1 Abraham was old, and well advanced
in age. Yahweh 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 Yahweh, 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 Yahweh, the God of heaven—who 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 offspring—he will send his
angel before you, and you shall take a wife
for my son from there.

8 Ifthe 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 atthe time
of evening, the time that women go out to
draw water.

12 He said, “Yahweh, 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 youhave shownkindness to
my master.”

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 Yahweh
had made his journey prosperous or not.

22 As the camels had done drinking, the
man took a golden ring of half a shekel†
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 Yahweh.

27 He said, “Blessed be Yahweh, the God
of my master Abraham, who has not forsaken his loving kindness and his truth
toward my master. As for me, Yahweh
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 Yahweh. 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.”