Genesis 26:20

20 the herders of Gerar quarreled with Isaac's herders, saying, "The water is ours." So he called the well Esek, because they contended with him.

Genesis 26:20 Meaning and Commentary

Genesis 26:20

And the herdmen of Gerar did strive with Isaac's herdmen
About the well which was dug in the valley; and this shows it was near Gerar or at least was upon the border of the country, and so it was a disputable point to whom it belonged: saying, the water [is] ours;
though the well was dug by Isaac's servants, yet they laid claim to the water, pretending it was their ground, being on their borders: and he called the name of the well Esek:
which signifies "contention": the reason of the name follows, because they strove with him;
wrangled, contended, and disputed with him about whose right it was.

Genesis 26:20 In-Context

18 Isaac dug again the wells of water that had been dug in the days of his father Abraham; for the Philistines had stopped them up after the death of Abraham; and he gave them the names that his father had given them.

19 But when Isaac's servants dug in the valley and found there a well of spring water,

20 the herders of Gerar quarreled with Isaac's herders, saying, "The water is ours." So he called the well Esek, because they contended with him.

21 Then they dug another well, and they quarreled over that one also; so he called it Sitnah.

22 He moved from there and dug another well, and they did not quarrel over it; so he called it Rehoboth, saying, "Now the Lord has made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land."

Footnotes

• [a]. That is [Contention]