Genesis 26:22: The third well, named for nobody coming
Read it →Commentary on Genesis 26:22
The Third Well
Isaac's servants had already dug twice, and twice the local herdsmen had claimed the water. The names he gave the wells tell the story of that stretch of his life, and the third name breaks the pattern.
Isaac's servants dug in the valley and found a spring of living water. But the herdsmen of Gerar fought them for it, claiming that the water was theirs. Isaac named the spring Esek, meaning "contention," but "the servant of the Lord must not strive" (2 Tim. 2:14), and instead of continuing the strife, Isaac dug another well. But this one led to a fight as well (v. 21), so Isaac named it Sitna, meaning "hatred." The wise thing to do was to move away from that place before digging another well (v. 22). It seems this was far enough off that the Philistines no longer claimed the well for themselves. Isaac called it Rehoboth, meaning "room," considering that the Lord had made room for him to be fruitful and expand.
Room Won By Yielding
Isaac never fought back when others seized his wells. He moved on each time, and he credits the room he finally found to the LORD.
But Isaac did not change from that meekness which becomes the man of God, gentle to all, and forbearing to such as opposed themselves. Nor was his dependence on God without a speedy answer. He moved away from there and dug another well, and they did not quarrel over it. He called it Rehoboth, and explained the name: "For now the LORD has made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land." His spirit was as far from contention as it was from ingratitude toward the Almighty Protector of the man who must not strive.
The record shows him losing ground repeatedly without a word of protest.
For instance, in Isaac. The world was against him. But he does not strive with it either in deed or in word. He neither answers nor resists. The Philistines tell him to go from them. He goes at their bidding. They spoil him of his labours. He yields and takes it patiently, as Esek and Sitnah tell us. Gen. 26.
The Pattern Christ Set
This quiet surrender of what was rightfully his makes Isaac a model for those who follow Jesus.
Once it is pointed out, we cannot help seeing how well Isaac pictures the Christian who is not of the world, just as Christ is not of the world. He does not resist evil. Struck on the right cheek, he offers the other also. He does not contend for the goods of which he was deprived, but when his cloak was taken away, he does not fight even for his coat. Neither Abraham nor Jacob was so tested, nor did their patience shine so brightly; the one fought for Lot (Gen. 14), the other for himself (Gen. 48), but never Isaac.
Room Is Found Away From The Crowd
The space opened up only after Isaac had been pushed further and further from the Philistines. Writers read this as a principle that outlasts Isaac's own story.
Notice, also, that every new well he dug stirred up more hostility from the Philistines. (vv. 19-21.) Driven further and further away, he dug another well, "and they did not quarrel over it." He named it Rehoboth, for the Lord had made room for him, and he added, "we shall be fruitful in the land." There is always room, together with blessing, for the people of God in the place of separation.
Commentators differ here. One calls the move wise; another reads the three wells as a slow lesson Isaac had to be taught.
By a slow and painful process, Isaac is taught that he must leave the land of the Philistines completely. Each well he had to dig marks a stage in that process. First "contention," then "hatred," then "room." Having found room, and being kept from the company that hampered him, he moves on to Beersheba, on the edge of the land... It had taught him that a little with God is better than great possessions in a place outside his calling. Now he enjoys his mercies and his well in peace.
Wells Worth Digging For
A well here is more than a water supply.
In Scripture, and especially in Genesis, wells are always sources of life and blessing. So the enemy seeks to "fill them with earth" (v. 15)... Take, for instance, the doctrine of justification by faith. Or the truth of the one body of Christ, the presence of the Holy Spirit on earth, the coming of the Lord for His people. Who are they who have sought to "stop up" these blessed wells of water? In every case they have been the "Philistines." So there is a constant need for the Isaacs to dig them out again, and to call them by their old names — that is, by their scriptural names.
Summary
- Esek. Isaac named the first well for the quarrel it caused — dig for what refreshes and you will meet opposition, not gratitude.
- Sitnah. Contention hardened into hatred, and still Isaac refused to fight back. He lived out the rule that the Lord's servant must not strive.
- Rehoboth. God gave the room; Isaac did not win it. He gained space by giving ground, and the name he chose credits the Lord, not his own patience.
- Fruitfulness. Room and fruit come together. There is always room, and blessing with it, for God's people in the place of separation.
- Beersheba. Rehoboth was not the destination. Isaac moved on to the edge of the land, and learned that a little with God beats great possessions outside his calling.
