Genesis 24:3-37

3and I will make you swear by the Lord, 1the God of heaven and the God of earth, that you 2shall not take a wife for my son from the daughters of 3the Canaanites, among whom I live; 4but you will go to 4my country and to my relatives, and take a wife for my son Isaac.” 5The servant said to him, “Suppose the woman is not willing to follow me to this land; should I take your son back to the land from where you came?” 6Then Abraham said to him, “5Beware that you do not take my son back there! 76The Lord, the God of heaven, who took me from my father’s house and from the land of my birth, and who spoke to me and who swore to me, saying, ‘7To your 8descendants I will give this land’--He will send 9His angel ahead of you, and you will take a wife for my son from there. 8But if the woman is not willing to follow you, then you will 10be free of this oath of mine; 11only do not take my son back there.” 9So the servant 12placed his hand under the thigh of his master Abraham, and swore to him concerning this matter.

10Then the servant took ten camels from the camels of his master, and went out with a variety of 13good things of his master’s in his hand; so he set out and went to 14Mesopotamia, to 15the city of Nahor. 11He made the camels kneel down outside the city by 16the well of water 17when it was evening, 18the time when women go out to draw water. 12And he said, “19Lord, God of my master Abraham, please 2021grant me success today, and show kindness to my master Abraham. 13Behold, 22I am standing by the 23spring, and the daughters of the men of the city are coming out to draw water; 14now may it be that the young woman to whom I say, ‘Please let down your jar so that I may drink,’ and 24who answers, ‘Drink, and I will water your camels also’--may she be the one whom You have appointed for Your servant Isaac; and by this I will know that You have shown kindness to my master.”

15And it came about, 25before he had finished speaking, that behold, 26Rebekah, who was born to Bethuel the son of 27Milcah, the wife of Abraham’s brother Nahor, came out with her jar on her shoulder. 16The young woman was 28very beautiful, a virgin; no man had 29had relations with her. She went down to the spring, filled her jar, and came up. 17Then the servant ran to meet her, and said, “30Please let me drink a little water from your jar.” 18And 31she said, “Drink, my lord”; then she quickly lowered her jar to her hand, and gave him a drink. 19Now when she had finished giving him a drink, 32she said, “I will also draw water for your camels until they have finished drinking.” 20So she quickly emptied her jar into the trough, and ran back to the well to draw, and she drew for all his camels. 2133Meanwhile, the man was taking a close look at her 34in silence, to find out whether the Lord had made his journey successful or not.

22When the camels had finished drinking, the man took a 35gold ring weighing a 36half-shekel, and two bracelets for her 37wrists weighing ten shekels in gold, 23and he said, “Whose daughter are you? Please tell me, is there room for us to stay overnight at your father’s house?” 24She said to him, “38I am the daughter of Bethuel, Milcah’s son, whom she bore to Nahor.” 25Again she said to him, “We have plenty of both straw and feed, and room to stay overnight.” 26Then the man 39bowed low and worshiped the Lord. 27And he said, “40Blessed be the Lord, the God of my master Abraham, who has not abandoned 41His kindness and His trustworthiness toward my master; as for me, 42the Lord has guided me in the way to the house of my master’s brothers.”

28Then 43the young woman ran and told her mother’s household about these things. 29Now Rebekah had a brother whose name was 44Laban; and Laban ran outside to the man at the spring. 30When he saw the ring and the bracelets on his sister’s 45wrists, and when he heard the words of his sister Rebekah, saying, “46This is what the man said to me,” he went to the man; and behold, he was standing by the camels at the spring. 31And he said, “47Come in, 48blessed of the Lord! Why do you stand outside, since 49I have prepared the house, and a place for the camels?” 32So the man entered the house. Then 5051Laban unloaded the camels, and he gave straw and feed to the camels, and water to wash his feet and the feet of the men who were with him. 33But when food was set before him to eat, he said, “I will not eat until I have stated my business.” And he said, “Speak on.” 34So he said, “I am 52Abraham’s servant. 35The Lord has greatly 53blessed my master, so that he has become 54rich; and He has given him 55flocks and herds, and silver and gold, and servants and slave women, and camels and donkeys. 36Now 56my master’s wife Sarah bore a son to my master 57in her old age, and 58he has given him all that he has. 3759My 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;