Genesis · Douay-Rheims (Challoner), American Edition 1899
Genesis 26 Douay-Rheims (Challoner), American Edition 1899
Audio: World English Bible (WEB), read by Winfred W. Henson · About the recordings
DRB Douay-Rheims (Challoner), American Edition 1899
WEB World English Bible (Classic, with Deuterocanon)
1 And when a famine came in the land, after that barrenness which had happened in the days of Abraham, Isaac went to Abimelech king of the Palestines to Gerara.
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 appeared to him and said: Go not down into Egypt, but stay in the land that I shall tell thee.
2 Yahweh appeared to him, and said, “Don’t go down into Egypt. Live in the land I will tell you about.
3 And sojourn in it, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee: for to thee and to thy seed I will give all these countries, to fulfill the oath which I swore to Abraham thy father.
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 And I will multiply thy seed like the stars of heaven: and I will give to thy posterity all these countries: and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed.
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 obeyed my voice, and kept my precepts and commandments, and observed my ceremonies and laws.
5 because Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my requirements, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.”
6 So Isaac abode in Gerara.
6 Isaac lived in Gerar.
7 And when he was asked by the men of that place, concerning his wife, he answered: She is my sister; for he was afraid to confess that she was his wife, thinking lest perhaps they would kill him because of her beauty.
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 very many days were passed, and he abode there, Abimelech king of the Palestines looking out through a window, saw him playing with Rebecca 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 calling for him, he said: It is evident she is thy wife: why didst thou feign her to be thy sister? He answered: I feared lest I should die for her sake.
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 And Abimelech said: Why hast thou deceived us? Some man of the people might have lain with thy wife, and thou hadst brought upon us a great sin. And he commanded all the people, saying:
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 He that shall touch this man’s wife, shall surely 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 And Isaac sowed in that land, and he found that same year a hundredfold: and the Lord blessed him.
12 Isaac sowed in that land, and reaped in the same year one hundred times what he planted. Yahweh blessed him.
13 And the man was enriched, and he went on prospering and increasing, till he became exceeding great:
13 The man grew great, and grew more and more until he became very great.
14 And he had possessions of sheep and of herds, and a very great family. Wherefore the Palestines envying him,
14 He had possessions of flocks, possessions of herds, and a great household. The Philistines envied him.
15 Stopped up at that time all the wells, that the servants of his father Abraham had digged, filling them up with earth:
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 Insomuch that Abimelech himself said to Isaac: Depart from us, for thou art become much mightier than we.
16 Abimelech said to Isaac, “Go away from us, for you are much mightier than we.”
17 So he departed and came to the torrent of Gerara, to dwell there:
17 Isaac departed from there, encamped in the valley of Gerar, and lived there.
18 And he digged again other wells, which the servants of his father Abraham had digged, and which, after his death, the Palestines had of old stopped up: and he called them by the same names by which his father before had called 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 And they digged in the torrent, and found living water.
19 Isaac’s servants dug in the valley, and found there a well of flowing water.
20 But there also the herdsmen of Gerara strove against the herdsmen of Isaac, saying: It is our water. Wherefore he called the name of the well, on occasion of that which had happened, Calumny.
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 And they digged also another; and for that they quarrelled likewise, and he called the name of it, Enmity.
21 They dug another well, and they argued over that, also. So he called its name Sitnah.
22 Going forward from thence, he digged another well, for which they contended not: therefore he called the name thereof, Latitude, saying: Now hath the Lord given us room, and made us to increase upon the earth.
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 he went up from that place to Bersabee,
23 He went up from there to Beersheba.
24 Where the Lord appeared to him that same night, saying: I am the God of Abraham thy father; do not fear, for I am with thee: I will bless thee, and multiply thy seed for my servant Abraham’s sake.
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 And he built there an altar: and called upon the name of the Lord, and pitched his tent: and commanded his servants to dig a well.
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 To which place when Abimelech, and Ochozath his friend, and Phicol chief captain of his soldiers came from Gerara,
26 Then Abimelech went to him from Gerar with Ahuzzath his friend, and Phicol the captain of his army.
27 Isaac said to them: Why are ye come to me, a man whom you hate, and have thrust out 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 answered: We saw that the Lord is with thee, and therefore we said: Let there be an oath between us, and let us make a covenant,
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 thou do us no harm, as we on our part have touched nothing of thine, nor have done any thing to hurt thee: but with peace have sent thee away increased with the blessing of the Lord.
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 And he made them a feast, and after they had eaten and drunk:
30 He made them a feast, and they ate and drank.
31 Arising in the morning, they swore one to another: and Isaac sent them away peaceably to their own home.
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 behold the same day the servants of Isaac came, telling him of a well which they had digged, and saying: We have found 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 Whereupon he called it Abundance: and the name of the city was called Bersabee, even to this day.
33 He called it “Shibah”. Therefore the name of the city is “Beersheba” to this day.
34 And Esau being forty years old, married wives, Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hethite, and Basemath the daughter of Elon of the same place.
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 they both offended the mind of Isaac and Rebecca.
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
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)