Genesis Chapter 24 Isaac and Rebekah: The Second Greatest Love Story" Chapter 24 is the longest chapter in the book of Genesis. Abraham is about 140 years old here. Isaac is 40 years old. Time to marry. The distance from Isaac to Rebekah alone is 500 miles plus, to go back to Mesopotamia. To fulfill God's will and promises, the wife of Isaac must be spiritually Matched, a good spiritual guide to the children and a believer, so that Abraham means "definitely not a Canaanite" The wife of Isaac must not be a new convert, but rather raised in a godly manner The wife of Isaac must also be a virgin Abraham was now recently aware of the existence of Rebekah: he now knows that God has a ready bride for Isaac, by faith (Genesis 22:20-24) And it came to pass after these things, that it was told Abraham, saying, Behold, Milcah, she hath also born children unto thy brother Nahor; Huz his firstborn, and Buz his brother, and Kemuel the father of Aram, And Chesed, and Hazo, and Pildash, and Jidlaph, and Bethuel. And Bethuel begat Rebekah: these eight Milcah did bear to Nahor, Abraham's brother. And his concubine, whose name was Reumah, she bare also Tebah, and Gaham, and Thahash, and Maachah. (Genesis 24:1) And Abraham was old, and well stricken in age: and the LORD had blessed Abraham in all things. Since Abraham was not long for this world, this act had to be done sooner rather than later to be done correctly under his supervision Abraham was wealthy with the riches of this world, but also in the promises unfulfilled in his lifetime which we have seen since "Blessed in all things" despite his life: Almost losing his wife to Pharaoh and Abimelech by his own stupidity Strife with Lot Kidnapping of Lot Loss of Lot's wife, perhaps grand-nieces, grand-nephews in Sodom and Gomorrah Sarah kicking out Hagar and Ishmael Waiting for years for a promised son Being asked to sacrifice Isaac Abraham was blessed because of his walk with the LORD, not the things of this life Our blessing is the same........we are guaranteed future things only, not in this life, on this earth. (Hebrews 11:8-10, 13) By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went. By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise: For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.... These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. (Genesis 24:2) And Abraham said unto his eldest servant of his house, that ruled over all that he had, Put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh: Isaac was the heir, but this was the steward His name is not given, since it is no where near as important as the task at hand. He has a name for himself through reputation; he does need his personal name mentioned to have one. (Proverbs 22:1) A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches, and loving favour rather than silver and gold. This eldest servant would also have been with Abraham in that land and so would be one to not get lost going back to that land. Among the wealthy, as now, it was a custom to have a servant do this task of fetching a wife for the son Putting ones hand under another's thighwas an oath promise, like a pinky swear today, or a binding contract-only much stronger The location was at the circumcision site, the site from which Abraham's seed would come, as in the marriage of Isaac and his children The Latin word for Witness and TESTES are related and means "three+ stands", or three witnesses The concept was that if the oath was broken, the same would happen to the man's genitalia. MOST binding! The hand signifies power, meaning ceding to the other party the power to do this task if needed This oath is similar to the dividing of the animals and passing through, wherein the oath breaker would have this done to them, be cleft in two "ELDEST SERVANT.......THAT RULED OVER ALL HE HAD" (Genesis 24:36) And Sarah my master's wife bare a son to my master when she was old: and unto him hath he given all that he hath. (Luke 12:42-44) And the Lord said, Who then is that faithful and wise steward, whom his lord shall make ruler over his household, to give them their portion of meat in due season? Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing. Of a truth I say unto you, that he will make him ruler over all that he hath. A JEWISH WEB SITE: "Though the exact meaning is not fully known, all the Jewish scholars of antiquity understood this to be symbolic of placing one's hand under the male genitalia. This symbolized the act of circumcision. It signified a most solemn oath between two people." In other words, "I swear by my testicles!" (Genesis 47:29) And the time drew nigh that Israel must die: and he called his son Joseph, and said unto him, If now I have found grace in thy sight, put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh, and deal kindly and truly with me; bury me not, I pray thee, in Egypt: (Deuteronomy 17:6) At the mouth of two witnesses, or three witnesses, shall he that is worthy of death be put to death; but at the mouth of one witness he shall not be put to death. NAME ON JESUS'S THIGH (Revelation 19:16) And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS. THE THIGH, ELSEWHERE (Genesis 32:24-32) And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day. And when he saw that he prevailed not against him, he touched the hollow of his thigh; and the hollow of Jacob's thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with him. And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me. And he said unto him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob. And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed. And Jacob asked him, and said, Tell me, I pray thee, thy name. And he said, Wherefore is it that thou dost ask after my name? And he blessed him there. And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved. And as he passed over Penuel the sun rose upon him, and he halted upon his thigh. Therefore the children of Israel eat not of the sinew which shrank, which is upon the hollow of the thigh, unto this day: because he touched the hollow of Jacob's thigh in the sinew that shrank. Jacob was later blessed with twelve sons........... THE THIGH OF A WOMAN (Numbers 5:21-22) Then the priest shall charge the woman with an oath of cursing, and the priest shall say unto the woman, The LORD make thee a curse and an oath among thy people, when the LORD doth make thy thigh to rot, and thy belly to swell; And this water that causeth the curse shall go into thy bowels, to make thy belly to swell, and thythigh to rot: And the woman shall say, Amen, amen. (Numbers 5:27) And when he hath made her to drink the water, then it shall come to pass, that, if she be defiled, and have done trespass against her husband, that the water that causeth the curse shall enter into her, and become bitter, and her belly shall swell, and her thigh shall rot: and the woman shall be a curse among her people. THE THIGH WAS ALSO FOR WEAPONS (Judges 3:16) But Ehud made him a dagger which had two edges, of a cubit length; and he did gird it under his raiment upon his right thigh. (Judges 3:21) And Ehud put forth his left hand, and took the dagger from his right thigh, and thrust it into his belly: (Psalms 45:3) Gird thy sword upon thy thigh, O most mighty, with thy glory and thy majesty. Song of Solomon 3:8) They all hold swords, being expert in war: every man hath his sword upon his thigh because of fear in the night. (Genesis 24:3) And I will make thee swear by the LORD, the God of heaven, and the God of the earth, that thou shalt not take a wife unto my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell: This was an A.B.C. contract......."Anyone But a Canaanite" First the "DON'T" and then the "DO" The God of Heaven and earth is separate from the pagan gods, since God is the Creator of both. The fact that this is a circumcision area covenant means it is very serious. The church was not yet there, so a Gentile wife was a pagan wife, a heathen wife, a wife who would make Isaac worship other gods. (1 Chronicles 16:24-26) Declare his glory among the heathen; his marvellous works among all nations. For great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised: he also is to be feared above all gods. For all the gods of the people are idols: but the LORD made the heavens. AND (Psalms 96:3-5) Declare his glory among the heathen, his wonders among all people. For the LORD is great, and greatly to be praised: he is to be feared above all gods. For all the gods of the nations are idols: but the LORD made the heavens. ACTS 17 is all about those other gods and those who do not worship the Creator, but the creation (Genesis 24:4) But thou shalt go unto my country, and to my kindred, and take a wife unto my son Isaac. Isaac and Rebekah were related as cousins God's sovereignty is over this whole affair. It is similar, but a lot less perilous as to the "Cain getting his wife" idea presented to Christians so often and again the sovereignty of God is involved, before the Law was even given. (Genesis 24:5-6) And the servant said unto him, Peradventure the woman will not be willing to follow me unto this land: must I needs bring thy son again unto the land from whence thou camest? And Abraham said unto him, Beware thou that thou bring not my son thither again. This is the big "What IF?" Since Abraham jut said, " that thou shalt not take a wife unto my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell", why would the steward bring Isaac back there? This would mean he would remain single. There is no human solution........it must be from his country and kindred or Isaac is not going to be married Since Isaac is to be married and the blessing of millions of descendants (Abraham's seed), it will have to be in Abraham's home land with his relatives. Nevertheless, even if it were not to happen, this is the only place to get a wife for Isaac. In other words, it is a choice of "wife or no wife", not "which kind of wife" (Genesis 24:7) The LORD God of heaven, which took me from my father's house, and from the land of my kindred, and which spake unto me, and that sware unto me, saying, Unto thy seed will I give this land; he shall send his angel before thee, and thou shalt take a wife unto my son from thence. God is in charge, Abraham knows it. He has the promises, he believes them. God took him from his house God spoke to him God sware to him, unilaterally, as a smoking pot and a burning lamp God gave him great and precious promises He will not fail in this small matter! (Genesis 24:8) And if the woman will not be willing to follow thee, then thou shalt be clear from this my oath: only bring not my son thither again. He knows that this would never happen, but to ease the stewards mind, he gives him an out If not, either way, the most important thing is not to return to the land where Abraham came from, Ur of the Chaldees (Genesis 24:9) And the servant put his hand under the thigh of Abraham his master, and sware to him concerning that matter. Signed contract, bi-lateral Abraham agrees to release him of his oath if he can't get the maiden to return with him Steward agrees to go and get Isaac a wife (Genesis 24:10) And the servant took ten camels of the camels of his master, and departed; for all the goods of his master were in his hand: and he arose, and went to Mesopotamia, unto the city of Nahor. Ten camels in Abraham's rich stock is a handful, and all that was needed for the journey He had absolute authority from Abraham, being over all he had, and now this task is included He could have taken whatever he wanted; instead he took what he needed Nahor did well also, since the city was named after him (Genesis 24:11) And he made his camels to kneel down without the city by a well of water at the time of the evening, even the time that women go out to draw water. One thing about God's Word is attention to detail. Here God calls the camels "his camels" Sometimes we say to people, "Take care of these like they were your own" The concept is that a steward should be considered the same as the owner, and thus should treat the camels that way He stops, and waits on God. Sometimes we have to just do that. He did the work of getting there by faith, and now has to exercise the same faith to see God work. The water well is the centerpiece, the meeting place for the city. Everyone needs water. Camels do not have to kneel to drink from a trough. But they cannot travel on their knees After walking 500 miles, I want to be off of my feet also, to rest! A FAITHFUL STEWARD (Luke 12:42-43) And the Lord said, Who then is that faithful and wise steward, whom his lord shall make ruler over his household, to give them their portion of meat in due season? Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing. (Genesis 24:12) And he said, O LORD God of my master Abraham, I pray thee, send me good speed this day, and shew kindness unto my master Abraham. Another detail. He calls God the "God of my master Abraham" and asks God to show kindness unto "my master Abraham". This is a loyal servant, which is why Abraham chose him. Either he is not saved, or Abraham has such influence on him that his life is all about Abraham and his God. "Good speed" means success. Today we say "Godspeed" He did not say, "Show me kindness", but kindness to his master Abraham (Genesis 24:13) Behold, I stand here by the well of water; and the daughters of the men of the city come out to draw water: A well is a central part of the community and the only reason a community or civilization can even exist. People still in Africa "come out to draw water" All other resources are secondary to water. PERIOD. Getting water for the house was a woman's task The story related directly to Jesus and the Woman At The Well (John 4:4-15) And he must needs go through Samaria. Then cometh he to a city of Samaria, which is called Sychar, near to the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. Now Jacob's well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well: and it was about the sixth hour. There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink. (For his disciples were gone away unto the city to buy meat.) Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him, How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans. Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water. The woman saith unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: from whence then hast thou that living water? Art thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself, and his children, and his cattle? Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life. The woman saith unto him, Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw. JACOB'S WELL IS THERE TODAY STILL (Genesis 24:14) And let it come to pass, that the damsel to whom I shall say, Let down thy pitcher, I pray thee, that I may drink;and she shall say, Drink, and I will give thy camels drink also: let the same be she that thou hast appointed for thy servant Isaac; and thereby shall I know that thou hast shewed kindness unto my master. There are two parties and two conditions-he has to say, and she has to say He is concerned for Abraham's desire He knows where the answer will come from-the same as the person prayed to (Genesis 24:15) And it came to pass, before he had done speaking, that, behold, Rebekah came out, who was born to Bethuel, son of Milcah, the wife of Nahor, Abraham's brother, with her pitcher upon her shoulder. This is truly Divine Providence, shown to the servant. You can't get a better answer in the human realm than before you are finished praying! Things happened in the Bible "while he was yet speaking", to Job. It was not the desires of Job's heart, but God according to God's Providence This is one of the two times in the Bible where a stupendously significant thing affecting the nation of Israel happened "while he was yet speaking" DANIEL and the Angel GABRIEL, While he was yet speaking and praying (Daniel 9:20-23) And whiles I was speaking, and praying, and confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my supplication before the LORD my God for the holy mountain of my God; Yea, whiles I was speaking in prayer,even the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, touched me about the time of the evening oblation. And he informed me, and talked with me, and said, O Daniel, I am now come forth to give thee skill and understanding. At the beginning of thy supplications the commandment came forth, and I am come to shew thee; for thou art greatly beloved: therefore understand the matter, and consider the vision. (Genesis 24:16) And the damsel was very fair to look upon, a virgin, neither had any man known her: and she went down to the well, and filled her pitcher, and came up. This is a plus-maybe. Isaac's mom was "fair to look upon", Rebekah is "very fair" The difference in having a pretty wife and nothing bad happening versus something bad coming of it is the attitude and behavior of the husband. "Like father? Like son"........... "The Apple does not fall far from the tree" (Genesis 12:11) And it came to pass, when he was come near to enter into Egypt, that he said unto Sarai his wife, Behold now, I know that thou art a fair woman to look upon: (Genesis 24:17) And the servant ran to meet her, and said, Let me, I pray thee, drink a little water of thy pitcher. This servant is a true servant. He is even willing to meet her before she comes to him at the well. He did not even walk-he ran! He may think that, since God did not wait for me to finish praying, since He was going to answer it anyways, I might as well not wait for her to get to the well all of the way This shows he may recognize the timing is now; the timing is right; the timing is ripe. (Genesis 24:18) And she said, Drink, my lord: and she hasted, and let down her pitcher upon her hand, and gave him drink. Apparently he appeared thirsty, since now she is in a hurry! (Genesis 24:19) And when she had done giving him drink, she said, I will draw water for thy camels also, until they have done drinking. This is called "fet accompli" Everything is in the order that he asked God for. " and she shall say, Drink, and I will give thy camels drink also " (Genesis 24:20) And she hasted, and emptied her pitcher into the trough, and ran again unto the well to draw water, and drew for all his camels. He had ten camels, so even if they were not completely dehydrated, this is still a lot of water! 20 gallons times ten camels is two hundred gallons, by a pitcher! This is a woman with a servants' heart! v.10 "And the servant took ten camels of the camels of his master" Water Intake Camels can drink 30 gallons of water in 10 minutes. In other animals that much water would result in water intoxication, which potentially could cause death. The camel's hydrophilic hemoglobin can swell up to 240 percent of its normal size. The same hemoglobin is resistant to hyperhydration, avoiding osmotic problems when large amounts of water are ingested. &&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& (Genesis 24:21) And the man wondering at her held his peace, to wit whether the LORD had made his journey prosperous or not. At this point, there is no reason to question God, since he got exactly what he asked for! Perhaps he got the answer too fast so now he is dumbfounded and clueless as to how to react? There is not doubt he had plenty of time to rehears what to say when he got there so as to not go in unprepared (Genesis 24:22) And it came to pass, as the camels had done drinking, that the man took a golden earring of half a shekel weight, and two bracelets for her hands of ten shekels weight of gold; Now, a half-shekel weight would be about a quarter of an ounce= ca. $400.00 THIS IS NOT A NOSE RING!!!!!!!!!!!!!! A shekel is about a half an ounce=$800.000 So about a quarter-ounce little earring and Ten shekels=five ounces =$8,000 The total is $9,200.00 How often do strangers hand YOU tons of cash the first time? What is Rebekah now thinking? He does not even know who she is yet! (Exodus 21:6) Then his master shall bring him unto the judges; he shall also bring him to the door, or unto the door post; and his master shall bore his ear through with an aul; and he shall serve him for ever. (Genesis 35:4) And they gave unto Jacob all the strange gods which were in their hand, and all their earrings which were in their ears; and Jacob hid them under the oak which was by Shechem. (Exodus 32:2) And Aaron said unto them, Break off the golden earrings, which are in the ears of your wives, of your sons, and of your daughters, and bring them unto me. (Exodus 32:3) And all the people brake off the golden earrings which were in their ears, and brought them unto Aaron. (Exodus 35:22) And they came, both men and women, as many as were willing hearted, and brought bracelets, and earrings, and rings, and tablets, all jewels of gold: and every man that offered offered an offering of gold unto the LORD. (Numbers 31:50) We have therefore brought an oblation for the LORD, what every man hath gotten, of jewels of gold, chains, and bracelets, rings, earrings, and tablets, to make an atonement for our souls before the LORD. (Judges 8:24) And Gideon said unto them, I would desire a request of you, that ye would give me every man the earrings of his prey. (For they had golden earrings, because they were Ishmaelites.) (Judges 8:25) And they answered, We will willingly give them. And they spread a garment, and did cast therein every man the earrings of his prey. (Judges 8:26) And the weight of the golden earrings that he requested was a thousand and seven hundred shekels of gold; beside ornaments, and collars, and purple raiment that was on the kings of Midian, and beside the chains that were about their camels' necks. (Isaiah 3:20) The bonnets, and the ornaments of the legs, and the headbands, and the tablets, and the earrings, (Ezekiel 16:12) And I put a jewel on thy forehead, and earrings in thine ears, and a beautiful crown upon thine head. (Hosea 2:13) And I will visit upon her the days of Baalim, wherein she burned incense to them, and she decked herself with her earrings and her jewels, and she went after her lovers, and forgat me, saith the LORD. (Genesis 24:23) And said, Whose daughter art thou? tell me, I pray thee: is there room in thy father's house for us to lodge in? Money in her hands, he wants to know who the lineage is. In the human realm, even though he got his prayer for her to ask to water the camels also, he still gave money to a complete stranger He knows this is God's choice for his master's son, Isaac (Genesis 24:24) And she said unto him, I am the daughter of Bethuel the son of Milcah, which she bare unto Nahor. How did she pick Abraham's brother the first shot, the correct girl? Divine providence, and God's will and DOING God's will (Genesis 24:25) She said moreover unto him, We have both straw and provender enough, and room to lodge in. On top of all of this, she is hospitable! (Genesis 24:26) And the man bowed down his head, and worshipped the LORD. For sure this has been one of those God moments in life There is, at this point, nothing else left to do. (Genesis 24:27) And he said, Blessed be the LORD God of my master Abraham, who hath not left destitute my master of his mercy and his truth: I being in the way, the LORD led me to the house of my master's brethren. There is, at this point, nothing else left to do....except to PRAISE GOD! This is a tremendous moment in Israel's history God's mercy and His truth is that He fulfilled His Word and also did not leave Isaac without a wife after the death of Sarah (Genesis 24:28) And the damsel ran, and told them of her mother's house these things. Rebekah understands the momentous occasion also Israel being a masculine society through Scripture, she goes to her mother's house, not her fathers Girls always share stuff like this with Mom..........it's "girl stuff" (Genesis 24:29) And Rebekah had a brother, and his name was Laban: and Laban ran out unto the man, unto the well. When there is excitement, it usually spreads to others Filling two hundred gallons of water for camels by pitcher takes a lot of time, so Rebekah would have been missed. (Genesis 24:30) And it came to pass, when he saw the earring and bracelets upon his sister's hands, and when he heard the words of Rebekah his sister, saying, Thus spake the man unto me; that he came unto the man; and, behold, he stood by the camels at the well. When Rebekah left, the servant stayed No doubt Rebekah relating this to the family was a shock, since this is not a usual occurrence We have to remember that the servant of Abraham was unknown; appeared suddenly and unexpectedly, being planned by God, not be Nahor. (Genesis 24:31) And he said, Come in, thou blessed of the LORD; wherefore standest thou without? for I have prepared the house, and room for the camels. God is obviously in control. Either.......... .......The servant has been sitting there for some time for this to happen or....... .......They clean regularly for guests and their animals, being hospitable, or.... .......They did this rather quickly upon hearing from Rebekah (Genesis 24:32) And the man came into the house: and he ungirded his camels, and gave straw and provender for the camels, and water to wash his feet, and the men's feet that were with him. The servant brought servants, so this was a rather large group of men and animals Washing the feet is a cultural and necessary thing in the desert The task is competed this far and the biggest part of the journey, to find a wife for Isaac, is completed Cleaning the dust off of the feet is also symbolic of the task being done. (Luke 9:5) And whosoever will not receive you, when ye go out of that city, shake off the very dust from your feet for a testimony against them. (John 13:4-17) He riseth from supper, and laid aside his garments; and took a towel, and girded himself. After that he poureth water into a bason, and began to wash the disciples' feet, and to wipe them with the towel wherewith he was girded. Then cometh he to Simon Peter: and Peter saith unto him, Lord, dost thou wash my feet? Jesus answered and said unto him, What I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know hereafter. Peter saith unto him, Thou shalt never wash my feet. Jesus answered him, If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me. Simon Peter saith unto him, Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head. Jesus saith to him, He that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every whit: and ye are clean, but not all. For he knew who should betray him; therefore said he, Ye are not all clean. So after he had washed their feet, and had taken his garments, and was set down again, he said unto them, Know ye what I have done to you? Ye call me Master and Lord: and ye say well; for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you. Verily, verily, I say unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord; neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him. If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them. (Genesis 24:33) And there was set meat before him to eat: but he said, I will not eat, until I have told mine errand. And he said, Speak on. When God calls us to complete a task, any distraction-even eating in this case-can hinder our calling. Rebekah's family is trying to be hospitable for the sake of being hospitable and is not so interested in the why, so they want him to eat Sometimes, personal needs need to be set aside to know the will of God and do it. Sometimes also, people do not know what your goals are and do not grasp the seriousness of the task at hand, because they only look at the day-to-day mundane things of life, as they themselves are just passing through and existing. (Genesis 24:34) And he said, I am Abraham's servant. Notice he does not give his own name His name is "Abraham's servant"*** We place too much emphasis on "getting OUR NAME out there", rather than God's name getting out there. True servanthood is where we diminish and Jesus is lifted up. This man will eventually get a new name in Heaven as it is. (Genesis 24:35) And the LORD hath blessed my master greatly; and he is become great: and he hath given him flocks, and herds, and silver, and gold, and menservants, and maidservants, and camels, and asses. Pretty much every area of wealth is had by Abraham Money, food, vehicles, employees He became great because of God, not by his own doing The same is with all people everywhere throughout all ages (Genesis 24:36) And Sarah my master's wife bare a son to my master when she was old: and unto him hath he given all that he hath. One of the few times Isaac is not called by name Isaac is called out as the heir (Genesis 24:37-39) And my master made me swear, saying, Thou shalt not take a wife to my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, in whose land I dwell: But thou shalt go unto my father's house, and to my kindred, and take a wife unto my son. And I said unto my master, Peradventure the woman will not follow me. He has to explain his mission again, since they do not know why he is there at all (Genesis 24:40-42) And he said unto me, The LORD, before whom I walk, will send his angel with thee, and prosper thy way; and thou shalt take a wife for my son of my kindred, and of my father's house: Then shalt thou be clear from this my oath, when thou comest to my kindred; and if they give not thee one, thou shalt be clear from my oath. And I came this day unto the well, and said, O LORD God of my master Abraham, if now thou do prosper my way which I go: It almost sounds like the oath is the most important thing to the servant, since he repeats the conditions of the release of it-twice! (Genesis 24:43-46) Behold, I stand by the well of water; and it shall come to pass, that when the virgin cometh forth to draw water, and I say to her, Give me, I pray thee, a little water of thy pitcher to drink; And she say to me, Both drink thou, and I will also draw for thy camels: let the same be the woman whom the LORD hath appointed out for my master's son. And before I had done speaking in mine heart, behold, Rebekah came forth with her pitcher on her shoulder; and she went down unto the well, and drew water: and I said unto her, Let me drink, I pray thee. And she made haste, and let down her pitcher from her shoulder, and said, Drink, and I will give thy camels drink also: so I drank, and she made the camels drink also. Lest the skeptic say Rebekah heard him speak this, God tells us it was a silent prayer The enemy can only put thoughts INTO our heards; he cannot get them out Praying according to God's will out loud is fine. Praying our own fleshly wishes means that, if we are out of God's will and wish to remain there, the enemy hears and can answer verbal prayers. (Genesis 24:13-14) Behold, I stand here by the well of water; and the daughters of the men of the city come out to draw water: And let it come to pass, that the damsel to whom I shall say, Let down thy pitcher, I pray thee, that I may drink; and she shall say, Drink, and I will give thy camels drink also: let the same be she that thou hast appointed for thy servant Isaac; and thereby shall I know that thou hast shewed kindness unto my master. (Genesis 24:47) And I asked her, and said, Whose daughter art thou? And she said, The daughter of Bethuel, Nahor's son, whom Milcah bare unto him: and I put the earring upon her face, and the bracelets upon her hands. It is of Abraham's kin, just to be sure of her lineage (Genesis 24:48) And I bowed down my head, and worshipped the LORD, and blessed the LORD God of my master Abraham, which had led me in the right way to take my master's brother's daughter unto his son. We need always to remember the source of the answers to our prayers (Genesis 24:49) And now if ye will deal kindly and truly with my master, tell me: and if not, tell me; that I may turn to the right hand, or to the left. This has to be a confirmation for their sake, since he already knows that it is God's will Culturally, it is to be done out of respect for the family God will not suddenly go this far and then not let her go with him now. (Genesis 24:50) Then Laban and Bethuel answered and said, The thing proceedeth from the LORD: we cannot speak unto thee bad or good. Not good? Why can't they speak good of the fulfillment of a promise of God? Laban and his wife are both Syrians (Genesis 25:20) by location and culture, having lived there so long in Mesopotamia. (Genesis 24:51) Behold, Rebekah is before thee, take her, and go, and let her be thy master's son's wife, as the LORD hath spoken. "As the LORD hath spoken" is the operative word here. There is just enough fear of God in Laban to not be willing to even try to thwart God's plans (Genesis 24:52) And it came to pass, that, when Abraham's servant heard their words, he worshipped the LORD, bowing himself to the earth. When you get God's wish, you want to worship the God of the wish. (Genesis 24:53) And the servant brought forth jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment, and gave them to Rebekah: he gave also to her brother and to her mother precious things. The jewelry he had put on her at the well was just the start of all of this Abraham had obviously given her a lot to offer as gifts to his son's new wife (Genesis 24:54) And they did eat and drink, he and the men that were with him, and tarried all night; and they rose up in the morning, and he said, Send me away unto my master. Basically the servant stranger was now treated as the family he was representing, Abraham's (Genesis 24:55) And her brother and her mother said, Let the damsel abide with us a few days, at the least ten; after that she shall go. Laban has this as his character; to this point his motives are not known, but later on, it is the physical blessings he seems to seek He does this to Jacob for Rachel later on, with Jacob With Jacob later, it is even more prolonged, nefarious, deceitful with Laban From the Biblical context for Laban's dealings with both the servant here and Jacob, it is obvious he sees gold in his eyes. Think of the legacy of Laban from Scripture, to be known to be this way. (Genesis 30:27) And Laban said unto him, I pray thee, if I have found favour in thine eyes, tarry: for I have learned by experience that the LORD hath blessed me for thy sake. (Genesis 24:56) And he said unto them, Hinder me not, seeing the LORD hath prospered my way; send me away that I may go to my master. This is a faithful servant who will not be distracted by man It may be that the reason for the intense hospitality of Laban is to delay the man returning to Abraham The good and faithful servant knows Abraham expects him to come home as soon as possible, and it is possible to leave (Genesis 24:57) And they said, We will call the damsel, and enquire at her mouth. At this point, they still do not want the servant to leave. One can imagine that Laban expected her to say something like, "Oh, can't I just stay with my family a few more days, since I am leaving them for good?" If she did say this, it would look like it is not just Laban who wants the servant to stay longer. (Genesis 24:58) And they called Rebekah, and said unto her, Wilt thou go with this man? And she said, I will go. God directs the answer, since this is a huge step for Rebekah as it is. (Proverbs 16:1) The preparations of the heart in man, and the answer of the tongue, is from the LORD. (Genesis 24:59) And they sent away Rebekah their sister, and her nurse, and Abraham's servant, and his men. Once Rebekah said that, they were bound to it, since it was their idea to ask her in the first place. They at least know what she will need in the near future-a nurse! NURSE, n. A woman that has the care of infants, or a woman employed to tend the children of others. A woman who suckles infants. A woman that has the care of a sick person. A man who has the care of the sick. A person that breeds, educates or protects; hence, that which breeds, brings up or causes to grow; as Greece, the nurse of the liberal arts. An old woman; in contempt. The state of being nursed; as, to put a child to nurse. In composition, that which supplies food; as a nurse-pond. (Genesis 24:60) And they blessed Rebekah, and said unto her, Thou art our sister, be thou the mother of thousands of millions, and let thy seed possess the gate of those which hate them. She needs a nurse and plenty of prayer The promise of many, and much land of her enemies, which was made to Abraham This means that the servant told them this promise of blessing (Genesis 22:17) That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; (Genesis 24:61) And Rebekah arose, and her damsels, and they rode upon the camels, and followed the man: and the servant took Rebekah, and went his way. Ready-made bridesmaids, a nurse, wealth-the perfect bride (Genesis 24:62) And Isaac came from the way of the well Lahairoi; for he dwelt in the south country. Isaac is the first to see His Bride coming This is divine providence and intervention (Genesis 24:63) And Isaac went out to meditate in the field at the eventide: and he lifted up his eyes, and saw, and, behold, the camels were coming. "if we have the art of improving solitude, we shall find we are never less alone than when alone." -Matthew Henry (Genesis 24:64) And Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Isaac, she lighted off the camel. It says "when she saw", not when she was up on him, directly Why is she so excited to get to Isaac? Maybe her home life was no so good? Was she excited to do God's will? Perhaps the entire way back the servant spoke so highly of Isaac and Abraham? (Genesis 24:65) For she had said unto the servant, What man is this that walketh in the field to meet us? And the servant had said, It is my master: therefore she took a vail, and covered herself Isaac is walking out to meet them, which indicates that not too many ships of camels would have been wandering in the desert She adds in the modesty to show this is not just a physical attraction she is having and is after. (Genesis 24:66) And the servant told Isaac all things that he had done. What was done was Abraham asked him to get a bride Abraham gave him all he needed to do so Abraham told him God would be faithful He put out a fleece for God Rebekah showed up while he was speaking He gave her the jewels and brought her home to Isaac (Genesis 24:67) And Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah's tent, and took Rebekah, and she became his wife; and he loved her: and Isaac was comforted after his mother's death. He is using his mother's tent instead of a tent for Rebekah Took her, made her his wife. Snatched her? "Harpazo"? Rapture? Isaac needed comfort and a wife who he can love and be loved by is the perfect replacement