Genesis 20:1-18 relates a sorry affair in Abraham's life: he tells Abimelech that Sarah is his sister; Abimelech takes Sarah to be his wife; but before anything happens, God warns Abimelech in a dream. Abimelech's response to all this? Genesis 20:14-15: And Abimelech took sheep, and oxen, and menservants, and womenservants, and gave them unto Abraham, and restored him Sarah his wife. And Abimelech said, Behold, my land is before thee: dwell where it pleaseth thee.
Abimelech appears to be a righteous, God-fearing man. This is the backdrop for:-
Genesis 21
22 And it came to pass at that time, that Abimelech and Phichol the chief captain of his host spake unto Abraham, saying, God is with thee in all that thou doest:
23 Now therefore swear unto me here by God that thou wilt not deal falsely with me, nor with my son, nor with my son's son: but according to the kindness that I have done unto thee, thou shalt do unto me, and to the land wherein thou hast sojourned.
24 And Abraham said, I will swear.
God is with thee in all that thou doest – Amen! What a testimony. And this wasn’t Abraham telling folks how wonderful he was, other people saw this, knew this, said this of him.
swear unto me here by God that thou wilt not deal falsely with me – he slightly chides Abraham for his earlier behavior, then asks to be treated with the same kindness he has shown to Abraham. kindness is one of the richest Old Testament words; chesed, it means mercy, kindness, loving-kindness. This is the ultimate righteousness, and in fact the LXX (Septuagint) translates this passage, “according to the righteousness...” Amen.
25 And Abraham reproved Abimelech because of a well of water, which Abimelech's servants had violently taken away.
26 And Abimelech said, I wot not who hath done this thing: neither didst thou tell me, neither yet heard I of it, but today.
And Abraham reproved Abimelech because of a well of water - Now Abraham brings up a touchy subject - a well is a big deal for folks living in such a dry area. It would seem he was going to overlook this transgression, but now that their relationship has grown deeper he brings it up. Abimelech denies any knowledge of it.
27 And Abraham took sheep and oxen, and gave them unto Abimelech; and both of them made a covenant.
They make a covenant to cement their relationship. In the previous chapter, Abimelech supplies the gifts, even though he was sinned against, and here Abraham supplies the sheep and oxen for sacrifice even though he was the one sinned against. This is uncomfortable. When someone wrongs me I want them to take the necessary action to make things right. Abraham dug the well and it was taken away from him by violence, he was wronged, but he supplies the sheep and oxen for the sacrifice. This reconciliation costs him. This is chesed, this is righteousness.
28 And Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves.
29 And Abimelech said unto Abraham, What mean these seven ewe lambs which thou hast set by themselves?
30 And he said, For these seven ewe lambs shalt thou take of my hand, that they may be a witness unto me, that I have digged this well.
I can just hear Abimelech, What mean these seven ewe lambs which thou hast set by themselves? Which is really amazing because he wasn’t speaking English! He’s saying, “What’s this? Is this a trick?”
“No. This gift is a witness that I have dug this well.” Again, Abraham did all the work, he dug the well; Abimelech’s servants took it by violence; so Abraham was clearly wronged, yet he provides the seven lambs as a witness. When someone has wronged me, I want them to take me to supper as a peace offering, not me take them to supper! But Abraham was righteous to his own hurt. He was a man of faith, a righteous man, and a man of chesed – mercy, kindness, goodness.
31 Wherefore he called that place Beersheba; because there they sware both of them.
32 Thus they made a covenant at Beersheba: then Abimelech rose up, and Phichol the chief captain of his host, and they returned into the land of the Philistines.
Beersheba – The Well of the Oath (LXX). They both “swore” that this was Abraham’s well.
33 And Abraham planted a grove in Beersheba, and called there on the name of the LORD, the everlasting God.
planted a grove – KJV says grove; other versions say tamarisk tree; LXX says field; Vulgate has grove; no one seems really sure what this means, but most folks agree this refers to a Tamarisk tree
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| this is a tamarisk tree; no, that's not Abraham standing next to it |
called on the name of Yahweh, the everlasting God – this indicates there is something more, something deeper going on here.
Abraham has known God by His name Yahweh for some time – he has built altars to Him, he has called on His name, and he has sworn by that name. He knows Him as God (Elohim), as Yahweh, as the “most high God” (El Elyon), as “the Almighty God” (El Shaddai), and here he called on Him as the “everlasting God” (El Olam). Abraham knows God, and he calls on his name, that is, he worships Him. But he worships Him in a particular way, as “the everlasting God.” What does this mean?
“El Olam is the Eternal God without a beginning or end. “Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.” (Psalm 90:2)
“We understand from this name of God that He is the sovereign, eternal ruler of the entire universe who is beyond time or space.
This name of God, El Olam, teaches us that God is unchangeable (Malachi 3:6). His plans and purposes are timeless, and He will not fail to follow through with them “Did you not hear long ago How I made it, From ancient times that I formed it? Now I have brought it to pass...” (Isaiah 37:26).
“He shall not fail nor be discouraged, till he have set judgment in the earth: and the isles shall wait for his law.” (Isaiah 42:4)
Thus, we read in Genesis 21:33 that after Abraham entered into a peace treaty with Abimelech and Phicol at Beersheba, he called upon El Olam as a display of his faith that the Everlasting God would deliver on His covenant promise to give his descendants the Land.
Everything we see in the natural is temporal and subject to change, but like Abraham, we should not be moved by what we see since El Olam is the Eternal God who created the universe. He will not fail to accomplish His plans and promises.” (The Messianic Prophecy Bible Project)
34 And Abraham sojourned in the Philistines' land many days.
This is a neat encounter - it has its roots in conflict and is really about how two powerful, righteous men settled their differences. This encounter at Beersheba causes me to examine myself:
+ Am I a righteous man? that is, do I walk in chesed (mercy, kindness, loving-kindness)?
+ do I know God as El Olam?
that he might be the father of all them that believe . . . who also walk in the steps of that faith of our father Abraham
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