It seems obvious to me that, if Isaac had still been dwelling in the Negav (Genesis 24:62) at the time of the famine (Genesis 26:1), he had incurred some loses, before he decided to move away to a place, where he could be reasonably certain of prosperity. So, whether he moved due to losses of livestock or of manpower, Isaac sought to find a place, where he could at least maintain what he still had.[1] Abraham, Isaac’s father, had left the Land of Promise to dwell in Egypt, until the famine ended. Therefore, Isaac was probably in the process of doing as his father had done, vis-à-vis he was walking in his father’s steps, which, in as much as I am able to understand, would have been a wise thing to do, vis-à-vis walk in the steps of the man who was known to have been the friend of God (2Chronicles 20:7; Isaiah 41:8; James 2:23). Nevertheless, the Lord appeared to Isaac and stopped him from going to Egypt, and told him, rather, to settle in the land of Gerar for a season (Genesis 26:2-3, 6), and he would bless him there (Genesis 26:3-5).
According to Jesus, a man who listens to the word of God (Matthew 13:3, 23; cp. Luke 8:11) will be blessed thirty, sixty or a hundred-fold. If we keep in mind that Isaac planted his seed in Gerar during the days of the famine, a hundred-fold would have been quite extraordinary (Genesis 26:12). A hundred-fold during a normal season would have been considered extraordinary, but under famine conditions, this blessing would have been astonishing!
So, Isaac not only recouped any losses he may have incurred before he left the Negev to settle in Gerar, but he excelled more and more, until he became very great in wealth and influence (Genesis 26:13-14). His great flocks and herds would have made him a major food producer in the area, both in terms of meat (animals) and goods produced from the fields he rented from the Philistines. Moreover, the wool from his sheep would also have made him a formidable competitor in the fabric industry in the area, out producing the local businesses due to the greater numbers of sheep Isaac owned. Additionally, the great number of servants Isaac had not only served in his fields to plow and harvest his goods, but some also acted as business agents who contracted the sale of his products, while others were used to transport them to the available markets in Philistia, Canaan and even Egypt. Thus, making him so successful that the Philistine businessmen envied him.
Although Isaac’s presence in Gerar satisfied many of the needs of the Philistines under famine conditions, it became imperative for him to leave Abimelech’s kingdom, if he was to maintain order in the land. Therefore, the political pressure Abimelech received from his own businessmen caused him to decide to get rid of Isaac. He was afraid to attack him, due to the Lord’s powerful hand that rested upon him (Genesis 26:11; cp. 20:3-8), so he refused to grant him water rights for his fields and livestock, telling Isaac that he had grown much more powerful than they were, vis-à-vis Isaac’s success was destroying the Philistines ability to compete with him in the available markets. Moreover, since Abimelech had destroyed all of the wells that Abraham had dug after Abraham had died,[2] Isaac was forced to move away from the suburbs of Gerar (Genesis 26:15-16), and he moved to the valley or the wadi of Gerar. In other words, he moved to where water flowed in a more prosperous season and he dwelt there in hope of finding the water he needed (Genesis 26:17).
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[1] It is also possible that the Canaanites no longer wished to lease their land to Isaac, due to the famine and needing more grazing lands. Thus, Isaac would have been forced to leave Canaan for a place, where he was permitted the graze his herds.
[2] If Abimelech didn’t destroy the wells, which Abraham had built, until after Abraham had died, it seems that having these wells open was part of the treaty between them (cp. Genesis 21:22-32).
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