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And Hashem appeared to him and said: Do not descend to Egypt.  Dwell in the land that I tell you.  Dwell in this land and I will be with you and I will bless you because to you and to your descendants I will give all of these lands.  And I will fulfill the promise that I made to your father Avraham.  (Sefer Beresheit 26:2-3)

Yitzchak’s relocation to Gerar

Virtually the Torah’s entire discussion of Yitzchak is contained in Parshat Toldot.  One of the episodes included is his experiences in the Land of the Pelishtim. 

The Land of Cana’an is stricken by famine.  Yitzchak decides to follow the example of his father, Avraham, and lead his family to Egypt for the duration of the famine.  For both Avraham and Yitzchak, this was a logical decision.  The Land of Cana’an – Israel – depends primarily upon precipitation for irrigation.  Drought inevitably produces famine.  Egypt’s agriculture is supported by the Nile River.  Therefore, Egypt was often spared from regional droughts and famines.  As Yitzchak prepares to descend to Egypt, Hashem appears to him. 

The passages above are the first part of Hashem’s message to Yitzchak.   Hashem directs Yitzchak to not travel to Egypt but to remain in the Land of Cana’an.  Then, Hashem explains the reason He requires that Yitzchak remain in the Land of Cana’an.  Hashem promised to give the Land of Cana’an to Avraham’s descendants.  The fulfillment of this promise will begin with Yitzchak’s uninterrupted residence in the Land and continue with his descendants’ possession of the Land.

And Yitzchak dwelled in Gerar.  (Sefer Beresheit 26:6)

 Yitzchak’s conflict with the Pelishtim

Yitzchak remains in the Land of Israel, and following the example of his father, he settles in Gerar.  The Torah describes Yitzchak’s experiences in Gerar in some detail.  Yitzchak arrives and – like Avraham – he conceals that Rivkah is his wife.  He is discovered by the king – Avimelech – who commands the people to not harm Yitzchak or Rivkah.  Despite the famine, Yitzchak is successful in harvesting a bumper crop, and while in Gerar, becomes increasingly wealthy. 

Yitzchak’s success is followed by a number of unpleasant events.  First, the Pelishtim destroy the wells that Avraham had developed in their land.  Then, Avimelech, responding to jealously evoked by Yitzchak’s success, demands that Yitzchak leave Gerar and settle elsewhere.

Yitzchak re-digs the wells developed by Avraham and restores to them the names that had been given to them by his father.  He digs additional wells.  Ownership of the first two wells is contested by the Pelishtim.  The first he names Eysek – meaning quarrel.  The second he names Sitnah – meaning conflict or hostility.  Yitzchak again relocates.  Finally, he develops a new well and it is not contested. The Torah provides additional details of Yitzchak’s experiences. The account ends with Avimelech coming to Yitzchak and asking that they renew the covenant originally established between Avraham and the Pelishtim.

In short, Yitzchak’s relations with Avimelech and the Pelishtim progresses through four specific stages:

• First, Avimelech shows deference to Yitzchak.  He commands the citizens of Gerar to not harm Yitzchak or Rivkah. 
• In the second stage, Yitzchak’s success leads to jealousy and resentment.  He is required to leave Gerar.  During this stage, the Pelishtim repeatedly dispute the ownership of successful wells that his servants develop.
• In the third stage, the Pelishtim desist from harassing Yitzchak.  They do not dispute the third well that his servants develop.
• In the final stage, Avimelch comes to Yitzchak and asks that they enter into a treaty.

This account raises a number of questions.  The Pelishtim were intensely jealous of Yitzchak.  This jealousy is even more remarkable in light of the circumstances.  When Yitzchak came to Gerar, he succeeded in harvesting a huge crop.  This was a remarkable and significant achievement at a time of famine.  His successful harvest helped feed the people and relieve them from the suffering of the famine.  Our Sages point out that Yitzchak was blessed and so were the people of Gerar.  What was the cause of this fierce jealousy?

Second, eventually, the jealousy was replaced by acceptance and then by an offer of friendship.  What caused the mindless, self-destructive jealousy of the Pelishtim to be replaced by acceptance and then an entreaty for fellowship?

Third, although this is certainly a fascinating narrative, its message is not obvious.  What does the Torah intend to communicate to us through this account?

And Avimelech said to Yitzchak:  Go from among us because you have become much more mighty than us.  (Sefer Beresheit 26:16)And the shepherds of Gerar strove with the shepherds of Yitzchak saying: The water is ours!And he called the name of the well Eysek because they strove with him. (Sefer Beresheit 26:20)

Avimelch’s jealousy

In the first above passage, Avimelech orders Yitzchak to leave Gerar.  He tells Yitzchak he must quit Gerar because he has become so mighty.  What exactly does Avimelech mean?  Radak suggests that Avimelech is telling Yitzchak that the people are disturbed by his great wealth.  He has much more wealth than any other citizen of the community and this is just too much for the people to bear!

The root cause of the people’s jealousy is more apparent in the second passage.  This passage describes the dispute with the shepherds of Gerar over the first successful well established by Yitzchak’s shepherds.  The shepherds of Gerar declare that the water is theirs!  Their point is that although the well had been developed by Yitzchak’s shepherds, this is the Land of the Pelishtim.  Yitzchak and his shepherds are foreigners and they have no right to exploit the resources of a land that is not theirs.

This is also the likely source of the people’s reaction of jealousy to Yitzchak’s success.  He is a foreigner. This foreigner is succeeding in their land.  How can a person from another land come to their community and surpass them in success and wealth! 

In short, two factors combine to shape the people’s jealousy toward Yitzchak.  First, he is a foreigner in their land.  Second, he is enormously successful in their land.  They cannot accept that this foreigner should surpass them in their own land.

In response to these intense feelings of jealousy and resentment, Avimelech and the citizens of Gerar take two steps. First, they expell Yitzchak from their community.  They will no longer be forced to observe his wealth and prosperity.  Second, they try to deny Yitzchak the resources of the land.  They fight with him over the wells he has developed.

Now that the jealousy of the Pelishtim has been explored, let us consider their change in attitude.

The strange names that Yitzchak assigned to his wells

The names that Yitzchak gives to his wells are difficult to understand if considered individually.  However, when considered together, these names communicate an important message.  The names that Yitzchak gives to the first two wells make reference to strife and conflict.  The third well his shepherds develop is not contested.  He names this well Rechovot.  This name communicates that the conflict has ended.

The names that Yitzchak selects for his wells demonstrate his confidence in his eventual success.  The names he gives to the first two wells recall his conflict and strife with his neighbors.  He gives these names to the wells knowing that the tension between him and the Pelishtim will be replaced by acceptance.  This anticipated outcome is achieved and is expressed in the name Yitzchak gives to the third well.

In other words, when Yitzchak names the first two wells he understands that the strife over these two wells is only preliminary to the acceptance that will eventually emerge.  The names given to the first two wells are intended to recall and memorialize the path he has traveled.  This path began with rejection, strife, and even exile. But it ended with acceptance and even peace. 

And they said:  We have seen that Hashem is with you.  And we say, “Let there be a vow between us and between you and your children.  Let us enter into a covenant with you.” (Sefer Beresheit 26:28)

The change in the attitude of the Pelishtim

The names also provide an explanation for the change in the attitude of Avimelech and the Pelishtim.  The consistency and persistence of Yitzchak’s success forced them to come to terms with him.  As long as they felt they could undermine Yitzchak or just wait for his fortune to change, they rejected and scorned him.  Once they recognized that they could not overcome Yitzchak and that his success was not mere passing good fortune, they ended their quarrel with him and then sought a treaty of friendship. 

This explanation is reflected in the above passage.  Avimelech comes to Yitzchak and asks that they create a covenant. Yitzchak asks Avimelech to explain his change in attitude.  Avimelech responds in the above passage.  Essentially, he acknowledges the message communicated by the names that Yitzchak gave his wells.  Avimelech tells Yitzchak that he realizes that Hashem is with Yitzchak.  He cannot undermine Yitzchak.  He cannot overcome him.  He can only make peace with Yitzchak.

Let us now consider the message of this episode.

And I will cause your descendants to proliferate so as to be as the stars of the heavens.  And I will giveto your descendants all of these lands.  And all of the nations of the world will be blessed on account of your descendants.  (Sefer Beresheit 26:4)

 Hashem’s blessing of Yitzchak

The above passage is the final portion of the blessing that Hashem gave to Yitzchak before his descent to Gerar.  In this blessing Hashem tells Yitzchak something that is amazing but might go unnoticed. Hashem promises Yitzchak that he will have an enormous progeny and that his descendants will possess the Land of Cana’an.  These are wonderful blessings. They are also much easier to envision than the last blessing.  This last blessing is that the nations of the world will be blessed on account of the Jewish people. 

The narrative of Yitzchak’s experience in Gerar demonstrates the enormity of this last promise. Yitzchak came to Gerar at a time of famine.  Through his success, he fed the people. He developed wells in an arid, drought-stricken land.  Rather than being accepted as a blessing for the people, he was treated as a calamity.  He was scorned and exiled. 

Hashem can grant us the conquest described in the passage. He can grant us children and any number of descendants.  But to be a blessing to the nations of the world, we must be accepted by them.  How can Hashem promise Yitzchak that the nations of the world will make peace with and embrace our people?  Certainly, this is difficult to envision from our current status within the community of nations.

This is the issue that the narrative of Yitzchak in the Land of the Pelishtim addresses.  The Pelishtim and their king resented Yitzchak. They exiled him and tried to undermine him.  Their animus was so intense they were willing to sacrifice their own welfare rather than accept Yitzchak’s prosperity.  But by the conclusion of the narrative, they were forced by the persistence of Yitzchak’s success to concede to Yitzchak.  They were compelled to acknowledge that Hashem was with Yitzchak and to make peace with him.