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The First Book of Moses: Genesis

Catholic Public Domain :: World English Bible Catholic

- Kapitel 24 -

1
Now Abraham was old and of many days. And the Lord had blessed him in all things.
2
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
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 you will proceed to my land and kindred, and from there take a wife for my son Isaac.”
5
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
And Abraham said: “Beware that you never lead my son back to that place.
7
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.(a)
8
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
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 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 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
“O Lord, the God of my lord Abraham, meet with me today, I beg you, and show mercy to my lord Abraham.
13
Behold, I stand near the fountain of water, and the daughters of the inhabitants of this city will go forth to draw water.
14
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.”

Rebekah Is Chosen

15
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
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 servant ran to meet her, and he said, “Provide me with a little water to drink from your pitcher.”
18
And she responded, “Drink, my lord.” And she quickly brought down the pitcher on her arm, and she gave him a drink.
19
And after he drank, she added, “In fact, I will draw water for your camels also, until they all drink.”
20
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
But he was contemplating her silently, wanting to know whether the Lord had caused his journey to prosper or not
22
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 said to her: “Whose daughter are you? Tell me, is there any place in your father’s house to lodge?”
24
She responded, “I am the daughter of Bethuel, the son of Milcah, to whom she gave birth for Nahor.”
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And she continued, saying, “There is very much straw and hay with us, and a spacious place to stay.”
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The man bowed himself down, and he adored the Lord,
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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 girl ran, and she reported all that she had heard in the house of her mother.
29
Now Rebekah had a brother, named Laban, who went out quickly to the man, where the spring was.
30
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 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 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 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
Then he said: “I am the servant of Abraham.
35
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.
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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 made me swear, saying: ‘You shall not take a wife for my son from the Canaanites, in whose land I dwell.
38
But you shall travel to my father’s house, and you shall take a wife of my own kindred for my son.’
39
But truly, I answered my lord, ‘What if the woman is not willing to come with me?’
40
‘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
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
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
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.”
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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
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 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 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.(b)
48
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
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
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, 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
When Abraham’s servant had heard this, falling down to the ground, he adored the Lord.
53
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 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
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
“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 they said, “Let us call the girl, and ask her will.”(c)
58
And when, having been called, she arrived, they wanted to know, “Will you go with this man?” And she said, “I will go.”
59
Therefore, they released her and her nurse, and the servant of Abraham and his companions,
60
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
And so, Rebekah and her maids, riding upon camels, followed the man, who quickly returned to his lord.

Isaac Marries Rebekah

62
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 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
Likewise, Rebekah, having seen Isaac, descended from the camel.
65
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
Then the servant explained to Isaac all that he had done.
67
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.

Fußnoten

(a)24:7 He will send his angel before you:This shows that the Hebrews believed that God gave them guardian angels for their protection.(Challoner)
(b)24:47 God gives us this same story twice, the second time in the servant’s recount of the events. Now both accounts are infallible Sacred Scripture, yet they differ somewhat in the wording of the quotations and in the words used to describe the events. This passage teaches us that quotations are not exact word-for-word recounts of what was said, but are a way of describing events and the attitudes of different persons.(Conte)
(c)24:57 Let us call the maid, and ask her will:Not as to her marriage, as she had already consented, but of her quitting her parents and going to her husband.(Challoner)
1
Abraham was old, and well advanced in age. The LORD had blessed Abraham in all things.
2
Abraham said to his servant, the elder of his house, who ruled over all that he had, “Please put your hand under my thigh.
3
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.
4
But you shall go to my country, and to my relatives, and take a wife for my son Isaac.”
5
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?”
6
Abraham said to him, “Beware that you don’t bring my son there again.
7
The LORD, the God of heavenwho 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 offspringhe will send his angel before you, and you shall take a wife for my son from there.
8
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.”
9
The servant put his hand under the thigh of Abraham his master, and swore to him concerning this matter.
10
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.
11
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.
12
He said, “LORD, the God of my master Abraham, please give me success today, and show kindness to my master Abraham.
13
Behold, I am standing by the spring of water. The daughters of the men of the city are coming out to draw water.
14
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

15
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.
16
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.
17
The servant ran to meet her, and said, “Please give me a drink, a little water from your pitcher.”
18
She said, “Drink, my lord.” She hurried, and let down her pitcher on her hand, and gave him a drink.
19
When she had finished giving him a drink, she said, “I will also draw for your camels, until they have finished drinking.”
20
She hurried, and emptied her pitcher into the trough, and ran again to the well to draw, and drew for all his camels.
21
The man looked steadfastly at her, remaining silent, to know whether the LORD had made his journey prosperous or not.
22
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,
23
and said, “Whose daughter are you? Please tell me. Is there room in your father’s house for us to stay?”
24
She said to him, “I am the daughter of Bethuel the son of Milcah, whom she bore to Nahor.”
25
She said moreover to him, “We have both straw and feed enough, and room to lodge in.”
26
The man bowed his head, and worshiped the LORD.
27
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.”
28
The young lady ran, and told her mother’s house about these words.
29
Rebekah had a brother, and his name was Laban. Laban ran out to the man, to the spring.
30
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.
31
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.”
32
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.
33
Food was set before him to eat, but he said, “I will not eat until I have told my message.” Laban said, “Speak on.”
34
He said, “I am Abraham’s servant.
35
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.
36
Sarah, my master’s wife, bore a son to my master when she was old. He has given all that he has to him.
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 live,
38
but you shall go to my father’s house, and to my relatives, and take a wife for my son.’
39
I asked my master, ‘What if the woman will not follow me?’
40
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.
41
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.’
42
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
43
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,”
44
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.’
45
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.’
46
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.
47
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.
48
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.
49
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.”
50
Then Laban and Bethuel answered, “The thing proceeds from the LORD. We can’t speak to you bad or good.
51
Behold, Rebekah is before you. Take her, and go, and let her be your master’s son’s wife, as the LORD has spoken.”
52
When Abraham’s servant heard their words, he bowed himself down to the earth to the LORD.
53
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.
54
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.”
55
Her brother and her mother said, “Let the young lady stay with us a few days, at least ten. After that she will go.”
56
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.”
57
They said, “We will call the young lady, and ask her.”
58
They called Rebekah, and said to her, “Will you go with this man?” She said, “I will go.”
59
They sent away Rebekah, their sister, with her nurse, Abraham’s servant, and his men.
60
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.”
61
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

62
Isaac came from the way of Beer Lahai Roi, for he lived in the land of the South.
63
Isaac went out to meditate in the field at the evening. He lifted up his eyes and looked. Behold, there were camels coming.
64
Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Isaac, she got off the camel.
65
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.
66
The servant told Isaac all the things that he had done.
67
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.

Fußnoten

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