Earlier
in Genesis chapter 24 we saw that Abraham assigned his most trusted servant the
important task of choosing a wife for his son Isaac.
The
servant was willing to do whatever was humanly possible to carry out his
mission. However, he did not trust his own instinct or his own strength,
instead he asked God to help him.
He
also asked God for a sign…
HE
ASKS FOR A SIGN
Throughout
the Bible we find several people who requested a “sign” from God, such as
Gideon, David, Moses, etc. This is not something they did all the time, only
when they were not sure about a decision they had to make in a particular
situation. The human mind and heart can be deceiving, that is why it is
convenient to ask God to confirm if the decision we are about to make is the
right one.
That
is exactly what Abraham’s servant did. He was not acquainted with the women of Haran
(Genesis
24:13-14) Behold,
I am standing by the spring of water, and the daughters of the men of the city
are coming out to draw water. (14) Let the young woman to whom I shall say,
'Please let down your jar that I may drink,' and who shall say, 'Drink, and I
will water your camels'--let her be the one whom you have appointed for your
servant Isaac. By this I shall know that you have shown steadfast love to my
master."
The
sign the servant asked was not random. He asked for this in particular because
he was looking for a young lady that could adapt to Abraham’s family, and some
virtues that were characteristic of Abraham were his generosity and his hospitality.
Today,
many people choose their spouses based purely on physical attraction. However,
the Bible teaches us to see beyond appearance, and to seek the virtues of the
heart (Proverbs 31:30).
His
answer came immediately. In fact, God had prepared his response even before it
was requested.
(Genesis
24:15) Before he had finished speaking, behold, Rebekah, who was
born to Bethuel the son of Milcah, the wife of Nahor, Abraham's brother, came
out with her water jar on her shoulder.
The
Bible says that God knows our request even before we pronounce it.
(Matthew
6:7-8) And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the
Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. (8) Do
not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
(Psalms
139:1-4) O LORD, you have searched me and known me! (2)
You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts
from afar. (3) You search out my path and my lying down and
are acquainted with all my ways. (4) Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O
LORD, you know it altogether.
The
Lord puts in the heart of his servants what He desires, and then they call upon
God about that wish that originated in God.
(Psalms
37:4) Delight yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the
desires of your heart.
This
is what happened with Abraham’s servant: he asked for that which was in God’s
heart, and his response was already on its way…
(Genesis
24:15-20) Before
he had finished speaking, behold, Rebekah, who was born to Bethuel the son of
Milcah, the wife of Nahor, Abraham's brother, came out with her water jar on
her shoulder. (16) The young woman was very attractive in
appearance, a maiden whom no man had known. She went down to the spring and
filled her jar and came up. (17) Then the servant ran to meet her and said,
"Please give me a little water to drink from your jar." (18)
She said, "Drink, my lord." And she quickly let down her jar
upon her hand and gave him a drink.
(19) When she had finished giving
him a drink, she said, "I will draw water for your camels also, until they
have finished drinking." (20) So she quickly emptied her jar into the
trough and ran again to the well to draw water, and she drew for all his
camels.
Bible
commentators say that a great effort is required to water ten camels at the end
of such a long journey. However, Rebecca did not mind, because she was
generous.
What
was the servant doing in the meantime? He was only watching her.
(Genesis
24:21) The man gazed at her in silence to learn whether the LORD
had prospered his journey or not.
Rebecca
had passed the first test. She had proven to be generous. However, was she
going to be hospitable as well? The servant had to continue his investigation.
(Genesis
24:22-25) When
the camels had finished drinking, the man took a gold ring weighing a half
shekel, and two bracelets for her arms weighing ten gold shekels, (23)
and said, "Please tell me whose daughter you are. Is there room in
your father's house for us to spend the night?" (24)
She said to him, "I am the daughter of Bethuel the son of Milcah,
whom she bore to Nahor." (25) She added, "We have plenty of both straw
and fodder, and room to spend the night."
Also
the second test was passed. What was the servant’s reaction when he saw the
answer to his prayer come without delay?
(Genesis
24:26-27) The
man bowed his head and worshiped the LORD
(27) and said, "Blessed be
the LORD, the God of my master Abraham, who has not forsaken his steadfast love
and his faithfulness toward my master. As for me, the LORD has led me in the
way to the house of my master's kinsmen."
The
servant worshipped God, recognizing that he had witnessed a miracle.
Then
came the third test: he had to meet the family.
(Genesis
24:28-32) Then
the young woman ran and told her mother's household about these things. (29)
Rebekah had a brother whose name was Laban. Laban ran out toward the
man, to the spring. (30) As soon as he saw the ring and the bracelets
on his sister's arms, and heard the words of Rebekah his sister, "Thus the
man spoke to me," he went to the man. And behold, he was standing by the
camels at the spring. (31) He said, "Come in, O blessed of the
LORD. Why do you stand outside? For I have prepared the house and a place for
the camels." (32) So the man came to the house and unharnessed
the camels, and gave straw and fodder to the camels, and there was water to
wash his feet and the feet of the men who were with him.
With
all these signs confirmed, he knew that Rebecca was indeed Isaac’s future wife.
Once he was sure, he did not delay in expressing the purpose of his visit.
(Genesis
24:33-49) Then food was set before him to eat. But
he said, "I will not eat until I have said what I have to say." He
said, "Speak on." (34) So he said, "I am Abraham's
servant. (35) The LORD has greatly blessed my master, and
he has become great. He has given him flocks and herds, silver and gold, male
servants and female servants, camels and donkeys. (36)
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) My master made me swear,
saying, 'You shall not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the
Canaanites, in whose land I dwell,
(38) but you shall go to my
father's house and to my clan and take a wife for my son.' (39) I
said to my master, 'Perhaps the woman will not follow me.' (40)
But he said to me, 'The LORD, before whom I have walked, will send his
angel with you and prosper your way. You shall take a wife for my son from my
clan and from my father's house.
(41) Then you will be free from
my oath, when you come to my clan. And if they will not give her to you, you
will be free from my oath.' (42) "I came today to the spring and said, 'O
LORD, the God of my master Abraham, if now you are prospering the way that I
go, (43)
behold, I am standing by the spring of water. Let the virgin who comes
out to draw water, to whom I shall say, "Please give me a little water
from your jar to drink," (44) and who will say to me, "Drink, and I
will draw for your camels also," let her be the woman whom the LORD has
appointed for my master's son.'
(45) "Before I had finished
speaking in my heart, behold, Rebekah came out with her water jar on her
shoulder, and she went down to the spring and drew water. I said to her,
'Please let me drink.' (46) She quickly let down her jar from her
shoulder and said, 'Drink, and I will give your camels drink also.' So I drank,
and she gave the camels drink also.
(47) Then I asked her, 'Whose
daughter are you?' She said, '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 arms. (48)
Then I bowed my head and worshiped the LORD and blessed the LORD, the
God of my master Abraham, who had led me by the right way to take the daughter
of my master's kinsman for his son.
(49) Now then, if you are going
to show steadfast love and faithfulness to my master, tell me; and if not, tell
me, that I may turn to the right hand or to the left."
It
is curious that the Bible again describes what happened at the well. We not
only read when the events occurred, but also when the servant relates these
events to the family. Generally speaking, when a story is repeated in the Bible
it signals that there is a prophetic message in the story…
PROPHETIC
SHADOW
The
story of the election of a bride for Isaac is a shadow of the election of the
Bride of the Lamb.
Abraham
is a spiritual figure of God the Father, Eliezer the servant is a figure of the
Holy Spirit, Isaac is a figure of the Messiah and Rebecca a figure of the Bride
of Christ (the Anointed, the Messiah).
God
sent the Holy Spirit to seek throughout the Earth for all those who want to be
a part of the Bride. Those who accept the call must be willing to leave
everything behind for his sake (Isa. 48:20; Isa. 52:11; Jer. 51:6, 45, 50; 2
Cor. 6:17; Rev. 18:1-4; Rev. 21:1-2; Heb. 12:22). Just as Rebecca did, the
redeemed will leave Babylon
A
REPLY TO THE PROPOSAL
What
was Rebecca’s family’s reaction to the marriage proposal?
(Genesis
24:50-51) Then
Laban and Bethuel answered and said, "The thing has come from the LORD; we
cannot speak to you bad or good.
(51) Behold, Rebekah is before
you; take her and go, and let her be the wife of your master's son, as the LORD
has spoken."
All
doors were opened for Abraham’s servant Eliezer. He didn’t even have to make a
choice, since the Lord took him directly to the door of the young lady’s home.
He also opened up the hearts of her family to accept the proposal. At that
moment, the servant again bowed down to the ground to worship God and thank him
for his favor.
(Genesis
24:52-57) When
Abraham's servant heard their words, he bowed himself to the earth before the
LORD. (53) And the servant brought out jewelry of silver
and of gold, and garments, and gave them to Rebekah. He also gave to her
brother and to her mother costly ornaments.
(54) And he and the men who were
with him ate and drank, and they spent the night there. When they arose in the
morning, he said, "Send me away to my master." (55)
Her brother and her mother said, "Let the young woman remain with
us a while, at least ten days; after that she may go." (56)
But he said to them, "Do not delay me, since the LORD has prospered
my way. Send me away that I may go to my master." (57)
They said, "Let us call the young woman and ask her."
The
final test was for Rebecca to accept leaving immediately. She had the final
say. She had to be willing to leave her land and her kinship, just as Abraham
had done before her.
(Genesis
24:58-61) And
they called Rebekah and said to her, "Will you go with this man?" She
said, "I will go." (59) So they sent away Rebekah their sister and
her nurse, and Abraham's servant and his men.
(60) And they blessed Rebekah and
said to her, "Our sister, may you become thousands of ten thousands, and
may your offspring possess the gate of those who hate him!" (61)
Then Rebekah and her young women arose and rode on the camels and
followed the man. Thus the servant took Rebekah and went his way.
In
the Hebrew marriage tradition, a woman is not forced to marry a particular
person. She gets the final say so and decides if she accepts him or not.
Rebecca
accepted without even knowing Isaac. Some commentators say that she was
impressed with the way Abraham’s servant conducted himself. If he conducted
himself thus, surely his master would behave like him or better.
THE
ENCOUNTER WITH ISAAC
At
the close of this chapter we read about Isaac and Rebecca’s encounter. Isaac
had stayed behind in Canaan , and was waiting
for his bride. The Bible tells us the exact place where he was at that moment.
(Genesis
24:62) Now Isaac had returned from Beer-lahai-roi and was
dwelling in the Negeb.
This
was the well in which Hagar had an encounter with God.
(Genesis
16:13-14) So
she called the name of the LORD who spoke to her, "You are a God of
seeing," for she said, "Truly here I have seen him who looks after
me." (14) Therefore the well was called Beer-lahai-roi;
it lies between Kadesh and Bered.
Beer LaJai-Roi (literally
well of a living one my seer)
Hagar
had realized that God was alive, that he was real. Not only this, but also that
he was aware of what was happening in her life and that he took care of her.
What
was Isaac doing in that well?
(Genesis
24:63) And Isaac went out to meditate in the field toward evening.
And he lifted up his eyes and saw, and behold, there were camels coming.
Isaac
had gone out to the field to meditate. The word used here is not “to pray” but
to meditate (Hebrew Suach: to meditate, to contemplate, to muse pensively). It is
possible that he had gone to the well seeking an encounter with God. Many seek for
God in places where they had heard that other people had an encounter with God.
However, it is not about the place, but the person. God can manifest himself
anywhere, anytime.
In
the text we do not read that Isaac had a personal encounter with God, but at
least this experience must have taght him that God hears and answers our
prayers. It was at that moment that he saw from afar his servant’s caravan. His
bride was coming…
(Genesis
24:64-67) And
Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Isaac, she dismounted from the
camel (65) and said to the servant, "Who is that
man, walking in the field to meet us?" The servant said, "It is my
master." So she took her veil and covered herself. (66)
And the servant told Isaac all the things that he had done. (67)
Then Isaac brought her into the tent of Sarah his mother and took
Rebekah, and she became his wife, and he loved her. So Isaac was
comforted after his mother's death.
This
concludes the process that began with Sarah’s death… Abraham bought a piece of
land to bury her… the first property that the Israelites owned in the Promised
Land… Abraham fulfilled his mission to marry Isaac before he died… Isaac was
very sad after his mother’s death but found comfort when he married Rebecca.
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