called their names after the names by which his father had called them.
19 Now Isaac's servants made holes in the valley, and came to a spring of flowing water.
19 Isaac’s servants dug in the valley, and found there a well of flowing water.
20 But the herdmen of Gerar had a fight with Isaac's herdmen, for they said, The spring is ours: so he gave the spring the name of Esek, because there was a fight about it.
20 The herdsmen of Gerar argued with Isaac’s herdsmen, saying, “The water is ours.” So he called the name of the well Esek, because they contended with him.
21 Then they made another water-hole, and there was a fight about that, so he gave it the name of Sitnah.
21 They dug another well, and they argued over that, also. So he called its name Sitnah.
22 Then he went away from there, and made another water-hole, about which there was no fighting: so he gave it the name of Rehoboth, for he said, Now the Lord has made room for us, and we will have fruit in this land.
22 He left that place, and dug another well. They didn’t argue over that one. So he called it Rehoboth. He said, “For now Yahweh has made room for us, and we will be fruitful in the land.”
23 And from there he went on to Beer-sheba.
23 He went up from there to Beersheba.
24 That night the Lord came to him in a vision, and said, I am the God of your father Abraham: have no fear for I am with you, blessing you, and your seed will be increased because of my servant Abraham.
24 Yahweh appeared to him the same night, and said, “I am the God of Abraham your father. Don’t be afraid, for I am with you, and will bless you, and multiply your offspring for my servant Abraham’s sake.”
25 Then he made an altar there, and gave worship to the name of the Lord, and he put up his tents there, and there his servants made a water-hole.
25 He built an altar there, and called on Yahweh’s name, and pitched his tent there. There Isaac’s servants dug a well.
26 And Abimelech had come to him from Gerar, with Ahuzzath his friend and Phicol, the captain of his army.
26 Then Abimelech went to him from Gerar with Ahuzzath his friend, and Phicol the captain of his army.
27 And Isaac said to them, Why have you come to me, seeing that in your hate for me you sent me away from you?
27 Isaac said to them, “Why have you come to me, since you hate me, and have sent me away from you?”
28 And they said, We saw clearly that the Lord was with you: so we said, Let there be an oath between us and you, and let us make an agreement with you;
28 They said, “We saw plainly that Yahweh was with you. We said, ‘Let there now be an oath between us, even between us and you, and let’s make a covenant with you,
29 That you will do us no damage, even as we put no hand on you, and did you nothing but good, and sent you away in peace: and now the blessing of the Lord is on you.
29 that you will do us no harm, as we have not touched you, and as we have done to you nothing but good, and have sent you away in peace.’ You are now the blessed of Yahweh.”
30 Then he made a feast for them, and they all had food and drink.
30 He made them a feast, and they ate and drank.
31 And early in the morning they took an oath one to the other: then Isaac sent them away and they went on their way in peace.
31 They rose up some time in the morning, and swore an oath to one another. Isaac sent them away, and they departed from him in peace.
32 And that day Isaac's servants came to him and gave him word of the water-hole which they had made, and said to him, We have come to water.
32 The same day, Isaac’s servants came, and told him concerning the well which they had dug, and said to him, “We have found water.”
33 And he gave it the name of Shibah: so the name of that town is Beer-sheba to this day.
33 He called it “Shibah”. Therefore the name of the city is “Beersheba” to this day.
34 And when Esau was forty years old, he took as his wives Judith, the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Basemath, the daughter of Elon the Hittite:
34 When Esau was forty years old, he took as wife Judith, the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Basemath, the daughter of Elon the Hittite.
35 And Isaac and Rebekah had grief of mind because of them.
35 They grieved Isaac’s and Rebekah’s spirits.
People & places in this chapter
From this site's family tree and Bible maps, only where those guides cite this chapter.
People
Abimelech
King of Gerar who took Sarah, was warned by God in a dream and returned her to Abraham, and made a covenant with Abraham at Beersheba; an Abimelech king of the Philistines at…
Cited in the guide: Genesis 20:2–3; Genesis 21:22–27; Genesis 26:1
Ahuzzath
Adviser of Abimelech who came with him and Phicol to Isaac at Beersheba to ask for a covenant.
Cited in the guide: Genesis 26:26
Basemath
Daughter of Elon the Hittite, whom Esau took as a wife at age forty; she and Judith brought grief to Isaac and Rebekah, while Genesis 36:2 calls Elon the Hittite's daughter,…
Cited in the guide: Genesis 26:34–35
Beeri
A Hittite named only as the father of Esau's wife Judith.
Cited in the guide: Genesis 26:34
Elon
A Hittite named as the father of Esau's wife Basemath in Genesis 26:34 and of Esau's wife Adah in Genesis 36:2.
Cited in the guide: Genesis 26:34; Genesis 36:2
Esau
Isaac's elder son, who traded his birthright for a bowl of stew.
Cited in the guide: Genesis 25–27; 36
Isaac
The long-promised son, nearly offered on Moriah, through whom the covenant continued.
Cited in the guide: Genesis 21–27
Judith
Daughter of Beeri the Hittite, whom Esau took as a wife at age forty; she and Basemath brought grief to Isaac and Rebekah.
Cited in the guide: Genesis 26:34–35
Phicol
Commander of Abimelech's army, who stood with him in the covenant at Beersheba with Abraham and again in the covenant with Isaac.
Cited in the guide: Genesis 21:22; Genesis 21:32; Genesis 26:26
Rebekah
Wife of Isaac and mother of the twins Jacob and Esau.
Cited in the guide: Genesis 24-27
Cross references (33)
Related passages for each verse, from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge as collected and ranked by readers at OpenBible.info.
- 1 Genesis 12:10; Genesis 25:11; Genesis 21:22–32; Genesis 20:1–2
- 2 Genesis 12:7; Genesis 18:1; Genesis 17:1; Genesis 12:1; Psalm 37:3
- 3 Genesis 28:15; Psalm 105:9; Genesis 22:16–18; Hebrews 11:9; Genesis 17:8
- 4 Acts 3:25; Genesis 15:5; Genesis 12:2–3; Galatians 3:8; Genesis 22:17–18
- 5 Matthew 7:24; Genesis 22:18; Genesis 22:16; James 2:21; Psalm 112:1–2
- 6 Genesis 20:1
- 7 Proverbs 29:25; Genesis 20:2; Genesis 12:13; Genesis 24:16; Genesis 20:12–13
- 8 Isaiah 62:5; Proverbs 5:18–19; Proverbs 7:6; Song of Songs 2:9; Judges 5:28
- 10 Genesis 12:18–19; Genesis 20:9–10
- 11 Psalm 105:15; Genesis 20:6; Proverbs 6:29; Zechariah 2:8
- 12 Mark 4:8; Genesis 26:3; Zechariah 8:12; 2 Corinthians 9:10–11; Genesis 24:1
- 13 Proverbs 10:22; Psalm 112:3; Genesis 24:35
- 14 Genesis 37:11; Job 1:3; Job 5:2; Proverbs 27:4; Proverbs 10:22
- 15 Genesis 21:30; Genesis 21:25
- 16 Exodus 1:9
- 18 Zechariah 13:2; Psalm 16:4; Genesis 21:31; Hosea 2:17; Numbers 32:38
- 19 John 4:10–11; John 7:38; Song of Songs 4:15
- 20 Genesis 21:25
- 21 Ezra 4:6
- 22 Genesis 17:6; Exodus 1:7; Psalm 118:5; Genesis 41:52; Genesis 28:3
- 23 Genesis 46:1; Judges 20:1; Genesis 21:31
- 24 Genesis 15:1; Exodus 3:6; Genesis 17:7; Acts 7:32; Genesis 24:12
- 25 Genesis 13:18; Psalm 116:17; Genesis 12:7–8; Genesis 35:1; Genesis 33:20
- 26 Genesis 21:22–32; Genesis 20:3
- 27 Genesis 26:16; Judges 11:7; Acts 7:35; Acts 7:9; Acts 7:27
- 28 Genesis 21:22–23; Isaiah 45:14; Isaiah 61:9; Genesis 21:31–32; Joshua 3:7
- 29 Genesis 24:31; Genesis 21:22; Genesis 12:2; Psalm 115:15; Genesis 22:17
- 30 Genesis 19:3; Hebrews 12:14; Romans 12:18; Genesis 31:54; 1 Peter 4:9
- 31 1 Samuel 30:15; Genesis 25:33; Genesis 21:31–32; 1 Samuel 20:16–17; Genesis 31:44
- 32 Proverbs 10:4; Matthew 7:7; Proverbs 13:4; Genesis 26:25; Proverbs 2:4–5
- 33 Genesis 21:31; Genesis 26:28
- 34 Genesis 36:2; Genesis 36:13; Exodus 34:16; Genesis 24:3; Genesis 28:9
- 35 Genesis 27:46–28:2; Genesis 28:8; Genesis 6:2
Cross references: OpenBible.info (CC BY), drawn mainly from the public-domain Treasury of Scripture Knowledge. · Sources & licences
What the Fathers said
Passages from the Church Fathers that expound or quote this chapter, verbatim from the public-domain Schaff edition (19th-century English translations).
How these were chosen
“Commentary” is the opening of a homily or exposition on this chapter (John Chrysostom’s homilies, Augustine’s tractates, sermons and expositions of the Psalms). “Quotes” are sentences where the edition’s own footnotes identify a quotation of a verse here, kept only when the wording matches the verse. Only works whose authorship is not in doubt are used. Psalms follow the Hebrew/English numbering (Augustine numbers them as the Septuagint does: his Psalm 50 is Psalm 51 here).
… the stars of heaven, and will give unto thy seed all this land: and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because that Abraham thy father obeyed my voice, and kept my precepts, my commandments, my righteousness, and my laws." This patriarch neither had another wife, nor any concubine, but was content with the twin-children …
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 2 (1887)
… kept my precepts, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws." And again in another oracle He says, "I am the God of Abraham thy father: fear not, for I am with thee, and will bless thee, and multiply thy seed for my servant Abraham's sake." So that we must understand how chastely Abraham acted, because imprudent men, who seek some …
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 2 (1887)
That which He promised to Abraham, saying, "In thy seed shall all nations be blessed." What is the faithfulness of God?
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 6 (1888)