26Now there was a time of hunger in the land, besides the time of hunger that happened during Abraham’s life. So Isaac went to the town of Gerar to see Abimelech king of the Philistines. ²The Lord appeared to Isaac and said, “Don’t go down to Egypt, but live in the land where I tell you to live. ³Stay 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 keep the oath I made to Abraham your father. ⁴I will give you many descendants, as hard to count as the stars in the sky, and I will give them all these lands. Through your descendants all the nations on the earth will be blessed. ⁵I will do this because your father Abraham obeyed me. He did what I said and obeyed my commands, my teachings, and my rules.”

⁶So Isaac stayed in Gerar. ⁷His wife Rebekah was very beautiful, and the men of that place asked Isaac about her. Isaac said, “She is my sister,” because he was afraid to tell them she was his wife. He thought they might kill him so they could have her.

⁸Isaac lived there a long time. One day as Abimelech king of the Philistines looked out his window, he saw Isaac holding his wife Rebekah tenderly. ⁹Abimelech called for Isaac and said, “This woman is your wife. Why did you say she was your sister?”

Isaac said to him, “I was afraid you would kill me so you could have her.”

¹⁰Abimelech said, “What have you done to us? One of our men might have had sexual relations with your wife. Then we would have been guilty of a great sin.”

¹¹So Abimelech warned everyone, “Anyone who touches this man or his wife will be put to death.”

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