Genesis 24
1 Now Abraham was old and of many days. And the Lord had blessed him in all things.
Now Abraham was old and far on in years: and the Lord had given him everything in full measure.
2 And he said to the elder servant of his house, who was in charge of all that he had: “Place your hand under my thigh,
And Abraham said to his chief servant, the manager of all his property, Come now, put your hand under my leg:
3 so that I may make you swear by the Lord, the God of heaven and earth, that you will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I live.
And take an oath by the Lord, the God of heaven and the God of the earth, that you will not get a wife for my son Isaac from the daughters of the Canaanites among whom I am living;
4 But that you will proceed to my land and kindred, and from there take a wife for my son Isaac.”
But that you will go into my country and to my relations and get a wife there for my son Isaac.
5 The servant responded, “If the woman is not willing to come with me into this land, must I lead your son back to the place from which you departed?”
And the servant said, If by chance the woman will not come with me into this land, am I to take your son back again to the land from which you came?
6 And Abraham said: “Beware that you never lead my son back to that place.
And Abraham said, Take care that you do not let my son go back to that land.
7 The Lord God of heaven, who took me from my father’s house, and from the land of my nativity, who spoke to me and swore to me, saying, ‘To your offspring I will give this land,’ himself will send his Angel before you, and you will take from there a wife for my son.
The Lord God of heaven, who took me from my father's house and from the land of my birth, and made an oath to me, saying, To your seed I will give this land: he will send his angel before you and give you a wife for my son in that land.
8 But if the woman is not willing to follow you, you will not be held by the oath. Only do not lead my son back to that place.”
And if the woman will not come with you, then you are free from this oath; only do not take my son back there.
9 Therefore, the servant placed his hand under the thigh of Abraham, his lord, and he swore to him on his word.
And the servant put his hand under Abraham's leg, and gave him his oath about this thing.
10 And he took ten camels from his lord’s herd, and he went forth, carrying with him things from all of his goods. And he set out, and continued on, to the city of Nahor, in Mesopotamia.
And the servant took ten of his master's camels, and all sorts of good things of his master's, and went to Mesopotamia, to the town of Nahor.
11 And when he had made the camels lie down outside of the town, near a well of water, in the evening, at the time when women are accustomed to go out to draw water, he said:
And he made the camels take their rest outside the town by the water-spring in the evening, at the time when the women came to get water.
12 “O Lord, the God of my lord Abraham, meet with me today, I beg you, and show mercy to my lord Abraham.
And he said, O Lord, the God of my master Abraham, let me do well in what I have undertaken this day, and give your mercy to my master Abraham.
13 Behold, I stand near the fountain of water, and the daughters of the inhabitants of this city will go forth to draw water.
See, I am waiting here by the water-spring; and the daughters of the town are coming out to get water:
14 Therefore, the girl to whom I will say, ‘Tip your pitcher, so that I may drink,’ and she will respond, ‘Drink. In fact, I will give your camels a drink also,’ the same one is she whom you have prepared for your servant Isaac. And by this, I will understand that you have shown mercy to my lord.”
Now, may the girl to whom I say, Let down your vessel and give me a drink, and who says in answer, Here is a drink for you and let me give water to your camels: may she be the one marked out by you for your servant Isaac: so may I be certain that you have been good to my master Abraham.
15 But he had not yet completed these words within himself, when, behold, Rebekah went out, the daughter of Bethuel, son of Milcah, the wife of Nahor, the brother of Abraham, having a pitcher on her shoulder.
And even before his words were ended, Rebekah, the daughter of Bethuel, the son of Milcah, who was the wife of Nahor, Abraham's brother, came out with her water-vessel on her arm.
16 She was an exceedingly elegant girl, and a most beautiful virgin, and unknown by man. And she descended to the spring, and she filled her pitcher, and then was returning.
She was a very beautiful girl, a virgin, who had never been touched by a man: and she went down to the spring to get water in her vessel.
17 And the servant ran to meet her, and he said, “Provide me with a little water to drink from your pitcher.”
And the servant came running to her and said, Give me a little water from your vessel.
18 And she responded, “Drink, my lord.” And she quickly brought down the pitcher on her arm, and she gave him a drink.
And she said, Take a drink, my lord: and quickly letting down her vessel onto her hand, she gave him a drink.
19 And after he drank, she added, “In fact, I will draw water for your camels also, until they all drink.”
And having done so, she said, I will get water for your camels till they have had enough.
20 And pouring out the pitcher into the troughs, she ran back to the well to draw water; and having drawn, she gave it to all the camels.
And after putting the water from her vessel into the animals' drinking-place, she went quickly back to the spring and got water for all the camels.
21 But he was contemplating her silently, wanting to know whether the Lord had caused his journey to prosper or not
And the man, looking at her, said nothing, waiting to see if the Lord had given his journey a good outcome.
22 Then, after the camels drank, the man took out gold earrings, weighing two shekels, and the same number of bracelets, ten shekels in weight.
And when the camels had had enough, the man took a gold nose-ring, half a shekel in weight, and two ornaments for her arms of ten shekels weight of gold;
23 And he said to her: “Whose daughter are you? Tell me, is there any place in your father’s house to lodge?”
And said to her, Whose daughter are you? is there room in your father's house for us?
24 She responded, “I am the daughter of Bethuel, the son of Milcah, to whom she gave birth for Nahor.”
And she said to him, I am the daughter of Bethuel, the son of Milcah, Nahor's wife.
25 And she continued, saying, “There is very much straw and hay with us, and a spacious place to stay.”
And she said, We have a great store of dry grass and cattle-food, and there is room for you.
26 The man bowed himself down, and he adored the Lord,
And with bent head the man gave worship to the Lord;
27 saying, “Blessed be the Lord, the God of my lord Abraham, who has not taken away his mercy and truth from my lord, and who has led me on a direct journey to the house of the brother of my lord.”
And said, Praise be to the Lord, the God of my master Abraham, who has given a sign that he is good and true to my master, by guiding me straight to the house of my master's family.
28 And so the girl ran, and she reported all that she had heard in the house of her mother.
So the girl went running and took the news of these things to her mother's house
29 Now Rebekah had a brother, named Laban, who went out quickly to the man, where the spring was.
Now Rebekah had a brother named Laban, and he came out quickly to the man at the water-spring.
30 And when he had seen the earrings and bracelets in his sister’s hands, and he had heard all the words being repeated, “This is what the man spoke to me,” he came to the man who stood by the camels and near the spring of water,
And when he saw the nose-ring and the ornaments on his sister's hands, and when she gave him word of what the man had said to her, then he went out to the man who was waiting with the camels by the water-spring.
31 and he said to him: “Enter, O blessed of the Lord. Why do you stand outside? I have prepared the house, and a place for the camels.”
And he said to him, Come in, you on whom is the blessing of the Lord; why are you waiting outside? for I have made the house ready for you, and a place for the camels.
32 And he brought him into his guest quarters. And he unharnessed the camels, and he distributed straw and hay, and water to wash his feet and that of the men who arrived with him.
Then the man came into the house, and Laban took their cords off the camels and gave them dry grass and food, and he gave to him and the men who were with him water for washing their feet.
33 And bread was set out in his sight. But he said, “I will not eat, until I have spoken my words.” He answered him, “Speak.”
And meat was put before him, but he said, I will not take food till I have made my business clear to you. And they said, Do so.
34 Then he said: “I am the servant of Abraham.
And he said, I am Abraham's servant.
35 And the Lord has blessed my lord greatly, and he has become great. And he has given him sheep and oxen, silver and gold, men servants and women servants, camels and donkeys.
The Lord has given my master every blessing, and he has become great: he has given him flocks and herds and silver and gold, and men-servants and women-servants and camels and asses.
36 And Sarah, the wife of my lord, has given birth to a son for my lord in her old age, and he has given him all that he had.
And when Sarah, my master's wife, was old, she gave birth to a son, to whom he has given all he has.
37 And my lord made me swear, saying: ‘You shall not take a wife for my son from the Canaanites, in whose land I dwell.
And my master made me take an oath, saying, Do not get a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites among whom I am living;
38 But you shall travel to my father’s house, and you shall take a wife of my own kindred for my son.’
But go to my father's house and to my relations for a wife for my son.
39 But truly, I answered my lord, ‘What if the woman is not willing to come with me?’
And I said to my master, What if the woman will not come with me?
40 ‘The Lord,’ he said, ‘in whose sight I walk, will send his Angel with you, and he will direct your way. And you shall take a wife for my son from my own kindred and from my father’s house.
And he said, The Lord, whom I have ever kept before me, will send his angel with you, who will make it possible for you to get a wife for my son from my relations and my father's house;
41 But you will be innocent of my curse, if, when you will arrive at my close relatives, they will not grant this to you.’
And you will be free from your oath to me when you come to my people; and if they will not give her to you, you will be free from your oath.
42 And so, today I arrived at the well of water, and I said: ‘O Lord, the God of my lord Abraham, if you have directed my way, in which I now walk,
And I came today to the water-spring, and I said, O Lord, the God of my master Abraham, if it is your purpose to give a good outcome to my journey,
43 behold, I stand next to the well of water, and the virgin, who will go forth to draw water, will hear from me, “Give me a little water to drink from your pitcher.”
Let it come about that, while I am waiting here by the water-spring, if a girl comes to get water and I say to her, Give me a little water from your vessel, and she says,
44 And she will say to me, “You drink, and I will also draw for your camels.” Let the same be the woman, whom the Lord has prepared for the son of my lord.’
Take a drink, and I will get water for your camels; let her be the woman marked out by the Lord for my master's son.
45 And while I thought over these things silently within myself, Rebekah appeared, arriving with a pitcher, which she carried on her shoulder. And she descended to the spring and drew water. And I said to her, ‘Give me a little to drink.’
And even while I was saying this to myself, Rebekah came out with her vessel on her arm; and she went down to the spring to get water; and I said to her, Give me a drink.
46 And she quickly let down the pitcher from her arm, and said to me, ‘You drink, and to your camels I will also distribute drinking water.’ I drank, and she watered the camels.
And straight away she took down her vessel from her arm, and said, Take a drink, and I will get water for your camels.
47 And I questioned her, saying, ‘Whose daughter are you?’ And she responded, ‘I am the daughter of Bethuel, the son of Nahor, whom Milcah bore to him.’ And so, I hung the earrings on her, to adorn her face, and I put the bracelets on her hands.
And questioning her, I said, Whose daughter are you? And she said, The daughter of Bethuel, the son of Nahor, and Milcah his wife. Then I put the ring on her nose and the ornaments on her hands.
48 And falling prostrate, I adored the Lord, blessing the Lord, the God of my lord Abraham, who has led me along the straight path so as to take the daughter of my lord’s brother to his son.
And with bent head I gave worship and praise to the Lord, the God of my master Abraham, by whom I had been guided in the right way, to get the daughter of my master's brother for his son.
49 For this reason, if you would act according to mercy and truth with my lord, tell me so. But if it pleases you otherwise, say that to me also, so that I may go either to the right, or to the left.”
And now, say if you will do what is good and right for my master or not, in order that it may be clear to me what I have to do.
50 And Laban and Bethuel responded: “A word has proceeded from the Lord. We are not able to speak anything else to you, beyond what pleases him.
Then Laban and Bethuel said in answer, This is the Lord's doing: it is not for us to say Yes or No to you.
51 Lo, Rebekah is in your sight. Take her and continue on, and let her be the wife of the son of your lord, just as the Lord has spoken.”
See, here is Rebekah: take her and go, and let her be your master's son's wife, as the Lord has said.
52 When Abraham’s servant had heard this, falling down to the ground, he adored the Lord.
And at these words, Abraham's servant went down on his face and gave praise to the Lord.
53 And bringing forth vessels of silver and gold, as well as garments, he gave them to Rebekah as a tribute. Likewise, he offered gifts to her brothers and her mother.
Then he took jewels of silver and jewels of gold and fair robes and gave them to Rebekah: and he gave things of value to her mother and her brother.
54 And a banquet began, and they feasted and drank together, and they lodged there. And rising up in the morning, the servant said, “Release me, so that I may go to my lord.”
Then he and the men who were with him had food and drink, and took their rest there that night; and in the morning he got up, and said, Let me now go back to my master.
55 And her brothers and mother responded, “Let the girl remain for at least ten days with us, and after that, she will continue on.”
But her brother and her mother said, Let the girl be with us a week or ten days, and then she may go.
56 “Do not be willing,” he said, “to delay me, for the Lord has directed my way. Release me, so that I may journey to my lord.”
And he said, Do not keep me; the Lord has given a good outcome to my journey; let me now go back to my master.
57 And they said, “Let us call the girl, and ask her will.”
And they said, We will send for the girl, and let her make the decision.
58 And when, having been called, she arrived, they wanted to know, “Will you go with this man?” And she said, “I will go.”
And they sent for Rebekah and said to her, Are you ready to go with this man? And she said, I am ready.
59 Therefore, they released her and her nurse, and the servant of Abraham and his companions,
So they sent their sister Rebekah and her servant with Abraham's servant and his men.
60 wishing prosperity for their sister, by saying: “You are our sister. May you increase to thousands of thousands. And may your offspring possess the gates of their enemies.”
And they gave Rebekah their blessing, saying, O sister, may you be the mother of thousands and ten thousands; and may your seed overcome all those who make war against them.
61 And so, Rebekah and her maids, riding upon camels, followed the man, who quickly returned to his lord.
So Rebekah and her servant-women went with the man, seated on the camels; and so the servant took Rebekah and went on his way.
62 Then, at the same time, Isaac was walking along the way that leads to the well, whose name is: ‘of the One who lives and who sees.’ For he dwelt in the southern land.
Now Isaac had come through the waste land to Beer-lahai-roi; for he was living in the South.
63 And he had gone out to meditate in the field, as daylight was now declining. And when he had lifted up his eyes, he saw camels advancing from afar.
And when the evening was near, he went wandering out into the fields, and lifting up his eyes he saw camels coming.
64 Likewise, Rebekah, having seen Isaac, descended from the camel.
And when Rebekah, looking up, saw Isaac, she got down from her camel,
65 And she said to the servant, “Who is that man who advances to meet us through the field?” And he said to her, “That is my lord.” And so, quickly taking up her cloak, she covered herself.
And said to the servant, Who is that man coming to us through the field? And the servant said, It is my master: then she took her veil, covering her face with it.
66 Then the servant explained to Isaac all that he had done.
Then the servant gave Isaac the story of all he had done.
67 And he led her into the tent of Sarah his mother, and he accepted her as wife. And he loved her so very much, that it tempered the sorrow which befell him at his mother’s death.
And Isaac took Rebekah into his tent and she became his wife; and in his love for her, Isaac was comforted after his father's death.
