Spin-off
In a time of severe famine, Isaac, following in the footsteps of his father Abraham, seeks refuge in Egypt. But God intervenes, commanding Isaac to stay in Gerar, where He promises to bless him and his descendants with prosperity and a great nation. Upon arriving in Gerar, Isaac hides the true identity of his beautiful wife Rebekah, fearing for his life, but their secret is discovered by King Abimelech, who spares them and commands their protection. As God’s favor shines on Isaac, he prospers immensely in Gerar, growing in wealth and influence, stirring envy among the Philistines as he reaps a hundredfold harvest even amidst the famine.
Major Characters
Minor Characters
Insignificant Characters
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Genesis
38%
Jasher
40%
Jubilees
22%
Exposition
Jubilee: 44
Year: 2145
Famine in the land
Genesis 26:1a
Jasher 28:1a
Jubilees 24:8a
Rising Action
Isaac begins going to Egypt
Jasher 28:1b
Jubilees 24:8b
YHWH instructs Isaac to go to Gerar
Genesis 26:2-5
Jasher 28:2
Jubilees 24:9-11
Isaac goes to Gerar
Genesis 26:1b, 6
Jasher 28:3
Jubilees 24:8c, 24:12
Isaac tells the men that Rebekah is his sister
Genesis 26:7
Jasher 28:4
The men tell King Abimelech
Jasher 28:5-6
Climax
King Abimelech catches Isaac flirting with Rebekah
Genesis 26:8
Jasher 28:7
King Abimelech interrogates Isaac
Genesis 26:9-10
Jasher 28:8-9
King Abimelech lets his people know they are married
Genesis 26:11
Jasher 28:10-11
Jubilees 24:13
Falling Action
Isaac finds favor with King Abimelech
Jasher 28:12-13
Resolution
Year: 2145-2165
Isaac gains much wealth
Genesis 26:12-14
Jasher 28:14-15
Jubilees 24:14-15
Jubilee: 44
Year: 2145
Famine in the land i
Genesis 26:1a
1a And there was a famine in the land, beside the first famine that was in the days of Abraham.
Jasher 28:1a
1a And in those days, after the death of Abraham, in that year the Lord brought a heavy famine in the land,
Jubilees 24:8a
8a And the famine was over the land,
Isaac begins going to Egypt
Jasher 28:1b
1b and whilst the famine was raging in the land of Canaan, Isaac rose up to go down to Egypt on account of the famine, as his father Abraham had done.
Jubilees 24:8a
8b and Isaac departed to go down into Egypt in the second year of this week,
YHWH instructs Isaac to go to Gerar
Genesis 26:2
2 And the LORD appeared unto him, and said, Go not down into Egypt; dwell in the land which I shall tell thee of:
Jasher 28:2
2 And the Lord appeared that night to Isaac and he said to him, Do not go down to Egypt but rise and go to Gerar, to Abimelech king of the Philistines, and remain there till the famine shall cease.
Jubilees 24:9a
9a And the Lord appeared unto him and said unto him: ‘Go not down into Egypt; dwell in the land that I shall tell thee of,
Genesis 26:3-5
3 Sojourn in this land, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee; for unto thee, and unto thy seed, I will give all these countries, and I will perform the oath which I sware unto Abraham thy father;
4 And I will make thy seed to multiply as the stars of heaven, and will give unto thy seed all these countries; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed;
5 Because that Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.
Jubilees 24:9b-11
9b and sojourn in this land, and I will be with thee and bless thee.
10 For to thee and to thy seed will I give all this land, and I will establish My oath which I sware unto Abraham thy father, and I will multiply thy seed as the stars of heaven, and will give unto thy seed all this land.
11 And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because thy father obeyed My voice, and kept My charge and My commandments, and My laws, and My ordinances, and My covenant; and now obey My voice and dwell in this land.’
Isaac goes to Gerar
Genesis 26:1b, 26:6
1b And Isaac went unto Abimelech king of the Philistines unto Gerar.
6 And Isaac dwelt in Gerar:
Jasher 28:3
3 And Isaac rose up and went to Gerar, as the Lord commanded him, and he remained there a full year.
Jubilees 24:8c, 12
8c and went to the king of the Philistines to Gerar, unto Abimelech.
12 And he dwelt in Gelar three weeks of years.
Isaac tells the men that Rebekah is his sister
Genesis 26:7
7 And the men of the place asked him of his wife; and he said, She is my sister: for he feared to say, She is my wife; lest, said he, the men of the place should kill me for Rebekah; because she was fair to look upon.
Jasher 28:4
4 And when Isaac came to Gerar, the people of the land saw that Rebecca his wife was of a beautiful appearance, and the people of Gerar asked Isaac concerning his wife, and he said, She is my sister, for he was afraid to say she was his wife lest the people of the land should slay him on account of her.
The men tell King Abimelech
Jasher 28:5-6
5 And the princes of Abimelech went and praised the woman to the king, but he answered them not, neither did he attend to their words.
6 But he heard them say that Isaac declared her to be his sister, so the king reserved this within himself.
King Abimelech catches Isaac flirting with Rebekah
Genesis 26:9-10
9 And Abimelech called Isaac, and said, Behold, of a surety she is thy wife; and how saidst thou, She is my sister? And Isaac said unto him, Because I said, Lest I die for her.
10 And Abimelech said, What is this thou hast done unto us? one of the people might lightly have lien with thy wife, and thou shouldest have brought guiltiness upon us.
Jasher 28:8-9
8 And the king said unto Isaac, What is this thou hast done to us in saying of thy wife, She is my sister? how easily might one of the great men of the people have lain with her, and thou wouldst then have brought guilt upon us.
9 And Isaac said unto Abimelech, Because I was afraid lest I die on account of my wife, therefore I said, She is my sister.
King Abimelech lets his people know they are married
Genesis 26:11
11 And Abimelech charged all his people, saying, He that toucheth this man or his wife shall surely be put to death.
Jasher 28:10-11
10 At that time Abimelech gave orders to all his princes and great men, and they took Isaac and Rebecca his wife and brought them before the king.
11 And the king commanded that they should dress them in princely garments, and make them ride through the streets of the city, and proclaim before them throughout the land, saying, This is the man and this is his wife; whoever toucheth this man or his wife shall surely die. And Isaac returned with his wife to the king’s house, and the Lord was with Isaac and he continued to wax great and lacked nothing.
Jubilees 24:13
13 And Abimelech charged concerning him, [2080-2101 A.M.] and concerning all that was his, saying: ‘Any man that shall touch him or aught that is his shall surely die.’
Isaac finds favor with King Abimelech
Jasher 28:12-13
12 And the Lord caused Isaac to find favor in the sight of Abimelech, and in the sight of all his subjects, and Abimelech acted well with Isaac, for Abimelech remembered the oath and the covenant that existed between his father and Abraham.
13 And Abimelech said unto Isaac, Behold the whole earth is before thee; dwell wherever it may seem good in thy sight until thou shalt return to thy land; and Abimelech gave Isaac fields and vineyards and the best part of the land of Gerar, to sow and reap and eat the fruits of the ground until the days of the famine should have passed by.
Year: 2145-2165
Isaac gains much wealth
Genesis 26:12-14
12 Then Isaac sowed in that land, and received in the same year an hundredfold: and the LORD blessed him.
13 And the man waxed great, and went forward, and grew until he became very great:
14 For he had possession of flocks, and possession of herds, and great store of servants: and the Philistines envied him.
Jasher 28:14-15
14 And Isaac sowed in that land, and received a hundred-fold in the same year, and the Lord blessed him.
15 And the man waxed great, and he had possession of flocks and possession of herds and great store of servants.
Jubilees 24:14-15
14 And Isaac waxed strong among the Philistines, and he got many possessions, oxen and sheep and camels and asses and a great household.
15 And he sowed in the land of the Philistines and brought in a hundred-fold, and Isaac became exceedingly great, and the Philistines envied him.
Notes
i
Isaac dwells in Gerar for 21 years from 2145 (Jubilee 2081), until 2166 (Jubilee 2102).
Exposition
Jubilee: 44
Year: 2145
Famine in the land
Genesis 26:1a
Jasher 28:1a
Jubilees 24:8a
During that time, after Abraham’s death, the Lord brought a severe famine to the land, different from the first famine that happened during Abraham’s lifetime.
Rising Action
Isaac begins going to Egypt
Jasher 28:1b
Jubilees 24:8b
While the famine was affecting the land of Canaan, Isaac decided to head down to Egypt in the 2nd year of that week, just as his father Abraham had done during the previous famine.
YHWH instructs Isaac to go to Gerar
Genesis 26:2-5
Jasher 28:2
Jubilees 24:9-11
That night, the Lord appeared to Isaac and said, “Do not go down to Egypt. Instead, go to Gerar and stay there with Abimelech, king of the Philistines, until the famine is over. Live in this land, and I will be with you and bless you. I will give you and your descendants all these lands, and I will fulfill the promise I made to Abraham your father. I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and give them all these lands. Through your offspring, all the nations of the earth will be blessed—because Abraham listened to my voice and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.”
Isaac goes to Gerar
Genesis 26:1b, 6
Jasher 28:3
Jubilees 24:8c, 24:12
So Isaac went to Gerar, as the Lord told him, and stayed there for a full year. He went to Abimelech, king of the Philistines, in Gerar and ended up living in Gerar for 21 years.
Isaac tells the men that Rebekah is his sister
Genesis 26:7
Jasher 28:4
When Isaac arrived in Gerar, the people noticed that Rebekah, his wife, was very beautiful. The men of the place asked him about her, and he said, “She is my sister,” because he was afraid to say, “She is my wife,” thinking, “They might kill me because of Rebekah, since she’s so beautiful.”
The men tell King Abimelech
Jasher 28:5-6
Then the princes of Abimelech spoke highly of Rebekah to the king. He didn’t respond or pay attention to what they said, but he did hear that Isaac had claimed she was his sister. The king kept this information to himself.
Climax
King Abimelech catches Isaac flirting with Rebekah
Genesis 26:8
Jasher 28:7
After Isaac had been there for 3 months, Abimelech looked out through a window and saw Isaac laughing and flirting with Rebekah. Isaac was staying in the outer house that belonged to the king, and it was directly across from the king’s residence.
King Abimelech interrogates Isaac
Genesis 26:9-10
Jasher 28:8-9
Abimelech called Isaac and said, “She is definitely your wife. Why did you say, ‘She is my sister’?”
Isaac replied, “I said it because I thought I might be killed because of her. That’s why I said she’s my sister.”
Then Abimelech said, “What have you done to us? One of the people could easily have slept with your wife, and you would have brought guilt upon us.”
King Abimelech lets his people know they are married
Genesis 26:11
Jasher 28:10-11
Jubilees 24:13
Abimelech ordered all his princes and important men to bring Isaac and Rebekah before him. He had them dressed in royal clothing and made them ride through the streets while it was publicly announced across the land, “This is the man, and this is his wife. Anyone who touches either of them will surely be put to death.”
After that, Isaac and Rebekah returned to live in the king’s house. The Lord was with Isaac, and he continued to grow in prosperity, lacking nothing.
Falling Action
Isaac finds favor with King Abimelech
Jasher 28:12-13
The Lord caused Isaac to be favored by Abimelech and by all of Abimelech’s people. Abimelech treated Isaac kindly because he remembered the covenant and oath that had been made between his father and Abraham.
Abimelech said to Isaac, “The whole land is before you—settle wherever you like until you’re ready to return to your own country.” He gave Isaac fields, vineyards, and the best parts of Gerar so he could plant, harvest, and enjoy the produce until the famine passed.
Resolution
Year: 2145-2165
Isaac gains much wealth
Genesis 26:12-14
Jasher 28:14-15
Jubilees 24:14-15
Isaac planted crops in that land and in the same year reaped 100 times what he sowed, because the Lord blessed him. He became a powerful and wealthy man and continued to grow until he was very great. He owned many flocks, herds, and a large number of servants, and the Philistines became jealous of him.