Chapter 26

Isaac and Abimelech. ^1 [a](A)There was a famine in the land, distinct from the earlier one that had occurred in the days of Abraham, and Isaac went down to Abimelech, king of the Philistines in Gerar.^{(B) 2} The Lord appeared to him and said: Do not go down to Egypt, but camp in this land wherever I tell you. ³ Sojourn in this land, and I will be with you and bless you; for to you and your descendants I will give all these lands, in fulfillment of the oath that I swore to your father Abraham.^{(C) 4} I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky, and I will give them all these lands, and in your descendants all the nations of the earth will find blessing—^{(D) 5} this because Abraham obeyed me, keeping my mandate, my commandments, my ordinances, and my instructions.

^6 [b]So Isaac settled in Gerar. ⁷ When the men of the place asked questions about his wife, he answered, “She is my sister.” He was afraid that, if he called her his wife, the men of the place would kill him on account of Rebekah, since she was beautiful. ⁸ But when they had been there for a long time, Abimelech, king of the Philistines, looked out of a window and saw Isaac fondling his wife Rebekah. ⁹ He called for Isaac and said: “She must certainly be your wife! How could you have said, ‘She is my sister’?” Isaac replied, “I thought I might lose my life on her account.” ¹⁰ “How could you have done this to us!” exclaimed Abimelech. “It would have taken very little for one of the people to lie with your wife, and so you would have brought guilt upon us!” ¹¹ Abimelech then commanded all the people: “Anyone who maltreats this man or his wife shall be put to death.”