< Genesis 24 >

1 And Abraham [is] old, he has entered into days, and YHWH has blessed Abraham in all [things];
Now Abraham was old, well advanced in days, and the LORD had blessed Abraham in all things.
2 and Abraham says to his servant, the eldest of his house, who is ruling over all that he has, “Please put your hand under my thigh,
And Abraham said to his servant, the elder of his household, who was in charge over all that he had, "Please put your hand under my thigh,
3 and I cause you to swear by YHWH, God of the heavens and God of the earth, that you do not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanite, in the midst of whom I am dwelling;
and I will make you swear by the God of heaven and earth, that you must not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I am living,
4 but to my land and to my family you go, and have taken a wife for my son, for Isaac.”
but you must go to my country and to my relatives, and get a wife for my son Isaac."
5 And the servant says to him, “It may be the woman is not willing to come after me to this land; do I at all cause your son to return to the land from where you came out?”
And the servant asked him, "What if the woman isn't willing to follow me to this land? Must I then bring your son back to the land from which you came?"
6 And Abraham says to him, “Take heed to yourself lest you cause my son to return there;
Then Abraham told him, "Be careful that you do not take my son back there.
7 YHWH, God of the heavens, who has taken me from the house of my father, and from the land of my birth, and who has spoken to me, and who has sworn to me, saying, To your seed I give this land, He sends His messenger before you, and you have taken a wife for my son from there;
Now the God of heaven, who took me from my father's household and from the land of my birth, who spoke to me and promised me on oath, saying, 'I will give this land to your offspring' -- he will send his angel before you, and you will get a wife for my son from there.
8 and if the woman is not willing to come after you, then you have been acquitted from this my oath: only you do not cause my son to return there.”
But if the woman isn't willing to follow you, then you will be free from this oath to me. Only you must not bring my son back there."
9 And the servant puts his hand under the thigh of Abraham his lord, and swears to him concerning this matter.
So the servant put his hand under the thigh of his master Abraham and gave his oath to him concerning this matter.
10 And the servant takes ten camels of the camels of his lord and goes, also of all the goods of his lord in his hand, and he rises, and goes to Aram-Naharaim, to the city of Nahor;
Then the servant took ten camels from his master's camels and departed, having a variety of good things from his master at his disposal, and he set out and went to Aram Naharaim, to the city of Nahor.
11 and he causes the camels to kneel at the outside of the city, at the well of water, at evening, at the time of the coming out of the women who draw water.
And he made the camels kneel down outside the city by the well of water at the time of evening, the time when women go out to draw water.
12 And he says, “YHWH, God of my lord Abraham, please cause to meet before me this day—(and do kindness with my lord Abraham;
Then he said, "God of my master Abraham, please grant me success today and show kindness to my master Abraham.
13 behold, I am standing by the fountain of water, and daughters of the men of the city are coming out to draw water;
Look, I am standing by the spring of water, and the daughters of the men of the city are coming out to draw water.
14 and it has been, the young person to whom I say, Please incline your pitcher and I drink, and she has said, Drink, and I also water your camels)—her [whom] You have decided for Your servant, for Isaac; and by it I know that You have done kindness with my lord.”
Now may it happen that the young woman to whom I will say, 'Please lower your jug that I may drink,' and she answers, 'Drink, and I will also give your camels a drink,'—her you have chosen for your servant Isaac. By this I will know that you have shown kindness to my master."
15 And it comes to pass, before he has finished speaking, that behold, Rebekah (who was born to Bethuel, son of Milcah, wife of Nahor, brother of Abraham) is coming out, and her pitcher on her shoulder,
And it happened, before he had finished speaking, that look, Rebekah was coming out with her jug on her shoulder—who was born to Bethuel the son of Milcah, the wife of Nahor, Abraham's brother.
16 and the young person [is] of very good appearance, a virgin, and a man has not known her; and she goes down to the fountain, and fills her pitcher, and comes up.
Now the young woman was very beautiful in appearance, a virgin; no man had ever slept with her. And she went down to the spring and filled her jug and came up.
17 And the servant runs to meet her and says, “Please let me swallow a little water from your pitcher”;
Then the servant ran to meet her, and said, "Please give me a little water to drink from your jug."
18 and she says, “Drink, my lord”; and she hurries, and lets down her pitcher on her hand, and gives him drink.
So she said, "Drink, my lord." And she hurried and let down her jug to her hands, and gave him a drink.
19 And she finishes giving him drink and says, “Also for your camels I draw until they have finished drinking”;
Now when she had finished giving him a drink, she said, "I will also draw for your camels, until they have finished drinking."
20 and she hurries, and empties her pitcher into the drinking-trough, and runs again to the well to draw, and draws for all his camels.
So she hurried and emptied her jug into the trough and ran again to the well to draw, and drew for all his camels.
21 And the man, wondering at her, remains silent, to know whether YHWH has made his way prosperous or not.
And the man watched her in silence so as to know whether God had made his journey successful or not.
22 And it comes to pass, when the camels have finished drinking, that the man takes a golden ring (whose weight [is] a bekah), and two bracelets for her hands (whose weight [is] ten [bekahs] of gold),
And it happened, as the camels had finished drinking, that the man took a gold ring weighing a beka, which he put on her nose, and two bracelets for her hands weighing ten pieces of gold,
23 and says, “Whose daughter [are] you? Please declare to me, is the house of your father a place for us to lodge in?”
and said, "Whose daughter are you? Please tell me, is there room in your father's house for us to lodge?"
24 And she says to him, “I [am] daughter of Bethuel, son of Milcah, whom she has borne to Nahor.”
Then she said to him, "I am the daughter of Bethuel, the son of Milcah, whom she bore to Nahor."
25 She also says to him, “Both straw and provender [are] abundant with us, also a place to lodge in.”
And she also said to him, "We have plenty of straw and fodder, and room to lodge."
26 And the man bows, and pays respect to YHWH,
Then the man bowed his head and worshiped God,
27 and says, “Blessed [is] YHWH, God of my lord Abraham, who has not left off His kindness and His truth with my lord—I [being] in the way, YHWH has led me to the house of my lord’s brothers.”
and said, "Blessed be the God of my master Abraham, who has not forsaken his loving kindness and his truth toward my master. As for me, he has led me on the journey to the house of my master's relatives."
28 And the young person runs, and declares to the house of her mother according to these words.
Then the young woman ran, and told her mother's household about these words.
29 And Rebekah has a brother, and his name [is] Laban, and Laban runs to the man who [is] outside, to the fountain;
Now Rebekah had a brother, and his name was Laban, and he ran out to the man at the spring.
30 indeed, it comes to pass, when he sees the ring, and the bracelets on the hands of his sister, and when he hears the words of his sister Rebekah, saying, “Thus has the man spoken to me,” that he comes to the man, and behold, he is standing by the camels by the fountain.
And it happened, when he saw the nose ring and the bracelets on his sister's wrists, and when he heard the words of Rebekah his sister, saying, "This is what the man said to me," that he went to the man. And look, he was standing by the camels at the spring.
31 And he says, “Come in, O blessed one of YHWH! Why do you stand outside—and I have prepared the house and place for the camels?”
And he said, "Come in, you blessed of God. Why do you stand outside? For I have prepared the house and room for the camels."
32 And he brings in the man into the house, and looses the camels, and gives straw and provender for the camels, and water to wash his feet, and the feet of the men who [are] with him:
So the man went into the house and he unloaded the camels. And he gave straw and fodder for the camels, and water to wash his feet and the feet of the men who were with him.
33 and sets before him to eat; but he says, “I do not eat until I have spoken my word”; and he says, “Speak.”
And he set before him food to eat, but he said, "I will not eat until I have told my message." And he said, "Say it."
34 And he says, “I [am] Abraham’s servant;
So he said, "I am Abraham's servant.
35 and YHWH has blessed my lord exceedingly, and he is great; and He gives to him flock, and herd, and silver, and gold, and menservants, and maidservants, and camels, and donkeys;
And the Lord has blessed my master greatly, so that he has become great, and he has given him sheep and cattle, and silver and gold, and male servants and female servants, camels and donkeys.
36 and Sarah, my lord’s wife, bears a son to my lord, after she has been aged, and he gives to him all that he has.
And Sarah my master's wife bore a son to my master when she was old, and to him he has given all that he has.
37 And my lord causes me to swear, saying, You do not take a wife to my son from the daughters of the Canaanite, in whose land I am dwelling.
Now my master put me under oath, saying, 'You must not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, in whose land I live,
38 If not—to the house of my father you go, and to my family, and you have taken a wife for my son.
but you must go to my father's house, and to my relatives, and get a wife for my son.'
39 And I say to my lord, It may be the woman does not come after me;
And I said to my master, 'What if the woman will not follow me?'
40 and he says to me, YHWH, before whom I have habitually walked, sends His messenger with you, and has prospered your way, and you have taken a wife for my son from my family, and from the house of my father;
But he said to me, 'God, before whom I walk, will send his angel with you, and make your journey successful, and you will get a wife for my son from my relatives, and of my father's house.
41 then you are acquitted from my oath, when you come to my family; and if they do not give [one] to you, then you have been acquitted from my oath.
Then will you be free from my oath, when you come to my relatives. And if they do not give her to you, then you will be free from my oath.'
42 And I come to the fountain today, and I say, YHWH, God of my lord Abraham, now if You are making prosperous my way in which I am going—
So today I came to the spring, and said, 'God of my master Abraham, if now you will make my journey successful in which I go—
43 (behold, I am standing by the fountain of water), then the virgin is coming out to draw, and I have said to her, Please let me drink a little water from your pitcher,
look, I am standing by this spring of water, and may it happen that the young woman who comes out to draw, to whom I will say, "Please give me a little water from your pitcher to drink,"
44 and she has said to me, Both drink, and I also draw for your camels—she is the woman whom YHWH has decided for my lord’s son.
and she will say to me, "Drink, and I will also draw for your camels,"—may she be the woman who has been chosen for my master's son.'
45 Before I finish speaking to my heart, then behold, Rebekah is coming out, and her pitcher [is] on her shoulder, and she goes down to the fountain and draws; and I say to her, Please let me drink,
Before I had finished praying in my heart, look, Rebekah came out with her jug on her shoulder, and she went down to the spring, and drew. And I said to her, 'Please give me a drink.'
46 and she hurries and lets down her pitcher from off her and says, Drink, and I also water your camels; and I drink, and she has also watered the camels.
And she quickly lowered her jug from her shoulder, and said, 'Drink, and I will also give your camels a drink.' So I drank, and she also gave the camels water.
47 And I ask her, and say, Whose daughter [are] you? And she says, Daughter of Bethuel, son of Nahor, whom Milcah has borne to him, and I put the ring on her nose, and the bracelets on her hands,
Then I asked her, and said, 'Whose daughter are you?' And she replied, 'The daughter of Bethuel, Nahor's son, whom Milcah bore to him.' So I put the ring on her nose, and the bracelets on her wrists.
48 and I bow, and pay respect before YHWH, and I bless YHWH, God of my lord Abraham, who has led me in the true way to receive the daughter of my lord’s brother for his son.
Then I bowed my head and worshiped God, and blessed the God of my master Abraham, who had guided me on the right road to find the granddaughter of my master's brother for his son.
49 And now, if you are dealing kindly and truly with my lord, declare to me; and if not, declare to me; and I turn to the right or to the left.”
Now if you will show kindness and truth to my master, tell me. And if not, tell me, that I may turn to the right hand, or to the left."
50 And Laban answers—Bethuel also—and they say, “The thing has gone out from YHWH; we are not able to speak to you bad or good;
Then Laban and Bethuel answered, "The matter comes from God. We can't speak to you bad or good.
51 behold, Rebekah [is] before you, take and go, and she is a wife to your lord’s son, as YHWH has spoken.”
Look, Rebekah is before you. Take, and go, and let her become the wife of your master's son, as God has spoken."
52 And it comes to pass, when the servant of Abraham has heard their words, that he bows himself toward the earth before YHWH;
And it happened when Abraham's servant heard their words, that he bowed himself down to the ground.
53 and the servant takes out vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and garments, and gives to Rebekah; precious things also he has given to her brother and to her mother.
Then the servant brought out articles of silver and articles of gold, and clothing, and gave them to Rebekah. And he also gave valuable gifts to her brother and to her mother.
54 And they eat and drink, he and the men who [are] with him, and lodge all night; and they rise in the morning, and he says, “Send me to my lord”;
Then he and the men who were with him ate and drank, and spent the night. Then they got up in the morning, and he said, "Send me away to my master."
55 and her brother says—her mother also, “Let the young person abide with us a week or ten days, afterward she goes.”
But her brother and her mother said, "Let the young woman stay with us ten days or so. After that she may go."
56 And he says to them, “Do not delay me, seeing YHWH has prospered my way; send me away, and I go to my lord”;
But he said to them, "Do not delay me, seeing that he has made my journey successful. Send me away that I may go to my master."
57 and they say, “Let us call for the young person, and inquire of her mouth”;
Then they said, "We will call the young woman and ask her."
58 and they call for Rebekah, and say to her, “Do you go with this man?” And she says, “I go.”
So they called Rebekah, and said to her, "Will you go with this man?" And she replied, "I will go."
59 And they send away their sister Rebekah, and her nurse, and Abraham’s servant, and his men;
So they sent away their sister Rebekah, and her nurse, and Abraham's servant, and his men.
60 and they bless Rebekah, and say to her, “You [are] our sister; become thousands of myriads, and your seed possesses the gate of those hating it.”
And they blessed Rebekah, and said to her, "Our sister, may you be the mother of thousands of ten thousands, and may your descendants possess the gate of those who hate them."
61 And Rebekah and her young women arise, and ride on the camels, and go after the man; and the servant takes Rebekah and goes.
And Rebekah and her female servants got ready, and they rode on the camels and followed the man. So the servant took Rebekah and went on his way.
62 And Isaac has come in from the entrance of the Well of the Living One, my Beholder; and he is dwelling in the land of the south,
Now Isaac had come from the way of Beer Lahai Roi, for he was living in the land of the Negev.
63 and Isaac goes out to meditate in the field, at the turning of the evening, and he lifts up his eyes, and looks, and behold, camels are coming.
And Isaac went out in the field to think in the early evening. And he lifted up his eyes and looked, and look, he saw camels approaching.
64 And Rebekah lifts up her eyes, and sees Isaac, and comes down off the camel;
And Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Isaac, she dismounted from the camel.
65 and she says to the servant, “Who [is] this man who is walking in the field to meet us?” And the servant says, “It [is] my lord”; and she takes the veil, and covers herself.
And she asked the servant, "Who is the man who is walking in the field to meet us?" And the servant said, "It is my master." Then she took her veil and covered herself.
66 And the servant recounts to Isaac all the things that he has done,
And the servant told Isaac all the things that he had done.
67 and Isaac brings her into the tent of his mother Sarah, and he takes Rebekah, and she becomes his wife, and he loves her, and Isaac is comforted after [the death of] his mother.
Then Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah's tent, and took Rebekah, and she became his wife. And he loved her. So Isaac was comforted after his mother's death.

< Genesis 24 >