Pensée juive sur Les Proverbes 18:3

(7) This proves to all that what might have been construed as a sale under duress, could not now be viewed in that light. After all, Esau had had plenty of time to give second thoughts to the importance of the transaction that had been completed. (8) Isaac was a wealthy man, and presumably there had been famines in the land of Canaan since the days of Abraham. None of those however, had approached in severity the one described in Abraham's days until now. When G-d instructs Isaac "reside in the land," He refers to Canaan as Isaac's permanent place of residence. (9) The reason given is that this land constitutes his and his descendants' inheritance. (10) Regarding Isaac's grandchildren, however, they who would one day inherit the greater land of Israel as a fulfilment of G-d’s promise to their ancestor Abraham, they would be permitted to leave the land of Canaan, since G-d’s Providence would protect them even when away from the holy land. This is the difference in the wording "this land" and "these lands" (26,3). Isaac and Rebecca living together under one roof for any length of time, if not as husband and wife, was most unusual. Avimelech, therefore, became curious concerning their true relationship. Presumably, he made structural changes in the house opposite that of Isaac, to enable him to keep those two under observation. (11) When confronted by Avimelech, Isaac immediately admitted the facts and his fears concerning his own safety, should such facts become known. Now that Rebecca's real status had been revealed, the danger of her being raped and her husband being murdered became real, and Avimelech had to issue special decrees to discourage anyone from molesting either of the two. In this manner, Isaac's status was raised considerably. (12) In re-opening the old wells dug by his father, Isaac displayed great courage. He found additional deep water. The Philistines claimed the water as theirs, stating that they owned all the mineral rights in the country. 13) Isaac's claim was based on having made improvements in undeveloped lands. The wells were retained by Isaac's shepherds. The names eysek and sitnah reflect both the strife and the victory won by Isaac in these arguments. In all this, there is clear evidence of the Divine assistance received by Isaac. This led to recognition on the part of the Philistines that it was better to have Isaac as a friend than to have him as an adversary. At least, they thought it was important that Isaac guarantee his neutrality in any difficulties they might become involved in. At that point, Avimelech paid a visit to Isaac, explaining that he now realized that Isaac's wealth had not been acquired at the expense of the Philistines, as they had suspected until now, but that it was the result of the Providence of the G-d of Isaac. In view of this, and considering that they had imposed export restrictions on Isaac when he left Gerrar at their insistence, Isaac agreed. Possibly, the news of another well discovery was received while these talks were in progress. (14) Isaac called this new well Beer sheva as a reminder of the oath of friendship that had coincided with this discovery. This too became the name of the town for the very same reason.