ISAAC, the only son of Abraham and Sarah and father of Jacob and Esau. He thus occupies a middle position between the two major figures in the ancestry of Israel. Apart from the inci dents described in Gen. xxii. (the rescue of Isaac from the sacri ficial altar), Gen. xxiv. (the wooing of Rebecca by proxy) and Gen. xxvii. (the rivalry between his sons), the only inci dents of his life are those included in Gen. xxvi., which de scribes mainly his dealings with Abimelech, king of Gerar. It is to be noted that these events can be closely paralleled from the Abra ham narratives. Isaac is, in fact, the least distinguished and
most vague of the three great patriarchal characters, and the most significant points in the passages which deal with him are (i.) the mention of Beersheba as his home (e.g., Gen. xxvi. 23, 33) and (ii.) the fact of his sowing corn, thus passing from the stage of pure nomadism to that of semi-nomadism (Gen. xxvi. 12). (See GENESIS. )