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Genesis 26:7

Old Testament Law (Torah) ASV (1901)

What does Genesis 26:7 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “And the men of the place asked him of his wife. And he said, She is my sister. For he feared to say, My wife. Lest, [said he], the men of the place should kill me for Rebekah. Because she was fair to look upon.” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

And the men of the place asked him of his wife. And he said, She is my sister. For he feared to say, My wife. Lest, [said he], the men of the place should kill me for Rebekah. Because she was fair to look upon.
Genesis 26:7 — American Standard Version

Context — Genesis 26

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
4And I will multiply thy seed as the stars of heaven, and will give unto thy seed all these lands. And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed.
5Because that Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.
6And Isaac dwelt in Gerar.
7And the men of the place asked him of his wife. And he said, She is my sister. For he feared to say, My wife. Lest, [said he], the men of the place should kill me for Rebekah. Because she was fair to look upon.
8And it came to pass, when he had been there a long time, that Abimelech king of the Philistines looked out at a window, and saw, and, behold, Isaac was sporting with Rebekah his wife.
9And 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 because of her.
10And Abimelech said, What is this thou hast done unto us? One of the people might easily have lain with thy wife, and thou wouldest have brought guiltiness upon us.
← Genesis 26:6Genesis 26:8 →
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What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“And the men of the place asked [him] of his wife, etc.] The inhabitants of Gerar inquired of Isaac who she was, whether she was his wife or not, or in what relation she stood in to him; this was not a mere civil inquiry, but what arose from the prevalence of lust in them towards her; and yet it was under some restraint, they being not so abandoned to their lusts as to exercise them upon any; not upon a man’s wife, the sin of adultery being detestable to them, though that of fornication was made no account of by them: and he said, she [is] my sister; herein imitating his father Abraham in his infirmity and unbelief, who in the same place had made such an answer to a like question concerning…”
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Related study paths

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Sources and verification