Summary of passage: Rebekah ran home and told all what had transpired. Laban, Rebekah’s brother, ran out to the servant to bring him to their house. So the servant, his men, and his camels were brought to Rebekah’s house and provided for. The servant told them his story, how he came there seeking a wife for Abraham’s son, and how Rebekah had been the girl to answer his prayer to God.
Laban and Bethuel agreed that this was God’s will so they let Rebekah go. The servant showered them with precious and costly gifts for the dowry. The next morning Laban and Bethuel tried to delay the trip but they left immediately on Rebekah’s acquiescence. The family blessed Rebekah and sent her on the long journey to Canaan.
Isaac whom we can assume had been praying for a wife as well greets the return party, hears the tale of the servant, and marries Rebekah.
Questions:
9a) Deuteronomy says to not intermarry with unbelievers for they will turn you away from God to other gods and the Lord’s anger will burn against you and destroy you. Paul says in Corinthians not to be yoked to unbelievers for they have nothing in common. Paul here was probably talking about the false teachers. This verse has been extrapolated to the marriage realm but note Paul does not say marriage nor is he speaking about marriage prior to or after this passage. See my post HERE with regards to this same question.
b) Verse 50 when Laban and Bethuel acknowledge the servant as from the Lord and give him Rebekah “as the Lord has directed” in verse 51.
10a) He faithfully told the story to Rebekah’s family about how Rebekah had passed God’s test. When the family agreed to give Rebekah to him, the servant “bowed down to the ground before the Lord” (verse 52). He says that “the Lord has granted success to my journey” in verse 56. Everywhere you turn in this passage, the servant acknowledges God and gives Him all the credit.
b) Isaiah 48:11 is God talking and He says (if you read verse 10 as well) that He tests us for His own glory. Not sure how that speaks about attitudes of the people unless you assume the people God directs understand this.
1 Corinthians tells us God chooses the lowly ones so that they have nothing to boast about except for Him. We should boast in Him. Give Him the glory. So we should humble ourselves and when we achieve it is because of God alone. He chose us.
11a) He gave Rebekah a gold nose ring, two gold bracelets, gold and silver jewelry, and articles of clothing. He gave costly gifts to her brother and mother.
b) Rebekah hears the story of how she was chosen from the servant (verses 34-49) and God is everywhere in the story. Laban and Bethuel agree “this is from the Lord” (verse 50) and willingly give her to the servant. The servant gave a huge dowry (verse 53), which gave credibility to the servant’s story. He came prepared to bring home God’s chosen wife for Isaac. The servant was eager to leave (verse 56)–to fulfill God’s purpose.
c) A father desires a bride for his son. Abraham for Isaac. God for us. A son was dead and then raised from the dead. Isaac and Jesus. The bride is chosen for marriage before they knew it (Ephesians 1:3-4). Rebekah and us. The bride is divinely chosen, called, and then lavished with gifts. (Revelation 19:7-8) Rebekah and us. She is entrusted to the care of the servant before she meets her bridegroom. Rebekah and us.
Conclusions: The best part of this story is the heart of the servant. I would wager he was probably treated well by Abraham but servants in ancient times had extremely rough lives and had no social status nor class. They were nothing in the eyes of many. So the willingness of this servant to serve his master is a great picture of how we are to serve the Lord. Everything is credited to God. The servant is merely the instrument in God’s work.
This is how we should approach life. God uses us to accomplish His purposes but so often our pride negates this or gets in the way.
Love the parallel to Jesus’s life in the questions. He served his Father for us. Incredible to ponder how we were chosen, brought, and loved by Jesus to God like Rebekah to Isaac. Great stuff!
I’m not sure why we have the question 9a. It does pertain to this lesson but I can’t say which way BSF is leaning. If you read my post HERE, you will see a huge debate we had on my blog. The only thing I wanted to add was the reference to Deuteronomy we had to look up. This reference to me is null and void today since it is under the Old Covenant that Jesus shattered with his death. So in terms of marriage today, I believe this doesn’t apply. Marriage to Rebekah, yes. Today. no.
I’m saying this question is only in reference to Rebekah and it is here in order for us to understand the lengths Abraham took to find Isaac a wife and why (because God outlawed it). Any extrapolation to today’s time should be done with caution.
Interesting reads I found: Simple read of the church as the Bride of Christ:
http://www.gotquestions.org/bride-of-Christ.html
Great commentary on all of Chapter 24: http://bible.org/seriespage/how-find-godly-wife-genesis-241-67
“Jesus shattered the Old Covenant” !!!!? NO! The (the Law) was PERFECT, and NO ONE could
keep it! Jesus did not abolish the Law– HE fulfilled it! Jesus said, “If you love Me, you will keep
My Commandments” This is a heart issue, and God gives us a new heart to love Him, when HE
saves us, according to His will! John 1:13 It’s All of HIM and it’s ALL of GRACE! Man gets NO
GLORY! True, we who are believers are not under the bondage of the Law, but we keep God’s
Laws and Commandments because we L O V E Him! He has not done away with it!
See Jeremiah 31:31-34…Israel’s NEW COVENANT! Which is future when God WRITES “JESUS”
on the Jewish people’s hearts, as the covenant is to the House of Israel and Judah ! Looking
forward to the day!
Paul speaks about being unequaly yolked with unbeleivers and there are several places in God’s word that addreses the issue of choice. Being unequally yoked means that when ever we have a choice that totaly involves a choice between two people that it means just that do not be unequaly yoked with a person that is a non believer . When two people who are considering marrage and if one of them is not saved then the saved person has a choice and in accordance with God’s Word. The believer should wait and pray for that person to get saved or continue to pray and trust God to bring someone into their life that is saved.
Best Wishes ,
Ricardo Page
Thank you, Nancy .I was getting ready to address this issue but you’ve answered so passionately and documented . Jesus is the “word’ , that means also the Law so He cannot shatter it .
Regarding AtoZ’s comment on the relevance of question 9a, I have to respectfully disagree with her conclusion that this passage doesn’t apply to marriage today. The Bible gives strong principles regarding marriage between believers and non-believers. Even though, as has been discussed extensively in a previous blog mentioned by AtoZ that one cannot be dogmatic that it is sinful for a believer to marry a non-believer, the Bible gives clear principles to NOT encourage such a union. What does a believer and unbeliever share in common– they have different beliefs, hopes, sources of authority and accountability, different worldviews, and a different eternal destination. At the center of a Christian’s life is God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. Marriage is the most intimate of all relationships that can be formed, and the principle in the Bible is not to be unequally yoked. True, the principle does not say explicitly the words “do not marry unbelievers”, but it is impossible to escape the application in 2 Cor 6:14-18. The marriage union is certainly a type of yoke since it is more intimate than political unions, business unions, professional unions, etc. Also 1 Cor 7:39 which speaks of marriage for those who have been widowed states that the widow is free to remarry, but only “in the Lord”. The verse speaks to widows, but certainly the same can be applied to unmarried single people. The requirement for re-marriage (or first time marriage) is that it should be to another believer. The Bible rightfully points out (1 Cor 7:12-16) that believers married to unbelievers should remain married, and that God can work good from such a marriage. However, that should not justify pursuing marriage with unbelievers. Even though there is no absolute prohibition of a marriage of a believer to an unbeliever, I feel the Word of God discourages such a union. I also agree with Nancy’s statement above. I am glad that as Christian sisters we can agree to disagree without being disagreeable. I really enjoy AtoZ’s insights, hard work, and study that she does to help us and stimulate discussion!
Well done ,Julia – I believe you and Shaeen (the last commenter on the previous post) seem to have “divided the Word of God” appropriately. Most scholars and study Bibles, I believe, would agree with you both.
You are right about The Law…much was fulfilled with the coming and life of Jesus, but only the ceremonial portion. There were not 10 commands delivered to Moses but 613. That number corresponds to the amount of days in the year – the negative Laws and 248 which represents the number of bones. Nothing abolishes the laws, it’s just as Christians, we believe Christ was the fulfillment. But there is a reason for 10, a very symbolic number. That is for another day.