Swearing (vv. 22–24). As many as four years may have passed since the events of Genesis 20, and during that time, it was evident that God was blessing Abraham and Sarah. Whenever a believer is restored to fellowship with the Lord, God can bless once again. The purpose of discipline is restoration, and the purpose of restoration is ministry and blessing. Not only was Abraham’s wealth increasing, but Isaac had been born, and this “miracle son’’ must have been the leading topic of conversation among the neighbors.
Abimelech was an official title rather than a personal name, so we cannot be sure that the Abimelech of this episode is the same man who previously rebuked Abraham. The fact that he wanted assurance of Abraham’s fidelity indicates that the patriarch’s deception had led to a lack of trust on the part of his neighbors. They wanted assurance that Abraham would “play fair’’ with them because he was such a powerful man.
What a testimony: “God is with you in all that you do’’ (21: nkjv). Abraham did not permit one lapse of faith to cripple him; he got right with God and made a new beginning. James Strahan said, “Men are not to be judged by the presence or absence of faults, but by the direction of their lives’’ (Hebrew Ideals, 142). God is willing to bless when we are in the place of blessing (Ps. 1:1–3).
While living at Hebron, Abraham had allied himself with some of the local leaders (Gen. 14:13), so there was no problem with entering into an agreement with Abimelech. It did not compromise Abraham’s testimony. God’s people cooperate with different people at different times for different purposes, and the discerning believer knows when any alliance is not in the will of God.
Reproving (vv. 25–26). Water is still a very precious commodity in the Holy Land. Today, various methods of irrigation are used, but in Abraham’s day, it was necessary to dig wells and guard them carefully. If you did not guard your well, your enemies might seize it or fill it up (26:18). Some of Abimelech’s servants had seized Abraham’s well, so the treaty between the two men had not done much good.
Abraham did the right thing and confronted his neighbor with the facts, but Abimelech declared that he knew nothing about it. Was he telling the truth? Only God knows, but Abraham made sure the problem would never appear again.
Witnessing (vv. 27–32). The Hebrew word “to swear’’ means “to bind by seven things,’’ and the words “swear’’ (saba) and “seven’’ (seba) are very similar. This time the two men went beyond merely giving their oath: They made a covenant that involved slaying animals (21:27; 15:9–10). As Abraham and Abimelech walked between the carcasses of the sacrifices, they were saying, in effect, “May God do to us and more if we fail to keep our covenant with each other.’’ This was a serious matter.
But Abraham went a step further: He set aside seven very valuable ewe lambs as living witnesses that he had dug the well and the water belonged to him. He gave the lambs to Abimelech who would then guard them carefully. They were like “receipts’’ guaranteeing that Abraham owned the well. The name of the well (Beersheba means “well of the oath’’) was another witness to the transaction. Both men swore to uphold the covenant, and the problem was settled.
This entire transaction involved three elements: sacrifices (21:27), witnesses (vv. 28–30), and promises (vv. 31–32). You find these same elements in God’s covenant with us through our Lord Jesus Christ, as outlined in Hebrews 10:1–18. First, there is the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross (vv. 1–14); then, the witness of the Spirit within the believer (v. 15); and finally, the promise of God’s Word (vv. 16–18). Abraham’s covenant with Abimelech only guaranteed possession of a well that provides water to sustain life. God’s covenant with His people guarantees that we have the living water that gives everlasting life to all who will trust the Savior!
Planting (v. 33). This grove (or tamarisk tree) was also a part of the covenant, a witness to the promises Abraham and Abimelech had made. The tamarisk is a shrub-like tree that has very hard wood and evergreen leaves. As he built an oasis, Abraham was certainly interested in ecology (water and trees), but even more, he was giving witness of what God had done for him. He had gone through a difficult experience in life and had left some blessings behind for others. He was like the pilgrims described in Psalm 84:6, who pass through the Valley of Baca (“weeping’’) and make it a place of springs that will refresh others.
Worshipping (v. 33). You could follow Abraham’s journey by looking for the wells he dug and the altars he built (12:7–8; 13:4, 18). He was not ashamed to build his altar in the presence of his neighbors and offer his worship to the Lord. A new name for God is introduced here: El Olam, “the Everlasting God.’’ Abraham already knew El Elyon (“God Most High’’—14:19, 22) and El Shaddai (“God Almighty, the All-Sufficient One’’—17:1), but now he had a new name to use in his worship. It is important as we go through life that we learn more and more about God so we can worship Him better.
What an encouragement to know “the Everlasting God’’! Wells would disappear, trees would be cut down, ewe lambs would grow up and die, altars would crumble, and treaties would perish, but the Everlasting God would remain. This Everlasting God had made an everlasting covenant with Abraham and his descendants (17:7, 13, 19), and He had given them the land of Canaan as an everlasting possession (v. 8; 48:4). As Abraham faced the coming years, he knew that God would not change and that “underneath [were] the everlasting arms’’ (Deut. 33:27).
Waiting (v. 34). The “many days’’ of this verse could mean as much as ten to fifteen years, because Isaac was a young man when he accompanied Abraham to Mount Moriah (Gen. 22). It must have been a peaceful time for Abraham, Sarah, and Isaac, and a time of great happiness as they watched their precious son grow up. Little did they know the great test that lay before them, but God was preparing them, and they would be ready.