Lesson 49 Preparing Isaac for Marriage

Choosing a Proper Bride 24:1-9

English Standard Version (Chapter 24)

24 Now Abraham was old, well advanced in years. And the LORD had blessed Abraham in all things. 2 And Abraham said to his servant, the oldest of his household, who had charge of all that he had, “Put your hand under my thigh, 3 that I may make you swear by the LORD, the God of heaven and God of the earth, that you will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell, 4 but will go to my country and to my kindred, and take a wife for my son Isaac.” 5 The servant said to him, “Perhaps the woman may not be willing to follow me to this land. Must I then take your son back to the land from which you came?” 6 Abraham said to him, “See to it that you do not take my son back there. 7 The LORD, the God of heaven, who took me from my father’s house and from the land of my kindred, and who spoke to me and swore to me, ‘To your offspring I will give this land,’ he will send his angel before you, and you shall take a wife for my son from there. 8 But if the woman is not willing to follow you, then you will be free from this oath of mine; only you must not take my son back there.” 9 So the servant put his hand under the thigh of Abraham his master and swore to him concerning this matter.

There is a distinct repeating of the details of this chapter within the text as the narrator describes what is going on. Don’t grow weary of the repeated phrases or words as it is a part of the action. This is directing us to later chapters where Abraham will actually die but he is still going strong in chapter 24. Wanting to secure a wife for his son Abraham selects his “go-to” guy, Eliezer, his oldest servant for the task. He was a take charge kind of guy as the text relates to us and Abraham asks him to make a vow with him over what and should not happen in the securing a bride for Isaac. Think, this guy, Isaac is almost 40 years old and unmarried, what seems to be the problem? One of the [problems is Abraham does not approve of the women of the land for his son. Just being a neighbor or friend is not enough or the Canaanites, Hittites, or the daughters of Heth would be adequate.

Eliezer

is made to swear to Abraham that he will not even take his son back to his homeland for a wife. It is job as a supporting character in the story to carry out the task of going back his families home area in Ur of the Chaldees and get a wife from his kinfolk. Isaac is completely left out of the equation. It is a gigantic step of faith as he insists his oldest servant proceed to secure this unknown wife, even without the help of Facebook. Let’s break this down:

The hand under the thigh, swearing by the Lord, the God of heaven and earth is perhaps a vow made by those under the covenant of circumcision. Whatever it is, up close, and personal. Both men were able to hold up their end of the deal. Literally. A man’s strength is manifest in his thighs and it enables Him to stand erect and to knee down.

The servant is not sure this idea is going to fly. We see this is the statement of verse 5, “if this does not work, should I take Isaac back with me to get the girl on board?” Abraham said under no circumstance should Isaac go back with Eliezer. In all of the entire middle east, apparently the sweet spot is found in his relatives.

An angelic messenger will guide and deliver a wife to Eliezer. In more particular details, Eliezer will be guided to the proper young lady. This is all based on Abraham’s life long relationship with the Lord in regards his promise of offspring. Verse 7.

There are Biblical motives for Abraham’s request:

The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Volume 2: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers (8. A Bride for Isaac (24:1–67))

Abraham’s desire that Isaac not take a wife from the Canaanites appears to be a further expression of the notion of the two lines of blessing and curse seen in Genesis 9:25–27: “Cursed be Canaan!” but “Blessed be the LORD the God of Shem.” As has been the case throughout the narratives thus far, the inhabitants of Canaan are considered to be under a divine curse for their iniquity (e.g., 15:16). The seed of Abraham is to be kept separate from the seed of Canaan. Second, the point is made in this section that Abraham’s descendants are not to return to the land of their fathers. The Promised Land is their home, and Abraham is careful to ensure that Isaac not be taken back to the place of his father.

5. This is a journey of faith by Abraham and Eliezer. Abraham’s faith is that “it is going to work." Eliezer’s faith is the carrying out of the the instructions of Abraham. BTW, this journey could have lasted as long as 8 months or more. If we think of the distance the wise men traveled to get to see the Christ child, this would be a similar undertaking. The distance would involve traveling to the north to avoid the desert and then travel south to go through the land between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. By going north and south, the servant will wind up due east to Abraham’s homeland, Ur.

6. Abraham’s instructions are indeed prophetic. The request made of Eliezer by faith becomes the outcome. He got the girl.

7. In all of this, Abraham does not want his son to move from the Promised Land. He does not want his son to take a step back to a land of Idolatry, and perhaps end up staying there. The travel is enough to make a person want to stay for a while. If the trip is 8 months or so. It would have taken a year and a half for this short interlude to have taken place. The trip length may be setting his son up enough to derail him from ever coming back. So, Eliezer is the man for the job. Vow made. Signed, sealed, and now it will be delivered.

The Journey to Mesopotamia 24:10- 14

English Standard Version (Chapter 24)

10 Then the servant took ten of his master’s camels and departed, taking all sorts of choice gifts from his master; and he arose and went to Mesopotamia to the city of Nahor. 11 And he made the camels kneel down outside the city by the well of water at the time of evening, the time when women go out to draw water. 12 And he said, “O LORD, God of my master Abraham, please grant me success today and show steadfast love to my master Abraham. 13 Behold, I am standing by the spring of water, and the daughters of the men of the city are coming out to draw water. 14 Let the young woman to whom I shall say, ‘Please let down your jar that I may drink,’ and who shall say, ‘Drink, and I will water your camels’—let her be the one whom you have appointed for your servant Isaac. By this I shall know that you have shown steadfast love to my master.”

Road Trip

Woo Hoo! Ten camels and we are on the road with Eliezer. Not everything on the camels are provisions. Some of the baggage are gifts for the family and Rebecca. Eliezer hatches a plan by faith is that creative, dramatic, and specific. It gets down to the very details of what should happen if God is in this. He gives the plan to the Lord and sets out to see if it will work. He does not miss giving this to the Lord for Approval. There is probably not one finer, immediate example of Proverbs 3:5- 6

Proverbs 3:5–6 (KJV 1900)

Trust in the Lord with all thine heart;

And lean not unto thine own understanding.

In all thy ways acknowledge him,

And he shall direct thy paths.

Yes, the story continues the next time we meet. Eliezer did not have the luxury of having his Bible at His side, but he must have had God’s Word and teaching in his heart in order for him to completely trust the Lord for guidance and direction.

Let’s preview verse 24 of this Chapter to see what this means to us in terms of being led of God:

King James Version (Chapter 24)

And he said, Blessed be the LORD God of my master Abraham, who hath not left destitute my master of his mercy and his truth: I being in the way, the LORD led me...

This is not the complete verse. We will get the rest of the verse in 2 weeks. Think on this ,”I being in the way, the Lord led me.” Sometimes in order to be led, we have to start the journey. If we are asking to be led, what are we doing to exercise our faith of the unseen kingdom. Are you ready to roll?