Isaac : When He Lied, Just Like His Dad

Introduction: Like father, like son. How many of us have heard that saying? Perhaps we should ask this: how many of us have made the same mistakes as our dads? We may never know how closely Isaac copied his father’s mannerisms or way of managing a household but we do know he followed Abraham’s example one time—and to the same degree!

Isaac left his home country

Text, Genesis 26:1-5, KJV: 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. 2 And the LORD appeared unto him, and said, Go not down into Egypt; dwell in the land which I shall tell thee of: 3 Sojourn in this land, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee; for unto thee, and unto thy seed, I will give all these countries, and I will perform the oath which I sware unto Abraham thy father; 4 And I will make thy seed to multiply as the stars of heaven, and will give unto thy seed all these countries; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; 5 Because that Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.

Famines can and do affect various places in the world. Isaac’s father, Abraham, had experienced a famine over 100 years before when he lived in Canaan (the complete story is told in Genesis 12). In one of his first and worst failures, Abraham decided to find food in Egypt but almost lost more than he would have gained. He lied (well, he said in so many words it was a half-truth), saying that Sarah wasn’t his wife but his sister. The king of Egypt promptly took her into his own household and it was only by God’s intervention that Abraham got Sarah back! They were also “escorted (!)” out of Egypt and returned to Canaan. Had Abraham told Isaac about this, or was this an attempt at a dodge to stay alive?

Now another famine had come to Canaan but this time, Isaac went no further than the land of the Philistines. Isaac had apparently received permission from Abimelech, king of the Philistines (verse 1) to stay there. Even though there is no record where Isaac had requested guidance from the LORD as to where to go, the LORD appeared to Isaac and told him, “Don’t go to Egypt, but stay in the land I’ll show you (almost the same words Abraham had heard when he entered Canaan over 100 years before, long before Isaac was born).

So, no problems up to this point. Isaac had received a blessing from the LORD and confirmation that he was in the right place for this period of time. It seems, also, that he was at peace with the ruler of the land where he was dwelling at the time. After all, Abraham had lived in peace with another Abimelech years before and it’s likely their story or history was known in the land of the Philistines. As a note, the word “Abimelech” comes from two words meaning “my father is king” and it may be a title, not a proper name. Or, this could have been a hereditary name such as George I, George II, and so on. I once knew a man who was “so-and-so IV (the fourth)”! Regardless, Abimelech was the king and he was living in peace with Isaac and his household.

That is, until something awfully familiar took place.

2 Isaac lied about his wife

Text, Genesis 26:-7, KJV: 6 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.

Verse 6 states Isaac dwelt in Gerar. This is familiar because Abraham had done the same thing several years before this (Genesis 20), in Gerar, after Lot and his two (surviving?) daughters were escorted out of Sodom (Genesis 19:12-29). Even though he was close to 100 years of age, and Sarah about 90, Abraham still lied and said, “She’s my sister” about Sarah. By the way, that lie hadn’t worked in Egypt, either, about 25 years before (Genesis 12), and guess what? It wasn’t going to work now, either.

The text doesn’t say how long Isaac had dwelt in Gerar but it probably didn’t take long for the men of that place to notice his wife, Rebekah. Abraham’s servant had noticed her beauty as well as her willingness to assist a stranger (Genesis 24) and it would seem she kept that beauty for several years. Even Sarah, at age 65, was considered “very fair (Gen. 12:14)” before she was taken into Pharaoh’s household. No matter Rebekah’s age, she was still a very beautiful person.