Genesis 21:34
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And Abraham resided in the land of the Philistines for a long time.
Commentaries
Excerpts gathered from published commentaries to ground the reading.
Abraham sojourned a long time there in the Philistines' land. There Isaac was probably born, and grew up to be a young man (Gen 22:6), capable of carrying the wood for a sacrifice; cf. Gen 22:19. The expression "in the land of the Philistines" appears to be at variance with Gen 21:32, where Abimelech and Phicol are said to have returned to the land of the Philistines. But the discrepancy is easily reconciled, on the supposition that at that time the land of the Philistines had no fixed boundary, at all events, towards the desert. Beersheba did not belong to Gerar, the kingdom of Abimelech in the stricter sense; but the Philistines extended their wanderings so far, and claimed the district as their own, as is evident from the fact that Abimelech's people had taken the well from Abraham. On the other hand, Abraham with his numerous flocks would not confine himself to the Wady es Seba, but must have sought for pasture-ground in the whole surrounding country; and as Abimelech had given him full permission to dwell in his land (Gen 20:15), he would still, as heretofore, frequently come as far as Gerar, so that his dwelling at Beersheba (Gen 22:19) might be correctly described as sojourning (nomadizing) in the land of the Philistines.
Open source ↗In this chapter we have, I. Isaac, the child of promise born into Abraham's family (Gen 21:1-8). II. Ishmael, the son of the bondwoman, cast out of it (Gen 21:9-21). III. Abraham's league with his neighbour Abimelech (Gen 21:22-32). IV. His devotion to his God (Gen 21:33).
Open source ↗Original language
The Hebrew and Greek words behind this passage, with Strong's numbers — from openscriptures (CC BY-SA).
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Now Abraham journeyed from there to the region of the Negev and settled between Kadesh and Shur. While he was staying in Gerar,
Hear my prayer, O LORD, and give ear to my cry for help; do not be deaf to my weeping. For I am a foreigner dwelling with You, a stranger like all my fathers.
By faith he dwelt in the promised land as a stranger in a foreign country. He lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise.
Beloved, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from the desires of the flesh, which war against your soul.
For we are foreigners and strangers in Your presence, as were all our forefathers. Our days on earth are like a shadow, without hope.
All these people died in faith, without having received the things they were promised. However, they saw them and welcomed them from afar. And they acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth.