Genesis 24
1 And Abraham was old, and well stricken in age: And Yhwh had blessed Abraham in all things.
Now Abraham was old and of many days. And the Lord had blessed him in all things.
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:
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,
3 And I will make thee swear by Yhwh, 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:
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.
4 But thou shalt go unto my country, and to my kindred, and take a wife unto my son Isaac.
But that you will proceed to my land and kindred, and from there take a wife for my son Isaac.”
5 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?
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?”
6 And Abraham said unto him, Beware thou that thou bring not my son thither again.
And Abraham said: “Beware that you never lead my son back to that place.
7 Yhwh 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.
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.
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.
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.”
9 And the servant put his hand under the thigh of Abraham his master, and sware to him concerning that matter.
Therefore, the servant placed his hand under the thigh of Abraham, his lord, and he swore to him on his word.
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.
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.
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.
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:
12 And he said, O Yhwh God of my master Abraham, I pray thee, send me good speed this day, and shew kindness unto my master Abraham.
“O Lord, the God of my lord Abraham, meet with me today, I beg you, and show mercy to my lord Abraham.
13 Behold, I stand here by the well of water; and the daughters of the men of the city come out to draw water:
Behold, I stand near the fountain of water, and the daughters of the inhabitants of this city will go forth to draw water.
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.
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.”
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.
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.
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.
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.
17 And the servant ran to meet her, and said, Let me, I pray thee, drink a little water of thy pitcher.
And the servant ran to meet her, and he said, “Provide me with a little water to drink from your pitcher.”
18 And she said, Drink, my lord: and she hasted, and let down her pitcher upon her hand, and gave him drink.
And she responded, “Drink, my lord.” And she quickly brought down the pitcher on her arm, and she gave him a drink.
19 And when she had done giving him drink, she said, I will draw water for thy camels also, until they have done drinking.
And after he drank, she added, “In fact, I will draw water for your camels also, until they all drink.”
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.
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.
21 And the man wondering at her held his peace, to wit whether Yhwh had made his journey prosperous or not.
But he was contemplating her silently, wanting to know whether the Lord had caused his journey to prosper or not
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;
Then, after the camels drank, the man took out gold earrings, weighing two shekels, and the same number of bracelets, ten shekels in weight.
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?
And he said to her: “Whose daughter are you? Tell me, is there any place in your father’s house to lodge?”
24 And she said unto him, I am the daughter of Bethuel the son of Milcah, which she bare unto Nahor.
She responded, “I am the daughter of Bethuel, the son of Milcah, to whom she gave birth for Nahor.”
25 She said moreover unto him, We have both straw and provender enough, and room to lodge in.
And she continued, saying, “There is very much straw and hay with us, and a spacious place to stay.”
26 And the man bowed down his head, and worshipped Yhwh.
The man bowed himself down, and he adored the Lord,
27 And he said, Blessed be Yhwh God of my master Abraham, who hath not left destitute my master of his mercy and his truth: I being in the way, Yhwh led me to the house of my master’s brethren.
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.”
28 And the damsel ran, and told them of her mother’s house these things.
And so the girl ran, and she reported all that she had heard in the house of her mother.
29 And Rebekah had a brother, and his name was Laban: and Laban ran out unto the man, unto the well.
Now Rebekah had a brother, named Laban, who went out quickly to the man, where the spring was.
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.
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,
31 And he said, Come in, thou blessed of Yhwh; wherefore standest thou without? for I have prepared the house, and room for the camels.
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.”
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.
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.
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.
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.”
34 And he said, I am Abraham’s servant.
Then he said: “I am the servant of Abraham.
35 And Yhwh 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 donkeys.
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.
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.
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.
37 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:
And my lord made me swear, saying: ‘You shall not take a wife for my son from the Canaanites, in whose land I dwell.
38 But thou shalt go unto my father’s house, and to my kindred, and take a wife unto my son.
But you shall travel to my father’s house, and you shall take a wife of my own kindred for my son.’
39 And I said unto my master, Peradventure the woman will not follow me.
But truly, I answered my lord, ‘What if the woman is not willing to come with me?’
40 And he said unto me, Yhwh, 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:
‘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.
41 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.
But you will be innocent of my curse, if, when you will arrive at my close relatives, they will not grant this to you.’
42 And I came this day unto the well, and said, O Yhwh God of my master Abraham, if now thou do prosper my way which I go:
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,
43 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;
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.”
44 And she say to me, Both drink thou, and I will also draw for thy camels: let the same be the woman whom Yhwh hath appointed out for my master’s son.
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.’
45 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 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.’
46 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.
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.
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 ring upon her nose, and the bracelets upon her hands.
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.
48 And I bowed down my head, and worshipped Yhwh, and blessed Yhwh God of my master Abraham, which had led me in the right way to take my master’s brother’s daughter unto his son.
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.
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.
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.”
50 Then Laban and Bethuel answered and said, The thing proceedeth from Yhwh: we cannot speak unto thee bad or good.
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.
51 Behold, Rebekah is before thee, take her, and go, and let her be thy master’s son’s wife, as Yhwh hath spoken.
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.”
52 And it came to pass, that, when Abraham’s servant heard their words, he worshipped Yhwh, bowing himself to the earth.
When Abraham’s servant had heard this, falling down to the ground, he adored the Lord.
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.
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.
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.
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.”
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.
And her brothers and mother responded, “Let the girl remain for at least ten days with us, and after that, she will continue on.”
56 And he said unto them, Hinder me not, seeing Yhwh hath prospered my way; send me away that I may go to my master.
“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.”
57 And they said, We will call the damsel, and enquire at her mouth.
And they said, “Let us call the girl, and ask her will.”
58 And they called Rebekah, and said unto her, Wilt thou go with this man? And she said, I will go.
And when, having been called, she arrived, they wanted to know, “Will you go with this man?” And she said, “I will go.”
59 And they sent away Rebekah their sister, and her nurse, and Abraham’s servant, and his men.
Therefore, they released her and her nurse, and the servant of Abraham and his companions,
60 And they blessed Rebekah, and said unto her, Thou art our sister, be thou the mother of thousands of tens of thousands, and let thy seed possess the gate of those which hate them.
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.”
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.
And so, Rebekah and her maids, riding upon camels, followed the man, who quickly returned to his lord.
62 And Isaac came from the way of the well Lahai–roi; for he dwelt in the south country.
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.
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.
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.
64 And Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Isaac, she lighted off the camel.
Likewise, Rebekah, having seen Isaac, descended from the camel.
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.
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.
66 And the servant told Isaac all things that he had done.
Then the servant explained to Isaac all that he had done.
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.
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.
