When Abraham's servant heard their answer, he bowed down to the ground and worshiped the Lord. Genesis 24:52
We have been talking this week about Abraham's search to find his son Isaac a wife to marry. We learn from Genesis 24 that his servant was the one tasked with carrying out this search. This may seem strange to us in our culture, but in Abraham's day, marriages were arranged. People did not automatically get to choose who they wanted to marry. It was typically their parents or close relatives who arranged their marriages for them. Carefully, with guidance from God, this servant finally found the woman who God had appointed for Isaac to marry. The next step was asking Rebekah's family if they were willing to let her go to marry Isaac.
On the day that Abraham's servant met Rebekah, Rebekah and her family invited him, along with his animals, to have dinner with him and stay at their home. As they visited and had dinner together, Abraham's servant made his proposal that Rebekah marry Isaac. Everyone in the family heard the story of how Abraham's servant found Rebekah. They were amazed and immediately knew that God was clearly the one who had organized this union. They all agreed, and plans were made for Rebekah to marry Isaac. When everything was set in place, Abraham's servant worshiped God for bringing Rebekah and Isaac together.
One thing that is very obvious in this story found in Genesis 24 is that Abraham's servant truly trusted God to provide for Isaac throughout the entire story. He knew that God was going to provide for Isaac, and he trusted God's provision. And, when he found Rebekah, he celebrated and praised God. My friends, this is a valuable lesson for us today. Whether you are waiting for God to provide a spouse, a child, a home, etc., you have the opportunity to trust Him. You see, He is a provider. He is working in your life right now in ways you cannot see. Will you trust Him today to provide for you in exactly the right way at exactly the right time?
Abraham's servant in this chapter of Genesis was a remarkable person. He trusted God's provision for Isaac and praised God as His provision came into fruition. We would do well to learn from the example that Abraham's servant set. In your journal or a notebook, take some time to write out a prayer of praise to God for His provision to you. Then, pray about the things you are waiting for God to provide. If you are waiting for God to provide a spouse, pray that He would send you a spouse. If you are waiting on a job, pray that God would provide that job. Whatever it is you are waiting for, ask God to provide in that specific situation. Next, ask Him to provide, in His way, in His time.
So the man went home with Laban, and Laban unloaded the camels, gave him straw for their bedding, fed them, and provided water for the man and the camel drivers to wash their feet. Then food was served. But Abraham’s servant said, “I don’t want to eat until I have told you why I have come.”
“All right,” Laban said, “tell us.”
“I am Abraham’s servant,” he explained. “And the Lord has greatly blessed my master; he has become a wealthy man. The Lord has given him flocks of sheep and goats, herds of cattle, a fortune in silver and gold, and many male and female servants and camels and donkeys.
“When Sarah, my master’s wife, was very old, she gave birth to my master’s son, and my master has given him everything he owns. And my master made me take an oath. He said, ‘Do not allow my son to marry one of these local Canaanite women. Go instead to my father’s house, to my relatives, and find a wife there for my son.’
“But I said to my master, ‘What if I can’t find a young woman who is willing to go back with me?’ He responded, ‘The Lord, in whose presence I have lived, will send his angel with you and will make your mission successful. Yes, you must find a wife for my son from among my relatives, from my father’s family. Then you will have fulfilled your obligation. But if you go to my relatives and they refuse to let her go with you, you will be free from my oath.’
“So today when I came to the spring, I prayed this prayer: ‘O Lord, God of my master, Abraham, please give me success on this mission. See, I am standing here beside this spring. This is my request. When a young woman comes to draw water, I will say to her, “Please give me a little drink of water from your jug.” If she says, “Yes, have a drink, and I will draw water for your camels, too,” let her be the one you have selected to be the wife of my master’s son.’
“Before I had finished praying in my heart, I saw Rebekah coming out with her water jug on her shoulder. She went down to the spring and drew water. So I said to her, ‘Please give me a drink.’ She quickly lowered her jug from her shoulder and said, ‘Yes, have a drink, and I will water your camels, too!’ So I drank, and then she watered the camels.
“Then I asked, ‘Whose daughter are you?’ She replied, ‘I am the daughter of Bethuel, and my grandparents are Nahor and Milcah.’ So I put the ring on her nose, and the bracelets on her wrists.
“Then I bowed low and worshiped the Lord. I praised the Lord, the God of my master, Abraham, because he had led me straight to my master’s niece to be his son’s wife. So tell me—will you or won’t you show unfailing love and faithfulness to my master? Please tell me yes or no, and then I’ll know what to do next.”
Then Laban and Bethuel replied, “The Lord has obviously brought you here, so there is nothing we can say. Here is Rebekah; take her and go. Yes, let her be the wife of your master’s son, as the Lord has directed.”
When Abraham’s servant heard their answer, he bowed down to the ground and worshiped the Lord. Then he brought out silver and gold jewelry and clothing and presented them to Rebekah. He also gave expensive presents to her brother and mother. Then they ate their meal, and the servant and the men with him stayed there overnight.
But early the next morning, Abraham’s servant said, “Send me back to my master.”
“But we want Rebekah to stay with us at least ten days,” her brother and mother said. “Then she can go.”
But he said, “Don’t delay me. The Lord has made my mission successful; now send me back so I can return to my master.”
“Well,” they said, “we’ll call Rebekah and ask her what she thinks.” So they called Rebekah. “Are you willing to go with this man?” they asked her.
And she replied, “Yes, I will go.”
So they said good-bye to Rebekah and sent her away with Abraham’s servant and his men. The woman who had been Rebekah’s childhood nurse went along with her. They gave her this blessing as she parted:
“Our sister, may you become
the mother of many millions!
May your descendants be strong
and conquer the cities of their enemies.”
Then Rebekah and her servant girls mounted the camels and followed the man. So Abraham’s servant took Rebekah and went on his way.
Meanwhile, Isaac, whose home was in the Negev, had returned from Beer-lahai-roi. One evening as he was walking and meditating in the fields, he looked up and saw the camels coming. When Rebekah looked up and saw Isaac, she quickly dismounted from her camel. “Who is that man walking through the fields to meet us?” she asked the servant.
And he replied, “It is my master.” So Rebekah covered her face with her veil. Then the servant told Isaac everything he had done.
And Isaac brought Rebekah into his mother Sarah’s tent, and she became his wife. He loved her deeply, and she was a special comfort to him after the death of his mother.
