Genesis 26:18-20
Amplified Bible, Classic Edition
18 And Isaac dug again the wells of water which had been dug in the days of Abraham his father, for the Philistines had stopped them after the death of Abraham; and he gave them the names by which his father had called them.
19 Now Isaac’s servants dug in the valley and found there a well of living [spring] water.
20 And the herdsmen of Gerar quarreled with Isaac’s herdsmen, saying, The water is ours. And he named the well Esek [contention] because they quarreled with him.
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Genesis 26:18-20
New English Translation
18 Isaac reopened[a] the wells that had been dug[b] back in the days of his father Abraham, for the Philistines had stopped them up[c] after Abraham died. Isaac[d] gave these wells[e] the same names his father had given them.[f]
19 When Isaac’s servants dug in the valley and discovered a well with fresh flowing[g] water there, 20 the herdsmen of Gerar quarreled[h] with Isaac’s herdsmen, saying, “The water belongs to us!” So Isaac[i] named the well Esek[j] because they argued with him about it.[k]
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- Genesis 26:18 tn Heb “he returned and dug,” meaning “he dug again” or “he reopened.”
- Genesis 26:18 tn Heb “that they dug.” Since the subject is indefinite, the verb is translated as passive.
- Genesis 26:18 tn Heb “and the Philistines had stopped them up.” This clause explains why Isaac had to reopen them.
- Genesis 26:18 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- Genesis 26:18 tn Heb “them”; the referent (the wells) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- Genesis 26:18 tn Heb “called names to them according to the names that his father called them.”
- Genesis 26:19 tn Heb “living.” This expression refers to a well supplied by subterranean streams (see Song 4:15).
- Genesis 26:20 tn The Hebrew verb translated “quarreled” describes a conflict that often has legal ramifications.
- Genesis 26:20 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Isaac) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- Genesis 26:20 sn The name Esek means “argument” in Hebrew. The following causal clause explains that Isaac gave the well this name as a reminder of the conflict its discovery had created. In the Hebrew text there is a wordplay, for the name is derived from the verb translated “argued.”
- Genesis 26:20 tn The words “about it” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
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