Isaac and the Wells

Intro:

James 3:18 (TLB)

And those who are peacemakers will plant seeds of peace and reap a harvest
of goodness.
Who is Old Testament Bible Character that peacefully handled annoying
neighbor/s?

Isaac is the covenant child given by God to Abraham and Sarah. In this
account of his life we can see how God kept the covenant of blessings to
Abraham and him as descendant. That with the material blessings it doesn’t
mean that peaceful living is there, but only in trusting the living God one
can find real peace with God and man. So, let’s see how Isaac kept his
sanity of being a peacemaker in the midst of annoying (or probably jealous)
people.

Peacemaker promote peace as a way of living after he/she personally

known and met the God of Peace (Rom. 5:-1-2)

Genesis 26:12-25 (NKJV)

12 
Then Isaac sowed in that land, and reaped in the same year a hundredfold;
13 
and the LORD blessed him. The man began to prosper, and continued
14 
prospering until he became very prosperous; for he had possessions of
flocks and possessions of herds and a great number of servants. So the
15 
Philistines envied him. Now the Philistines had stopped up all the wells
which his father’s servants had dug in the days of Abraham his father, and
16 
they had filled them with earth. And Abimelech said to Isaac, “Go away
from us, for you are much mightier than we.”

17 
Then Isaac departed from there and [a]pitched his tent in the Valley of
Gerar, and dwelt there. 18  And Isaac dug again the wells of water which they
had dug in the days of Abraham his father, for the Philistines had stopped
them up after the death of Abraham. He called them by the names which his
father had called them.
19 
Also Isaac’s servants dug in the valley, and found a well of running water
there. 20  But the herdsmen of Gerar quarreled with Isaac’s herdsmen, saying,
“The water is ours.” So he called the name of the well [b]Esek, because they
quarreled with him. 21  Then they dug another well, and they quarreled over
that one also. So he called its name [c]Sitnah. 22  And he moved from there and
dug another well, and they did not quarrel over it. So he called its name
[d]
Rehoboth, because he said, “For now the LORD has made room for us, and
we shall be fruitful in the land.”23  Then he went up from there to Beersheba.
24 
And the LORD appeared to him the same night and said, “I am the God of
your father Abraham; do not fear, for I am with you. I will bless you and
multiply your descendants for My servant Abraham’s sake.” 25  So he built an
altar there and called on the name of the LORD, and he pitched his tent there;
and there Isaac’s servants dug a well.

We can see from this story how envy drives people (like Philistines) to break
peace and get into quarrel. The setting of this story is in Philistine land
wherein both Abraham and his son Isaac stayed there as herdsman like
most of the people do at their time. And since raising cattle is their
business the land resources like grass, and water are top issues they
dispute. In Genesis 21:25-32 (25  Then Abraham rebuked Abimelech because
of a well of water which Abimelech’s servants had seized. 26  And Abimelech
said, “I do not know who has done this thing; you did not tell me, nor had I
heard of it until today.” 27  So Abraham took sheep and oxen and gave them
to Abimelech, and the two of them made a [a]covenant. 28  And Abraham set
seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves.
29 
Then Abimelech asked Abraham, “What is the meaning of these seven ewe
lambs which you have set by themselves?”
30 
And he said, “You will take these seven ewe lambs from my hand, that they
may be my witness that I have dug this well.” 31  Therefore he called that
place [b]Beersheba, because the two of them swore an oath there.
32 
Thus they made a covenant at Beersheba. So Abimelech rose with Phichol,
the commander of his army, and they returned to the land of the Philistines.)

Herein we can see that Abimelech is more likely a common and NOT Proper
noun name referring to Philistine leader. As per Wikipedia “The name or
title Abimelech is formed from Hebrew words for "father" and "king," and
may be interpreted in a variety of ways, including "Father-King", "My father
is king," or "Father of a king."[1] In the Pentateuch, it is used as a title for
kings in the land of Canaan”

So, in Genesis chapter 26 there’s almost same encounter of Isaac with

Abimelech of the Land of Gerar. Isaac like what he learned from his father
has to dig well for his family and cattle source of clean water, and same as
what happened before; the Philistines (because of envy) are either stopping
building or claiming the well.

After Isaac was driven from one to another place – Gerar, the first well they
dig was grabbed and he called it Esek; Its meaning is dispute (pagtatalo)
or contention (kaligaligan) . In modern Hebrew, esek (‫ ) ֵעסֶק‬means business,
matter, affair, deal.
James 3:16 (NTE)
16 
For where there is jealousy and contention, there you will get unruly
behaviour and every kind of evil practice.

1. A peacemaker in His trust with God, live wisely among heathen.

Proverbs 3:16, 17, 24-26
16-17 
Wisdom gives: a long, good life, riches, honor, pleasure, peace.
 24-26 
With them on guard you can sleep without fear; you need not be
afraid of disaster or the plots of wicked men, for the Lord is with you;
he protects you.

Romans 12:18 (MSG) Don’t hit back; discover beauty in everyone. If

you’ve got it in you, get along with everybody. Don’t insist on getting
even; that’s not for you to do. “I’ll do the judging,” says God. “I’ll take
care of it.”

Your faith / trust in God (Who promised you everything) gives you
understanding that people’s envy coexist (side by side) with your
great success or prosperity.

2. A peacemaker believes well that his positive living outcome is

majorly due to his identity as son of God.

Sitnah – its meaning is Enmity (poot o pagkapoot), Opposition (laban, o

kalaban o paglaban) . From the noun ‫( שטן‬satan), adversary.

Psalm 29:11 (MSG) GOD makes his people strong. GOD gives his people
peace.

Matthew 5:9 (MSG) “You’re blessed when you can show people how to
cooperate instead of compete or fight. That’s when you discover who you
really are, and your place in God’s family.

Hebrews 13:20 (NLV)

God is a God of peace. He raised our Lord Jesus from the dead. Jesus is the
Good Shepherd of the sheep. His blood made the New Way of Worship which
will last forever.

Ephesians 2:14 (NLT) For Christ himself has brought peace to us.
 3. A peacemaker praise God and His works over any life issues.

Rehoboth, saying, "At last the Lord has made room for us.." (other version
– Freedom)

We can see Isaac deep faith in God that though surrounding people
wronged him, His praise ("At last the Lord has made room for us”) is offered
to God and was not robbed by Satan deceptive scheme.

Isaiah 45:7 (NKJV)

I form the light and create darkness, I make peace and create calamity; I, the
LORD, do all these things.’

Psalm 4:8 (MSG)

Why is everyone hungry for more? “More, more,” they say. “More, more.” I
have God’s more-than-enough, More joy in one ordinary day Than they get
in all their shopping sprees. At day’s end I’m ready for sound sleep, For you,
GOD, have put my life back together.

So, finally Isaac got the “freedom“ to have his own new well which he
named Rehoboth and after this, we will continue see how James 3:18 (TLB)
is fully developed in his life –

Genesis 26:26-33 (NKJV)

26 
Then Abimelech came to him from Gerar with Ahuzzath, one of his friends,
27 
and Phichol the commander of his army. And Isaac said to them, “Why
have you come to me, since you hate me and have sent me away from you?”
28 
But they said, “We have certainly seen that the LORD is with you. So we
said, ‘Let there now be an oath between us, between you and us; and let us
make a [f]covenant with you, 29  that you will do us no harm, since we have
not touched you, and since we have done nothing to you but good and have
sent you away in peace. You are now the blessed of the LORD.’ ”
30 
So he made them a feast, and they ate and drank. 31  Then they arose early
in the morning and swore an oath with one another; and Isaac sent them
away, and they departed from him in peace.
32 
It came to pass the same day that Isaac’s servants came and told him
about the well which they had dug, and said to him, “We have found water.”
33 
So he called it [g]Shebah. Therefore the name of the city is [h]Beersheba to
this day.

4. A peacemaker strives peacefully until goodness appears.

Genesis 26:33 and he calleth it Shebah, 'oath,' therefore the name of the city'
is' Beer-Sheba, 'well of the oath,' unto this day.

James 3:18 (TLB)

And those who are peacemakers will plant seeds of peace and reap a harvest
of goodness.

Seeds of peace sown reap goodness both between god and man. Thus,
peace loving people can influence and live even near enemy’s borders.

Conclusion:
In this story we can see that envious people can cause (strife = pagkaka-
alitan) but a righteous and peaceful man can turned it around into an
oath / agreement of common good and peaceful living.
May the Word of the Lord speaks to our hearts, that if we find ourselves
envious shown by our action / circumstance – dispute (pagtatalo) or
contention (kaligaligan), Enmity (poot o pagkapoot), Opposition (laban, o
kalaban o paglaban), and strife (pagkaka-alitan); the Scripture says &
invitation is this –
Proverbs 28:25 He who is of a proud heart stirs up strife, But he who trusts in
the LORD will be prospered.
[a]
James 4:1-3, 8 Where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they
2 
not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members? You
lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight
[b]
and war. [c]Yet you do not have because you do not ask. 3 
You ask and do
not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures.
8 
Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you
sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

We need to humble ourselves before God and He will cleanse our hands
and purify our hearts so we can fully trust or have faith in Him, like Isaac.
And having Jesus Christ (the Prince of Peace – Eph. 2:14) in our lives will
make us true Peace-workers.

Now for those Peace-workers who are in the midst of digging wells and
being robbed by envious neighbors, let’s have same prayer of Apostle Paul
to Thessalonians (2 Thess. 3:16) the Lord of Peace Himself continually grant
you peace in every circumstance. The Lord be with you all!