6 And Isaac dwelleth in Gerar; 7 and men of the place ask him of his wife, and he saith, 'She 'is' my sister:' for he hath been afraid to say, 'My wife—lest the men of the place kill me for Rebekah, for she 'is' of good appearance.' 8 And it cometh to pass, when the days have been prolonged to him there, that Abimelech king of the Philistines looketh through the window, and seeth, and lo, Isaac is playing with Rebekah his wife. 9 And Abimelech calleth for Isaac, and saith, 'Lo, she 'is' surely thy wife; and how hast thou said, She 'is' my sister?' and Isaac saith unto him, 'Because I said, Lest I die for her.' 10 And Abimelech saith, 'What 'is' this thou hast done to us? as a little thing one of the people had lain with thy wife, and thou hadst brought upon us guilt;' 11 and Abimelech commandeth all the people, saying, 'He who cometh against this man or against his wife, dying doth die.'
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Genesis 26:6-11
Commentary on Genesis 26:6-11
(Read Genesis 26:6-11)
There is nothing in Isaac's denial of his wife to be imitated, nor even excused. The temptation of Isaac is the same as that which overcame his father, and that in two instances. This rendered his conduct the greater sin. The falls of those who are gone before us are so many rocks on which others have split; and the recording of them is like placing buoys to save future mariners. This Abimelech was not the same that lived in Abraham's days, but both acted rightly. The sins of professors shame them before those that are not themselves religious.