Pasuk (26:18): "And Yitzchak dug anew the wells of water which they had dug in the days of Avraham's death; and he called them by the names that his father had called them." The commentators note that there must be reasons why the Torah relates the seemingly trivial incidents of the wells in such great detail. "Maase Avos Siman LaBanim" - the experiences of the Patriarchs are signposts of Jewish history. The three wells which are mentioned in the Pesukim, correspond to the three Temples, the two that were destroyed and the third, the eternal Temple, which was yet to be built. The first well, Esek(contention), alludes to the First Temple, which fell victim to the strife of the nations, that finally destroyed it. The second well, Sitnah(enmity), which is a harsher name than Esek, alludes to the second temple, when the enmity of Israel's enemies was longer lasting. The third well, Rechovot(spaciousness), alludes to the future temple, a time when strife and enmity, will be things of the past. Wells also symbolize the spiritual wealth that is hidden beneath the layers of materialism, and laziness. Avraham was there to show the world how much they could accomplish - if only they wanted. The symbolism of digging wells, represents a quest for spiritual riches that lay buried beneath the surface. The Philistines rejected his teachings, and thus tried to block such wells, yet Yitzchak persisted. The Philistines were a group of seafaring peoples who eventually settled in five major cities - Gaza, Ekron, Gath, Ashkelon and Ashdod - along the southern coast of Canaan. They captured the Holy Ark, blinded Samson, and killed Shaul HaMelech and his son Yonatan, before finally being subdued by David HaMelech. The Philistines mentioned in our Parsha, was an earlier phase of Philistine settlement, yet their moral development wasn't much better than the latter. After a passage of time, the Romans conquered Israel and called it Palestine. After centuries of Arab progroms, they are back again. These Palestinians are different, for they are of Arab descent unlike the historic Philistines, but they are not at all different. Yitzchak made a treaty with the "Palestinians" of his day, but it was based on strength, and not on weakness. The Philistines were not motivated by ulterior motives or material gain. They saw that Hashem was with Yitzchak, they were attracted by Yitzchak's moral superiority. Negotiations must be made from a position of spiritual strength. Yishmael, who was also a son of Avraham from Hagar, practiced idolatry, commited murder and adultery. Yet, he did repent during Avraham's life, and Yishmael renounced his sins, and thus was allowed to return to his fathers (Avraham) house. However, Yishmael's penitence was not complete, for he did not retract his denial of Yitzchak's firstborn status, and still felt that he deserved a double portion of inheritance. It was only after Avraham's burial, an event which was similar to the times of the coming of the Moshiach, that he indicated his acceptance of Yitzchak's primacy by allowing his younger brother (Yitzchak), to walk before him. Only then, did Yishmael truly repent. The Arabs throughout history, also worshiped idolatry, until the advent of Mohamed, which led them to believe in one G-d. However, they still deny Yitzchak's legitimacy to his inheritance, until this day. Just like Yishmael only saw the truth at the burial of Avraham, so to the rest of the Arab people will only see this light, through the coming of the Moshiach. After Avimelech (King of Philistine) abducted Sarah, many claimed falsely that Yitzchak was Avimelech's son and not Avraham's. This notion continued in order to try and undermine the Jewish people's claim to the Land of Israel. Yishmael joined these mockers, in order to undermine Yitzchak's inheritance of the Land. There is a difference in opinions, if Yishmael wanted the whole Land of Israel (Sforno) or just a double portion of the Land (Rashi). In our days and times, we see two groups of people(that match the two opinions Sforno & Rashi), the Arabs (Yishmael) and Palestinians (Philistines) who are both disputing our possession of Israel. The Arab world is seen trying to take away part of our rights to the land through the framework of world politics. On the other hand, the Palesinians are represented by violence and extremist groups, who are unwilling to yield even an inch of their claim over the whole Land. So far, Yishmael has only partialy repented, by rejecting idolatry through their embrace of Islam. We will have to wait until the coming of Moshiach, inorder to be able to witness the acceptance of Hashem's prophecy to Avraham "In Yitzchak shall your seed be called", by the nations of Yishmael. (Adapted from Artscroll Chumash, The Bostoner Rebbe, Rabbi Dovid Cohen)