Genesis 26:12-33
August 24, 2003
The Ballad of Jed Clampett
Come ’n listen to my story ’bout a man named Jed
Poor Mountaineer barely kept his family fed
An’ then one day, he was shootin’ at some food,
An’ up thru the ground came a bubblin’ crude.
Oil that is! Black gold! Texas tea!
Well, the first thing ya know, Jed’s a millionaire
Kin-folk said, "Jed, move away from there." Said
Californy is the place y’oughta be, so they
loaded up the truck, and they moved to Beverly.
Hills that is! Swimmin’ pools, Movie stars!
That song defines the generations. This morning we have a story about wealth, but not the kind of wealth that we are accustomed to. It is not oil, or gold. It is water.
Israel has never been a particularly well watered area and in an agricultural economy a consistent source of water is of greater importance than gold. Having a good well insulates you against drought. It means that you are not dependent on someone else. Water means life and prosperity.
The story begins in Genesis 26:12
1. The first conflict 26:12-18
God fulfills the promise of the covenant he had made with Isaac earlier in this same chapter. 26:3-6
v - 14-15 prosperity provokes jealousy
v. 16 the request
v. 17 Isaac moves
2. The second conflict 26:19-24
the conflict - 19-21
Esek - dispute
Sitnah - opposition
the end of conflict v. 22
vv- 23-24 God’s promise of blessing
3. The end of conflict 26:25-33
vv 26-30 An agreement with the Philistines
v 25, 31-33 God shows his approval of Isaac as water is once again discovered
Point
1. The treatment God’s people receive at the hands of the world.
2. No matter where Isaac was forced to dig, and no matter how often the Philistines stopped up his wells, he found water in the wilderness - because God was with him.
