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Studies in Genesis, Rebekah, A Bride For Isaac, Part II, Lesson 52, Genesis 24
In our study of Genesis, Chapter 24 we find God planting the seed of separation, a seed which grows throughout the Bible until we find in the New Testament the clear command for God’s children, to be separate and to come out from among them and to not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers.
Abraham, our Father of Faith, knew this and therefore Isaac’s bride was not to come from the pagans.
Therefore, his servant swore to not take a wife unto his son from the daughters of the Canaanites and to not take his son out of Canaan for this is the land God had said: Unto thy seed will I give this land.
So, in finding Rebekah the daughter of Bethuel and the granddaughter of Milcah and Nahor, Abraham’s brother, the servant was quickly satisfied that Abraham’s order had been obeyed that Isaac’s bride come from his people.
We see in verses 26 and 27 the peace that settles on the servant’s head knowing that his mission has been blessed by God.
26 And the man bowed down his head, and worshipped the Lord. 27 And he said, Blessed be the Lord God of my master Abraham, who hath not left destitute my master of his mercy and his truth: I being in the way, the Lord led me to the house of my master's brethren.
One obstacle was overcome, the woman was found, and now the next, was this woman willing to come to a foreign land?
Showered with earrings and bracelets Rebekah ran to bring the news to her family.
Here we meet for the first time her brother Laban whose notice of the jewelry gives us a clue of his character.
For it is a character which will affect Jacob, a coming son of this very woman, Rebekah, who will eventually work for Laban to gain his wife Rachel after gaining Leah through Laban’s deceit.
So, the last obstacle to overcome, was Rebekah a willing woman?
Was she willing to go to a far country to meet an unknown man, a man who had never had a picture taken to show his future bride?
A man whom she knew absolutely nothing about; a man in whom she had absolutely no attachment.
With the camels fed and bedded down and the meal prepared the servant refused to eat until his mission was settled.
Identifying himself as a representative of Abraham, Bethuel’s uncle and Nahor’s brother gave Rebekah’s family great comfort.
And not only family lines brought comfort, the servant described God’s blessings upon Abraham and of course Isaac, telling them of Abraham’s greatness and his flocks and herds and silver and gold, and menservants and maidservants.
And, of Abraham’s insistence that any bride of Isaac would be from his former country and family and that Isaac would not leave God’s promised land.
And lastly telling the wonderful tale of the prayer answer at the well.
All this together overwhelmed the assembly and Laban and Bethuel could only respond thusly as we read in verses 50 through 52:
50 Then Laban and Bethuel answered and said, The thing proceedeth from the Lord: we cannot speak unto thee bad or good. 51 Behold, Rebekah is before thee, take her, and go, and let her be thy master's son's wife, as the Lord hath spoken. 52 And it came to pass, that, when Abraham's servant heard their words, he worshipped the Lord, bowing himself to the earth.
So, with permission granted and after hearing Rebekah agree to go to Isaac, the servant and Rebekah and her ladies were sent away from her family with a blessing as recorded in:
Genesis 24:60, And they blessed Rebekah, and said unto her, Thou art our sister, be thou the mother of thousands of millions, and let thy seed possess the gate of those which hate them.
Abraham insisted Isaac’s bride be obtained from his close relatives in Mesopotamia for a good reason.
From the actions of Bethuel and Laban it appears they were also of the faith in the God of Abraham.
Remember how quickly they reacted to the evidence of divine guidance as Abraham’s servant recounted the mission he was given and the meeting with Rebekah at the well.
Their blessing was such a parallel blessing to God’s blessing of Sarah, Isaac’s mother recorded in Genesis 17:16:
16 And I will bless her, and give thee a son also of her: yea, I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of people shall be of her.
It was a blessing recognizing God’s plan for the seed of Abraham, a blessing certainly indicating their faith in the God of Abraham and therefore a suitable family from which a bride for Isaac could come.
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. 62 And Isaac came from the way of the well Lahairoi; for he dwelt in the south country. 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. 64 And Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Isaac, she lighted off 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. 66 And the servant told Isaac all things 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.
So, no long engagement, nor any formal wedding preparations, nor meetings of the parents, nor ceremony is told of.
For God had chosen the exact one for Isaac, the one from whom would come the next chosen one, Jacob, the one who would be called Israel, to carry the seed forth to the Messiah.
We learn many life lessons from this chapter, specifically lessons in servanthood, guidance and marriage.
We are given to notice the faithful servant of Abraham, certainly a reflection of Abraham himself for he was marked by his intense obedience and his attention to the instructions given him.
God’s word is given to us to heed and to learn servanthood for Jesus told his disciples that only servants will be great among them, only servants would be chief among them.
Certainly, this message is hostile to any message from the world for the world simply sees servants as lowly, but read Jesus’ words in:
Matthew 20:25-28, But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Ye know that the princes of the Gentiles exercise dominion over them, and they that are great exercise authority upon them. 26 But it shall not be so among you: but whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister; 27 And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant: 28 Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.
We are to learn from this servant who diligently and urgently pursued his task, not eating or resting until it was completed.
He had the same sense of urgency that we see from Young David, when he asked before killing Goliath, Is there not a cause?
For Abraham’s servant knew the cause and that cause was to move forward the seed that would eventually reach to the Messiah for he knew he was operating within the promises of God.
We are to notice his diplomacy in his dealings with Rebekah and her kin.
He came with great authority, trusted completely to succeed in this mission for Abraham knew of his wisdom and devotion and discretion in finding a godly wife for Isaac.
This servant was a man of prayer, a man of effectual and fervent prayer, a man whose prayers would be answered by Abraham’s God.
He was a man with a personal trust in God; a man who gave God all the glory.
He was a man so thankful for the hand of God in his life.
We are also given to see in this chapter the guiding hand of God for this servant always reaches out for that hand.
And that hand is always according to God’s word.
God does not tell Abraham specifically to seek a wife for his son, but Abraham acts on the basis of God’s word relative to His promises to become a mighty nation through his son Isaac.
From this it was given to Abraham to put into motion a servant actively engaged in getting a proper wife for Isaac.
Since his offspring would need to be faithful to God and to keep His covenant this action required a godly woman, not a Canaanite, but a woman willing to leave her homeland as Abraham had done.
Again, we see a co-labor ship with God in carrying out God’s commands and within this co-labor ship we can expect God’s guiding hand.
See Genesis 24:27 where this servant blessed the Lord for he was in the way and was led by God
And he said, Blessed be the Lord God of my master Abraham, who hath not left destitute my master of his mercy and his truth: I being in the way, the Lord led me to the house of my master's brethren
God knows the way through the wilderness, all I have to do is follow.
Faith is walking hand in hand with God, yielding to His leading.
It is not a leaning to our own understanding, but it is an acknowledging of Him as the leader who will direct your paths.
This understanding is displayed so clearly in this faithful servant of Abraham.
A faithful servant who discerned the will of God through prayer and wisdom.
Again, we see co-labor ship with God for he submitted a plan to God whereby the woman who was to be Isaac’s wife would be shown to him.
It was a test of character, a test in which God would reveal the right woman to the servant.
So, this chapter is to result in the act of marriage.
And we learn from this that God gave marriage to achieve the purpose he had for Isaac and Abraham.
Isaac needed a wife because he was to become a father to fulfill his part in the Abrahamic covenant.
God has a purpose for marriage for it is to bring forth the fruit of children who are to bring forth glory to God.
And children are to be reared in accordance with God’s word that in time they are presented back to God, a maturing fruit, a fruit to delight the heart of God. God’s children should seek marriage if they commit to accomplishing God’s purposes as expressed in His word.
Another lesson from Chapter 24 again concerns the phrase, being in the way.
And that means if we would have a godly mate we must look in the right place and that also means we must not look in the wrong place.
Abraham restricted his servant from looking in the wrong place and that directed him to look in the right place.
This tells us if we wish a godly mate then look where godly Christians would be.
At least this is a start.
And in these places look for a mate who has godly qualities.
It is reported in our chapter that Rebekah was very fair to look upon, but Abraham’s servant did not evaluate her based on her physical appearance.
Certainly, beauty is that which can easily deceive, and this servant was not to be taken in by this for he was seeking a woman who trusted in God.
She was to be tested by her response to an unrequested need, that of watering the camels.
Did she have a servant’s heart, a must for a wife who is so actively involved in giving of herself.
We also have in this quest for a wife for Isaac something that is rare in our age for we see herein a man who in the matter of marriage is willing to heed the counsel of older and wiser believers.
Isaac, if left to himself, may never have found Rebekah.
His judgment may have rushed him into a marriage based upon the beauty of the Canaanite girls of the neighborhood a response we see by others throughout the scriptures.
But wisdom and discernment and prayer were allowed to do their work and Abraham and his servant were led to exactly the right girl for Isaac.
You who are seeking a mate be open to the counsel of godly Christians who are older and wiser for the path of heartache is a wide and long path and easily entered.
And finally, we can learn from Isaac’s experience for he who would have a godly mate must be willing to put emotions last.
What do we learn here?
We learn that Isaac first married and then loved.
Reading in Genesis 24:67, 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.
Isaac learned to love his wife in time.
Isaac was not given the temptation of romantic love which can so cloud the mind from right decisions.
We learn here that romantic love is never to be the basis for marriage but on the contrary marriage is to be the basis for romantic love.
Abraham’s servant was wise to this principle for in the test he asked God to bless only that which revealed character.
Romantic Love Romantic love is when the chemicals in your brain kick in and you feel an emotional high, exhilaration, passion, and elation when you and your girl or boyfriend are together. The old saying about love being blind describes romantic love. Many who are in the midst of romantic love want to be with their girl or boyfriend all the time and can overlook faults, conflict, and in some cases, even serious problems such as abuse. Also known as the honeymoon phase, puppy love, or having a crush. |