God’s Promise to Isaac (Genesis 12:1–9)
1 CPDV Then, when a famine arose over the land, after that barrenness which had happened in the days of Abraham, Isaac went to Abimelech, king of the Palestinians, in Gerar. BSB BSB: Now there was another famine in the land, subsequent to the one that had occurred in Abraham’s time. And Isaac went to Abimelech king of the Philistines at Gerar.
2 CPDV And the Lord appeared to him, and he said: “Do not descend into Egypt, but rest in the land that I will tell you, BSB BSB: The LORD appeared to Isaac and said, “Do not go down to Egypt. Settle in the land where I tell you.
3 CPDV and sojourn in it, and I will be with you, and I will bless you. For to you and to your offspring I will give all these regions, completing the oath that I promised to Abraham your father. BSB BSB: Stay in this land as a foreigner, and I will be with you and bless you. For I will give all these lands to you and your offspring, and I will confirm the oath that I swore to your father Abraham.
4 CPDV And I will multiply your offspring like the stars of heaven. And I will give to your posterity all these regions. And in your offspring all the nations of the earth will be blessed, BSB BSB: I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky, and I will give them all these lands, and through your offspring all nations of the earth will be blessed,
5 CPDV because Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my precepts and commandments, and observed the ceremonies and the laws.” BSB BSB: because Abraham listened to My voice and kept My charge, My commandments, My statutes, and My laws.”
Isaac Deceives Abimelech 6 CPDV And so Isaac remained in Gerar. BSB BSB: So Isaac settled in Gerar.
7 CPDV And when he was questioned by the men of that place about his wife, he answered, “She is my sister.” For he was afraid to confess her to be his mate, thinking that perhaps they would put him to death because of her beauty. BSB BSB: But when the men of that place asked about his wife, he said, “She is my sister.” For he was afraid to say, “She is my wife,” since he thought to himself, “The men of this place will kill me on account of Rebekah, because she is so beautiful.”
8 CPDV And when very many days had passed, and he had remained in the same place, Abimelech, king of the Palestinians, gazing through a window, saw him being playful with Rebekah, his wife. BSB BSB: When Isaac had been there a long time, Abimelech king of the Philistines looked down from the window and was surprised to see Isaac caressing his wife Rebekah.
9 CPDV And summoning him, he said: “It is clear that she is your wife. Why did you falsely claim her to be your sister?” He answered, “I was afraid, lest I might die because of her.” BSB BSB: Abimelech sent for Isaac and said, “So she is really your wife! How could you say, ‘She is my sister’?” Isaac replied, “Because I thought I might die on account of her.”
10 CPDV And Abimelech said: “Why have you burdened us? Someone from the people could have lain with your wife, and you would have brought a great sin upon us.” And he instructed all the people, saying, BSB BSB: “What is this you have done to us?” asked Abimelech. “One of the people could easily have slept with your wife, and you would have brought guilt upon us.”
11 CPDV “Whoever will touch the wife of this man will die a death.” BSB BSB: So Abimelech warned all the people, saying, “Whoever harms this man or his wife will surely be put to death.”
Isaac’s Prosperity 12 CPDV Then Isaac sowed in that land, and he found, in that same year, one hundredfold. And the Lord blessed him. BSB BSB: Now Isaac sowed seed in the land, and that very year he reaped a hundredfold. And the LORD blessed him,
13 CPDV And the man was enriched, and he continued prospering as well as increasing, until he became very great. BSB BSB: and he became richer and richer, until he was exceedingly wealthy.
14 CPDV Likewise, he had possessions of sheep and of herds, and a very large family. Because of this, the Palestinians envied him, BSB BSB: He owned so many flocks and herds and servants that the Philistines envied him.
15 CPDV so, at that time, they obstructed all the wells that the servants of his father Abraham had dug, filling them with soil. BSB BSB: So the Philistines took dirt and stopped up all the wells that his father’s servants had dug in the days of his father Abraham.
16 CPDV It reached a point where Abimelech himself said to Isaac, “Move away from us, for you have become very much more powerful than we.” BSB BSB: Then Abimelech said to Isaac, “Depart from us, for you are much too powerful for us.”
17 CPDV And departing, he then went toward the torrent of Gerar, and he dwelt there. BSB BSB: So Isaac left that place and encamped in the Valley of Gerar and settled there.
18 CPDV Again, he dug up other wells, which the servants of his father Abraham had dug, and which, after his death, the Philistines had formerly obstructed. And he called them by the same names that his father had called them before. BSB BSB: Isaac reopened the wells that had been dug in the days of his father Abraham, which the Philistines had stopped up after Abraham died. And he gave these wells the same names his father had given them.
19 CPDV And they dug in the torrent, and they found living water. BSB BSB: Then Isaac’s servants dug in the valley and found a well of fresh water there.
20 CPDV But in that place also the shepherds of Gerar argued against the shepherds of Isaac, by saying, “It is our water.” For this reason, he called the name of the well, because of what had happened, ‘Calumny.’ BSB BSB: But the herdsmen of Gerar quarreled with Isaac’s herdsmen and said, “The water is ours!” So he named the well Esek, because they contended with him.
21 CPDV Then they dug up yet another one. And over that one also they fought, and he called it, ‘Enmity.’ BSB BSB: Then they dug another well and quarreled over that one also; so he named it Sitnah.
22 CPDV Advancing from there, he dug another well, over which they did not contend. And so he called its name, ‘Latitude,’ saying, “Now the Lord has expanded us and caused us to increase across the land.” BSB BSB: He moved on from there and dug another well, and they did not quarrel over it. He named it Rehoboth and said, “At last the LORD has made room for us, and we will be fruitful in the land.”
23 CPDV Then he ascended from that place into Beersheba, BSB BSB: From there Isaac went up to Beersheba,
24 CPDV where the Lord appeared to him on the same night, saying: “I am the God of Abraham your father. Do not be afraid, for I am with you. I will bless you, and I will multiply your offspring because of my servant Abraham.” BSB BSB: and that night the LORD appeared to him and said, “I am the God of your father Abraham. Do not be afraid, for I am with you. I will bless you and multiply your descendants for the sake of My servant Abraham.”
25 CPDV And so he built an altar there. And he invoked the name of the Lord, and he stretched out his tent. And he instructed his servants to dig a well. BSB BSB: So Isaac built an altar there and called on the name of the LORD, and he pitched his tent there. His servants also dug a well there.
Isaac’s Covenant with Abimelech 26 CPDV When Abimelech, and Ahuzzath, his friend, and Phicol, the leader of the military, had arrived from Gerar to that place, BSB BSB: Later, Abimelech came to Isaac from Gerar, with Ahuzzath his adviser and Phicol the commander of his army.
27 CPDV Isaac said to them, “Why have you come to me, a man whom you hate, and whom you have expelled from among you?” BSB BSB: “Why have you come to me?” Isaac asked them. “You hated me and sent me away.”
28 CPDV And they responded: “We saw that the Lord is with you, and therefore we said: Let there be an oath between us, and let us initiate a pact, BSB BSB: “We can plainly see that the LORD has been with you,” they replied. “We recommend that there should now be an oath between us and you. Let us make a covenant with you
29 CPDV so that you may not do us any kind of harm, just as we have touched nothing of yours, and have not caused any injury to you, but with peace we released you, augmented by the blessing of the Lord.” BSB BSB: that you will not harm us, just as we have not harmed you but have done only good to you, sending you on your way in peace. And now you are blessed by the LORD.”
30 CPDV Therefore, he made them a feast, and after the food and drink, BSB BSB: So Isaac prepared a feast for them, and they ate and drank.
31 CPDV arising in the morning, they swore to one another. And Isaac sent them away peacefully to their own place. BSB BSB: And they got up early the next morning and swore an oath to each other. Then Isaac sent them on their way, and they left him in peace.
32 CPDV Then, behold, on the same day the servants of Isaac came, reporting to him about a well which they had dug, and saying: “We have found water.” BSB BSB: On that same day, Isaac’s servants came and told him about the well they had dug. “We have found water!” they told him.
33 CPDV Therefore, he called it, ‘Abundance.’ And the name of the city was established as ‘Beersheba,’ even to the present day. BSB BSB: So he called it Shibah, and to this day the name of the city is Beersheba.
Esau’s Wives 34 CPDV In truth, at forty years of age, Esau took wives: Judith, the daughter of Beeri, the Hittite, and Basemath, the daughter of Elon, of the same place. BSB BSB: When Esau was forty years old, he took as his wives Judith daughter of Beeri the Hittite and Basemath daughter of Elon the Hittite.
35 CPDV And they both offended the mind of Isaac and Rebekah. BSB BSB: And they brought grief to Isaac and Rebekah.