And Isaac sowed seed in that land, and the same year he procured a hundred measures of barley, and the Lord blessed him. And he grew richer and richer, until he was very rich, with large flocks and herds and many slaves. And the Philistines were envious of him, and Abimelech said to him, “Leave us: you are much too strong for our comfort.” And Isaac left and camped in the wadi of Gerar and settled there.
Now the Philistines had filled with dirt all the wells that his father Abrahams slaves had dug. And Isaac reopened the wells that the Philistines had stopped up after Abraham’s death, and he called them by the names that his father had given them.
And when Isaac’s slaves were digging in the wadi, they found a well of running water. But the shepherds of Gerar contested the claim of Isaac’s shepherds and said, “This water belongs to us.” So he named the well Esek, Dispute, because they had disputed with him. And when they dug another well, they contested that one too, so he named it Sitnah, Accusation. And he moved on from there and dug another well, and they didn’t contest it, so he named it Rehovoth, Room, for he said, “The Lord has made room for us now, so that we can spread out in the land.”
And from there he went up to Beer-sheba. And he pitched his tent there, and his slaves began digging a well.
And Abimelech came to him from Gerar, with his adviser Ahuzzath and Phicol, the commander of his army. And Isaac said, “Why have you come here? You were hostile to me before, and drove me away.”
And they said, “We see now that the Lord is with you, and we propose that the two of us swear an oath to each other and make a pact: you will not do us any harm, just as we have not harmed you but have always been kind to you and sent you away in peace. You are now entirely welcome here.”
Then Isaac gave a feast for them, and they ate and drank. And in the morning they exchanged oaths, and Isaac sent them off, and they left in peace.
And that same day, Isaacs slaves came and told him about the well they had dug, and said to him, “We have found water.” So he named it Shibah, Oath. That is why the city is called Beer-sheba, The Well of the Oath, to this day.