Add parallel Print Page Options

24 Now Abraham was old; and advanced in age: and the Lord had blessed him in all things.

And he said to the elder servant of his house, who was ruler over all he had: Put thy hand under my thigh,

That I may make thee swear by the Lord the God of heaven and earth, that thou take not a wife for my son, of the daughters of the Chanaanites, among whom I dwell:

But that thou go to my own country and kindred, and take a wife from thence for my son Isaac.

The servant answered: If the woman will not come with me into this land, must I bring thy son back again to the place, from whence thou camest out?

And Abraham said: Beware thou never bring my son back again thither.

The Lord God of heaven, who took me out of my father's house, and out of my native country, who spoke to me, and swore to me, saying: To thy seed will I give this land: he will send his angel before thee, and thou shalt take from thence a wife for my son.

But if the woman will not follow thee, thou shalt not be bound by the oath; only bring not my son back thither again.

The servant therefore put his hand under the thigh of Abraham his lord, and swore to him upon this word.

10 And he took ten camels of his master's herd, and departed, carrying something of all his goods with him, and he set forward and went on to Mesopotamia to the city of Nachor.

11 And when he had made the camels lie down without the town near a well of water in the evening, at the time when women are wont to come out to draw water, he said:

12 O Lord the God of my master Abraham, meet me to day, I beseech thee, and shew kindness to my master Abraham.

13 Behold I stand nigh the spring of water, and the daughters of the inhabitants of this city will come out to draw water.

14 Now, therefore, the maid to whom I shall say: Let down thy pitcher that I may drink: and she shall answer, Drink, and I will give thy camels drink also: let it be the same whom thou hast provided for thy servant Isaac: and by this I shall understand, that thou hast shewn kindness to my master.

15 He had not yet ended these words within himself, and behold Rebecca came out, the daughter of Bathuel, son of Melcha, wife to Nachor the brother of Abraham, having a pitcher on her shoulder:

16 An exceeding comely maid, and a most beautiful virgin, and not known to man: and she went down to the spring, and filled her pitcher and was coming back.

17 And the servant ran to meet her, and said: Give me a little water to drink of thy pitcher.

18 And she answered: Drink, my lord. And quickly she let down the pitcher upon her arm, and gave him drink.

19 And when he had drunk, she said: I will draw water for thy camels also, till they all drink.

20 And pouring out the pitcher into the troughs, she ran back to the well to draw water: and having drawn she gave to all the camels.

21 But he musing beheld her with silence, desirous to know whether the Lord had made his journey prosperous or not.

22 And after that the camels had drunk, the man took out golden earrings, weighing two sicles: and as many bracelets of ten sicles weight.

23 And he said to her: Whose daughter art thou? tell me: is there any place in thy father's house to lodge?

24 And she answered: I am the daughter of Bathuel, the son of Melcha, whom she bore to Nachor.

25 And she said moreover to him: We have good store of both straw and hay, and a large place to lodge in.

26 The man bowed himself down, and adored the Lord,

27 Saying: Blessed be the Lord God of my master Abraham, who hath not taken away his mercy and truth from my master, and hath brought me the straight way into the house of my master's brother.

28 Then the maid ran, and told in her mother's house, all that she had heard.

29 And Rebecca had a brother named Laban, who went out in haste to the man, to the well.

30 And when he had seen the earrings and bracelets in his sister's hands, and had heard all that she related, saying: Thus and thus the man spoke to me: he came to the man who stood by the camels, and near to the spring of water,

31 And said to him: Come in, thou blessed of the Lord: why standest thou without? I have prepared the house, and a place for the camels.

32 And he brought him in into his lodging: and he unharnessed the camels and gave straw and hay, and water to wash his feet, and the feet of the men that were come with him.

33 And bread was set before him. But he said: I will not eat, till I tell my message. He answered him: Speak.

34 And he said: I am the servant of Abraham:

35 And the Lord hath blessed my master wonderfully, and he is become great: and he hath given him sheep and oxen, silver and gold, menservants and womenservants, camels and asses.

36 And Sara my master's wife hath borne my master a son in her old age, and he hath given him all that he had.

37 And my master made me swear, saying: Thou shalt not take a wife for my son of the Chanaanites, in whose land I dwell:

38 But thou shalt go to my father's house, and shalt take a wife of my own kindred for my son:

39 But I answered my master: What if the woman will not come with me?

40 The Lord, said he, in whose sight I walk, will send his angel with thee, and will direct thy way: and thou shalt take a wife for my son of my own kindred, and of my father's house.

41 But thou shalt be clear from my curse, when thou shalt come to my kindred, if they will not give thee one.

42 And I came to day to the well of water, and said: O Lord God of my master Abraham, if thou hast prospered my way, wherein I now walk,

43 Behold I stand by the well of water, and the virgin, that shall come out to draw water, who shall hear me say: Give me a little water to drink of thy pitcher:

44 And shall say to me: Both drink thou, and I will also draw for thy camels: let the same be the woman, whom the Lord hath prepared for my master's son.

45 And whilst I pondered these things secretly with myself, Rebecca appeared coming with a pitcher, which she carried on her shoulder: and she went down to the well and drew water. And I said to her: Give me a little to drink.

46 And she speedily let down the pitcher from her shoulder, and said to me: Both drink thou, and to thy camels I will give drink. I drank, and she watered the camels.

47 And I asked her, and said: Whose daughter art thou? And she answered: I am the daughter of Bathuel, the son of Nachor, whom Melcha bore to him. So I put earrings on her to adorn her face, and I put bracelets on her hands.

48 And falling down I adored the Lord, blessing the Lord God of my master Abraham, who hath brought me the straight way to take the daughter of my master's brother for his son.

49 Wherefore if you do according to mercy and truth with my master, tell me: but if it please you otherwise, tell me that also, that I may go to the right hand, or to the left.

50 And Laban and Bathuel answered: The word hath proceeded from the Lord, we cannot speak any other thing to thee but his pleasure.

51 Behold Rebecca is before thee, take her and go thy way, and let her be the wife of thy master's son, as the Lord hath spoken.

52 Which when Abraham's servant heard, falling down to the ground he adored the Lord.

53 And bringing forth vessels of silver and gold, and garments, he gave them to Rebecca for a present. He offered gifts also to her brothers, and to her mother.

54 And a banquet was made, and they ate and drank together, and lodged there. And in the morning, the servant arose, and said: Let me depart, that I may go to my master.

55 And her brother and mother answered: Let the maid stay at least ten days with us, and afterwards she shall depart.

56 Stay me not, said he, because the Lord hath prospered my way: send me away, that I may go to my master.

57 And they said: Let us call the maid, and ask her will.

58 And they called her, and when she was come, they asked: Wilt thou go with this man? She said: I will go.

59 So they sent her away, and her nurse, and Abraham's servant, and his company,

60 Wishing prosperity to their sister, and saying: Thou art our sister, mayst thou increase to thousands of thousands, and may thy seed possess the gates of their enemies.

61 So Rebecca and her maids, being set upon camels, followed the man: who with speed returned to his master.

62 At the same time Isaac was walking along the way to the well which is called Of the living and the seeing: for he dwelt in the south country.

63 And he was gone forth to meditate in the field, the day being now well spent: and when he had lifted up his eyes, he saw camels coming afar off.

64 Rebecca also, when she saw Isaac, lighted off the camel,

65 And said to the servant: Who is that man who cometh towards us along the field? And he said to her: That man is my master. But she quickly took her cloak, and covered herself.

66 And the servant told Isaac all that he had done.

67 Who brought her into the tent of Sara his mother, and took her to wife: and he loved her so much, that it moderated the sorrow which was occasioned by his mother's death.

Isaac and Rebekah

24 Abraham was now very old,(A) and the Lord had blessed(B) him in every way.(C) He said to the senior servant(D) in his household, the one in charge of all that he had,(E) “Put your hand under my thigh.(F) I want you to swear(G) by the Lord, the God of heaven(H) and the God of earth,(I) that you will not get a wife for my son(J) from the daughters of the Canaanites,(K) among whom I am living,(L) but will go to my country and my own relatives(M) and get a wife for my son Isaac.(N)

The servant asked him, “What if the woman is unwilling to come back with me to this land?(O) Shall I then take your son back to the country you came from?(P)

“Make sure that you do not take my son back there,”(Q) Abraham said. “The Lord, the God of heaven,(R) who brought me out of my father’s household and my native land(S) and who spoke to me and promised me on oath, saying, ‘To your offspring[a](T) I will give this land’(U)—he will send his angel before you(V) so that you can get a wife for my son from there. If the woman is unwilling to come back with you, then you will be released from this oath(W) of mine. Only do not take my son back there.”(X) So the servant put his hand under the thigh(Y) of his master(Z) Abraham and swore an oath to him concerning this matter.

10 Then the servant left, taking with him ten of his master’s camels(AA) loaded with all kinds of good things(AB) from his master. He set out for Aram Naharaim[b](AC) and made his way to the town of Nahor.(AD) 11 He had the camels kneel down near the well(AE) outside the town; it was toward evening, the time the women go out to draw water.(AF)

12 Then he prayed, “Lord, God of my master Abraham,(AG) make me successful(AH) today, and show kindness(AI) to my master Abraham. 13 See, I am standing beside this spring, and the daughters of the townspeople are coming out to draw water.(AJ) 14 May it be that when I say to a young woman, ‘Please let down your jar that I may have a drink,’ and she says, ‘Drink,(AK) and I’ll water your camels too’(AL)—let her be the one you have chosen for your servant Isaac.(AM) By this I will know(AN) that you have shown kindness to my master.”

15 Before he had finished praying,(AO) Rebekah(AP) came out with her jar on her shoulder. She was the daughter of Bethuel(AQ) son of Milkah,(AR) who was the wife of Abraham’s brother Nahor.(AS) 16 The woman was very beautiful,(AT) a virgin;(AU) no man had ever slept with her. She went down to the spring, filled her jar and came up again.

17 The servant hurried to meet her and said, “Please give me a little water from your jar.”(AV)

18 “Drink,(AW) my lord,” she said, and quickly lowered the jar to her hands and gave him a drink.

19 After she had given him a drink, she said, “I’ll draw water for your camels(AX) too,(AY) until they have had enough to drink.” 20 So she quickly emptied her jar into the trough, ran back to the well to draw more water, and drew enough for all his camels.(AZ) 21 Without saying a word, the man watched her closely to learn whether or not the Lord had made his journey successful.(BA)

22 When the camels had finished drinking, the man took out a gold nose ring(BB) weighing a beka[c] and two gold bracelets(BC) weighing ten shekels.[d] 23 Then he asked, “Whose daughter are you?(BD) Please tell me, is there room in your father’s house for us to spend the night?(BE)

24 She answered him, “I am the daughter of Bethuel, the son that Milkah bore to Nahor.(BF) 25 And she added, “We have plenty of straw and fodder,(BG) as well as room for you to spend the night.”

26 Then the man bowed down and worshiped the Lord,(BH) 27 saying, “Praise be to the Lord,(BI) the God of my master Abraham,(BJ) who has not abandoned his kindness and faithfulness(BK) to my master. As for me, the Lord has led me on the journey(BL) to the house of my master’s relatives.”(BM)

28 The young woman ran and told her mother’s household about these things.(BN) 29 Now Rebekah had a brother named Laban,(BO) and he hurried out to the man at the spring. 30 As soon as he had seen the nose ring, and the bracelets on his sister’s arms,(BP) and had heard Rebekah tell what the man said to her, he went out to the man and found him standing by the camels near the spring. 31 “Come, you who are blessed by the Lord,”(BQ) he said. “Why are you standing out here? I have prepared the house and a place for the camels.”

32 So the man went to the house, and the camels were unloaded. Straw and fodder(BR) were brought for the camels, and water for him and his men to wash their feet.(BS) 33 Then food was set before him, but he said, “I will not eat until I have told you what I have to say.”

“Then tell us,” Laban said.

34 So he said, “I am Abraham’s servant.(BT) 35 The Lord has blessed(BU) my master abundantly,(BV) and he has become wealthy.(BW) He has given him sheep and cattle, silver and gold, male and female servants, and camels and donkeys.(BX) 36 My master’s wife Sarah has borne him a son in her old age,(BY) and he has given him everything he owns.(BZ) 37 And my master made me swear an oath,(CA) and said, ‘You must not get a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, in whose land I live,(CB) 38 but go to my father’s family and to my own clan, and get a wife for my son.’(CC)

39 “Then I asked my master, ‘What if the woman will not come back with me?’(CD)

40 “He replied, ‘The Lord, before whom I have walked faithfully,(CE) will send his angel with you(CF) and make your journey a success,(CG) so that you can get a wife for my son from my own clan and from my father’s family.(CH) 41 You will be released from my oath if, when you go to my clan, they refuse to give her to you—then you will be released from my oath.’(CI)

42 “When I came to the spring today, I said, ‘Lord, God of my master Abraham, if you will, please grant success(CJ) to the journey on which I have come. 43 See, I am standing beside this spring.(CK) If a young woman(CL) comes out to draw water and I say to her, “Please let me drink a little water from your jar,”(CM) 44 and if she says to me, “Drink, and I’ll draw water for your camels too,” let her be the one the Lord has chosen for my master’s son.’(CN)

45 “Before I finished praying in my heart,(CO) Rebekah came out, with her jar on her shoulder.(CP) She went down to the spring and drew water, and I said to her, ‘Please give me a drink.’(CQ)

46 “She quickly lowered her jar from her shoulder and said, ‘Drink, and I’ll water your camels too.’(CR) So I drank, and she watered the camels also.(CS)

47 “I asked her, ‘Whose daughter are you?’(CT)

“She said, ‘The daughter of Bethuel(CU) son of Nahor, whom Milkah bore to him.’(CV)

“Then I put the ring in her nose(CW) and the bracelets on her arms,(CX) 48 and I bowed down and worshiped the Lord.(CY) I praised the Lord, the God of my master Abraham,(CZ) who had led me on the right road to get the granddaughter of my master’s brother for his son.(DA) 49 Now if you will show kindness and faithfulness(DB) to my master, tell me; and if not, tell me, so I may know which way to turn.”

50 Laban and Bethuel(DC) answered, “This is from the Lord;(DD) we can say nothing to you one way or the other.(DE) 51 Here is Rebekah; take her and go, and let her become the wife of your master’s son, as the Lord has directed.(DF)

52 When Abraham’s servant heard what they said, he bowed down to the ground before the Lord.(DG) 53 Then the servant brought out gold and silver jewelry and articles of clothing(DH) and gave them to Rebekah; he also gave costly gifts(DI) to her brother and to her mother. 54 Then he and the men who were with him ate and drank and spent the night there.

When they got up the next morning, he said, “Send me on my way(DJ) to my master.”

55 But her brother and her mother replied, “Let the young woman remain with us ten days or so;(DK) then you[e] may go.”

56 But he said to them, “Do not detain me, now that the Lord has granted success(DL) to my journey. Send me on my way(DM) so I may go to my master.”

57 Then they said, “Let’s call the young woman and ask her about it.”(DN) 58 So they called Rebekah and asked her, “Will you go with this man?”

“I will go,”(DO) she said.

59 So they sent their sister Rebekah on her way,(DP) along with her nurse(DQ) and Abraham’s servant and his men. 60 And they blessed(DR) Rebekah and said to her,

“Our sister, may you increase
    to thousands upon thousands;(DS)
may your offspring possess
    the cities of their enemies.”(DT)

61 Then Rebekah and her attendants(DU) got ready and mounted the camels and went back with the man. So the servant took Rebekah and left.

62 Now Isaac had come from Beer Lahai Roi,(DV) for he was living in the Negev.(DW) 63 He went out to the field one evening to meditate,[f](DX) and as he looked up,(DY) he saw camels approaching. 64 Rebekah also looked up and saw Isaac. She got down from her camel(DZ) 65 and asked the servant, “Who is that man in the field coming to meet us?”

“He is my master,” the servant answered. So she took her veil(EA) and covered herself.

66 Then the servant told Isaac all he had done. 67 Isaac brought her into the tent(EB) of his mother Sarah,(EC) and he married Rebekah.(ED) So she became his wife, and he loved her;(EE) and Isaac was comforted after his mother’s death.(EF)

Footnotes

  1. Genesis 24:7 Or seed
  2. Genesis 24:10 That is, Northwest Mesopotamia
  3. Genesis 24:22 That is, about 1/5 ounce or about 5.7 grams
  4. Genesis 24:22 That is, about 4 ounces or about 115 grams
  5. Genesis 24:55 Or she
  6. Genesis 24:63 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.