The man became rich: the man refers to Isaac. Rich is literally “great,” but the focus is here on his possessions rather than his fame, and so “rich” is appropriate in English. We would expect Isaac, who has inherited Abraham’s wealth, to have been rich before going to Gerar. However, the narrator presents Isaac as gaining his wealth and power through God’s blessing him in the presence of the Canaanites, whose land has been promised to him. A rich man is expressed in some languages as “a big owner man,” “a man with many loads,” “a man who has many possessions,” or “a big metal man”; that is, a man who owns lots of metal objects.

Gained more … wealthy is literally “He went on going great until he became very great.” For a clear translation see Good News Translation. We may also say, for example, “Isaac became rich and obtained many possessions.” It may be more natural in some languages to reverse this and say, for example, “Isaac obtained many possessions and so became a very rich man.”

Quoted with permission from Reyburn, William D. and Fry, Euan McG. A Handbook on Genesis. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1997. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .