HelpFinder Bible - Flipbook - Page 392
G EN ES IS 2 4
it that you find a wife there for my son. 8 If she
is unwilling to come back with you, then you
are free from this oath of mine. But under no
circumstances are you to take my son there.”
9 So the servant took an oath by putting his
hand under the thigh of his master, Abraham.
He swore to follow Abraham’s instructions.
10 Then he loaded ten of Abraham’s camels with
all kinds of expensive gifts from his master, and
he traveled to distant Aram-naharaim. There he
went to the town where Abraham’s brother Nahor had settled. 11 He made the camels kneel beside a well just outside the town. It was evening,
and the women were coming out to draw water.
12 “O Lord, God of my master, Abraham,”
he prayed. “Please give me success today, and
show unfailing love to my master, Abraham.
13 See, I am standing here beside this spring,
and the young women of the town are coming
out to draw water. 14 This is my request. I will
ask one of them, ‘Please give me a drink from
your jug.’ If she says, ‘Yes, have a drink, and I
will water your camels, too!’—let her be the one
you have selected as Isaac’s wife. This is how I
will know that you have shown unfailing love
to my master.”
15 Before he had finished praying, he saw a
young woman named Rebekah coming out
with her water jug on her shoulder. She was
the daughter of Bethuel, who was the son of
Abraham’s brother Nahor and his wife, Milcah.
16 Rebekah was very beautiful and old enough to
be married, but she was still a virgin. She went
down to the spring, filled her jug, and came up
again. 17 Running over to her, the servant said,
“Please give me a little drink of water from
your jug.”
18 “Yes, my lord,” she answered, “have a
drink.” And she quickly lowered her jug from
her shoulder and gave him a drink. 19 When
she had given him a drink, she said, “I’ll draw
water for your camels, too, until they have had
enough to drink.” 20 So she quickly emptied her
jug into the watering trough and ran back to the
well to draw water for all his camels.
21 The servant watched her in silence, wondering whether or not the Lord had given him
success in his mission. 22 Then at last, when the
camels had finished drinking, he took out a
gold ring for her nose and two large gold bracelets* for her wrists.
23 “Whose daughter are you?” he asked. “And
please tell me, would your father have any room
to put us up for the night?”
24 “I am the daughter of Bethuel,” she replied.
“My grandparents are Nahor and Milcah. 25 Yes,
we have plenty of straw and feed for the camels,
and we have room for guests.”
26 The man bowed low and worshiped the
Lord. 27 “Praise the Lord, the God of my master,
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Abraham,” he said. “The Lord has shown
unfailing love and faithfulness to my master, for he has led me straight to my master’s
relatives.”
28 The young woman ran home to tell her
family everything that had happened. 29 Now
Rebekah had a brother named Laban, who ran
out to meet the man at the spring. 30 He had seen
the nose-ring and the bracelets on his sister’s
wrists, and had heard Rebekah tell what the
man had said. So he rushed out to the spring,
where the man was still standing beside his
camels. 31 Laban said to him, “Come and stay
with us, you who are blessed by the Lord! Why
are you standing here outside the town when I
have a room all ready for you and a place prepared for the camels?”
32 So the man went home with Laban, and Laban unloaded the camels, gave him straw for
their bedding, fed them, and provided water
for the man and the camel drivers to wash their
feet. 33 Then food was served. But Abraham’s
servant said, “I don’t want to eat until I have
told you why I have come.”
“All right,” Laban said, “tell us.”
34 “I am Abraham’s servant,” he explained.
35 “And the Lord has greatly blessed my master;
he has become a wealthy man. The Lord has
given him flocks of sheep and goats, herds of
cattle, a fortune in silver and gold, and many
male and female servants and camels and
donkeys.
36 “When Sarah, my master’s wife, was very
old, she gave birth to my master’s son, and my
master has given him everything he owns. 37 And
my master made me take an oath. He said, ‘Do
not allow my son to marry one of these local
Canaanite women. 38 Go instead to my father’s
house, to my relatives, and find a wife there for
my son.’
39 “But I said to my master, ‘What if I can’t
find a young woman who is willing to go back
with me?’ 40 He responded, ‘The Lord, in whose
presence I have lived, will send his angel with
you and will make your mission successful.
Yes, you must find a wife for my son from
among my relatives, from my father’s family.
41 Then you will have fulfilled your obligation.
But if you go to my relatives and they refuse
to let her go with you, you will be free from
my oath.’
42 “So today when I came to the spring,
I prayed this prayer: ‘O Lord, God of my master, Abraham, please give me success on this
mission. 43 See, I am standing here beside
this spring. This is my request. When a young
woman comes to draw water, I will say to her,
“Please give me a little drink of water from your
24:22 Hebrew a gold nose-ring weighing a beka [0.2 ounces or
6 grams] and two gold bracelets weighing 10 [shekels] [4 ounces
or 114 grams].