Abraham: Called to Prepare

 

For some time now, we have been following the life of Abraham as he journeyed from unbelief to faith, and from incomplete obedience to total submission.  We have seen him face one test after another, passing some but failing others—tests designed to prove his faithfulness as a steward of God’s Revelation to Mankind.  Along the way, we have also been shown the Spiritual Pictures revealed to us through his life, and through the lives of the other Main Characters in our story as well—with…

• • Abraham as a type of God the Father who offers up His Son on the altar of sacrifice;
  • Sarah as a type of the Covenant of Grace and Hagar as a type of the Covenant of the Law;
  • Isaac as a type of Jesus Christ who is offered up as the Lamb of God, and is the long-awaited Son of Promise who displaces Ishmael, the Son born of Works and into Bondage.

In our previous episode, taken from Genesis 22, we watched as Abraham faced the most demanding of all of his tests when he was called upon to offer up his son, Isaac, as a sacrifice to God.  Not only did Abraham pass this test with flying colors, but so did his son, who was completely submitted to the will of his father. No doubt, we were all greatly relieved when a ram was provided at the last minute to take Isaac’s place on the altar.

In this episode, taken from Genesis 24, we will find Abraham—with all of his big tests behind him—engaged in the far more enjoyable task of finding a Bride for Isaac.  Interestingly, while Abraham will be the one who initiates the action in this episode, we will soon discover that the central figure in this rather lengthy part of the story is really the Unnamed Servant who is sent out by him on this all-important mission.

It is important to note here that we are skipping over Genesis 23, which records the death of Sarah and Abraham’s purchase of a burial plot for her—the only piece of the Promised Land that he ever owned during his lifetime. Although it is a meaningful part of Abraham’s life, we will be skipping over it in order to maintain continuity between the sacrifice of Isaac and the obtaining of a bride for him, and their spiritual significance to God’s One Big Story.

 

Episode #11 of Biopic #1
Cast:       Narrator     Abraham     Servant     Rebekah     Laban and Family

A Bride for Isaac

 

 Narrator:  Now Abraham was old, well advanced in age; and the LORD had blessed Abraham in all things.  So Abraham said to the oldest servant of his house, who ruled over all that he had…

Abraham:  Please, put your hand under my thigh, and I will make you swear by the LORD, the God of heaven and the God of the earth, that you will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell; but you shall go to my country and to my family, and take a wife for my son Isaac.

Servant:  Perhaps the woman will not be willing to follow me to this land. Must I take your son back to the land from which you came?

Abraham:  Beware that you do not take my son back there.  The LORD God of heaven, who took me from my father’s house and from the land of my family, and who spoke to me and swore to me, saying, ‘To your descendants I give this land,’ He will send His angel before you, and you shall take a wife for my son from there.  And if the woman is not willing to follow you, then you will be released from this oath; only do not take my son back there.

Narrator:  So the servant put his hand under the thigh of Abraham his master and swore to him concerning this matter. Then the servant took ten of his master’s camels and departed, for all his master’s goods were in his hand. And he arose and went to Mesopotamia, to the city of Nahor.  And he made his camels kneel down outside the city by a well of water at evening time, the time when women go out to draw water. Then he said…

Servant:  O LORD God of my master Abraham, please give me success this day, and show kindness to my master Abraham.  Behold, here I stand by the well of water, and the daughters of the men of the city are coming out to draw water.  Now let it be that the young woman to whom I say, ‘Please let down your pitcher that I may drink,’ and she says, ‘Drink, and I will also give your camels a drink’—let her be the one You have appointed for Your servant Isaac. And by this I will know that You have shown kindness to my master.

 

 

Narrator:  And it happened, before he had finished speaking, that behold, Rebekah, who was born to Bethuel, son of Milcah, the wife of Nahor, Abraham’s brother, came out with her pitcher on her shoulder.  Now the young woman was very beautiful to behold, a virgin; no man had known her. And she went down to the well, filled her pitcher, and came up.  And the servant ran to meet her and said…

Servant:  Please let me drink a little water from your pitcher.

Rebekah:  Drink, my lord. 

Narrator:  And when she had finished giving him a drink, she said…

Rebekah:  I will draw water for your camels also, until they have finished drinking.

Narrator:  Then she quickly emptied her pitcher into the trough, ran back to the well to draw water, and drew for all his camels.  And the man, wondering at her, remained silent so as to know whether the LORD had made his journey prosperous or not. So it was, when the camels had finished drinking, that the man took a golden nose ring weighing half a shekel, and two bracelets for her wrists weighing ten shekels of gold, and said…

Servant:  Whose daughter are you? Tell me, please, is there room in your father’s house for us to lodge?

Rebekah:  I am the daughter of Bethuel, Milcah’s son, whom she bore to Nahor.  We have both straw and feed enough, and room to lodge.

Narrator:  Then the man bowed down his head and worshiped the LORD.  And he said…

Servant:  Blessed be the LORD God of my master Abraham, who has not forsaken His mercy and His truth toward my master. As for me, being on the way, the LORD led me to the house of my master’s brethren.

 

 

Narrator:  So the young woman ran and told her mother’s household these things. Now Rebekah had a brother whose name was Laban, and Laban ran out to the man by the well.  So it came to pass, when he saw the nose ring, and the bracelets on his sister’s wrists, and when he heard the words of his sister Rebekah…that he went to the man. And there he stood by the camels at the well.  And he said…

Laban:  Come in, O blessed of the LORD! Why do you stand outside? For I have prepared the house, and a place for the camels.

Narrator:  Then the man came to the house. And he unloaded the camels, and provided 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…

Servant:  I will not eat until I have told about my errand.

Laban:  Speak on.

Servant:  I am Abraham’s servant.  The LORD has blessed my master greatly, and he has become great; and He has given him flocks and herds, silver and gold, male and female servants, and camels and donkeys.  And Sarah my master’s wife bore a son to my master when she was old; and to him he has given all that he has.  Now 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 dwell; but you shall go to my father’s house and to my family, and take a wife for my son.’  And I said to my master, ‘Perhaps the woman will not follow me.’  But he said to me, ‘The LORD, before whom I walk, will send His angel with you and prosper your way; and you shall take a wife for my son from my family and from my father’s house.  You will be clear from this oath when you arrive among my family; for if they will not give her to you, then you will be released from my oath.’

And this day I came to the well and said, ‘O LORD God of my master Abraham, if You will now prosper the way in which I go, behold, I stand by the well of water; and it shall come to pass that when the virgin comes out to draw water, and I say to her, “Please give me a little water from your pitcher to drink,” and she says to me, “Drink, and I will draw for your camels also,”—let her be the woman whom the LORD has appointed for my master’s son.’

But before I had finished speaking in my heart, there was Rebekah, coming out with her pitcher on her shoulder; and she went down to the well and drew water.  And I said to her, ‘Please let me drink.’  And she made haste and let her pitcher down from her shoulder, and said, ‘Drink, and I will give your camels a drink also.’ So I drank, and she gave the camels a drink also.  Then I asked her, and said, ‘Whose daughter are you?’ And she said, ‘The daughter of Bethuel, Nahor’s son, whom Milcah bore to him.’

So I put the nose ring on her nose and the bracelets on her wrists.  And I bowed my head and worshiped the LORD, and blessed the LORD God of my master Abraham, who had led me in the way of truth to take the daughter of my master’s brother for his son.  Now if you will deal kindly and truly with my master, tell me. And if not, tell me, that I may turn to the right hand or to the left.

Laban and Family:  The thing comes from the LORD; we cannot speak to you either bad or good.  Here is Rebekah before you; take her and go, and let her be your master’s son’s wife, as the LORD has spoken.

 

 

Narrator:  And it came to pass, when Abraham’s servant heard their words, that he worshiped the LORD, bowing himself to the earth.  Then the servant brought out jewelry of silver, jewelry of gold, and clothing, and gave them to Rebekah. He also gave precious things to her brother and to her mother. And he and the men who were with him ate and drank and stayed all night. Then they arose in the morning, and he said…

Servant:  Send me away to my master.

Laban and Mother:  Let the young woman stay with us a few days, at least ten; after that she may go.

Servant:  Do not hinder me, since the LORD has prospered my way; send me away so that I may go to my master.

Laban and Family:  We will call the young woman and ask her personally…Will you go with this man?

Rebekah:  I will go.

 

 

Narrator:  So they sent away Rebekah their sister and her nurse, and Abraham’s servant and his men.  And they blessed Rebekah and said to her…​

Laban and Family:  Our sister, may you become t​he mother of thousands of ten thousands; and may your descendants possess the gates of those who hate them.

Narrator:  Then Rebekah and her maids arose, and they rode on the camels and followed the man. So the servant took Rebekah and departed.

Now Isaac came from the way of Beer Lahai Roi, for he dwelt in the South.  And Isaac went out to meditate in the field in the evening; and he lifted his eyes and looked, and there, the camels were coming.  Then Rebekah lifted her eyes, and when she saw Isaac she dismounted from her camel;  for she had said to the servant…

Rebekah:  Who is this man walking in the field to meet us?

Servant:  It is my master.

Narrator:  So she took a veil and covered herself.  And the servant told Isaac all the things that he had done.  Then Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah’s tent; and he took Rebekah and she became his wife, and he loved her.  So Isaac was comforted after his mother’s death.

 

 

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Our Review

Because this episode provides us with one of the best examples in scripture of the wedding tradition prevailing in the ancient Middle East at this time, before discussing the important points in this episode, let’s pause for a moment to review the basics of that tradition so as to gain a better understanding of what is going on here in this part of our story.  As we learned back in Love—Jewish Style, this wedding tradition involved three events or stages…

• • The Negotiation or Arrangement Stage—once the father of the groom had decided it was time for his son to wed, he would select a bride and then choose someone to represent him and his son in the arrangement of a marriage with the bride’s family;
  • The Betrothal Period—once the arrangements had been settled on by both parties, the groom would go back to his father’s house and begin preparing a home for his bride, while the bride would begin preparing her garments for the wedding;
  • The Marriage Consummation and Marriage Feast—once the father of the groom was satisfied that his son’s house was ready, he would give him permission to go get his bride. This would usually take place at night, when he would abduct his bride from her father’s house and carry her away to the chupah where they would be married.  Following this, the couple go into the bridal chamber where their marriage would be consummated.  This would be followed later by a great feast with all the invited guests.

Armed with this information, we can now go over the most important points in this episode and see how this tradition plays out in our story.

 

The Most Important Points of the Story

— Well advanced in years—the Jews divided old age into three stages…

1. 1. 1. 1. 60-70 = the commencement of old age;
         2. 70-80 = the “hoary head” age; and,
         3. 80 + = well stricken in years.

Genesis 23:1 informs us that Sarah died when she was 127 years old. Since we know from previous episodes that there was a ten-year difference between her and husband, this would mean that Abraham was at least 137 when this part of the story takes place.

— Under my thigh—a euphemism for his private parts.

— Oldest servant—was quite likely Eliezer of Damascus, mentioned in Genesis 15:2.

— Daughters of the Canaanites—would not be a fitting partner for the godly son of a godly man; they would keep him from realizing God’s plan for his life.

— Do not take my son back there—Abraham had learned that the place of blessing was in the land that God had given to him and his descendants (literally seed).

— Ten of his master’s camels—loaded with gifts for the bride and her family. Such an outlay would have been reflective of Abraham’s wealth and status, and an indication of Isaac’s future inheritance.

— Mesopotamia—Abraham was back living near Hebron at this time so this would be a 500+ mile journey which would have taken about two months to complete.

 

— Now let it be—an example of praying specifically. It would have been an expected courtesy to give a weary traveler a drink of water but it would have been too much to ask her to water his camels, too—so this was a test to determine her kindness and generous spirit.

— Before he had finished speaking—his prayer was answered immediately.

— Pitcher…down to the well—her pitcher would probably have held about 9 gallons, and she would have to go up and down steep steps to get to the water.

— I will draw water for your camels also—a thirsty camel can drink as much as 30 gallons of water in 15 minutes, so with 10 camels, she may have had to draw as much as 300 gallons of water—equal to 2500 lbs.

— Wondering at her—although she had passed his test, the servant still didn’t know who she was, so he didn’t immediately blurt out the nature of his visit.

— Worshipped…being in the way—the servant gives all glory to God.

— Laban…when he saw the ring and the bracelets—demonstrated what he was really interested in. We will learn more about Laban’s true character later in Biopic #3.

— Water to wash…the feet of the men who were with him—the servant is humble and selfless.

— I will not eat—he was totally focused on this mission.

— I am Abraham’s servant—the servant introduces himself, tells of his master’s wealth and the blessings that have been bestowed upon his son, and recounts his experiences.

— Tell me—having revealed his mission, the servant asks that Rebekah be given to Isaac in marriage, and asks for a decision to be made immediately by Rebekah’s family.

— The servant brought out—with their yes, the servant give gifts to both Rebekah and her family.

— Do not hinder me—the servant insists on leaving immediately.

— I will go—when Rebekah agrees to go right away, she is given gifts by her family—her nurse and some attendants—and is blessed by them.

— Followed the man—on the journey to Canaan, Rebekah is protected and provided for by the servant, and she has time to question him about her husband-to-be.

— Beer Lahai Roi—the place where Hagar stopped when fleeing from Sarah.

— Lifted up…eyes, he loved her—a true Hallmark moment.

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In Summary

In applying the Jewish Wedding Tradition to this episode of our story and looking at the events taking place on the earthly stage, we can see Abraham in the role of the father of the groom making arrangements for the marriage of his son.  Given all of the promises made by God to Abraham, it is essential that Isaac have a bride if Abraham’s line is to continue into the future—and, given that Abraham is at such an advanced age, it is essential that he take care of this matter sooner rather than later.

In keeping with the Jewish Wedding Tradition, the servant acting as an agent for the father is sent to negotiate a marriage contract with the family of an as-yet unknown young woman among Abraham’s relatives. Having been led by God to the right girl, the servant first works out the arrangements for a marriage with her family and once she agrees to them, he showers her and her family with gifts from her future husband. However, unlike the order of events in the typical wedding tradition, there is no long betrothal period here. Instead, the bride is called upon to leave her home and family immediately in order to make the arduous trek through the wilderness to meet her groom.

This Episode’s Contribution to God’s One Big Story

When viewing the elements of this story from a heavenly perspective, it should be obvious that in…

Abraham, we are being show a picture of God the Father;
Isaac, we are being shown a picture of God the Son—the Bridegroom;
The Servant, we are being shown a picture of God the Holy Spirit; and,
Rebekah, we are being shown a picture of the Church, the Bride of Christ.

The parallels between Abraham and God the Father should be readily apparent. As for those between Isaac and Jesus Christ…

— Both births were promised by God, with both sons being referred to as the Promised Seed;
— Both births were preceded by a long wait;
— Both mothers responded with uncertainty when given the news—Mary because she was young and, although she was betrothed at the time, she was still a virgin, and Sarah because she was too old to bear children;
— Both babies were named before their births;
— Both births occurred at God’s appointed times;
— Both births required a miracle; and,
— Both children were the delight of their Father.

When comparing the mission of Abraham’s Servant with that of the Holy Spirit, we find these similarities…

— Both are sent out by the Father to obtain a Bride for His Son;
— Both are totally committed to carrying out the will of the Father;
— Neither one calls attention to himself but both only exalt the Son;
— Both require the Bride-to-be to make a decision;
— Both give gifts to the Bride;
— Both clothe the Bride in new garments;
— Both travel with the Bride through the wilderness, protecting her, guiding her, and teaching her about the Son; and,
— Both present the Bride to the Bridegroom at the end of the journey.

And, when comparing the marriage arrangements of Isaac and Rebekah with those of Christ and His Church, we can see that…

— Both marriages were planned long before either Bride knew about it;
— Both Brides were necessary for the completion of God’s purposes;
— Both were destined to share in the glory of the Son;
— Both Brides were to learn of the Son through His Emissary;
— Both Brides were to leave all behind to go to the Son, and they learned to love Him even before they saw Him;
— Both Brides had to journey through the wilderness, being guided and protected by the Emissary; and,
— Both Brides were loved by and finally united with the Son forever.

Well, that concludes this longest episode in our study of the life of Abraham. We only have one more left, so be sure to join us next time for Episode #12, when the Father of Israel puts all of his affairs in order and retires to that…

…city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God. (Hebrews 11:10)

 

 

 

Original story photos part of the Lumo Project courtesy of FreeBibleimages :: Home.
Map courtesy of FreeBibleimages :: Home.