The First Book of Moses: Genesis

⭑ Douay-Rheims :: World English Bible Catholic ⭑

- Chapter 24 -

Now Abraham was old; and advanced in age: and the Lord had blessed him in all things.

And he said to the elder servant of his house, who was ruler over all he had: Put thy hand under my thigh,

That I may make thee swear by the Lord the God of heaven and earth, that thou take not a wife for my son, of the daughters of the Chanaanites, among whom I dwell:

But that thou go to my own country and kindred, and take a wife from thence for my son Isaac.

The servant answered: If the woman will not come with me into this land, must I bring thy son back again to the place, from whence thou camest out?

And Abraham said: Beware thou never bring my son back again thither.

The Lord God of heaven, who took me out of my father’s house, and out of my native country, who spoke to me, and swore to me, saying: To thy seed will I give this land: he will send his angel before thee, and thou shalt take from thence a wife for my son.

But if the woman will not follow thee, thou shalt not be bound by the oath; only bring not my son back thither again.

The servant therefore put his hand under the thigh of Abraham his lord, and swore to him upon this word.

And he took ten camels of his master’s herd, and departed, carrying something of all his goods with him, and he set forward and went on to Mesopotamia to the city of Nachor.

And when he had made the camels lie down without the town near a well of water in the evening, at the time when women are wont to come out to draw water, he said:

O Lord the God of my master Abraham, meet me today, I beseech thee, and show kindness to my master Abraham.

Behold I stand nigh the spring of water, and the daughters of the inhabitants of this city will come out to draw water.

Now, therefore, the maid to whom I shall say: Let down thy pitcher that I may drink: and she shall answer, Drink, and I will give thy camels drink also: let it be the same whom thou hast provided for thy servant Isaac: and by this I shall understand, that thou hast shown kindness to my master.

Rebekah Is Chosen

He had not yet ended these words within himself, and behold Rebecca came out, the daughter of Bathuel, son of Melcha, wife to Nachor the brother of Abraham, having a pitcher on her shoulder:

An exceeding comely maid, and a most beautiful virgin, and not known to man: and she went down to the spring, and filled her pitcher and was coming back.

And the servant ran to meet her, and said: Give me a little water to drink of thy pitcher.

And she answered: Drink, my lord. And quickly she let down the pitcher upon her arm, and gave him drink.

And when he had drunk, she said: I will draw water for thy camels also, till they all drink.

And pouring out the pitcher into the troughs, she ran back to the well to draw water: and having drawn she gave to all the camels.

But he musing beheld her with silence, desirous to know whether the Lord had made his journey prosperous or not.

And after that the camels had drunk, the man took out golden earrings, weighing two sicles: and as many bracelets of ten sicles weight.

And he said to her: Whose daughter art thou? tell me: is there any place in thy father’s house to lodge?

And she answered: I am the daughter of Bathuel, the son of Melcha, whom she bore to Nachor.

And she said moreover to him: We have good store of both straw and hay, and a large place to lodge in.

The man bowed himself down, and adored the Lord,

Saying: Blessed be the Lord God of my master Abraham, who hath not taken away his mercy and truth from my master, and hath brought me the straight way into the house of my master’s brother.

Then the maid ran, and told in her mother’s house, all that she had heard.

And Rebecca had a brother named Laban, who went out in haste to the man, to the well.

And when he had seen the earrings and bracelets in his sister’s hands, and had heard all that she related, saying: Thus and thus the man spoke to me: he came to the man who stood by the camels, and near to the spring of water,

And said to him: Come in, thou blessed of the Lord: why standest thou without? I have prepared the house, and a place for the camels.

And he brought him in into his lodging: and he unharnessed the camels and gave straw and hay, and water to wash his feet, and the feet of the men that were come with him.

And bread was set before him. But he said: I will not eat, till I tell my message. He answered him: Speak.

And he said: I am the servant of Abraham:

And the Lord hath blessed my master wonderfully, and he is become great: and he hath given him sheep and oxen, silver and gold, men servants and women servants, camels and asses.

And Sara my master’s wife hath borne my master a son in her old age, and he hath given him all that he had.

And my master made me swear, saying: Thou shalt not take a wife for my son of the Chanaanites, in whose land I dwell:

But thou shalt go to my father’s house, and shalt take a wife of my own kindred for my son:

But I answered my master: What if the woman will not come with me?

The Lord, said he, in whose sight I walk, will send his angel with thee, and will direct thy way: and thou shalt take a wife for my son of my own kindred, and of my father’s house.

But thou shalt be clear from my curse, when thou shalt come to my kindred, if they will not give thee one.

And I came today to the well of water, and said: O Lord God of my master Abraham, if thou hast prospered my way, wherein I now walk,

Behold I stand by the well of water, and the virgin, that shall come out to draw water, who shall hear me say: Give me a little water to drink of thy pitcher:

And shall say to me: Both drink thou, and I will also draw for thy camels: let the same be the woman, whom the Lord hath prepared for my master’s son.

And whilst I pondered these things secretly with myself, Rebecca appeared coming with a pitcher, which she carried on her shoulder: and she went down to the well and drew water. And I said to her: Give me a little to drink.

And she speedily let down the pitcher from her shoulder, and said to me: Both drink thou, and to thy camels I will give drink. I drank, and she watered the camels.

And I asked her, and said: Whose daughter art thou? And she answered: I am the daughter of Bathuel, the son of Nachor, whom Melcha bore to him. So I put earrings on her to adorn her face, and I put bracelets on her hands.

And falling down I adored the Lord, blessing the Lord God of my master Abraham, who hath brought me the straight way to take the daughter of my master’s brother for his son.

Wherefore if you do according to mercy and truth with my master, tell me: but if it please you otherwise, tell me that also, that I may go to the right hand, or to the left.

And Laban and Bathuel answered: The word hath proceeded from the Lord, we cannot speak any other thing to thee but his pleasure.

Behold Rebecca is before thee, take her and go thy way, and let her be the wife of thy master’s son, as the Lord hath spoken.

Which when Abraham’s servant heard, falling down to the ground he adored the Lord.

And bringing forth vessels of silver and gold, and garments, he gave them to Rebecca for a present. He offered gifts also to her brothers, and to her mother.

And a banquet was made, and they ate and drank together, and lodged there. And in the morning, the servant arose, and said: Let me depart, that I may go to my master.

And her brother and mother answered: Let the maid stay at least ten days with us, and afterwards she shall depart.

Stay me not, said he, because the Lord hath prospered my way: send me away, that I may go to my master.

And they said: Let us call the maid, and ask her will.

And they called her, and when she was come, they asked: Wilt thou go with this man? She said: I will go.

So they sent her away, and her nurse, and Abraham’s servant, and his company,

Wishing prosperity to their sister, and saying: Thou art our sister, mayst thou increase to thousands of thousands, and may thy seed possess the gates of their enemies.

So Rebecca and her maids, being set upon camels, followed the man: who with speed returned to his master.

Isaac Marries Rebekah

At the same time Isaac was walking along the way to the well which is called Of the living and the seeing: for he dwelt in the south country.

And he was gone forth to meditate in the field, the day being now well spent: and when he had lifted up his eyes, he saw camels coming afar off.

Rebecca also, when she saw Isaac, lighted off the camel,

And said to the servant: Who is that man who cometh towards us along the field? And he said to her: That man is my master. But she quickly took her cloak, and covered herself.

And the servant told Isaac all that he had done.

Who brought her into the tent of Sara his mother, and took her to wife: and he loved her so much, that it moderated the sorrow which was occasioned by his mother’s death.

Abraham was old, and well advanced in age. The LORD had blessed Abraham in all things.

Abraham said to his servant, the elder of his house, who ruled over all that he had, “Please put your hand under my thigh.

I will make you swear by the LORD, the God of heaven and the God of the earth, that you shall not take a wife for my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I live.

But you shall go to my country, and to my relatives, and take a wife for my son Isaac.”

The servant said to him, “What if the woman isn’t willing to follow me to this land? Must I bring your son again to the land you came from?”

Abraham said to him, “Beware that you don’t bring my son there again.

The LORD, the God of heaven—who took me from my father’s house, and from the land of my birth, who spoke to me, and who swore to me, saying, ‘I will give this land to your offspring—he will send his angel before you, and you shall take a wife for my son from there.

If the woman isn’t willing to follow you, then you shall be clear from this oath to me. Only you shall not bring my son there again.”

The servant put his hand under the thigh of Abraham his master, and swore to him concerning this matter.

The servant took ten of his master’s camels, and departed, having a variety of good things of his master’s with him. He arose, and went to Mesopotamia, to the city of Nahor.

He made the camels kneel down outside the city by the well of water at the time of evening, the time that women go out to draw water.

He said, “LORD, the God of my master Abraham, please give me success today, and show kindness to my master Abraham.

Behold, I am standing by the spring of water. The daughters of the men of the city are coming out to draw water.

Let it happen, that the young lady to whom I will say, ‘Please let down your pitcher, that I may drink,’ then she says, ‘Drink, and I will also give your camels a drink,’—let her be the one you have appointed for your servant Isaac. By this I will know that you have shown kindness to my master.”

Rebekah Is Chosen

Before he had finished speaking, behold, Rebekah came out, who was born to Bethuel the son of Milcah, the wife of Nahor, Abraham’s brother, with her pitcher on her shoulder.

The young lady was very beautiful to look at, a virgin. No man had known her. She went down to the spring, filled her pitcher, and came up.

The servant ran to meet her, and said, “Please give me a drink, a little water from your pitcher.”

She said, “Drink, my lord.” She hurried, and let down her pitcher on her hand, and gave him a drink.

When she had finished giving him a drink, she said, “I will also draw for your camels, until they have finished drinking.”

She hurried, and emptied her pitcher into the trough, and ran again to the well to draw, and drew for all his camels.

The man looked steadfastly at her, remaining silent, to know whether the LORD had made his journey prosperous or not.

As the camels had done drinking, the man took a golden ring of half a shekel

(a)

weight, and two bracelets for her hands of ten shekels weight of gold,

and said, “Whose daughter are you? Please tell me. Is there room in your father’s house for us to stay?”

She said to him, “I am the daughter of Bethuel the son of Milcah, whom she bore to Nahor.”

She said moreover to him, “We have both straw and feed enough, and room to lodge in.”

The man bowed his head, and worshiped the LORD.

He said, “Blessed be the LORD, the God of my master Abraham, who has not forsaken his loving kindness and his truth toward my master. As for me, the LORD has led me on the way to the house of my master’s relatives.”

The young lady ran, and told her mother’s house about these words.

Rebekah had a brother, and his name was Laban. Laban ran out to the man, to the spring.

When he saw the ring, and the bracelets on his sister’s hands, and when he heard the words of Rebekah his sister, saying, “This is what the man said to me,” he came to the man. Behold, he was standing by the camels at the spring.

He said, “Come in, you blessed of the LORD. Why do you stand outside? For I have prepared the house, and room for the camels.”

The man came into the house, and he unloaded the camels. He gave straw and feed for the camels, and water to wash his feet and the feet of the men who were with him.

Food was set before him to eat, but he said, “I will not eat until I have told my message.” Laban said, “Speak on.”

He said, “I am Abraham’s servant.

The LORD has blessed my master greatly. He has become great. The LORD has given him flocks and herds, silver and gold, male servants and female servants, and camels and donkeys.

Sarah, my master’s wife, bore a son to my master when she was old. He has given all that he has to him.

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 live,

but you shall go to my father’s house, and to my relatives, and take a wife for my son.’

I asked my master, ‘What if the woman will not follow me?’

He said to me, ‘The LORD, before whom I walk, will send his angel with you, and prosper your way. You shall take a wife for my son from my relatives, and of my father’s house.

Then you will be clear from my oath, when you come to my relatives. If they don’t give her to you, you shall be clear from my oath.’

I came today to the spring, and said, ‘The LORD, the God of my master Abraham, if now you do prosper my way which I go—

behold, I am standing by this spring of water. Let it happen, that the maiden who comes out to draw, to whom I will say, “Please give me a little water from your pitcher to drink,”

then she tells me, “Drink, and I will also draw for your camels,”—let her be the woman whom the LORD has appointed for my master’s son.’

Before I had finished speaking in my heart, behold, Rebekah came out with her pitcher on her shoulder. She went down to the spring, and drew. I said to her, ‘Please let me drink.’

She hurried and let down her pitcher from her shoulder, and said, ‘Drink, and I will also give your camels a drink.’ So I drank, and she also gave the camels a drink.

I asked her, and said, ‘Whose daughter are you?’ She said, ‘The daughter of Bethuel, Nahor’s son, whom Milcah bore to him.’ I put the ring on her nose, and the bracelets on her hands.

I bowed my head, and worshiped the LORD, and blessed the LORD, the God of my master Abraham, who had led me in the right way to take my master’s brother’s daughter for his son.

Now if you will deal kindly and truly with my master, tell me. If not, tell me, that I may turn to the right hand, or to the left.”

Then Laban and Bethuel answered, “The thing proceeds from the LORD. We can’t speak to you bad or good.

Behold, Rebekah is before you. Take her, and go, and let her be your master’s son’s wife, as the LORD has spoken.”

When Abraham’s servant heard their words, he bowed himself down to the earth to the LORD.

The servant brought out jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and clothing, and gave them to Rebekah. He also gave precious things to her brother and her mother.

They ate and drank, he and the men who were with him, and stayed all night. They rose up in the morning, and he said, “Send me away to my master.”

Her brother and her mother said, “Let the young lady stay with us a few days, at least ten. After that she will go.”

He said to them, “Don’t hinder me, since the LORD has prospered my way. Send me away that I may go to my master.”

They said, “We will call the young lady, and ask her.”

They called Rebekah, and said to her, “Will you go with this man?” She said, “I will go.”

They sent away Rebekah, their sister, with her nurse, Abraham’s servant, and his men.

They blessed Rebekah, and said to her, “Our sister, may you be the mother of thousands of ten thousands, and let your offspring possess the gate of those who hate them.”

Rebekah arose with her ladies. They rode on the camels, and followed the man. The servant took Rebekah, and went his way.

Isaac Marries Rebekah

Isaac came from the way of Beer Lahai Roi, for he lived in the land of the South.

Isaac went out to meditate in the field at the evening. He lifted up his eyes and looked. Behold, there were camels coming.

Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Isaac, she got off the camel.

She said to the servant, “Who is the man who is walking in the field to meet us?” The servant said, “It is my master.” She took her veil, and covered herself.

The servant told Isaac all the things that he had done.

Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah’s tent, and took Rebekah, and she became his wife. He loved her. So Isaac was comforted after his mother’s death.

Footnotes

(a)24:22 A shekel is about 10 grams or about 0.35 ounces.