Person Old Testament
Phicol
Also known as Phicol =ESV, NIV; Phichol =KJV
Phicol, the commander of the army of Abimelech, the Philistine king of Gerar, who accompanied Abimelech in making treaties with Abraham and Isaac. Mentioned in 3 verses across 1 book, first at Genesis 21:22.
Why it matters. Commander of Abimelech's army
- Primary passages
- Last reviewed
- 2026-08-30 by the FaithGraph team
About Phicol
Phicol was the commander of the army of Abimelech, the Philistine king of Gerar. He is mentioned twice in the book of Genesis, both times in the context of treaties made between Abimelech and the patriarchs.
In Gen.21.22-32, Phicol accompanied Abimelech when they approached Abraham to make a treaty, acknowledging that God was with Abraham in all that he did. As part of the treaty, Abraham set apart seven ewe lambs as a witness that he had dug a well, which was named Beersheba.
Later, in Gen.26.26, Phicol again accompanied Abimelech, along with Ahuzzath, Abimelech's advisor, when they came to make a treaty with Isaac. This event took place after Isaac had reopened the wells dug by his father, Abraham, and had settled in Beersheba.
Phicol's presence in these narratives suggests that he was a trusted official in Abimelech's court and played a significant role in diplomatic relations with the patriarchs.
Description from STEPBible TIPNR (Tyndale House, Cambridge), CC BY 4.0, lightly reformatted. This is background reference material, not Scripture and not a FaithGraph editorial claim.
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Appears in Scripture
Named in 3 verses across 1 book. Occurrence data from STEPBible TIPNR (CC BY 4.0); references only, no translation text.