Genesis 26:17

26:17 So Isaac left there and settled in the Gerar Valley. ¹ 

Genesis 26:22

26:22 Then he moved away from there and dug another well. They did not quarrel over it, so Isaac ²  named it ³  Rehoboth, ⁴  saying, “For now the Lord has made room for us, and we will prosper in the land.”

Genesis 26:25

26:25 Then Isaac built an altar there and worshiped ⁵  the Lord. He pitched his tent there, and his servants dug a well. ⁶ 

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¹ tn Heb “and he camped in the valley of Gerar and he lived there.”

sn This valley was actually a wadi (a dry river bed where the water would flow in the rainy season, but this would have been rare in the Negev). The water table under it would have been higher than in the desert because of water soaking in during the torrents, making it easier to find water when digging wells. However, this does not minimize the blessing of the Lord, for the men of the region knew this too, but did not have the same results.

² tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

³ tn Heb “and he called its name.”

⁴ sn The name Rehoboth (רְהֹבוֹת, rehovot) is derived from a verbal root meaning “to make room.” The name was a reminder that God had made room for them. The story shows Isaac’s patience with the opposition; it also shows how God’s blessing outdistanced the men of Gerar. They could not stop it or seize it any longer.

⁵ tn Heb “called in the name of.” The expression refers to worshiping the Lord through prayer and sacrifice (see Gen 4:26; 12:8; 13:4; 21:33). See G. J. Wenham, Genesis (WBC), 1:116.

⁶ tn Heb “and they dug there, the servants of Isaac, a well.”