Genesis 24
1 Forsothe Abraham was eld, and of many daies, and the Lord hadde blessid hym in alle thingis.
Now Abraham was old and of many days. And the Lord had blessed him in all things.
2 And he seide to the eldere seruaunt of his hows, that was souereyn on alle thingis that he hadde, Put thou thin hond vndur myn hipe,
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 that Y coniure thee bi the Lord God of heuene and of erthe, that thou take not a wijf to my sone of the douytris of Chanaan, among whiche Y dwelle;
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 that thou go to my lond and kynrede, and therof take a wijf to my sone Ysaac.
But that you will proceed to my land and kindred, and from there take a wife for my son Isaac.”
5 The seruaunt aunswerde, If the womman nyle come with me in to this lond, whether Y owe lede ayen thi sone to the place, fro which thou yedist out?
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 Abraham seide, Be war, lest ony tyme thou lede ayen thidur my sone;
And Abraham said: “Beware that you never lead my son back to that place.
7 the Lord of heuene that took me fro the hows of my fadir, and fro the lond of my birthe, which spak to me, and swoor, and seide, Y schal yyue this lond to thi seed, he schal sende his aungel bifore thee, and thou schalt take fro thennus a wijf to my sone; forsothe if the womman nyle sue thee,
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 thou schalt not be holdun bi the ooth; netheles lede not ayen my sone thidur.
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 Therfore the seruaunt puttide his hond vndur the hipe of Abraham, his lord, and swoor to him on this word.
Therefore, the servant placed his hand under the thigh of Abraham, his lord, and he swore to him on his word.
10 And he took ten camels of the floc of his lord, and yede forth, and bar with him of alle the goodis of his lord; and he yede forth, and cam to Mesopotanye, to the citee of Nachor.
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 whanne he hadde maad the camels to reste with out the citee, bisidis the pit of watir, in the euentid, in that tyme in which wymmen ben wont to go out to drawe watir,
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 he seide, Lord God of my lord Abraham, Y biseche, meete with me to dai, and do mersi with my lord Abraham.
“O Lord, the God of my lord Abraham, meet with me today, I beg you, and show mercy to my lord Abraham.
13 Lo! Y stonde nyy the welle of watir, and the douytris of enhabiters of this citee schulen go out to drawe watir;
Behold, I stand near the fountain of water, and the daughters of the inhabitants of this city will go forth to draw water.
14 therfor the damysel to which Y schal seie, Bowe doun thi watir pot that Y drynke, and schal answere, Drynke thou, but also Y schal yyue drynke to thi camels, thilke it is which thou hast maad redi to thi seruaunt Ysaac; and bi this Y schal vndirstonde that thou hast do mersi with my lord Abraham.
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 he hadde not yit fillid the wordis with ynne hym silf, and lo! Rebecca, the douytir of Batuel, sone of Melcha, wijf of Nachor, brothir of Abraham, yede out, hauynge a watir pot in hir schuldre;
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 a damysel ful comeli, and faireste virgyn, and vnknowun of man. Sotheli sche cam doun to the welle, and fillide the watir pot, and turnide ayen.
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 seruaunt mette hir, and seide, Yyue thou to me a litil of the watir of thi pot to drynke.
And the servant ran to meet her, and he said, “Provide me with a little water to drink from your pitcher.”
18 Which answerde, Drynke thou, my lord. And anoon sche dide doun the watir pot on hir schuldre, and yaf drynk to hym.
And she responded, “Drink, my lord.” And she quickly brought down the pitcher on her arm, and she gave him a drink.
19 And whanne he hadde drunke, sche addide, But also Y schal drawe watir to thi camelis, til alle drynken.
And after he drank, she added, “In fact, I will draw water for your camels also, until they all drink.”
20 And sche helde out the watir pot in trouyis, and ran ayen to the pit, to drawe watir, and sche yaf watir drawun to alle the 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 Sotheli he bihelde hir priueli, and wolde wite whether the Lord hadde sped his wei, ethir nay.
But he was contemplating her silently, wanting to know whether the Lord had caused his journey to prosper or not
22 Therfor after that the camels drunken, the man brouyte forth goldun eere ryngis, weiynge twei siclis, and as many bies of the arm, in the weiyte of ten siclis.
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 he seide to hir, Whos douyter art thou? schewe thou to me, is ony place in the hows of thi fadir to dwelle?
And he said to her: “Whose daughter are you? Tell me, is there any place in your father’s house to lodge?”
24 Which answerde, Y am the douyter of Batuel, sone of Nachor, whom Melcha childide to him.
She responded, “I am the daughter of Bethuel, the son of Milcah, to whom she gave birth for Nahor.”
25 And sche addide, seiynge, Also ful myche of prouendre and of hey is at vs, and a large place to dwelle.
And she continued, saying, “There is very much straw and hay with us, and a spacious place to stay.”
26 The man bowide hym silf,
The man bowed himself down, and he adored the Lord,
27 and worschipide the Lord, and seide, Blessid be the Lord God of my lord Abraham, which God took not aweie his mersy and treuthe fro my lord, and ledde me bi riyt weie in to the hous of the brother of my lord.
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 so the damesel ran, and telde in the hous of hir modir alle thingis whiche sche hadde herd.
And so the girl ran, and she reported all that she had heard in the house of her mother.
29 Sotheli Rebecca hadde a brothir, Laban bi name, whiche yede out hastili to the man, where he was with out forth.
Now Rebekah had a brother, named Laban, who went out quickly to the man, where the spring was.
30 And whanne he hadde seyn the eere ryngis and byes of the arm in the hondis of his sister, and hadde herd alle the wordis of hir tellynge, the man spak to me these thingis, he cam to the man that stood bisidis the camels, and nyy the welle of watir,
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 seide to him, Entre thou, the blessid of the Lord; whi stondist thou with outforth? I haue maad redi the hows, and a place to thi 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 he brouyte hym in to the ynne, and unsadlide the camels, and yaf prouendre, and hey, and watir to waische the feet of camels, and of men that camen with hym.
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 breed was set forth in his siyt, which seide, Y schal not ete til Y speke my wordis. He answerde to the man, Speke thou.
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 the man seide, Y am the seruaunt of Abraham,
Then he said: “I am the servant of Abraham.
35 and the Lord hath blessid my lord greetli, and he is maad greet; and God yaf to hym scheep, and oxun, siluer, and gold, seruauntis, and handmaides, camels, and assis.
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 Sare, `the wijf of my lord, childide a sone to my lord in his eelde, and he yaf alle thingis that he hadde to that sone.
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 lord chargide me greetli, and seide, Thou schalt not take to my sone a wijf of the douytris of Canaan, in whos lond Y dwelle,
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 schalt go to the hous of my fadir, and of myn kynrede thou schalt take a wijf to my sone.
But you shall travel to my father’s house, and you shall take a wife of my own kindred for my son.’
39 Forsothe Y answerde to my lord, What if the womman nyle come with me?
But truly, I answered my lord, ‘What if the woman is not willing to come with me?’
40 He seide, The Lord in whose siyt Y go, schal sende his aungel with thee, and he schal dresse thi weie; and thou schalt take a wijf to my sone of my kynrede, and of my fadris hows.
‘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 Thou schalt be innocent fro my curs, whanne thou comest to my kynesmen, and thei yyuen not `the womman to thee.
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 Therfor Y cam to day to the welle of watir, and Y seide, Lord God of my lord Abraham, if thou hast dressid my weie in which Y go now, lo!
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 Y stonde bisidis the welle of watir, and the maide that schal go out to drawe watir herith me, yyue thou to me a litil of water to drynke of thi pot,
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 seith to me, And thou drynke, and Y schal drawe watir to thi camels, thilke is the womman which the Lord hath maad redi to the sone of my lord.
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 While Y turnede in thouyte these thingis with me, Rebecca apperide, comynge with a pot which sche bare in the schuldre; and sche yede doun to the welle, and drowe watir. And Y seide to hir, Yyue thou a litil to me to drynke; and sche hastide,
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 dide doun the pot of the schuldre, and seide to me, And thou drynke, and Y schal yyue drynke to thi camels; Y drank, and watride the camels.
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 Y axide hir, and seide, Whos douytir art thou? Which answerde, Y am the douytir of Batuel, sone of Nachor, whom Melcha childide to him. And so Y hangide eere ryngis to ourne hir face, and Y puttide bies of the arm in hir hondis,
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 lowliche Y worschipide the Lord, and Y blessid the Lord God of my lord Abraham, which God ledde me bi riyt weie, that Y schulde take the douytir of the brothir of my lord to his sone.
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 Wherfor if ye don mercy and treuthe with `my lord, schewe ye to me; ellis if othir thing plesith, also seie ye this, that Y go to the riyt side ethir to the left side.
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 Laban and Batuel answeriden, The word is gon out of the Lord; we moun not speke ony other thing with thee without his plesaunce.
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 Lo! Rebecca is bifore thee; take thou hir, and go forth, and be sche wijf of the sone of thi lord, as the Lord spak.
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 whanne the child of Abraham hadde herd this, he felde doun, and worschipide the Lord in erthe.
When Abraham’s servant had heard this, falling down to the ground, he adored the Lord.
53 And whanne vessels of siluer, and of gold, and clothis weren brouyt forth, he yaf tho to Rebecca for yifte, and he yaf yiftis to hir britheren, and modir.
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 whanne a feeste was maad, thei eeten and drunken to gider, and dwelliden there. Forsothe the child roos eerli, and spak, Delyuere ye me, that Y go to my lord.
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 Hir britheren and modir answerden, The damesele dwelle nameli ten daies at vs, and aftirward sche schal go forth.
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 The child seide, Nyle ye holde me, for the Lord hath dressid my weie; delyuere ye me, that I go to my lord.
“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 thei seiden, Clepe we the damysele, and axe we hir wille.
And they said, “Let us call the girl, and ask her will.”
58 And whanne sche was clepid, and cam, thei axiden, Wolt thou go with this man?
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 sche seide, Y schal go. Therfor they delyueriden hir, and hir nurse, and the seruaunt of Abraham, and hise felowis, and wischiden prosperitees to her sister,
Therefore, they released her and her nurse, and the servant of Abraham and his companions,
60 and seiden, Thou art oure sister, encreesse thou in to a thousand thousandis, and thi seed gete the yatis of hise enemyes.
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 Therfor Rebecca and hir damesels stieden on the camels, and sueden the man, which turnede ayen hasteli to his lord.
And so, Rebekah and her maids, riding upon camels, followed the man, who quickly returned to his lord.
62 In that tyme Ysaac walkide bi the weie that ledith to the pit, whos name is of hym that lyueth and seeth; for he dwellide in the south lond.
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 he yede out to thenke in the feeld, for the dai was `bowid thanne; and whanne he hadde reisid the iyen, he seiy camels comynge afer.
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 whanne Ysaac was seyn, Rebecca liyte doun of the camel,
Likewise, Rebekah, having seen Isaac, descended from the camel.
65 and seide to the child, Who is that man that cometh bi the feeld in to the metyng of vs? And the child seide to hir, He is my lord. And sche took soone a mentil, and hilide hir.
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 Forsothe the seruaunt tolde to his lord Ysaac alle thingis whiche he hadde do;
Then the servant explained to Isaac all that he had done.
67 which Ysaac ledde hir in to the tabernacle of Sare, his modir, and took hir to wijf; and so myche he louede hir, that he temperide the sorewe which bifelde of the deeth of the modir.
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.
