By Genesis 25, Abraham had died at the age of 175, and Isaac inherited all his flocks, servants, and personal wealth. Isaac is married to Rebekah, and they have twin boys, Jacob and Esau. The two siblings are at odds even before birth. Esau is the oldest, but Jacob comes out of the womb grasping at his heel, which earns him his name, which means “he grasps the heel,” a Hebrew idiom for “deceiver.”

As a teenager, Esau sells his birthright as the eldest son, trading it to Jacob for a bowl of stew. The birthright signified the inherited acknowledgment as head of household and a double portion of the physical inheritance compared to any siblings. Scripture indicates that Esau “despised” his birthright, suggesting he viewed it as worthless. This act stemmed from pride, as if to declare, “I’ll create my own blessing.”

When chapter 26 begins, we learn that there is a famine in the land, but God provides Isaac with specific instructions on how to respond.

Genesis 26:1-5 – Now there was a famine in the land, besides the previous famine that had occurred in the days of Abraham. So Isaac went to Gerar, to Abimelech king of the Philistines. The Lord appeared to him and said, “Do not go down to Egypt; stay in the land of which I shall tell you. Sojourn in this land and I will be with you and bless you, for to you and to your descendants I will give all these lands, and I will establish the oath which I swore to your father Abraham. I will multiply your descendants as the stars of heaven, and will give your descendants all these lands; and by your descendants all the nations of the earth shall be blessed; because Abraham obeyed Me and kept My charge, My commandments, My statutes and My laws.”

Isaac is currently living in the land God promised to his father. As Matthew Henry notes, “Isaac had been trained up in a believing dependence upon the divine grant of the land of Canaan to him and his heirs; yet now there is a famine in the land. What shall he think of the promise when the promised land will not find him bread? Is such a grant worth accepting, upon such terms, and after so long a time?”

Isn’t it interesting how God orchestrates events to test our commitment to Him? When the difficult days arrived, Isaac’s instinct was to head south to Egypt, where there would be food and provisions from Pharaoh. On his way through Gerar, the land of the Philistines, God stops him and gives him a choice. He could stay where things were not as easy, trusting in God’s promised blessing and care, or continue to Egypt and trust men to care for him.

Egypt symbolizes many things in the Bible, often serving as a detriment to the children of God. Isaac’s descendants were enslaved by the Egyptians for several centuries. When they are rescued, it’s the place they long to return to, enticed by its bounty of food, forgetting the way they were oppressed. In Jeremiah’s day, while besieged by Babylon, the Israelites are warned by God not to flee to Egypt for safety but to remain in Jerusalem and trust in God’s protection. In the New Testament, Egypt comes to represent our old, sinful way of life (we are slaves to sin) and the world with all its pleasures.

God’s guidance to Isaac reminds me that when life becomes difficult, our instinct is to seek help from others and escape our challenges. However, perhaps hardship is a divinely orchestrated situation that tests our commitment and loyalty to God.

I think about people who are delivered and saved from physical addictions. They must make intentional choices about whom they spend time with and where they go to avoid being pulled back into their old lives. Whether it’s a physical need, a spiritual issue, or an emotional desire, we all struggle with the tendency to depend on others instead of God, especially during difficult times when the promises He made have not yet been fulfilled.

What’s our takeaway?

When life doesn’t turn out the way we expect or when God allows difficult times in our lives, we need to think twice about our response. Will we plant our feet deep into God’s promises and trust Him to see us through, or will we adopt the spirit of Esau and be determined to make our own way, throwing away our birthright as children of God? Will we go back to our old lives and old habits or live in the new life God has given us?

Will we “run to Egypt” or wait on God?

Isaac chose to follow God’s commands. As we will see, he was an imperfect, fallible human who didn’t always get things right, but his heart’s desire was to honor the God of his father, Abraham. Let’s not fear the famine when it (inevitably) comes but trust the One who has taken on the responsibility to care for us and give Him time to work!