Isaac and His Well Background

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Isaac And His Well Background

(Genesis 25, 26)

Introduction:

I’ve been preaching a series of Sunday morning sermons recently on the life of Isaac. We began by looking at Genesis 21 as well as several other passages in Genesis to highlight and discover several aspects of “Isaac And His Wonderful Birth.” I tried to point out how the experiences in Abraham’s life leading up to, surrounding, and following the birth of Isaac relate to our own spiritual experience.

Then, I preached a message from Genesis chapter 22 about “Isaac And His Wide Brush-strokes.” When you talk about a painter using wide brush-strokes, you are referring to the practice of covering a lot of area on the canvas with the paintbrush. Figuratively, the expression of using a wide brush-stroke means to describe something in a very encompassing way. And that’s what Isaac does in Genesis chapter 22. In just a brief passage, Isaac paints a picture for us of (1) A Sinner Who Was Condemned; (2) A Saint Who Was Confounded; and (3) A Savior Who Was Crucified.

I also preached about an event in Isaac’s life in which he is only mentioned indirectly. The death of Isaac’s mother Sarah is recorded in Genesis chapter 23, but Isaac is not mentioned a single time in this chapter. It is not until Isaac takes Rebekah as his wife three years later that we are told in Genesis 24:67 that “Isaac was comforted after his mother’s death.” I believe that in some ways, the record of Sarah’s death reveals the situation of “Isaac And His Worst Bereavement.”

From Genesis chapter 24, I tried to preach a message on “Isaac And His Willing Bride.” At the end of Genesis chapter 24, Rebekah’s willingness to become Isaac’s bride is shown in a very clear way…

(Genesis 24:55-58) And her brother and her mother said, Let the damsel abide with us a few days, at the least ten; after that she shall go. {56} And he said unto them, Hinder me not, seeing the LORD hath prospered my way; send me away that I may go to my master. {57} And they said, We will call the damsel, and inquire at her mouth. {58} And they called Rebekah, and said unto her, Wilt thou go with this man? And she said, I will go.

We looked in Genesis 25 and talked about “Isaac And His Woeful Burdens.” And in the first part of this chapter, we discover some things that may have been burdensome to Isaac such as (1) The Brethren in verses 1-6, (2) The Burial in verses 7-11, (3) The Barrenness in verses 20-21.

Last week, we looked again at Genesis 25 as well as some other passages, and I preached on “Isaac And His Warring Boys.” And through Esau and Jacob, we saw the two paths that people take; a path of acceptance and faith towards God which is seen in the life of Jacob, and a path of ambivalence and antagonism towards God which is seen in the life of Esau.

This morning, I want us to walk with Isaac to some of the wells of water that are associated with his life, particularly in Genesis chapter 26. In fact, these wells are such a significant aspect in Isaac’s life that one preacher had a sermon entitled “Well, Well, Well, Isaac.” I want to preach today on “Isaac and His Well Background.”

These wells that we find in the scriptures were pits or deep holes or shafts created by digging in the earth to find an available source of water. John Laughlin wrote in the Holman’s Bible Dictionary that “In the semi-arid (dry) climate of ancient Israel, the availability of water was a constant concern.” I mean they couldn’t go to the water fountain for a cool sip of refreshing water. They couldn’t go to the kitchen sink to wash their hands or the bathroom sink to brush their teeth. They depended upon streams and rivers and lakes; and where none of those existed they would have to dig a well.

John Laughlin goes on to say, “The digging of a well could be a time for celebration (Numbers 21:17-18), but wells were also fought over as different people tried to control the precious resource (Genesis 21:25-26; 26:15-22; Exodus 2:16-17). Wells were located wherever a water source could be found. (And) this included fields (Genesis 29:2), towns (2 Samuel 23:15), and the wilderness (Genesis 16:7, 14).”

Laughlin said, “The Hebrew word most commonly translated ‘well’ is beer.” But this is not the vile liquid of intoxication. No, Bud would be a lot wiser if he would stay away from that! Rather, the word “beer” in the Bible is the vital location of invigoration, where water would be found. A beer in the Bible is a well of water. This word beer occurs within the names of several place names that indicate the location of important wells. For example, there is Beer-lahai-roi (which means the well of the one who lives and sees), and it is first seen in Genesis 16:14. There is Beer-sheba (which means the well of an oath), and it is first seen in Genesis 21:31. There is Beer-elim (which means the well of the strong and mighty ones), and it is first seen in Isaiah 15:8.

Genesis 26 reveals that Isaac was very involved in the digging of wells. Warren Wiersbe said that “wells of water speak of the divine resources of God for the spiritual life.” And I am very interested in the digging of some spiritual wells in our personal and church experience.

(1) In Genesis 24 and 25, we find Isaac living near the well Lahai-roi (24:62, 25:11). Then in Genesis 26, because of famine, he goes to the land of the Philistines, to Gerar where he sojourns for a time.

Isaac seems to be in sort of a Comfort Zone during this time of his life.

And throughout these experiences we see The Diversity In Isaac’s Life.

(2) In Genesis 26:16, Isaac is forced to move out of the comfort zone, and he has to go to the valley of Gerar where he must re-dig and reclaim some of the wells that belonged to his father. It is also here that he digs other wells and then must fight to keep them. [And it seems that every generation that moves forward (26:13) with God must go through this process (see Genesis 21:25-30).]

There is a transition in which Isaac seems to have moved into the Conflict Zone during this time period.

And throughout these experiences we see The Digging In Isaac’s Life.

(3) In Genesis 26:23, Isaac moves on to Beersheba which means the well of an oath, or the well of a covenant. And it is here that the Abrahamic Covenant is confirmed to Isaac in a further way. It is also here that Isaac enters into an oath and a treaty of peace with Abimelech the king of the Philistines.

Here is another transition in which Isaac seems to have arrived at the Covenant Zone during this time.

And throughout these experiences we see some of The Decisions In Isaac’s Life.

First, let’s go to the well at Lahai-roi and then on to Gerar and…

I. Let’s Notice Some Of The Diversity In Isaac’s Life

A. We See That Isaac Has Experienced Some Blessings In His Life

1. There Was The Blessing Of Marriage

(And by the way, Abraham’s servant found a wife for Isaac at a well according to Genesis chapter 24 – 24:11,13,16,20,29,30,42,43,45)

(Genesis 24:62-67) And Isaac came from the way of the well Lahairoi; for he dwelt in the south country. {63} And Isaac went out to meditate in the field at the eventide: and he lifted up his eyes, and saw, and, behold, the camels were coming. {64} And Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Isaac, she lighted off the camel. {65} For she had said unto the servant, What man is this that walketh in the field to meet us? And the servant had said, It is my master: therefore she took a veil, and covered herself. {66} And the servant told Isaac all things that he had done. {67} And Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah’s tent, and took Rebekah, and she became his wife; and he loved her: and Isaac was comforted after his mother’s death.

(Genesis 25:20) And Isaac was forty years old when he took Rebekah to wife, the daughter of Bethuel the Syrian of Padanaram, the sister to Laban the Syrian.

2. There Was The Blessing Of Multiplication

(Genesis 25:11) And it came to pass after the death of Abraham, that God blessed his son Isaac; and Isaac dwelt by the well Lahairoi.

[I think this somewhat ironic, since the first mention of the well at Lahairoi is in Genesis 16 when Hagar fled there after she conceived Ishmael.]

(Genesis 25:21) And Isaac entreated the LORD for his wife, because she was barren: and the LORD was entreated of him, and Rebekah his wife conceived.

(Genesis 25:24-26) And when her days to be delivered were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in her womb. {25} And the first came out red, all over like an hairy garment; and they called his name Esau. {26} And after that came his brother out, and his hand took hold on Esau's heel; and his name was called Jacob: and Isaac was threescore years old when she bare them.

B. We See That Isaac Has Experienced Some Burdens In His Life

1. He Had To Deal With The Burden Of Fighting (The Squabbling In His Family)

Genesis 25:24-34

2. He Had To Deal With The Burden Of Famine (The Shortage In His Food)

(Genesis 26:1) And there was a famine in the land, beside the first famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went unto Abimelech king of the Philistines unto Gerar.

“Gerar” has a couple of Possible meanings: one is “a lodging place,” the other is “a rough and rolling country.”

C. We See That Isaac Has Experienced Some Battles In His Life

1. Let’s Consider His Battle With Self

(Genesis 26:6-7) And Isaac dwelt in Gerar: {7} And the men of the place asked him of his wife; and he said, She is my sister: for he feared to say, She is my wife; lest, said he, the men of the place should kill me for Rebekah; because she was fair to look upon.

Nearly 100 years earlier, Isaac’s father had done the same thing and told the same lie … before Isaac was even born.

(Genesis 20:1-2) And Abraham journeyed from thence toward the south country, and dwelled between Kadesh and Shur, and sojourned in Gerar. {2} And Abraham said of Sarah his wife, She is my sister: and Abimelech king of Gerar sent, and took Sarah.

2. Let’s Consider His Battle With Society

(Genesis 26:12-16) Then Isaac sowed in that land, and received in the same year an hundredfold (which is amazing considering they were in a time of famine): and the LORD blessed him. {13} And the man waxed great, and went forward, and grew until he became very great: {14} For he had possession of flocks, and possession of herds, and great store of servants: and the Philistines envied him. {15} For all the wells which his father's servants had digged in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines had stopped them, and filled them with earth. {16} And Abimelech said unto Isaac, Go from us; for thou art much mightier than we.

“Philistine spirits envy all increase of good to the Church of God.” (G. Hughes from The Biblical Illustrator)

Next, let’s go to the valley (to a low place) of Gerar and…

II. Let’s Notice Some Of The Digging In Isaac’s Life

(Genesis 26:16–22)

A. Isaac Excavated The Wells Of Old

(Genesis 26:18) And Isaac digged again the wells of water, which they had digged in the days of Abraham his father; for the Philistines had stopped them after the death of Abraham: and he called their names after the names by which his father had called them.

1. Think About The Envy That Led To The Closing Of These Wells

(Genesis 26:14-15) For he had possession of flocks, and possession of herds, and great store of servants: and the Philistines envied him. {15} For all the wells which his father's servants had digged in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines had stopped them, and filled them with earth.

stopped – Hebrew 5640. catham, a primary root word that means to stop up. Figuratively it means to keep secret. It also has the idea of being closed up, or hidden, or shut out.

A preacher named Dr. Talmadge wrote…

These ancient wells of water were surrounded by walls of rock. This wall of rock was covered up with a great slab. In the centre of the slab there was a hole, through which the leathern bottle or earthen jar was let down. This opening was covered by a stone. It was considered one of the greatest calamities that could happen to a nation when these wells of water were stopped. (From The Biblical Illustrator)

This word “envy” is the Hebrew term (7065) qana', and it means to be jealous or envious in a bad sense. According to Vine’s Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words, the word suggests, in its most basic sense, the act of advancing one’s rights to the exclusion of the rights of others. We think about how foolish it was to fill up a well in a place where water was such a valuable commodity. But the attitude of the Philistines was: “Isaac doesn’t deserve these sources of refreshing. And if we can’t have them, nobody can.”

2. Think About The Effort That Led To The Clearing Of These Wells

digged – Hebrew 2658. chaphar, means to pry into; by implication it means to delve, to explore: --dig, paw, search out, seek.

Warren Wiersbe said…

Abraham had dug these wells, but the enemy had either stolen them or stopped them up. How true this is today. The spiritual wells at which our fathers drank have been taken from us by the world. How we need to get back to the old wells (such as prayer, the Bible, the family altar, the church). Isaac not only opened them again, but he called them by the same names that Abraham had used (v. 18).