On other occasions, Abraham stayed near oaks (12:6; 13:18; 18:1); here he plants a tamarisk, Tamarix aphylla, a stately

tree that can reach thirty feet (ten meters) in height. They are common throughout the Negeb, where they were planted by the desert Bedouin for their shade and their soft branches, which the flocks eat (Zohary, Plants of the Bible, 115). The precise significance of this act is unclear; the OT sees trees, especially evergreens, as symbolic of the life and blessing of God (Ps 1:3; Jer 17:78). On other occasions Abraham built an altar, and presumably offered sacrifice, to express his devotion to God (12:7, 8; 13:18). Sarna (Genesis 21:33) argues that tree-planting is analogous to altar-building and marked the foundation of the great shrine of Beersheba. Such acts (cf. 26:25), like this one, followed Gods promising the land, and Abraham usually responded by calling on the name of the LORD. Here he calls the LORD El-Olam, El of Eternity, an appropriate epithet for the Canaanite high god. The planting of a tree and prayer imply that something of great moment has occurred in this episode. The use of this divine epithet El-Olam suggests that Gods long-term faithfulness to Abraham has been revealed through Abimeleks words and actions. In his opening speech he had looked confidently into the future, with his descendants and Abrahams living peaceably together. By granting Abraham rights to a well, Abimelek had made it possible for Abraham to live there permanently and had acknowledged his legal right at least to water. In other words, after so many delays the promises of land and descendants at last seem on their way to fulfillment.1

1Wenham, Gordon J., Word Biblical Commentary, Volume 2: Genesis 16-50, (Dallas, Texas: Word Books, Publisher) 1998.