Genesis 24:1–67

At the age of 140 Abraham was old. He was also "a mighty prince," for the Lord had blessed him in all things. In that day God showed His blessing mostly in earthly things, and so it was with Abraham, though God had given him some knowledge of things beyond the earth. Isaac was his heir, and the promise rested on him, so his marriage mattered greatly and had to be arranged rightly.

In his pathway Abraham was blessed by God "in all things"; he was "greatly" blessed. God honoured his home with His visits and spoke to him; he knew God as his Shield and Exceeding Great Reward — and God Himself called him "a friend of God." What present blessings follow the footsteps of those who walk before God!

Only after Sarah has died does Isaac receive a wife. After the death of the Lord Jesus, God set Israel aside as the vessel of His testimony in the world. Then God the Father, pictured by Abraham, sent the Spirit of God, symbolised by the servant, to find a wife for the Lord Jesus. Isaac is a picture of Him.

The Spirit of God would not fill an unusually long chapter with the mere details of a family arrangement. He would do it only if that arrangement pictured or illustrated some great truth. "Whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction." This is emphatic. So what are we to learn here? I believe this chapter gives us a beautiful illustration or foreshadowing of the great mystery of the Church.

The chapter opens with Abraham giving his directions to his servant (vv. 1-9). Then the main part of the chapter is taken up with the servant and his mission (vv. 10-61). Finally it closes with Isaac and his love for Rebekah (vv. 62-67). So in picture the first section gives us the Father and His purpose. The second gives the Holy Spirit and His work. The last gives Christ and His affection. In this picture every Divine Person works to secure the Bride.

First we learn that the thought of a bride for Isaac begins with Abraham. It is he who starts the story of Genesis 24. He discloses his mind about the bride for Isaac; he instructs his servant, and sends him on his way. So we learn that the thought of a Bride for Christ starts in the purpose of the Father's heart. It is the Father, too, who sends the Spirit to bring the Bride to Christ.

So Abraham employs his trusted Eliezer, the one "who ruled over all he had." Eliezer aptly pictures the place of service the Holy Spirit is pleased to take now, carrying out God's purpose about the church in this world. In no other case, not in Genesis only but in all the Old Testament, do we find an oath whose purpose is pressed again and again as it is here. And notice what the oath is about. Isaac must on no account take a wife from the daughters of Canaan. Another provision is pressed just as hard: the risen Son must never be brought back to the world to call His bride. It is the Holy Spirit who does this work, not the Bridegroom.

First we learn that the thought of a bride for Isaac originates with Abraham. He is the one who begins the story of Genesis 24. He discloses his mind about the bride for Isaac; he instructs his servant, and sends him on his way. So we learn that the thought of a Bride for Christ originates in the purpose of the Father's heart. It is also the Father who sends the Spirit to bring the Bride to Christ (John 14:26).

The first thing presented to us here is Eliezer, who has the oversight of all his master's goods. He is not the heir — the son is the heir. So the Holy Spirit has the disposal of all things. He takes of the things of Christ and shows them to us; that is, to the church.

The servant pictures the Holy Spirit. Perhaps he was Eliezer, Abraham's steward forty years earlier. If so, the silence of this chapter about his name is even more striking. A name would spoil him as a type of the Holy Spirit. A name calls attention to what anyone is. The Father and the Son have glorious Names, but the Holy Spirit has none. He is not here to call attention to Himself, or to make Himself the object we look at. He is here to serve the purposes of the Father concerning the Son.

So Abraham employs his trusted Eliezer, the one "who had charge of all that he had." He fittingly pictures the place of service the Holy Spirit is pleased to take now, carrying out God's purpose about the church in this world. Nowhere else in Genesis, and nowhere else in all the Old Testament, do we find an oath whose purpose is urged again and again. Its subject matters just as much. Isaac must on no account have a wife from the daughters of Canaan. She must come from the country and family that God called Abraham, the father of the faithful, out of.

Jacob knew he was nearing his end. He called for Joseph and asked him to put his hand under his thigh. This was plainly a symbol of Joseph's willingness to do what his father asked of him.

As an example, he displays the qualities that should always mark a servant of God. Here are some of them. First, his master commissions him; he does not run ahead before his master sends him. Then his master equips him for the service he calls him to: all his master's goods were in his hand (v. 10). Next, his master's instructions alone guide him; his own ideas have no place or influence (vv. 2-9). Further, he depends entirely on the Lord; he looks to Him to act for him (vv. 12-14).

And whom does the servant foreshadow? He is the oldest servant. He ruled over all Abraham had. He was with him from the beginning… He testified of the Father and the Son: how rich the father is, and that Isaac is the heir of all the riches. And so the Holy Spirit does not speak of Himself, but of the Father and of the Son. He makes known the eternal purposes of the Father. As the servant's mission did not fail, so the mission of the Holy Spirit in the present age cannot fail.

Here Abraham gives God His full title of glory in heaven and earth. There was to be no connection with the rejected race — with the world in which he lived as a stranger… The Canaanite was a judged race in the place of promise. But Abraham will not have Isaac in the place of nature — the place out of which he was called… The Canaanites have a special character in the world. They stand for the world that has turned away from God, of which Satan is prince. They are his instruments and his power.

In Genesis 24 "the God of the heavens and the God of the earth" presents the universal rights of the only true God. Those rights are revealed fully, and only, when the Son of God has come. He, dead and risen, brings out all the truth clearly in connection with the call of the church, the bride of Christ.

Then the servant is told that the bride for Isaac is "not to be of the daughters of the Canaanites." Abraham says she is to be of "my kindred." The Canaanites were under the curse and devoted to judgment. There can be no link between Christ in the glory and a world under judgment. Isaac's bride was not to be a stranger but one that already belonged to Abraham's family. So the Church is not formed of unbelievers. Nor is it a mixture of believers and unbelievers. It is made up wholly of the family of faith.

Rebekah, the bride of Isaac, and Leah, the bride of Jacob, both belonged to the same country and the same kindred as their husbands. In each case a very clear charge forbade taking a daughter of Canaan as wife (Gen. 24:3; Gen. 28:1). So too the bride of the Lamb must belong to His country and His kindred. She is not only heavenly in destiny, but heavenly in origin. Jerusalem above is our Mother (Gal. 4:26), and we are not of the world, even as He is not of the world. Hebrews 2:11 shows that we are of His kindred.

The bride for Isaac must be suited to Isaac, and so must not be taken from the daughters of the Canaanites (v. 3). Such were devoted to judgment and therefore wholly unsuited to Isaac. So the dealings with Rebekah are not really a picture of the grace of God bringing salvation to sinners. They picture the love of Christ appealing to saints. If the point were to show the grace of God that reaches the vilest sinners, the servant would have gone straight to the daughters of the Canaanites.

The law forbade Israel to intermarry with the Canaanites (Ex. 34:15-16). Long before that command came, Abraham's spiritual sense had made it a law for him (Gen. 24:3).

The people of the land where Abraham lived were a doomed race, because of their great wickedness. Abraham would not have a wife for his son from among them, but one of his own kindred… Called to separation, he would faithfully keep it intact in his family and household. Suppose a Christian parent approves the marriage of one of his children into a godless family. That parent is surely not walking in the steps of faithful Abraham.

Genesis 24:1-6 show that Abraham laid down two conditions. First, the wife was not to be taken from among the Canaanites, who were then in the land. Second, she was to be of his own kindred; yet the marriage must not be allowed to lure Isaac back to the land he had come out of. The chosen woman must be willing to share the stranger position which Isaac occupied, and come to him. He was not to go to her.

Then the servant is told that the bride for Isaac is "not to be of the daughters of the Canaanites." Abraham says she is to be of "my kindred." The Canaanites were under the curse and marked out for judgment. There can be no link between Christ in the glory and a world under judgment. Isaac's bride was not to be a stranger but one that already belonged to Abraham's family. So the Church is not formed of unbelievers, nor of believers and unbelievers mixed together. It is formed entirely of the family of faith.

Note about Rebekah that she is already of Abraham's kindred. Isaac is not being sought an outside stranger... The Church is found in the family of faith. It is the gathering together of the children of God who are scattered abroad (John 11:52)... So, in my view, Rebekah does not picture the call of sinners by the gospel. She pictures the call of saints to a place of special relationship with Christ on high.

Nowhere else in Genesis, or in the whole Old Testament, do we find an oath brought in and pressed again and again like this one. Isaac must on no account take a wife from the daughters of Canaan. His wife must come from the country and kin out of which Abraham, the father of the faithful, had himself been called. Angels are not called, fallen or unfallen: sovereign grace chooses from the world.

In this chapter Abraham sends Eliezer to seek a wife for Isaac. This represents the Holy Spirit sent by the Father to seek the church, "the bride, the Lamb's wife." It is not Isaac who goes to look for a bride. No more does Christ return to this earth to choose a church for Himself. Rebekah must leave her country and come to the land of promise.

Abraham sends a special mission into a distant land to get a wife "in the Lord" for his son. Eliezer goes on that mission with a ready mind. Isaac waits patiently for its fruit. He seeks no alliance with the nearer people. Sad and alone though he is, he keeps himself for the wife the Lord appoints... He might have got a daughter of Canaan; but he endured. He would rather suffer the heartsickness of hope deferred than not marry "in the Lord."

A Christian parent who sanctions the union of one of his children with a godless family is surely not walking in the steps of faithful Abraham.

Genesis 24:1-6 shows that two things were laid down. First, the wife must not be taken from the Canaanites, who were then in the land. Second, she must be from Abraham's own family — yet the marriage must not lure Isaac back to the land he had come out of. The chosen woman must be willing to share the stranger position that Isaac occupied, and come to him. He was not to go to her.

Here we see the greatest stress laid on Isaac's staying in Canaan — and it is repeated once more. There only must he be found; and he alone of all the patriarchs. His father came out of Mesopotamia, and for a time went down into Egypt. His son Jacob went back to Mesopotamia, and also went down into Egypt and died there. But Isaac alone must never leave the land of Canaan, and never did. In this he is a striking picture of Christ after He died, rose, and ascended. In that condition He becomes Head of the church, and the Bridegroom.

However, the taught believer knows what the Holy Spirit is here for, both from New Testament teaching and from the Old Testament picture. He is not here to bring Christ back to the world. He is here to take the Bride out of the world to Christ. So we read, "God… visited the Gentiles, to take from them a people for His name" (Acts 15:14).

In this chapter Isaac pictures a heavenly Christ. That is why, after the offering up of Isaac in Genesis 22, his name is not even mentioned until the end of Genesis 24. As Isaac was not to be linked with Mesopotamia again, so there is to be no link between Christ and the world. Christ is on high, and the Holy Spirit is here calling out the Bride for the heavenly Christ. Sadly, Christendom has lost every true thought of Christianity. Its one great effort is to link Christ with the world that has cast Him out.

The willingness of the woman to travel to Isaac's country was a vital matter. If she were not willing, then the servant was freed from his oath (v. 8). What a lesson about the Church of God! No demand of law is to be placed on her. Only the pure grace of God is to move her. That grace produces a willing response of devotion, ready to leave natural relationships behind for a living relationship with the Lord Jesus in heavenly places.

He is not here to make the Christian prosper in business, or to make us rich in this world, or to make the world a comfortable place for us. He is not here to remove the curse, or to quiet the groaning of creation… He is not here to remove pain, and death, and sorrow, and tears. All this Christ will do in a day still to come. Nor is He here to convert the world, as some think. He is here to bring to light a people who are suited to Christ, for the joy and satisfaction of His heart.

No doubt Abraham believed that God would bring a Rebekah to Isaac. Still, whatever might happen, Eliezer had to swear one thing. He would never take Isaac back to the place Abraham had left in obedience to God's call… Abraham was called to separation, and in faithfulness he kept it intact in his family and household. A Christian parent who approves a child's marriage into a godless family is not walking in the steps of faithful Abraham.

Genesis 24:1-6 shows two conditions. First, the wife must not come from the Canaanites, who were then in the land. Second, though she was to be one of his own relatives, the marriage must not draw Isaac back to the land he had come out of. The chosen woman had to be willing to share the stranger position Isaac held, and come to him. He was not to go to her.

There can be no relation at all between the risen Christ and this world. Isaac does not go for Rebekah; she must come to him.

In no other case in the whole Old Testament do we find an oath whose point is pressed again and again like this one. And there is another provision urged just as strongly — the risen Son must on no account be brought back to the world to call His bride. It is the Holy Spirit who accomplishes this work, not the Bridegroom. The Spirit is sent down from heaven to preach the gospel, and so to form the church. The risen Bridegroom stays only in heaven while the call goes out. In this picture Abraham warns us powerfully how much it matters to see that Christ has nothing but a heavenly relation to the church, in complete separation from the world.

While the servant was in Mesopotamia, Isaac was in Canaan, and there was no link between Isaac and the people there. So, we know, today there is no direct link between Christ in the glory and the world as such. Missing this, the Christian world, and many sincere Christians too, put all their effort into the very thing the servant is twice warned not to do. In many different forms they try to bring Christ back to the world and attach His Name to good schemes for reforming and improving it. Such efforts are entirely outside the work of the Spirit, who is here not to bring Christ back to the world, but to take a people out of the world for Christ.

Hebrews 11 does not hide from us that the old land of Mesopotamia had attractions that could have pulled hard on Abraham. If he had let his mind keep dwelling on the old place he came from, its appeal might have grown on him. Then his heart would have turned that way, and his feet might soon have followed his heart. He could easily "have had opportunity to return." The record in Genesis shows us that he set his face firmly against any such return, either for himself or for his son. His word about Isaac was, "See to it that you do not take my son back there."

No doubt Abraham believed that God would bring a Rebekah to Isaac. Still, whatever might happen, Eliezer had to swear that he would never take Isaac back to the place Abraham had left in obedience to God's call. "See to it that you do not take my son back there." It is a family arrangement in keeping with the promises made to Abraham. Called to separation, he faithfully kept it intact in his family and household. A Christian parent who approves the marriage of one of his children into a godless family is surely not walking in the steps of faithful Abraham.

The opening verses of our chapter show us that Abraham remained true to the call of God that had first reached him. He was true to it not only for himself, but for his children and household after him. Verse 7 adds to this. It shows the full confidence he had that the Lord would stand behind this faithful holding to His word.

Abraham calls God "the LORD, the God of heaven, and the God of the earth," and further on, to his servant Eliezer, "the God of heaven" as the One who had called him. His faith acknowledged Him as God of heaven and earth. In actual experience He was only and distinctly the God of heaven, and so He was the source and power, through grace, of Abraham's hope. Abraham will not have Isaac in the place of nature — the place he himself was called out of. So here God is called the God of heaven: Abraham knows Him as the God who took him out of his country.

The God of heaven is far above all the little storms and frustrations that fill our small world. He does as He pleases. So the servant goes out with the assurance that God's angel would give him direction, leading him to the suitable wife for Isaac.

Finally Abraham says, "The LORD, the God of heaven … will send his angel before you." The angel would clear the way ahead of the servant through providence. But the servant himself was to deal with the bride: "you shall take a wife for my son." Both the servant and the angel were wholly taken up with securing a bride for Isaac. In a day to come, angels will take a large part in carrying out judgment in the world. Today they are "sent out to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation." As in the picture, so in fact, we see the difference kept between the providential work of angels and the personal work of the Spirit.

There is another provision no less insisted on — the risen Son must on no account be brought back to the world to call His bride. It is the Holy Spirit who accomplishes this work, not the Bridegroom. The Spirit is sent down from heaven to preach the gospel, and so to bring about the formation of the church. The risen Bridegroom stays exclusively in heaven while the call goes out.

Isaac was not to be linked again with Mesopotamia. In the same way, there is to be no link between Christ and the world while Christ is on high and the Holy Spirit is here calling out the bride for Him. Sadly, the Christian world has so completely lost every true thought of Christianity that its one great effort is to link Christ with the world that has cast Him out.

It is worth noting that the first oath recorded on God's part is that of Genesis 22:15-18. God fulfilled it in raising up Christ, the promised Seed. The further oath here concerns Abraham's servant. He is a picture of the Holy Spirit, sent out to secure the bride for Christ, the true risen Seed. We may be sure that His mission will be carried to a more successful and perfect issue than that of the servant in the story before us.

Genesis 24:1-6 show that Abraham required two things. First, the wife must not come from the Canaanites, the people then in the land. Second, though she was to be from his own family, the marriage must not lure Isaac back to the land he had come out of. The chosen woman must be willing to share the stranger position which Isaac occupied, and come to him. He was not to go to her.

There is no point in the chapter insisted on more than this: Isaac, the risen son, is to remain only in Canaan; on no account is he to leave it.

Abraham's prohibition is recorded twice (verses 6 and 8) to emphasise its weight.

Here we see the greatest stress laid on Isaac staying in Canaan, and it is said once more. He must stay there and nowhere else — he alone of all the patriarchs. His father came out of Mesopotamia, and for a time went down into Egypt. His son Jacob returned to Mesopotamia, and he too went down into Egypt and died there. But Isaac alone must never leave the land of Canaan, and never did. In this he stands as a striking picture of Christ after He died, rose, and ascended. In that condition He becomes Head of the church, and the Bridegroom.

Abraham presses another provision just as hard: the risen Son must never be brought back to the world to call His bride. It is the Holy Spirit who accomplishes this work, not the Bridegroom. The Spirit is sent down from heaven to preach the gospel, and so to form the church. The risen Bridegroom stays only in heaven while the call goes out.

It is impossible that there should be any relation between Christ risen again and this world. Isaac does not go for Rebekah, but she must come to him.

A woman with no attitude of free will would not be suitable. The verse says, "But if the woman is not willing to follow you, then you will be free from this oath of mine." Grace must mark the church, not legal obedience or requirements. That is unlike the Jewish system. She is not like the Gentile nations either, marked as they are by lust and by trying to satisfy their own desires. The servant was to look for willingness to give up and to follow.

The oath before us here involves Abraham's servant. He is a picture of the Holy Spirit, sent out to secure the bride for Christ, the true risen Seed. We may be sure His mission will reach a more successful and perfect end than the servant's errand in this story.

Here is a practical question for Christians today. How far are their minds in harmony with God's eternal purpose? Do they see their role as making the world Christian — bringing Isaac back to Mesopotamia? Or does the heavenly Head draw them so strongly that they are willing to become heavenly strangers?

No one denies that in the letter the aged father was devising, in a grave and God-fearing spirit, to help his son Isaac in the most important step of his life... Abraham was not content even with the long-proved faithfulness of the man who had earned and deserved his confidence in earlier days. Only here, and only now, does he make his servant Eliezer swear an oath of unusual solemnity. The bride must not come from the accursed race of Canaan. She must come out of the land from which God had called Abraham himself, and from his own relatives.

Jacob knew he was nearing his end. He called for Joseph and asked him to put his hand under his thigh. It was plainly a symbol of his willingness to do what his father asked of him.

Nowhere else in Genesis, or in all the Old Testament, do we find an oath whose purpose is pressed again and again... A wife must on no account be taken for Isaac from the daughters of Canaan. She must be sought from the country and family out of which the father of the faithful had himself been called. Angels are not called, whether fallen or unfallen: sovereign grace chooses from the world. But there is another provision pressed just as hard — the risen Son must on no account be brought back to the world to call His bride. It is the Holy Spirit who does this work, not the Bridegroom. The Spirit is sent down from heaven to preach the gospel, and so to form the church. The risen Bridegroom stays in heaven alone, while the call goes out.

The bride of Christ, the church, is not from the ungodly, Satan-energised world, but from the family of faith.

The greatest stress here falls on Isaac's staying in Canaan, and Abraham says it once more. There only must he be found, and he alone of all the patriarchs. His father came out of Mesopotamia, and for a time went down into Egypt. His son Jacob went back to Mesopotamia, then went down into Egypt and died there. But Isaac alone must never leave the land of Canaan, and never did. In this he strikingly represents Christ after He died, rose, and ascended.

It is he who becomes the most prominent figure throughout the chapter, until the bride joins the bridegroom. As a picture this is unmistakable... His complete and unwavering submission is no difficulty and no objection. It is exactly what this picture required. The Son became a servant to do the Father's will and secure His glory. In the same way, the Holy Spirit serves the Son as well as the Father.

Abraham's servant may be looked at both as a type and as an example... First, his master commissions him; he does not run before he is sent. Then his master equips him for the service he is called to: all his master's goods were in his hand. Next, only his master's instructions guide him; his own thoughts have no place or influence.

In this chapter Abraham sends Eliezer to seek a wife for Isaac. This represents the Holy Spirit sent by the Father to seek the church, "the bride, the Lamb's wife." It is not Isaac who goes to look for a bride. In the same way, Christ does not return to this earth to choose a church for Himself. Rebekah must leave her country and come to the land of promise. In this chapter we see the features of the Holy Spirit's work, and how a soul is guided by Him.

The servant comes to Mesopotamia well equipped for his service, for we read, "All the goods of his master were in his hand." This reminds us that the Holy Spirit has come to teach us "all things," to guide us into "all truth," and to show us "all things that the Father has" (John 14:26; John 16:13-15).

In the way God works, the Spirit is said to operate or distribute rather than to give. He is something like Eliezer (Gen. 24), who had all the goods of his master in his hand. Eliezer distributed them and disposed of them, but they came from another. I say something like, because the word "master" does not fit here. The Holy Spirit is God, so His operations are the operations of God.

This was an ancient city in Mesopotamia. Terah and his family moved there from Ur of the Chaldees, and Abraham stayed there on his way to the land of Canaan, until his father's death. The descendants of Nahor, Abraham's brother, also settled here, so the city was called the "city of Nahor." Gen. 24:10. The name means "road," and it was probably called that because the caravan routes of Syria, Assyria, and Babylonia crossed there.

Abraham sends Eliezer, the steward of his house, to seek a wife for the risen heir, his only son Isaac. She is to come from the country Isaac was not to return to — the world as it is. This is a beautiful figure of the mission of the Holy Spirit. After the Lord's death and resurrection He carries out His office with the elect of God, who are to form the Lamb's wife in the counsels of God, and He conducts her across the desert to her heavenly bridegroom.

In the story that follows, the servant does not interfere with the conditions in Mesopotamia. He did not try to change its religion, improve its social conditions, or interfere with its government. His one business was to secure the bride for Isaac. God's people would escape much disappointment if they once grasped God's great purpose at the present time, and the special mission of the Holy Spirit in this world.

The evidence of the Lord's leading him there is beautiful. Yet he still prays to the Lord God of Abraham, asking Him to show mercy to his master by sending a woman to the well who will show a character of unselfish kindness. Apparently he had no vessel to draw water with, or else he chose not to draw it himself, so that he could depend fully on God's guidance.

Midday was not the time when the women in the East went out to draw water. They did that in the morning, or in the evening, when the heat was not so great (Gen. 24:11). But this woman comes out in the middle of the day, and you may ask, Why? There is no doubt about the reason. Her sin had isolated her.

In doing this, Eliezer uses tools that are humble and imperfect, yet effective in his hands — the camels. They only partly meet God's requirements: they chew the cud, but they do not fully divide the hoof. In the same way, humble, imperfect servants carry the Holy Spirit. Their walk is not completely separate, but they still chew the true spiritual cud, and they have inward supplies of refreshment that let them cross the burning desert. But notice how defenceless they are! The camel has no way to protect itself. And the desert has no paths at all! … Would it be straining the figure to say that the time when their mission is being perfected is just the time when they are made to "kneel at the well"?

He is the one who stands out through the whole chapter, until the bride joins the bridegroom. As a picture, this is unmistakable. We see the Father seeking a bride, the church of God, for Christ His Son — all the while and only in the heavenlies. Just as surely, we recognise the sending and action of the Holy Spirit in this highly honoured and trusted servant. His complete and unwavering submission is no difficulty or objection at all; it is what the picture required. For just as the Son became a servant to do the Father's will and secure His glory, so the Holy Spirit serves the Son as well as the Father.

Rebekah, a type of the sinner, meets the messenger at the well. And does not God delight to meet you, dear soul? Yes. You think you have something to do. You think you must get into a certain condition before you can come into God's presence. But you are mistaken. Eliezer meets Rebekah as she goes to draw water, just as she is. In the same way, God presents to the sinner, just as he is, His testimony to the Person of the Lord Jesus — and the sinner must receive it from God.

It is not too much to say that no other chapter in Genesis has so much about prayer as this one. And why? Is it not because now, during the call of the bride, He who lives and works in the Christian shows us the walk of faith? God looks for no less a habit of dependence in those who bear the name of Christ.

Eliezer says, "O LORD, God of my master Abraham." He does not say "my God." God had made the promises to Abraham, and had revealed Himself as the God of Abraham. Here the servant shows himself in entire dependence. We find him in the path of promise. He does not exalt himself. He acts according to the counsels of God, in entire dependence. He does not pretend to have anything, except where God had placed the blessing; for God had made the promises to Abraham. For us this blessing is in Christ, and there is the answer to our requests. We do not want to get anything except where God has put His blessing — that is, in the path of obedience to the faith.

First, then, we learn from the prayer of the servant, the great purpose of his mission. He does not pray for the men of the city, or their daughters; he is engrossed with one object, to find the one appointed for Isaac. The Holy Spirit has come, not to convert the world, but to bring to light the elect of God — the bride appointed for Christ.

What sustains in prayer like singleness of eye? If it is our own will we are seeking, what confidence can we have? Here we find prayer that God answers to the letter. If Christ's interests are ours, how fully we may count on God glorifying His beloved Son! How blessed to work on toward an end God has already settled!

It is not too much to say that no other chapter in Genesis has so much about prayer in it. Why? Is it not because now, during the call of the bride, He who dwells and works in the Christian shows what walking by faith is? God certainly looks for no less dependence in those who bear the name of Christ.

He prays to the Lord God of Abraham, asking Him to show mercy to his master by sending a woman to the well who will show a character of unselfish kindness. Apparently he had no vessel of his own for drawing water. Or else he chose not to draw it himself, so that he might depend fully on God's guidance.

From these words it is clear that the servant was not sent to choose a bride for Isaac from the daughters of men. He was sent to find the bride already appointed (v. 14). And grace would be the mark that identified her.

He was not asking for a mere sign, as Gideon did in Judges 6 and 7. He was in search of the bride herself — not for himself, but for his master's son. Nor had he long to wait. "Before he had finished speaking," the young woman comes. He had asked freely; he had boldly dared to lay down the exact terms. But this counting on God Himself pleases Him greatly, even if unbelief dares to call it presumptuous. It was prayer of rare simplicity, of striking fitness, of full confidence.

First, his master commissions him; he does not run before he is sent. Next, only his master's instructions guide him; his own thoughts have no place or influence (vv. 2-9). Further, he is in entire dependence; he looks to the Lord to act for him (vv. 12-14). Further, he acknowledges the Lord's guidance and intervention at every step (vv. 21, 26, 27).

Natural wisdom can form a judgment up to a certain point. But it takes the soul away from the presence of God, even when we are doing things God's way. If we begin to deliberate, there is hesitation: we take counsel of flesh and blood. The first thing is to put ourselves in the presence of God; without that there is neither wisdom nor power. But when we stand in the path of blessing, we get from Him all the understanding we need.

Eliezer says, "O Lord God of my master Abraham." He does not say "my God." God had made the promises to Abraham, and had revealed Himself as the God of Abraham. Here the servant shows himself in entire dependence. We find him in the path of promise. He does not exalt himself. He acts according to the counsels of God, and claims nothing except where God had placed the blessing.

Abraham's servant gives us a lovely example in Genesis 24. He travelled in the spirit of prayer to seek a wife for his master's son. Having found the right person, he bowed his head and worshipped the LORD, saying, "I was on the way, and the LORD led me."

This unknown servant is a figure of the Holy Spirit. He finds Rebekah by the well of water — and water is a constant figure of truth as a living reality for the soul.

First, then, we learn from the prayer of the servant the great purpose of his mission. He does not pray for the men of the city, or their daughters; one thing absorbs him: finding the one appointed for Isaac. The Holy Spirit has come, not to convert the world, but to bring to light the elect of God — the bride appointed for Christ.

Does the case not vividly illustrate "praying in the Holy Spirit"? This is not prayer for one thing or another. It is prayer that runs with what glorifies the Son and with what the Father purposes to give.

What sustains in prayer like singleness of eye? If it is our own will we are seeking, what confidence can we have? Here we find prayer that God answers to the letter. If Christ's interests are ours, how fully may we count on God glorifying His beloved Son! "Let it be the one whom You have appointed for Your servant Isaac." How blessed to be working towards an end already settled beforehand!

No real spiritual power ever takes us out of the place of waiting on God. So it was with Eliezer. He says, "Lord, let the young woman to whom I say, Let down your jar," and so on, "be the one You have appointed for Your servant Isaac." When the woman had given him drink and his camels also, he still does not say, "Here is the answer to my prayer." He is still waiting on God. He marvels at her and says nothing, waiting to learn whether the Lord had made his journey succeed... Success often takes us out of the place of communion, because it becomes our success when we do not acknowledge God in it.

Eliezer is a well known type of the Holy Spirit "sent down from heaven" on this gracious errand. He knows the mind of the father. He is in constant touch with God. He acts with care, directness and dignity. He calls, wins, and adorns the bride. He brings her safely through the wilderness and guards her until she is home. Then he hands her to the bridegroom, who goes out to meet her.

"Before he had done speaking," the maiden comes. He had asked freely; boldly and in fine detail he had ventured to prescribe. But this counting on God Himself is most pleasing to God, even if unbelief dares to call it presumptuous. It was prayer of rare simplicity, of striking suitability, of entire confidence. The speed of the answer pointed ahead to the day when righteousness will reign, and the Lord will hear while His people are still speaking.

What sustains us in prayer like a single eye? If it is our own will we are seeking, what confidence can we have? Here we find prayer that God answers to the letter. If Christ's interests are ours, how fully we may count on God glorifying His beloved Son! "Let her be the one whom You have appointed for Your servant Isaac." How blessed to be working toward an end already settled beforehand!

From these words it is clear that the servant was not sent to choose a bride for Isaac from the daughters of men. He was sent to find the bride God had appointed (v. 14), and grace would be her mark.

She is not only willing to give Abraham's servant a drink. She also freely provides for his camels, without negotiating terms or asking a price. That must have been hard work, given how much these animals drink, especially after a long journey. This is another indication that the church is marked by grace.

He prays to the Lord God of Abraham that He will show mercy to his master by sending a woman to the well who will show a character of unselfish kindness... No ordinary young woman would be willing to take on a job like this without any promise of payment. But no ordinary young woman was to be acceptable for Isaac. In the same way today, a Christian man should be sure that his intended wife is a willing-hearted believer.

Why any doubt? Why does the servant hesitate, when God has answered his prayer like this? Here is the reason. However clearly God's hand seems to show itself, there is a definite rule in the word. The Christian must attend to that rule and must not neglect it, because he is weak at discerning what is of God. Faith looks to the power of God, but judges everything by the word; for God must act according to His word... and even when there may be signs, he should decide nothing until the will of God is clear according to His word.

There was astonishment in the servant's mind at the immediate and precise answer to his prayer. To call it unbelief is unwarranted... Even our Lord, perfect man as He alone was, "marvelled" at the Gentile centurion's faith. In Him not a particle of unbelief could exist. If His wonder expressed delight, we need not belittle the servant's wondering at her.

Isaac is the heir of everything, so Abraham sends down what represents the Holy Spirit — Eliezer — to get a wife for his risen son. Isaac is on no account to go back to the old land; he represents the risen Christ. So Abraham sends his chief servant to get a wife for the heir of promise out of the place of his own family. Eliezer gives her gifts and brings her out, since all things have been given to the son and heir.

He did not have long to wait. "Before he had finished speaking," the young woman comes. He had asked freely; he had dared to be bold and detailed in what he prescribed. But this counting on God is most pleasing to Him, even if unbelief dares to call it presumption. It was a prayer of rare simplicity, of striking fitness, of complete confidence. The answer came at once, and it pointed ahead to the day when righteousness will reign, and the LORD will hear while His people are still speaking.

His prayer shows how completely he is taken up with one object. He does not pray for himself. The servant is not there to select a bride from the daughters of the men of the city and then make her suited for Isaac. He is there to find the one who is appointed for Isaac. And the sign that she is the appointed one will be that she is marked by grace... He will ask her for a drink from her pitcher. If she not only gives it, but offers to do more than he asks, that is the sign: the grace of God marks her. God has worked in her, and so she belongs to Isaac's family. For grace goes beyond our requests.

The answer came before he had finished speaking. Rebekah arrived and acted with all the grace he had specified. What is more, she was a "chaste virgin," the kind Paul wanted the church at Corinth to be for Christ... The answer was complete as well as immediate. She was of the right family line, and there was room in her father's house.

Isaac is the heir of everything, and Abraham sends down what represents the Holy Spirit — Eliezer — to get a wife for his risen son. Isaac is on no account to go back to the old land; he represents the risen Christ. So Abraham sends his chief servant down to get a wife for the heir of promise from among his own family. Eliezer gives her gifts and brings her out, since all things have been given to the son and heir.

She was a chaste virgin, and that brings to mind Paul's words: "I feel a divine jealousy for you, since I betrothed you to one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to Christ" (2 Corinthians 11:2)... But the true church will be presented to Christ, glorious (Ephesians 5:27). In eternity, she will be seen prepared "as a bride adorned for her husband" (Revelation 21:2).

It is not too much to say that there is no other chapter in Genesis with so much about prayer in it as this one. And why? Because now, during the call of the bride, the One who lives and works in the Christian shows us how to walk by faith. God certainly looks for no less in the way of dependence from those who bear the name of Christ.

He did not have long to wait. "Before he had finished speaking," the maiden comes. He asked freely, and dared to set out in detail what he wanted. But this counting on God is most pleasing to Him, even if unbelief dares to call it presumption. It was truly a prayer of rare simplicity, of striking fitness, of complete confidence. The answer came at once, pointing forward to the day when righteousness will reign, and Jehovah will hear while His people are still speaking.

The servant did not have long to wait. He had barely finished his prayer when Rebekah came out. Verse 15 shows that she was a daughter of Bethuel who, in turn, was Abraham's nephew. Rebekah therefore met the requirement of being one of Abraham's relatives (v.4). She is also described as "very fair to look upon." That comment will remind the reader of the beauty the church has in the eyes of Christ.

She was a chaste virgin, and that brings to mind Paul's words: "For I feel a divine jealousy for you, since I betrothed you to one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to Christ" (2 Corinthians 11:2). The professing church is far from this state of heart, where the heart keeps its affections for Christ and refuses forbidden associations… But the true church will be presented to Christ, glorious (Eph. 5:27). In eternity, she will be seen prepared "as a bride adorned for her husband" (Rev. 21:2).

The servant goes out to find a bride suitable for Isaac. He does not find an unsuitable one and make her suitable. This unknown servant, a figure of the Holy Spirit, finds Rebekah by the well of water. The well is a constant figure of truth as a living reality for the soul. In keeping with this, and acting in the spirit of grace, she goes far beyond what the servant asked. She gives him and his camels the refreshment they needed with a lavish hand that held nothing back. This is what showed the servant that Rebekah was the one suited to be Isaac's bride, and worthy to wear the ring and bracelets. And so, as the fruit of God's own work, there are those found with the moral features that suit Christ so well.

In these days there is One who has come from heaven's far-off land on a similar errand — the Holy Spirit. He has come down to us. Angels were passed by, and the gospel message of peace came to man, fallen man. From the family of Adam the Holy Spirit is gathering out those who will form the Bride. He is leading this Bride across the trackless desert of the world to the Son, to whom the Father has given "all things."

Why any doubt? Why does the servant hesitate, since his request has received such an answer? Here is the reason. God's hand may seem plainly at work. Even so, there is a definite rule in the word, and the Christian must pay attention to it. He must not neglect it, because he is weak at telling what is of God. Faith looks to the power of God, but judges everything by the word; for God must act according to His word.

She did not hesitate. She gladly did what he asked (v. 18). Then she told him she would draw water for his camels also. This was more than an offer. It was a decision that she would do it. She began the work so willingly that the servant was amazed (v. 21). He wondered whether his errand would turn out as well as these first signs suggested.

Accepting the answer, "the servant ran to meet" Rebekah. There was no hesitation, only eagerness. He knew whom he had believed. So he laid before her what he had already asked of Abraham's God, Jehovah. Rebekah answered with the same eagerness and the same grace. She met the request he had spoken to her, and also what he had said only to God about caring for "all his camels."

Moreover, we see that the unmistakable sign of the appointed bride will be that she is marked by grace. The servant prays, "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." From these words it is clear that the servant was not sent to pick out a bride for Isaac from the daughters of men. He was sent to find the bride already appointed (v. 14), and grace would be the mark that identified her.

It is he who becomes the most prominent throughout the chapter till the bride joins the bridegroom. As a picture, this is unmistakable. We see the Father seeking a bride for Christ His Son — the church of God — and He seeks her all the while in the heavenly places, and nowhere else. Just as surely, we recognise the sending and the work of the Holy Spirit in this highly honoured and trusted servant. His complete and unwavering submission is no problem or objection here. It is exactly what the picture required.

This unknown servant, a figure of the Holy Spirit, finds Rebekah by the well of water. Water is a constant figure of truth as a living reality for the soul. In keeping with this, and acting in the spirit of grace, she goes far beyond what the servant asked. She gives him and his camels the refreshment they need with a lavish hand, and there is no holding back in it. This is what showed the servant that Rebekah was the right bride for Isaac, and worthy of the ring and bracelets. And so, as the fruit of divine working, there are people found with the moral features that suit Christ so well.

He needed the cool water from Jacob's well, He who had created the mighty Amazon and every river on earth! But this woman did not have the grace of Rebekah. When Abraham's servant asked her the same thing, she said, "Drink, my lord," and quickly let down her jar upon her hand and gave him a drink (Gen. 24). Her sinful life had destroyed her womanly sympathy. Her racial prejudice had hardened her heart. She preferred an argument to a kind act. Only the patience of the Lord and the grace — wonderful grace! — that was in Him could deal with a case like hers.

Verses 17-20 show how the servant's prayer appears to have been answered to the letter. Rebekah showed the unusual willingness that could hardly happen by chance. She even hurried, and after giving him a drink she says, "I will draw water for your camels also, until they have finished drinking..."

We also see that the unmistakable sign of the appointed bride will be that she is marked by grace. From the servant's prayer at the well it is clear that the servant was not sent to select a bride from the daughters of men for Isaac, but to find the appointed bride, and that grace would be her characteristic mark.

This unknown servant, a figure of the Holy Spirit, finds Rebekah by the well of water. The well is a constant figure of truth as a living reality for the soul. In keeping with this, and acting in the spirit of grace, she goes far beyond what the servant asked. She gives him and his camels the refreshment they needed with a generous hand that held nothing back. It was this that showed the servant that Rebekah was the one suited to be the bride of Isaac, and worthy to be adorned with the ring and bracelets. And so, as the fruit of divine working, there are people found whose moral features truly suit Christ.

Watering ten camels would be no small task, for camels consume a great amount of water. No ordinary young lady would be willing to take on a job like this without any promise of payment. But no ordinary young lady would do for Isaac. In the same way today, a Christian man should be sure that the woman he plans to marry is a willing hearted believer.

Why any doubt? Why does the servant hesitate, when his prayer got such an answer? Here is the reason. God's hand may seem plain enough. Even so, there is a definite rule in the word that the Christian must pay attention to and must not neglect, because he is weak at discerning what is of God. Faith looks to the power of God, but judges everything by the word. God must act according to His word. The servant was in communion with God, so he ought to act with this in mind. Even when there may be signs, he should decide nothing until the will of God is clear according to His word. He must be able to say, This is indeed according to God.

How did Rebekah know she was the one Eliezer wanted for Isaac? She could have no doubt about it. She stood by as the servant told Laban how he had prayed to the Lord that he might meet the "appointed" one at the well. He would know her by this sign: when he asked water for himself alone, she would not only grant this request but offer water for the camels as well. Now Rebekah knew that she had matched this description word for word. She had said and done just that. So she must be the one the servant was looking for.

Verses 17-20 show how God appears to have answered the servant's prayer to the letter. Rebekah showed that unusual willingness in full. Chance could hardly explain it. She even acted "quickly" and, after giving him a drink, says, "I will draw water for your camels also, until they have finished drinking..."

We also see that the certain sign of the appointed bride will be that she is marked by grace. From the servant's prayer it is clear that he was not sent to select a bride from the daughters of men for Isaac. He was sent to find the appointed bride (v. 14), and grace would be her characteristic mark. The prayer is granted. When Rebekah comes on the scene and meets the test, she answers the servant's request and says, "I will draw water for your camels also." In all this we are reminded of the Spirit working in grace in those who are "elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the sanctification of the Spirit" (1 Peter 1:2).

She did not hesitate, but gladly agreed (v. 18). Then she told him she would draw water for his camels also. This was more than an offer. It was a decision that she would do it. She began this work at once, and with such willingness that it amazed the servant (v. 21). He wondered if his mission would prove as successful as these first impressions suggested.

She is not only willing to give Abraham's servant a drink. She also provides for his camels, without negotiating conditions or asking a price. That must have been hard work, given how much these animals drink, especially after a long journey. This is another indication that the church is marked by grace.

This unknown servant, a picture of the Holy Spirit, finds Rebekah by the well of water. Acting in the spirit of grace, she goes far beyond what he asks. She gives him and his camels the refreshment they needed with a generous hand that held nothing back. This showed the servant that Rebekah was the one suitable to be the bride of Isaac, and worthy to wear the ring and bracelets. And so, as the fruit of God's working, there are people found with the moral features that suit Christ well.

Why any doubt? Why does the servant hesitate, since his request has received such an answer? Here is the reason. However plainly God's hand seems to show itself, there is a definite rule in the word. The Christian must pay attention to that rule and must not neglect it, because he is weak at telling what comes from God. Faith looks to the power of God, but judges everything by the word... even when there may be signs, he should decide nothing until the will of God is clear according to His word.

She was far more than repaid for her kindness. The servant gave her a ring (apparently for her nose) and two bracelets for her wrists, all of gold. The Lord Himself loves to reward faithful diligence, and we see this most clearly now, in the present age of His grace.

The servant was astonished at the immediate and exact answer to his prayer. To call it unbelief is unwarranted. Even our Lord, perfect man as He alone was, "wondered" at the Gentile centurion's faith. If that expressed His delight, where not a particle of unbelief could be, we need not think less of the servant's wondering at her. He had received so clear and ready a token of favour on his mission. What he does next is the best proof of his faith. "Whoever believes will not be in haste"; and this absence of the haste that flesh rushes into comes out in one content to take a single step at a time.

"To know." Gen. 24:21; Ex. 16:15; Acts 3:17; Acts 23:5; etc. From the Anglo-Saxon witan, "to know."

Why any doubt? Why does the servant hesitate, since his request has obtained such an answer? Here is the reason. However clearly the hand of God seems to show itself, the word holds a definite rule. The Christian must attend to it, and must not neglect it, because he is weak at discerning what is of God. Faith looks to the power of God, but judges everything by the word; for God must act according to His word. Even when there are signs, he should decide nothing until the will of God is clear according to His word. He must be able to say, "This is indeed according to God."

No doubt our Lord may and does at times show His mind and mark out our path by His providence. But we must be near enough to Him to read that providence right. Otherwise what people call "an opening of providence" may prove an opening by which we slip off the holy path of obedience. We must weigh our circumstances, just like our inward impressions, in the presence of God. We must judge them by the light of His word, or they may lead us into the most terrible mistakes.

First, his master commissions him; he does not run before his master sends him. Then his master equips him for the service: all his master's goods were in his hand (v. 10). Next, only his master's instructions guide him; his own thoughts have no place or influence (vv. 2-9). Further, he depends entirely on the Lord; he looks to Him to act for him (vv. 12-14). Further, he acknowledges the Lord's guidance and stepping in at every point (vv. 21, 26, 27).

It is not too much to say that there is no other chapter in Genesis with so much about prayer as this one; and why? Is it not because now, during the call of the bride, He who dwells and works in the Christian shows us what walking by faith is?

Here the next section pictures the mission of the Spirit. He comes to find a bride for the risen Christ, the Father's heir, among the family of faith (Abraham's kindred). The story runs at a length that shows how much God's heart is taken up with it: first, the mission of Him who comes as a servant. Here is a striking lesson for those through whom the Spirit of God acts: the servant's name is never told us. He is content to speak only of his master.

Isaac was the beloved son of his father, and in chapter 22 he had passed through death in figure. He pointed forward to Christ, the risen heavenly Man. Abraham's purpose was to secure a suitable wife for his son. That told out the Father's purpose that Christ also should have a wife, made fully suitable to Himself. The nameless servant travelled far to carry out his master's will and bring Rebekah to his master's son. He sets out the mission of the Holy Spirit, who is now in the world, gathering out of it the bride of the Lamb.

He comes in pure grace, giving freely his gifts, but giving first to the bride. Like Jesus at the well, he wants a drink of water from this stranger... But He brings everything to her: the jewel for the forehead, and the bracelets for the hands. And unlike the world, He gives it all first... It is the righteousness of God to all, and the jewel on the forehead of everyone who believes. Where the righteousness of God is on the forehead, everlasting love clasps the hands.

She was far more than repaid for her kindness. The servant gave her a ring (evidently for her nose) and two bracelets for her wrists, all of gold. The Lord Himself loves to reward faithful diligence... There is no sign of a bargain here. It was different later, when Jacob wanted Rachel as a wife and offered to pay Laban for her.

The well-known ornament worn by women and men in the East.

These were the bridegroom's love gifts. It is good to think of our blessings that way. But the ear-ring and the bracelets carry a further meaning. They remind us that our Bridegroom has secured our ears and our hands for Himself: our ears, so that He may pour into them the story of His love; our hands, so that we may prove our grateful love to Him by being diligent in His interests.

Eliezer, for instance, gave Rebekah more than a report — jewels and gold, pledges of Isaac's love and samples of Abraham's wealth. And this is the office of the Holy Spirit in the great plan of redemption. He enters the scene not so much with a report of the distant glory, as with pledges and first-fruits of it — He is the earnest of the inheritance.

Rebekah had not yet made her final decision, but it was certain she would. So the servant gave her gifts. They were a first instalment of the wealth she was going to inherit as the wife of Isaac... All this was also a seal upon her betrothal to Isaac. So we may see here a type of the Holy Spirit as both Seal and Earnest. The Seal secures us for the divine calling and purpose. The Earnest is the pledge of the inheritance yet to be ours in its fulness in the coming age.

The servant has found the appointed bride. He is not content with a work of grace that he can see. He marks the bride out from all others in public, adorning her with the golden ear-rings and the bracelets of gold, which others can see. The Spirit is not only here to produce a work of grace in the believer. The believer should also show the fruit of being sealed by the Spirit — love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. These precious jewels become a witness to others, and mark the believer out from the world around.

General human thought about the gospel reaches no further than a poor starving hope of a bare and uncertain salvation. The mission of Eliezer to Rebekah goes far beyond that! He invites her to share the home, wealth and love of Isaac, and to be taken into the affection and adoption of his father. Of course this includes the promise of real sustenance — salvation; but how much more it includes!... A ring is a symbol of eternity — with no beginning and no ending.

The servant then asked Rebekah whose daughter she was, and if there was room in her father's house for him to lodge. When Rebekah told him her parentage, the servant of course would recognize their relationship to Abraham (v. 24). She also assured him that they had provision for his camels as well as room for lodging.

Truly dependent on God, he tests even the brightest agreement of circumstances by the word which guided his way and defined his aim. This does not suit the self-confidence of man; but is it not the one path, the duty a saint cannot give up? For we walk by faith, not by sight. … No doubt her character even in this brief meeting shone out in love and lowliness, in unaffected respect and the readiest service. She was a fitting daughter-in-law for Abraham, a pure and gentle wife for Isaac. Yet this was not everything the servant sought. He was true to the interests of the son and to the words laid down by the father. "Whose daughter are you?" Was she of Abraham's kindred? Her answer was just what he sought.

This, however, is only the beginning of the servant's work. No word has yet been said about Isaac. These further communications depend on the welcome the servant receives. If they welcome him, he will speak to them of Isaac, but he will not force his company on Rebekah: "Is there room in your father's house for us to spend the night?"

The servant asks Rebecca two questions: who she was and whether there would be room in her father's house for him to stay. The Spirit of God is not intrusive and does not force Himself on anyone, but asks whether there is "room". Do we make "room" for Him, or do we "grieve" Him (Eph. 4:30)?

He only asks for "room;" she says there is "provision" as well as room (v. 25). … But we do well to take this great question home to ourselves: "Is there room?" Are we prepared to put ourselves out to make room for the Holy Spirit? The flesh and the Spirit "are opposed to each other" (Gal. 5:17). We cannot entertain the Spirit if we are ministering to the flesh. … The house of Bethuel made "room" and "provision" for the servant of Abraham, with the result that the servant is able to speak of Isaac.

Does this part of the story not show why we make so little progress in the knowledge of Christ, and why our affections are so often cold? We hinder and grieve the One who alone can powerfully move our hearts with the love of Christ.

God had perfectly answered the desire of Abraham. Eliezer, for his part, sees that God has heard him. He had recognised God's hand in the whole of this business. So before going further, before even entering the house, he bowed himself and worshipped the Lord.

No doubt her character shone out even in this short meeting — in love and humility, in genuine respect and eager service. She was a fitting daughter-in-law for Abraham, a pure and gentle wife for Isaac. Yet this was not all the servant looked for. He was true to the interests of the son and to the words laid down by the father. "Whose daughter are you?" Was she of Abraham's kindred? Her answer was just what he sought.

However clearly God's hand seems to show itself, there is a definite rule in the word. The Christian must pay attention to it. He must not neglect it, for he is weak at discerning what is of God. Faith looks to the power of God, but judges everything by the word; for God must act according to His word.

The closing verses of the chapter give us a short sketch of the line of Nahor, Abraham's brother. His son Bethuel was the father of Rebekah — through Milcah the wife, not through Reumah the concubine. In due time we shall see how close the tie is to Isaac's future, working out the purpose of God.

Notice that Rebekah is already one of Abraham's relatives. Isaac's bride is not an outside stranger. Genesis 22 presses this on us, where Abraham hears the news of Nahor's children. It is in the family of faith that the Church is found. So I do not believe Rebekah represents the call of sinners by the gospel. She represents the call of saints to a place of special relationship with Christ on high. We are in the mission-time of Genesis 24, and the Spirit of God is seeking a bride for the risen Son.

Abraham tells the servant that the bride for Isaac is "not to be of the daughters of the Canaanites," but of "my kindred." The Canaanites were under the curse and marked out for judgment. There can be no link between Christ in the glory and a world under judgment.

No real spiritual power ever takes us out of the place of waiting on God. So it was with Eliezer. When the woman had given him drink, and his camels too, he does not yet say, Oh, here is the answer to my prayer. He is still waiting on God. Wondering at her, he held his peace, to know whether the Lord had made his journey prosper or not. When the camels had finished drinking, he said, "Whose daughter are you?" He found that she answered the description which to him was divine direction, as the word is to us. Then he bowed his head and worshipped the Lord. Success often takes us out of the place of communion, because it is our success when we do not acknowledge God in it.

What came out from God in guidance goes back to Him in praise.

Truly dependent on God, he tests even the brightest combination of circumstances by the word that guided his way and defined his aim. This does not suit the self-confidence of man; but is it not the one path, the duty that cannot be given up, of the saint? For we walk by faith, not by sight... What Rebekah said fell completely and clearly within Abraham's requirements for the bride he sought for his son Isaac. No doubt her character shone out even in this brief meeting. She showed love and humility, genuine respect and quick service — a fitting daughter-in-law for Abraham, a pure and gentle wife for Isaac. Yet this was not everything the servant sought, faithful as he was to the interests of the son and to the words laid down by the father. "Whose daughter are you?" Was she of Abraham's family? Her answer was exactly what he sought, and she assures him and his company of a suitable welcome.

How good it is that Rebekah's answer again goes beyond what the servant asked. He only asks for "room"; she says there is provision as well as room (v. 25).

She is not only willing to give Abraham's servant a drink. She also provides for his camels, without negotiating terms or asking a price. That must have been hard work, given how much these animals drink, especially after a long journey. This is another indication that the church is marked by grace. Rebecca shows the same feature later on, when the servant asks for "room" and she offers "straw" and "plenty of fodder" and "room to spend the night" (v. 25).

The answer was complete as well as immediate. She was of the right family, and there was accommodation in her father's house. The servant had only to give her golden ornaments, as a pledge of what was to come, and then, bowing his head, he worshipped the LORD.

Along with this, difficulties disappear. As the Lord directs, so He opens the door and blesses. There is comfort in this — the comfort of knowing that it is His own hand that does everything. Whatever the hindrances may be, the mission of the Spirit is accomplished. It does not stand in persuasive words of man's wisdom, but in the power of God.

It is well to take this great question home to ourselves: "Is there room?" Are we prepared to put ourselves out to make room for the Holy Spirit? The flesh and the Spirit "are opposed to each other" (Gal. 5:17). We cannot host the Spirit while catering to the flesh... Are we making provision for the flesh to gratify its desires, or are we making room and provision for the Spirit? The house of Bethuel made "room" and "provision" for Abraham's servant. As a result, the servant is able to speak of Isaac, to engage Rebekah's affections with Isaac, and to lead her to Isaac.

Do we not see in this part of the story the secret of our little progress in the knowledge of Christ, and why our affections are so often cold? We hinder and grieve the One who alone can powerfully move our hearts with the love of Christ.

Someone has rightly said that God is always the first thought of a person walking with God. It was so long ago with the servant of Abraham. He had seen God's clear guidance, and his first act was to worship the LORD, saying: "Blessed be the LORD … the LORD has led me in the way" (Gen. 24:26-27). It was the same with Daniel. When God stepped in with mercy in his trials, Daniel's first act was to praise God, saying: "Blessed be the name of God forever and ever, for wisdom and might are His" (Dan. 2:19-23).

He had recognised God's hand in the whole of this business. So before going farther, before even entering the house, he bowed and worshipped the Lord.

And the man said, for it is intelligent worship, "Blessed be Jehovah, God of my master Abraham, who has not withdrawn from my master His mercy and His truth …" It is a trusting and adoring acknowledgement of His faithful goodness.

Eliezer says, "O Lord God of my master Abraham." He does not say "my God." God had made the promises to Abraham, and had revealed Himself as the God of Abraham. Here the servant shows himself in complete dependence. We find him in the path of promise. He does not exalt himself. He acts according to God's purposes in complete dependence, and does not pretend to have anything except where God had placed the blessing. For us this blessing is in Christ, and there is the answer to our requests.

It reminds us of Abraham's servant (Gen. 24:27). Obedience placed him in the way, and then he says, "I being in the way, the Lord led me to the house of my master's brethren." He was in the way — the path of obedience. The Lord could come into that path too and lead him on in it. No other path than this can He approve by His presence.

Do we not see a picture here, though partly veiled? When someone honestly seeks the Lord's way, He will lead him to the fellowship of those who are His own people.

Again, we have Eliezer, a picture of the Spirit of God. He is marked by this: his heart goes out to the Lord in complete dependence and in simple-hearted praise, as he receives the quick and unmistakable answer of His grace. Eliezer had his mission from Abraham; so the Spirit is sent from the Father on an errand of love in the church. Prayer and worship suit the members of Christ's body in the same way, and should go out intelligently with God's purpose, just as Eliezer's prayer rested entirely on the aim of the one who sent him.

The simple-hearted eagerness of Rebekah is as clear here as her thoughtful courtesy and kindness were before. Such should be the church, and the Christian now. God has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ. Are we not bound, one by one and together, to reflect the grace of Him to whom we belong? Freely we received; freely should we give... Yet the young woman was quick to discern the signs of the crisis that had come to her, and ran to tell "her mother's house." That was proper in itself, quite apart from the fact that her father stays so much in the background all through. Some have even thought that the name listed after Laban's in verse 50 may belong to a younger brother rather than to the father. What is certain is that Laban is the active leading man of the house from first to last.

Verse 22 tells how Rebecca received gifts: a golden earring and golden bracelets. These first gifts were early tokens of grace, and more gifts followed later (verse 53)... But the first gifts — the earring and the bracelets — marked Rebecca out and set her apart from all others. As has been said: "The hand and face bear witness to the work of grace."

It is not a chance detail that Laban offered hospitality so readily. He saw the ring and the bracelets on his sister's hands, and he heard her report of what Abraham's messenger had said to her... The history later shows that Laban was a grasping man and an idolater. The language used here forces one conclusion. The sight of the jewels given to his sister, and the man's words about his master, had a strong effect on someone whose motives were far from unselfish.

This, however, is only the beginning of the servant's work. No one has yet said a word about Isaac. These further messages depend on the welcome the family gives the servant. If they welcome him, he will speak to them of Isaac. But he will not force his company on Rebekah. "Is there room in your father's house for us to lodge in?" (v. 23).

Are we prepared to put ourselves out to make room for the Holy Spirit? The flesh and the Spirit "are contrary the one to the other" (Galatians 5:17)... Are we making provision for the flesh to fulfil its desires, or are we making room and provision for the Spirit? The house of Bethuel made "room" and "provision" for the servant of Abraham. The result: the servant is able to speak of Isaac, to engage Rebekah's affections with Isaac, and to lead her to Isaac.

This is well worth noticing, for we may see the like of it every day. One of the family becomes the first to feel divine power. Then family religion — the knowledge of the Lord Jesus in the household — spreads itself. But some remain untouched.

It is beautiful to see how Andrew goes at once to testify of the One he had found, and he begins at home. "He first finds his own brother Simon." He begins from the centre, and works out to the circumference.

The young woman was quick to see that the crisis had come for her, and ran to tell "her mother's house." That was the proper thing to do. Her father, though, stays oddly in the background all through. Some have even dared to think that the name after Laban's in verse 50 may have been a younger brother rather than the father. What is certain is that Laban is the active leading man of the house from first to last. Here he ran out to the man by the well or spring.

Laban was the son of Bethuel, the brother of Rebekah, and the father of Leah and Rachel. His quick hospitality towards Abraham's servant shows a heart the Lord had made willing, in answer to prayer. Why he took the lead instead of his father Bethuel is not told us. In his dealings with Jacob, Laban was scheming and dishonest.

The history shows later on that Laban was a grasping man and an idolater. So the language used here forces us to one conclusion. The sight of the jewels given to his sister, and the man's words about his master, had a powerful effect on a man whose motives were far from unselfish. His greeting was winning, though — he called the traveller blessed of the Lord and told him the house and room for the camels were ready.

Laban, with whom Rebekah had grown up, was a crafty, knowing, worldly man. It is plain that, when Eliezer visited, he had been moved only by the gifts. They made a ready way for Abraham's servant; as we read, "A man's gift makes room for him" (Proverbs 18:16). Laban was clearly the busy, active, important one in his father Bethuel's house. He had a taste for occasions that called for management.

Having found the appointed bride, the servant at once sets her apart from all others by adorning her with the golden earrings and the bracelets. The hand and the face bear witness to the work of grace.

Laban and Bethuel heard Abraham's servant tell the whole story. They then admit that the matter comes from the Lord, and say, "We cannot speak to you bad or good" (verse 50). So, if we act in complete dependence on God through the circumstances of our Christian life, He will make our way plain. He will even soften our enemies, because of the dependence on Him in which we live. Because we have set the Lord before us, He will always be at our right hand.

Abraham and Sarah left their father's house to walk with God, and they carried the foul, unclean arrangement between them along with them. In the same way, Rebekah carried this family character, this Laban-leaven, with her. After our conversion we still have nature in its corruption with us. We have our own traits of the flesh, as well as the corruption common to all. And we have to rebuke them sharply, so that we may be sound — that is, morally healthy — in the faith (Titus 1:13).

The servant has found the appointed bride. He is not content with a work of grace that he can see. He marks the bride out in public from all others by adorning her with the golden earrings and the bracelets of gold, which others can see. The Spirit is here to produce a work of grace in the believer. But the fruits of being sealed by the Spirit should also show in the believer — love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. These precious jewels would become a witness to others, and distinguish the believer from the world around.

In Haran the relatives of Rebekah looked on in wonder at the new splendour given her; rich bracelets circled her arms, and hanging on her face shone the weighty proof of Isaac's generosity, beyond question in its value. And could she doubt — could anyone doubt who saw her decked with these — his covenanted love and generous heart, of whom they were the sparkling messengers?

The Holy Spirit adorns the bride-to-be (Gen. 24:22; Gal. 5:22), as a pledge of what is to come, with symbols of betrothal. When Laban saw the gifts, "he said, Come in, you blessed of the Lord. Why do you stand outside? For I have prepared the house and a place for the camels." This result is natural and frequent, but not universal (1 Peter 2:12). At least, it is the order of things we should desire. Those among whom the believer lives should notice these spiritual adornments, and welcome the ministering Spirit into their own hearts and homes "in the day of visitation."

It is no chance detail that Laban offered hospitality so readily. He saw the ring and the bracelets on his sister's hands, and he heard her report of what Abraham's messenger said to her. He came at once to the man, who was still standing by the camels at the spring. His welcome was as warm as it was religious — such people talk that way when honour and advantage are certain. The history later shows that Laban was a grasping man and an idolater. So the words used here force us to conclude one thing. The sight of the jewels given to his sister, and the man's words about his master, worked powerfully on a man whose motives were far from unselfish.

His prompt hospitality towards Abraham's servant shows a heart made ready by the Lord in answer to prayer. But we are not told why he took the lead instead of Bethuel, his father. In his dealings with Jacob, Laban was scheming and unscrupulous.

It is good to take this great question home to ourselves: "Is there room?" Are we willing to put ourselves out to make room for the Holy Spirit? The flesh and the Spirit "are contrary the one to the other" (Gal. 5:17). We cannot entertain the Spirit while ministering to the flesh... The house of Bethuel made "room" and "provision" for the servant of Abraham. So the servant is able to speak of Isaac, to engage Rebekah's affections with Isaac, and to lead her to Isaac.

Having come into the house (v. 32), the first thing the servant does is to bear witness to Isaac. He reveals his master's mind about Isaac. In doing so he takes the things of Isaac and shows them to Rebekah. He speaks of all his master's wealth, and then says his master has given all this wealth to Isaac: "to him he has given all that he has." And we know well that the Father has given all His things to Christ. So the Lord can say, "All that the Father has is mine," and then, speaking of the Holy Spirit, can add, "He will take what is mine and declare it to you" (John 16:15).

It is no accident that Laban offered hospitality at once. He had seen the ring and the bracelets on his sister's hands. He had also heard her report of what Abraham's messenger said to her. He went straight out to the man, who still stood by the camels at the spring. His welcome was warm, and religious too. That is how such people speak when they are sure of honour and gain coming their way. The history later shows that Laban was a grasping man and an idolater. The words he uses here point to one conclusion. The sight of the jewels given to his sister, and the man's words about his master, worked strongly on a man whose motives were far from unselfish. His greeting was winning all the same.

With Rebekah, Eliezer gives the jewels first. With Laban, it is going into the house first, and the jewels after. The Spirit alone acts in the power and confidence of grace. Laban was a legalist.

The Holy Spirit adorns the bride-to-be (Gen. 24:22; Gal. 5:22) with the tokens of engagement, as a pledge of what is to come: "the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control." When Laban saw the gifts he said, "Come in, O blessed of the LORD." This is the natural and frequent result, though not the universal one (1 Peter 2:12). At least it is the order of things we should want. Those among whom the believer lives should notice these spiritual adornments. They should welcome into their own hearts and homes the serving Spirit "in the day of visitation."

It is well to take this great question home to ourselves: "Is there room?" Are we prepared to put ourselves out to make room for the Holy Spirit? The flesh and the Spirit "are opposed to each other" (Gal. 5:17). We cannot entertain the Spirit while serving the flesh. Are we prepared to refuse the indulgence of the flesh in the passing things of time, so that the Spirit can lead us into the deep and eternal things of God? … The house of Bethuel made "room" and "provision" for Abraham's servant. The result was that the servant could speak about Isaac, engage Rebekah's affections with Isaac, and lead her to Isaac.

Notice, in passing, that God arranges everything according to Eliezer's desire. This is bound to happen to everyone who delights in the Lord. All the wheels of God's providence move in the direction of His will, which I am carrying out. The Holy Spirit, through the word, gives me the knowledge of His will. That is all I need.

When we are not engaged in the worship of God with fellow believers, we should seek, in season and out of season, to carry the blessed gospel of God to those outside. Then they believe and receive the gospel, and the Holy Spirit comes to live within them. We would love to see them in the heart of God's Assembly. We will gladly say, "Come in, O blessed of the LORD. Why do you stand outside?" (Gen. 24:31).

Rebekah ran to bring to her household the news that the visitor had come, and then brought her brother Laban, also running, to the well (v. 29). He gives the servant a hearty invitation, calling him "blessed of the Lord," and telling him he has prepared everything for him and his camels (v. 31). Then the needs of the camels were fully met, and the servant and the other men with him were given water to wash their feet, and so were refreshed after a long journey.

Washing the feet was one of the duties of hospitality. The Lord rebukes the neglect of it in His host in Luke 7. See 1 Timothy 5:10. It gave two benefits to the guest, I may say — it cleansed the traveller after the soiling of the journey, and refreshed him after the tiredness of it.

The next section pictures the mission of the Spirit. He is to find a bride for the risen Christ, the Father's heir, among the family of faith (Abraham's kindred). The story runs to such a length that it shows how much God's heart is occupied with it. First comes the mission of Him who comes in servant-character. Here is a striking lesson for those through whom the Spirit of God acts: we are never told the servant's name. He is content to speak only of his master.

In these days there is One who has come from heaven's far-off land on a similar errand — the Holy Spirit. He has come down to us. Angels have been passed by. The gospel message of peace has come to man, fallen man. From the family of Adam the Holy Spirit is gathering out those who will form the Bride. He is leading this Bride across the pathless desert of the world to the Son, to whom the Father has given "all things."

The remarkable behaviour of Abraham's servant is what we have to notice for our own building up. He came into the house, unloaded the camels, had straw and fodder given, with water to wash his own feet and the feet of those with him. But when food was set before him, he refused to eat until he had told his story. This is not at all the usual way, especially in the East, and after such a long journey. His errand absorbs him completely. He would not let his own ease, or the customs of men, come first or clear the way for what he had at heart. He was there for his master's sake. Word and oath bound him, and so did honour and love for his master's son.

The Holy Spirit gives Himself to His search for the Bride and His care of her, and to nothing else. He does this in a way altogether worthy of the Father and the Son… The Saviour's food was to do the will of Him who sent Him and to finish His work. The blessed Spirit of God is no less careful to speak, not from Himself, but all that He hears. He is the One who glorifies the Son here and now.

We may look at Abraham's servant as a type and as an example… As an example, he shows the marks that should always distinguish a servant of God. First, his master commissions him; he does not run before he is sent. Then he is equipped for the service he is called to: all his master's goods were in his hand. Next, he is guided only by his master's instructions; his own thoughts have no place or influence. Further, he is in complete dependence; he looks to the Lord to act for him. He acknowledges the Lord's guidance and help at every step. He is also completely devoted to carrying out his master's will. He will not eat until he has told his errand, and he will not stay on after the Lord has prospered his way. Finally, he glorifies his master and Isaac.

But when they set food before him, he refused to eat until he had told his story. This is not at all the usual way, above all in the East, and after so long a journey. His errand took all his attention. He would not let his own comfort, or the customs of men, come first or pave the way for what he had at heart. He was there for his master's sake.

In Eliezer we have a ready and faithful messenger, and a prayerful one too. Is it any wonder that his mission from Hebron to the far city of Nahor went so well? In these days One has come from heaven's far-off land on a similar errand — the Holy Spirit. He has come down to us. Angels have been passed by. The gospel message of peace has come to man, fallen man. From the family of Adam the Holy Spirit is gathering out those who will form the Bride, and He is leading her across the desert of this world, where there is no path, to the Son, to whom the Father has given "all things."

Eliezer has the true marks of an evangelist. He always keeps the father's object in view. He did not come to improve Mesopotamia; he came to bring away the bride, and to speak not of himself but of Isaac. He does everything in prayer and thanksgiving, and he seeks God's guidance. He approaches with courtesy and thoughtfulness, but also with much directness and energy — he will not eat or drink till he has told his errand.

He gives a very short introduction and then comes to the heart of the matter: Abraham's son, the heir of all things — "and to him he has given all that he has" (v. 36). Are you looking for evidence of the Spirit's working? Then the thing to look for is hearts becoming occupied with Christ. Do you want to draw believers away from worldliness, and to stir up devotion and a heavenly mind? Again, occupation with Christ is the answer.

Laban said, "Speak on." What firmness of character in the servant! Look at a man who is not decided. He consults this one and that one when it is a question of how he should act. And since he has some desire to do his own will, he would sooner ask advice from those who have less faith than himself. Paul took no advice from flesh and blood. He saw that it was Christ who called him, and he went forward.

Abraham's servant may be looked at as a type and as an example. As an example, he shows the qualities that should always mark a servant of God. First, his master commissions him; he does not run before he is sent. Then his master equips him for the service he is called to. Next, his master's instructions alone guide him; his own thoughts have no place or influence. Further, he depends on the Lord completely and looks to Him to act for him. He acknowledges the Lord's guidance at every step. He is fully devoted to doing his master's will: he will not eat until he has told his errand, and he will not stay on once the Lord has given him success (vv. 33, 56). Finally, he glorifies his master and Isaac.

First, we notice that the servant refuses to eat. After such a long journey, this was surprising. But he only lets them wash his feet and unload and care for the camels (v. 32)... The servant knew what his mission was. His priorities were right, and he let nothing turn him aside. Perhaps we sometimes have only a weak sense of how tirelessly the Holy Spirit works to draw out our love for Christ.

To this end the servant stayed in the background. He confesses, "I am Abraham's servant." In verse 37 he calls Abraham "my master," and in verse 65 he says of Isaac, "It is my master." So both the father and the son were master to him, and his mission was to praise both. In verse 35 he speaks of the greatness and wealth of Abraham. In verse 36 he speaks of the son, and says the father had given him "all that he has." This at once reminds us of John 3:35, "The Father loves the Son and has given all things into His hand."

The one whose activities form the main part of the story is "the eldest servant" of Abraham's house. Fittingly, his name is not given. Is he not a picture of the Holy Spirit, who came not to speak of Himself, but to take the things of Christ and show them to us?

Abraham's servant carried with him a very distinct testimony... He reveals the father and the son. Such was his testimony. He speaks of the vast resources of the father. The father gives all of them to the son, because he is "the only-begotten" — the one and only son — and the object of the father's love. With this testimony he seeks to get a bride for the son.

His first care, you see, is to unfold the news about this only son. He presents a distinct PERSON, enriched with all that the father's love could give. And the father had purposes for him. Those purposes deeply concerned one of the people who were hearing for the first time of this would-be bridegroom, Isaac.

These words of Jesus agree closely with the testimony of Abraham's servant, and the agreement is instructive. He sought to attract the heart of Rebekah by telling of Isaac. In the same way, as we know, the Holy Spirit seeks to draw poor sinners by telling of Jesus. He draws them away from a world of sin and folly into the blessed and holy unity of the body of Christ. "He will take what is mine and declare it to you." The Spirit of God will never lead anyone to look at Himself or His work; but only and always at Christ. So the more truly spiritual anyone is, the more fully Christ will occupy him.

We can look at Abraham's servant as a picture and as an example... First, his master commissions him; he does not run before he is sent. Then his master equips him for the service he is called to: all the goods of his master were in his hand (v. 10). Next, he is guided only by his master's instructions; his own thoughts have no place or influence... He is fully devoted to carrying out his master's will. He will not eat until he has told his errand, and he will not stay once the Lord has prospered his way (vv. 33, 56). Finally, he glorifies his master and Isaac (vv. 34-36).

The servant stayed in the background. He confesses, "I am Abraham's servant." In verse 37 he calls Abraham "my master." In verse 65 he says of Isaac, "It is my master." So both the father and the son were master to him, and his mission was to praise both. In verse 35 he speaks of the greatness and wealth of Abraham. In verse 36 he speaks of the son. Of the son he testifies that the father had given him "all that he has." This reminds us of John 3:35, "The Father loves the Son and has given all things into his hand."

Here is a striking lesson for those through whom the Spirit of God acts: the story never tells us the servant's name. He is content to speak only of his master.

He set out on a pathway of obedience and faith. He failed more than once. But on the whole his pathway stood out as one of faith in the God who had called him, and of alertness to obey His word. On that pathway God blessed Abraham "in all things"; he was "greatly" blessed (Genesis 24:1-35). God honoured his home with visits and spoke to him. He knew God as his Shield and his very great Reward. God Himself even called him "a friend of God" (James 2:23).

Abraham's servant carried with him a very clear testimony… He reveals the father and the son. Such was his testimony. He speaks of the vast resources of the father. The father has given all of them to the son, because the son is his "only-begotten" and the object of his love. With this testimony he seeks to win a bride for the son.

He does not work for Himself. As the Father sent His Son to be glorified by Him, so He sent His Holy Spirit to glorify His Son… The Spirit delights to own and proclaim the rights of the Son, just as Eliezer delighted in retelling the riches and honours of Abraham's son. He draws souls to God's Son. He tells them of His redemption work, of His infinite love, and of the riches they gain when they receive Him.

He sought to attract the heart of Rebekah by telling her of Isaac. In the same way, as we know, the Holy Spirit seeks to draw poor sinners away from a world of sin and folly by telling them of Jesus… "He will take what is mine and declare it to you." The Spirit of God will never lead anyone to look at Himself or His work, but only and always at Christ. So the more spiritual anyone is, the more completely Christ will occupy him.

Isaac is this child of promise. He was born to Sarah when she was 90 and Abraham 100. Their bodies were "as good as dead" (Rom. 4:19), and any natural hope of childbearing was long gone. But it was God who intervened in sovereign grace to fulfil His own word. Sarah is the free woman, closely joined to Abraham. Abraham pictures God the Father, and Sarah pictures the believing few in Israel who stood on grace. Christ came from them (pictured in Isaac) when all natural hope of blessing was gone. Isaac then is a beautiful picture of Christ, the promised Seed (Gal. 3:16). He came to earth, not because man kept the law successfully or anything like that, but because of God's unbreakable promise, fulfilled by grace alone.

Child speaks of the birth-tie between parent and child. Nothing can be closer than that. Son speaks of the position enjoyed before others: "no longer a slave, but a son" (Gal. 4:7)... Abraham had several children by his wife Keturah, as well as Isaac by Sarah. All of them could call him father; all were his children; but Isaac alone had the privilege and position of his son. He gave all that he had to Isaac (Gen. 25:5), who was known by all as his son. The inheritance was his, and his alone (Gen. 24:36). To be Abraham's offspring was one thing; to be his son was quite another.

The Father shows His confidence in His Son by giving all things into His hand. This also expresses that "The Father loves the Son" (John 3:35). Jesus was the true Isaac, the son who received all his father's possessions (Gen. 24:36). But the picture falls far short of the reality, for the Father had given the whole universe into the hands of the Son. He is the "appointed Heir of all things."

He surrenders His possessions. He does not take His place of exaltation and power until He has completed obedience in death. Only then does the Father give all things into His hands — though it was already His by right before. (Genesis 24:36, 25:5; John 13:3; Phil. 2:10.) Only after the offering on the altar does the true Isaac take His bride and His inheritance in resurrection power.

Abraham's servant, seeking to secure a bride for Isaac, sets out all the dignity and wealth the father had given him. He tells of the love that rested on him. In short, he tells her everything likely to move her heart and draw it away from present things. He showed Rebekah someone far away... That was his testimony. And that is the testimony of the Holy Spirit too. He speaks of Christ, the glory of Christ, the beauty of Christ, the fullness of Christ, the grace of Christ, "the unsearchable riches of Christ."

Eve had no separate dowry which she brought to Adam, but in Adam she inherited all that was his. Rebekah brought no dowry to Isaac, but in Isaac she inherited all that Isaac had. Oh, the riches of God's grace, that you and I, dear fellow-believer, are to be together with Christ... as His companion, His bride, in His exalted position as Head over all, and centre of God's purposes and of this whole vast plan of blessing.

It is beautiful to observe that the call and exaltation of Rebekah rested on the oath between Abraham and his servant. She knew nothing of this, though she was, in the purpose of God, so entirely the subject of it all. It is exactly the same with the Church of God as a whole and with each part of it... The call, the justification, and the glory of the Church all rest on the eternal purpose of God. They rest on His word and oath, confirmed by the death, resurrection, and exaltation of the Son.

The bride for Isaac must be suited for Isaac and so must not be taken from the daughters of the Canaanites (v. 3). They lay under judgment and so were completely unsuited to Isaac. This would show that the dealings with Rebekah are not exactly a picture of the grace of God bringing salvation to sinners. They picture instead the love of Christ appealing to saints. If the point were to show the grace of God that reaches the vilest sinners, then the servant's errand would surely have taken him to the daughters of the Canaanites — as in the Gospel story, where God takes up a Syrophoenician woman, a daughter of Canaan, to show His grace.

Rebekah, the bride of Isaac, and Leah, the bride of Jacob, both belonged to the same country and the same family as their husbands. In each case the charge was very definite: a daughter of Canaan must not be taken as wife (Gen. 24:3; Gen. 28:1). So too the bride of the Lamb must belong to His country and His family. She is not only heavenly in destiny, but heavenly in origin — the Jerusalem above is our mother (Gal. 4:26). And we are not of the world, even as He is not of the world. Hebrews 2:11 shows that we belong to His family.

There is a striking lesson here for everyone the Spirit of God works through: we are never told the servant's name. He is content to speak only of his master.

He reveals the father and the son. Such was his testimony. He speaks of the vast resources of the father, and of the son who has received all of it because he is "the only-begotten," and the object of the father's love. With this testimony he seeks to win a bride for the son.

Here we have Judah repeating the sin of Esau, whose marriages were a grief to his parents (Gen. 26:35). Judah had no regard for the ancient landmark set up by Abraham, who said, "you will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites" (Gen. 24:3)... Today, for the Christian, the principle is clear. The instruction in 2 Corinthians 6:14-15 is, "Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers."

He is the oldest servant; he ruled over all Abraham had; he was with him from the beginning... He testified of the Father and the Son — how rich the father is, and that Isaac is the heir of all the riches. And so the Holy Spirit does not speak of Himself, but of the Father and of the Son, and He makes known the eternal purposes of the Father. As the servant's mission did not fail, so the mission of the Holy Spirit in the present age cannot fail.

Here we have a picture of the mission of the Spirit: to find a bride for the risen Christ, the Father's heir, among the family of faith — Abraham's kindred. First comes the mission of the One who comes in the character of a servant. It is a striking lesson for those through whom the Spirit of God acts: the servant's name is not made known to us. He is content to speak only of his master.

Then the servant is told that the bride for Isaac is not to be from the daughters of the Canaanites. Abraham says she is to be of "my kindred." The Canaanites were under the curse and appointed to judgment. There can be no link between Christ in the glory and a world under judgment. Isaac's bride was not to be a stranger but one who already belonged to Abraham's family. So the Church is formed not of unbelievers, nor of a mixture of believers and unbelievers, but wholly of the family of faith.

A second point to notice in this verse is the suitability of the wife-to-be. A wife from the daughters of the Canaanites would not have been acceptable. Abraham states that she would have to be from "his kindred." … Only those in whom God has done a divine work, producing faith in Christ, can be part of the church. The Lord Jesus Himself said, "My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and do it" (Luke 8:21). Through God's grace we have been made morally suitable, of "His kindred."

The servant goes out to find a bride suitable for Isaac; he does not find an unsuitable one and make her suitable. Rebekah is a figure of the bride of Christ. She is a fitting companion for Him as the result of the work of divine generation, which makes her kindred to Him.

His first care, you see, is to unfold the news about this only son. He sets out clearly a PERSON enriched with all that the father's love could give. And the father had purposes for this son that deeply concerned one of those who, for the first time, heard of this would-be bridegroom, Isaac.

What, we may ask, must have been the effect on Rebekah of hearing this witness to Isaac? Did it simply increase her knowledge of Isaac? That was doubtless one result, but it surely did more, much more, for it awakened love to Isaac.

And whom does the servant foreshadow? He is the oldest servant; he ruled over all Abraham had; he was with him from the beginning. … The servant is the type of the Holy Spirit. He was sent out after Christ was glorified, and with the day of Pentecost He began His blessed mission on earth. … He testified of the Father and of the Son — how rich the father is, and that Isaac is the heir of all the riches. And so the Holy Spirit does not speak of Himself but of the Father and of the Son, and makes known the eternal purposes of the Father. The servant's mission did not fail, and in the same way the mission of the Holy Spirit in the present age cannot fail.

The God of heaven is far above all the small storms and frustrations that fill our little world. He does as He pleases. So the servant is sent out with one assurance: God's angel would direct him and lead him to the suitable wife for Isaac. The mission could fail in only one way: if the chosen woman was not willing to follow the servant to the waiting bridegroom.

Here we see the greatest stress laid on Isaac's staying in Canaan — and it is repeated once more. There only must he be found, and he alone of all the patriarchs. His father came out of Mesopotamia and for a time went down into Egypt. His son Jacob returned to Mesopotamia, then went down into Egypt and died there. But Isaac alone must never leave the land of Canaan, and never did. In this he is a striking picture of Christ after He died, rose and ascended. In that condition He becomes Head of the church, and the Bridegroom.

The servant must on no account take a wife for Isaac from the daughters of Canaan. He must look for her in the country and family that God had called Abraham out of. Angels are not called, whether fallen or unfallen: sovereign grace chooses from the world. But there is a second rule, pressed just as strongly: no one may bring the risen Son back to the world to call His bride. It is the Holy Spirit who accomplishes this work, not the Bridegroom. The Spirit is sent down from heaven to preach the gospel, and so to form the church. The risen Bridegroom stays in heaven, and nowhere else, while the call goes out.

He is not here to prosper the Christian in business, or to make us wealthy in this world, or to make the world a comfortable place for us. He is not here to remove the curse, or to hush creation's groan... He is not here to remove pain, and death, and sorrow, and tears. All this Christ will do in a day yet to come. Nor is He here to convert the world, as some think. He is here to bring to light a people who are suited to Christ, for the joy and satisfaction of His heart.

To the question "Will you go with this man?" Rebekah replies without restraint or hesitation, "I will go." How touching this is! In verse 5 the servant had worried about whether the woman would be willing to return with him.

He longs to be away and reach Isaac, and he creates the same desires in the heart of Rebekah. He wills to go, and she is made willing to go... So her relatives call the young woman and ask her for her own answer. They discover how well the servant had done his work. His mind had been formed in her mind, so that if he was longing to go, she was ready to go.

This is how Abraham, the friend of God, walked. Not after his own will — he believed in the Lord, and He "counted it to him as righteousness." He obeyed the voice of the Lord... Whenever he followed his own will it was only to go astray.

By God's providence the angel would clear the way ahead of the servant. But the servant himself had to deal with the bride: "you shall take a wife for my son." Both the servant and the angel were wholly taken up with securing a bride for Isaac... we see the same difference between the providential work of angels and the personal work of the Spirit. The angel of the Lord guides Philip on his way to the desert of Gaza. The Spirit guides Philip in his personal dealing with the Ethiopian official (Acts 8:26, 29).

If Eliezer's journey pictures the work of the Holy Spirit, there was a providential work going on at the same time. God would send His angel before the man to prepare the way, and when God prepares the way all goes well; everything happens at the right moment. We may notice, in all times, an outward and providential work that accompanies the inward action of the Holy Spirit.

Abraham's servant gives us a lovely example in Genesis 24. He went abroad in the spirit of prayer to seek a wife for his master's son. Having found the right person, he bowed his head and worshipped the Lord, saying, "As for me, the LORD has led me in the way."

Abraham made his servant swear by the God of heaven and earth. He was not to take a wife for Isaac from the Canaanites, but from Abraham's own family. The bride of Christ, the Church, is not from the ungodly, Satan-energized world, but from the family of faith. On the other hand, Abraham tells the servant not to think of taking Isaac back to Mesopotamia. Instead he must bring the bride to Isaac.

So Abraham employs his trusted servant, the one "who had charge of all that he had." He is a fitting picture of the place of service that the Holy Spirit is pleased to take now, carrying out God's purpose for the church in this world... The risen Bridegroom stays exclusively in heaven while the call goes out.

He reveals the father and the son. Such was his testimony. He speaks of the father's vast wealth, and of the son receiving all of it because he is "the only-begotten" and the object of the father's love. With this testimony he seeks to win a bride for the son.

This absorption in his master's glory makes him refuse to eat until he has done his errand. This is doing God's will. He tells Laban what happened, and how God had guided him. He uses no argument. He does not say it would be wise to act in this way or that. In simplicity he commits the outcome of the matter to God. Laban and Bethuel then answered that the thing came from the LORD. If we reasoned less, and were simpler and more obedient, and told things as the Holy Spirit tells them to us, the result would be better.

Abraham's servant went to get a bride for Isaac. He set out all the dignity and wealth the father had given the son. He spoke of the father's love for the son. In short, he set out everything likely to affect the heart and draw it away from present things. He pointed Rebekah to someone far away. He set before her the blessedness and reality of becoming one with that dearly loved and highly favoured person.

The willingness of the woman to travel to Isaac's country was a vital matter. If she was not willing, the oath no longer held the servant. What a lesson concerning the Church of God! No demand of law rests on her. Only the pure grace of God is to move her. That grace produces a willing response of devotion — a devotion ready to leave natural ties behind for a living relationship with the Lord Jesus in heavenly places.

"Perhaps the woman will not be willing to follow me!" So says the servant, just before he starts his all-important mission. My reader, is this your case? I have no doubt it is the case of thousands of people who will be in heaven. I do not say they are not converted. Their conversion is not the question. But they will not "go with" the ministry and leading of the Holy Spirit. They will not let the home of Mesopotamia and its attractions give way to the desert sands and untrodden paths. Those paths are known only to the Spirit of God, the stranger bound for Canaan.

Abraham then tells the servant that the bride for Isaac must not come from the daughters of the Canaanites. She is to come from his own family. The Canaanites were under the curse and appointed to judgment. There can be no link between Christ in the glory and a world under judgment. Isaac's bride was not to be a stranger. She already belonged to Abraham's family. So the Church consists wholly of the family of faith. It does not consist of unbelievers, or of a mixture of believers and unbelievers.

He testified of the Father and the Son: how rich the father is, and that Isaac is the heir of all the riches. And so the Holy Spirit does not speak of Himself, but of the Father and of the Son. He makes known the eternal purposes of the Father. The servant's mission did not fail, and so the mission of the Holy Spirit in this age cannot fail.

He came into the house, unharnessed the camels, and had straw and feed brought for them. They also brought water to wash his feet and the feet of those with him. But when food was set before him, he refused to eat until he told his story. This is not at all the usual way, especially in the East, and after such a long journey. His errand is all-absorbing. He would not allow his own comfort, or the customs of men, to come first or make way for what he had at heart. He was there for his master's sake. Word and oath bound him, as well as honour and love for his master's son.

He clearly had no container to draw water with himself. Or he chose not to draw it himself, so that he could depend fully on God's guidance.

What sustains in prayer like singleness of eye? If it is our own will we are seeking, what confidence can we have? Here we find prayer that God answers to the letter. If Christ's interests are ours, how fully may we count on God glorifying His beloved Son! "Let her be the one whom You have appointed for Your servant Isaac." How blessed to be working towards an already predestined end!

This pictures the mission of the Spirit: to find a bride for the risen Christ, the Father's heir, among the family of faith (Abraham's relatives). The story runs so long that it shows how much God's heart is taken up with it. It starts with the mission of the One who comes as a servant. We are never told the servant's name. He is content to speak only of his master. That is a striking lesson for everyone the Spirit of God works through.

After a very short introduction he comes to the heart of the matter: Abraham's son, the heir of all things. "To him he has given all that he has" (v.36). Are you looking for evidence of the Spirit's working? Then look for hearts taken up with Christ.

He did not have long to wait. "Before he had finished speaking," the young woman comes. He had asked freely; he had dared to be bold and detailed in what he asked. But this counting on God Himself is most pleasing to Him, even if unbelief calls it presumption. This was prayer of rare simplicity, of striking fitness, of complete confidence. The answer came at once. It pointed forward to the day when righteousness will reign, and the Lord will hear while His people are still speaking.

Did he speak to God in silent prayer, as Nehemiah did? (Neh. 2:4). This is a holy habit that we should all cultivate at every stage of our journey through the wilderness. (You will find a beautiful example of this in Gen. 24:42-48.)

How striking is the way all the interest gathers on the trusty servant, and how taken up he is with caring for the father and the son! Here the whole ground is covered again in front of the bride's family. It brings out the father's purpose for the son as nowhere else in this book, or anywhere else of old. And it shows a devotion in the one sent to carry it out that is marked and exclusive.

Does this case not vividly show what it means to pray "in the Holy Spirit"? This is prayer that is not merely for this or that. It runs with what is for the Son's glory, and with what the Father purposes to give.

We see that the unmistakable sign of the appointed bride will be that she is marked by grace. From the words of the prayer it is clear that the servant was not sent to select a bride for Isaac from the daughters of men, but to find the appointed bride, and that grace would be her characteristic mark.

This would be no small task, for camels drink a great deal of water. No ordinary young lady would be willing to take on a job like this without any promise of payment. But no ordinary young lady was to be satisfactory for Isaac, just as today a Christian man should make sure that his intended wife is a willing-hearted believer.

In that passage the context requires the sense of virgin with the utmost precision. There is no sign or wonder in a young married woman bearing a son. So the Septuagint — a version made before the dispute arose — rightly gives "the virgin" there, as it does in Genesis 24:43, while Aquila and Symmachus chose "young woman". But it is plain that even "young woman" cannot get rid of the truth intended in the context.

This unknown servant, a figure of the Holy Spirit, finds Rebekah by the well of water. The well is a constant figure of truth as a living reality for the soul. In keeping with this, and acting in the spirit of grace, Rebekah goes far beyond the servant's request. She gives him and his camels the refreshment they need with a lavish hand that holds nothing back. This is what showed the servant that she was the one suitable to be Isaac's bride, and worthy to be adorned with the ring and bracelets.

Rebekah is met at the well, a fresh picture of the Spirit and of the word which He uses. There, at that first meeting, she receives the gift — a foretaste of everything she will receive later.

After a very brief introduction he comes to the heart of the matter: Abraham's son, the heir of all things. "To him he has given all that he has." Are you looking for evidence of the Spirit's working? Then the thing to look for is hearts taken up with Christ.

His prayer shows that one aim fills his whole mind. He does not pray for himself; and though he mentions "the daughters of the men of the city," he does not pray for them. He prays that God will lead him to the one appointed for Isaac. Note that the servant is not there to pick a bride from the daughters of the men of the city and then make her fit for Isaac. He is there to find the one appointed for Isaac. And the sign that she is the appointed one will be that grace marks her… He will ask her to let him drink from her pitcher. If she not only says yes but offers to do more than he asks, that is the sign that the grace of God marks her. It shows there is a work of God in her, and that she is therefore of Isaac's kindred. For grace goes beyond our requests.

This is about fitness for the Bridegroom. It is not salvation, but fitness. The picture makes it plain. Abraham's steward had sworn to only one thing: kindred. You must be of His kindred. The flesh is not of Christ's kindred. It is very beautiful to see how he found out her kindred. How did he find it out? He asked the Lord that he might find her by her grace — the steward finds out her kindred by her grace. Many would have said, "I shall be very happy to give you a drink of water." But she says, "I will draw for your camels also." It was grace.

He had only one thing before him. He had not come to make Bethuel's house rich, or to improve conditions in Mesopotamia. He came to take a bride for Isaac out of both. Here we see a striking type of the Holy Spirit and His mission. That mission is not to improve world conditions, but to take out of the Gentiles "a people for His Name" (Acts 15:14).

How did Rebekah know she was the one Eliezer wanted for Isaac? She could have no doubt about it. She stood by as the servant (see verses 42-52) explained to Laban how he had prayed. He had asked the Lord to let him meet the "appointed" one at the well, and to know her by this sign: when he asked water for himself alone, she would not only say yes but offer water for the camels too. Now Rebekah knew that she matched the person he wanted, word for word. She had said and done just that. So she must be the one the servant was looking for.

He was the father's servant, devoted to the son's honour. And God, in His covenant name, was before his heart from first to last… If election ruled in this way, God's merciful providence would control hearts and circumstances, as was clear throughout. This stirred up prayer, and the answer came at once. The young woman he wanted came before he had finished speaking in his heart. She met every test with the grace that belonged to her. She convinced him that she was none other than the woman whom Jehovah had appointed for his master's son.

Did he speak to God in silent prayer as Nehemiah did? (Neh. 2:4). This is a holy habit that we should all cultivate at every stage of our wilderness journey. (You will find a beautiful example of this godly practice in Gen. 24:42-48).

How often a person has felt deeply in his soul that God has heard his prayer, though he has not spoken a word, or even half a word. All at once he feels that the Lord has come in to answer.

"Before he had finished speaking," the young woman comes. He had asked freely, and he had dared to set out in detail what he wanted. But God is most pleased when a man counts on Him like this, even if unbelief dares to call it presumptuous. It was prayer of rare simplicity, of striking fitness, of complete confidence. The answer came at once, and it pointed on to the day when righteousness will reign, and the Lord will hear while His people are still speaking.

The answer came before he had finished speaking. Rebekah arrived and acted with all the grace he had specified... The answer was complete as well as immediate. She was of the right family and there was room in her father's house.

Again, how striking is the way all the interest gathers on the trusty servant, and how taken up he is with caring for the father and the son! The whole ground is covered again before the bride's family. It brings out the father's purpose for his son as nowhere else in this book, or anywhere else in the old days. And the devotion of the man sent to carry it out is marked and undivided!

How did Rebekah know she was the one Eliezer wanted for Isaac? She could have no doubt about it. She stood by as the servant explained to Laban how he had prayed (see vv. 42-52). He had asked the Lord to let him meet the "appointed" one at the well, and to know her by this sign: when he asked for water for himself alone, she would not only give him a drink but would offer water for the camels too. Now Rebekah knew that she matched this in every point. She had said and done just that, to the letter, so she must be the one the servant was looking for.

He does not work for Himself. As the Father sent His Son to be glorified by Him, so did He send His Holy Spirit to glorify His Son... it is the Spirit's delight to own and proclaim the rights of the Son, as Eliezer found his delight in retelling the riches and dignities of Abraham's son.

We do not have the very image of the reality behind the type, only its shadow. Now a shadow gives us very little in the way of detail... Once we accept this limit in the types, we will not strain to force meanings into small details of the person or incident that forms the type. That effort so often ends in what is fanciful and imaginary.

How striking it is that all the interest converges on the trusted servant, and that he is absorbed in caring for the father and the son! He goes over the whole ground again in front of the bride's family. This brings out the father's purpose for his son as nowhere else in this book, or anywhere else in ancient times. And it shows in the man sent to carry it out a devotion that is unmistakable and undivided! Where else in God's Word is there a picture that comes near to that personal presence and action of the Holy Spirit which marks the church?

He will ask her to let him drink from her jar. If she not only gives him the drink, but offers more than he asks, that is the sign. She is marked by the grace of God. There is a work of God in her, and so she belongs to Isaac's family. For grace goes beyond what we ask (Matthew 5:38-42).

These words make it clear that the servant was not sent to pick out a bride for Isaac from the daughters of men. He was sent to find the bride already appointed (v. 14).

She is not only willing to give Abraham's servant a drink. She also freely provides for his camels, without negotiating conditions or asking a price. That must have been hard work, given how much these animals can drink after a long journey. This is another sign that the church is marked by grace. Rebecca shows the same thing later, when the servant asks for room and she offers "plenty of both straw and fodder, and room to spare" for the night (v. 25).

Eliezer is taken up with this errand, so he does not accept the food offered to him. He does what he has to do. Here is one secret of the Christian's life. As soon as he knows God's will, he does his work and gives himself to it. He lets nothing delay it, not even the needs of his body. This is the effect and the sign of the Holy Spirit's work.

Eliezer shows the true marks of an evangelist. He always keeps the father's object in view. He is not there to improve Mesopotamia, but to bring away the bride, and to speak not of himself but of Isaac.

The servant had told them how great his master was — both father and son. Then he told them how God had opened and ordered his way. This was evidence that "the thing has come from the LORD," as both Laban and Bethuel recognized. So they agreed to let Rebekah go, and they left the final word to her, though they pleaded for delay.

The servant's report shows exactly how the Spirit works. After a very short introduction he comes to the heart of the matter: Abraham's son, the heir of all things — "to him he has given all that he has" (v. 36). Are you looking for evidence of the Spirit's working? Then the thing to look for is that hearts are being occupied with Christ.

How striking is the fullness of interest that gathers on the trusted servant, and his absorption in caring for the father and the son! The story goes over the whole ground again before the bride's family. It brings out the father's purpose for the son as nowhere else in this book, or anywhere else of old. And it brings out devotion that is most marked and exclusive in the man who was sent to carry that purpose out! Where else in God's Word is there a picture this close to the personal presence and action of the Holy Spirit, which marks out the church?

Isaac was the beloved son of his father. In chapter 22 he passed through death in picture. He foreshadowed Christ, the risen heavenly Man. Abraham set out to secure a suitable wife for his son. That told out the Father's purpose that Christ also should have a wife, made suitable to Himself in every way. The nameless servant travelled far to carry out his master's will and bring Rebekah to his master's son. He set forth the mission of the Holy Spirit, who is now in the world, gathering out of it the bride of the Lamb.

What Rebekah said fit fully and clearly inside what Abraham required in the bride he sought for his son Isaac. No doubt her character shone out even in this brief meeting. It showed in love and humility, in genuine respect and quick service — a fitting daughter-in-law for Abraham, a pure and gentle wife for Isaac. Yet this was not everything the servant sought. He was true to the son's interests and to the words laid down by the father. "Whose daughter are you?" Was she of Abraham's kindred? Her answer was exactly what he sought.

Some have suggested that the first gifts in verse 22 stand for the redemption we receive in Christ (Eph. 1:7), while those in verse 53 illustrate that Christ has given gifts to men (Eph. 4:8)... But those first gifts — the earring and bracelets — clearly marked Rebekah out and set her apart from all others. As has been said: "The hand and face bear witness to the work of grace."

The final decision had not yet come, but it was certain to come. So the servant gave Rebekah gifts. They were a foretaste of the wealth she was going to inherit as Isaac's wife... All this was also a seal on her betrothal to Isaac. So we may see here a picture of the Holy Spirit as both Seal and Pledge. The Seal secures us for the divine calling and purpose. The Pledge guarantees the inheritance that will yet be ours in full in the coming age.

These were the bridegroom's love gifts. It is good to think of our blessings in that way. But the earring and the bracelets have a further meaning. They remind us that our Bridegroom has secured our ears and our hands for Himself. He has our ears, so that He may pour into them the story of His love. He has our hands, so that we may prove our grateful love to Him by being diligent in His interests.

Someone has rightly said that God is always the first thought of a person who walks with God. It was so long ago with the servant of Abraham. He had known God's clear guidance, and his first act was to worship the LORD.

Once he had heard Rebecca's answer, there was no doubt. God had indeed sent His angel to prepare the way and to lead Eliezer in the right way. His response is worship, at once. Scripture mentions this act of worship again in verse 48, so it was one of the important things that had happened.

It reminds us of Abraham's servant. Obedience placed him in the way, and then he says, "I being in the way, the Lord led me to the house of my master's brothers." He was in the way — the path of obedience. The Lord could come into that path too and lead him on in it. No other path can He approve by His presence.

Eliezer says, "O Lord God of my master Abraham." He does not say "my God." God had made the promises to Abraham, and He had revealed Himself as the God of Abraham. Here the servant shows himself in complete dependence. We find him in the path of promise. He does not lift himself up. He acts according to the counsels of God in complete dependence, and he claims nothing except where God had placed the blessing.

The way he addresses God shows that his knowledge of God was second-hand. He knew Him as Abraham's God, not as his own. In this he falls short as a type.

If election ruled in this way, then God's mercy in providence would control hearts and circumstances — and that is what we see all through. This stirred up prayer, and the answer came at once. The young woman he was looking for came before he finished speaking in his heart. She met every test with the grace that suited her, and so convinced him that she was none other than the woman Jehovah had appointed for his master's son.

We can look at Abraham's servant as a type and as an example. As a type, he clearly sets out the work of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit came into this world after the death and resurrection of Christ, to gather out a bride for Christ and to bring her across the wilderness to the true Isaac. As an example, he shows what should always mark a servant of God… Only his master's instructions guide him; his own thoughts have no place or influence. And he acknowledges the Lord's guidance and intervention at every step.

The servant asks the fitting question of whether they "will deal kindly and truly" with his master. He wants an immediate answer, because if not, he would go elsewhere. It is good that Laban and Bethuel saw that the Lord had ordered this whole matter (v. 50). They realise they must not interfere with the Lord's working. They are willing to give Rebekah up without question. Later Laban was ready to bargain with Jacob, when Jacob wanted Laban's daughter. In Rebekah's case there is no suggestion of any such legal agreement. What we see instead is a true picture of the proper character of marriage. For marriage is a relationship of grace. "He who finds a wife finds a good thing and obtains favor (grace) from the LORD" (Prov. 18:22). To pay for a wife is therefore an insult to her and contrary to God's word.

We may notice how Eliezer acts with the decision that comes from a single eye. We do not only have prayer in the Spirit and worship. There is also a walk wholly devoted to the will and word of his master, who sent him on this mission for his son. On this he is exclusively set. It was quite outside the world and its objects. Eliezer will not turn aside from his errand. He lets no need of the body stop it from being the first thing before him. Every other claim must bend to it.

This focus on his master's glory makes him refuse to take any food until his errand is done. This is doing God's will. He tells Laban about the matter, and how God had guided him. He uses no argument. He does not say it would be wise to act in one way or another. He simply leaves the outcome of the affair with God. "Then Laban and Bethuel answered and said, 'The thing has come from the LORD.'" We spend our time reasoning. If instead we were more simple and obedient, and presented things as the Holy Spirit tells them to us, the result would be better. But we often substitute our human wisdom for the commands of God. Often the things said most simply produce the greatest effect.

Where else in Scripture do we find, so closely joined to the bride, the living representative of the Holy Spirit? He takes up the honour and the interests of the Father and the Son. He wins the bride, then guides and guards her through the dangers of the desert to the Bridegroom. How well he pleads for those who are absent, whose messenger he was! He lost not a moment in winning the young woman's heart for his master's son. In the same way, he will hear of no delay in telling his errand to those who might hold him back, if they did not refuse outright.

Lips without life will not suit Abraham's servant, and it will not suit the Holy Spirit. He is here with one definite object, and whether that object is reached in you and in me or not, He will not linger here. He will start His journey at once, for He must return to His master. He is here in grace, in the world as it is, but not to approve it, and certainly not to rest in it. No, neither of these; He is here to lead out of it.

The servant told them how great his master was — both father and son. Then he told them how God had opened up his way and directed it. This was the evidence that "The thing has come from the LORD," as both Laban and Bethuel recognized. So they agreed to let Rebekah go, and left the final word to her, though they begged for a delay.

He tells Laban about the matter, and how God guided him. He uses no argument. He never says it would be wise to act in one way or another. He simply leaves the outcome of the affair with God. "Then Laban and Bethuel answered and said, 'The thing has come from the LORD.'" We spend our time reasoning. If instead we were more simple and obedient, and told things as the Holy Spirit tells them to us, the result would be better. But we often put our own wisdom in the place of God's commands. The things said most simply often produce the greatest effect.

We can hardly miss how God controls hearts as well as circumstances to carry out the plan in hand. It was not that there were no difficulties or dangers… We have no reason to credit Laban and Bethuel with zeal for the divine glory. Yet they agreed at once with what was put before them. They confessed that the thing was from the Lord, and that left them with no word to say against it. They gave way at once. They saw that Abraham's word was the Lord's doing, and that drew fresh worship out of Eliezer.

Laban and Bethuel heard Abraham's servant tell what had happened. They acknowledge that the thing comes from the Lord, and say, "We cannot speak to you bad or good." So if we act in complete dependence on God in the circumstances of our Christian life, He will make our way plain. He will even soften our enemies, because of the dependence on Him in which we live.

It is good that Laban and Bethuel saw that the Lord had ordered this whole matter (v. 50). They realize that they must not interfere with the Lord's working. They are willing to give Rebekah up without question. Later Laban was ready to bargain with Jacob, when Jacob wanted Laban's daughter. But there is no sign of any such legal agreement in the case of Rebekah. Instead we see a true picture of the proper character of marriage. For marriage is a relationship of grace.

Laban was the son of Bethuel and the brother of Rebekah. His quick welcome of Abraham's servant shows a heart the Lord had prepared in answer to prayer. But why he took the lead instead of his father Bethuel is not revealed.

The servant asks the key question: will they "deal kindly and truly" with his master? He wants an immediate answer, because if not, he would go elsewhere. It is good that Laban and Bethuel saw that the Lord had ordered this whole matter (v.50). They realize that they must not interfere with the Lord's working. They are willing to give Rebekah up without question.

If we act in entire dependence on God through the circumstances of our Christian life, He will make our way plain. He will even soften our enemies, because we live in dependence on Him.

Later Laban was ready to bargain with Jacob, when Jacob wanted Laban's daughter. In Rebekah's case there is no hint of any such legal agreement. Instead we see a true picture of the proper character of marriage. For marriage is a relationship of grace. "He who finds a wife finds a good thing and obtains favor (grace) from the LORD" (Prov. 18:22). To pay for a wife therefore is an insult to her and contrary to God's word.

We can hardly miss how God controls hearts as well as circumstances in carrying out His plan. It is not that difficulties or dangers were lacking. They were many and varied. They were there to exercise faith in Him who knows all beforehand, even when appearances say otherwise, and who works all things according to the counsel of His own will. We have no reason to credit Laban and Bethuel with any zeal for God's glory. Yet they agreed at once with what the servant set before them. They confessed that the thing was from the Lord, and that left them without a word to oppose.

The servant had told them of the greatness of his master — both father and son. Then he related how God had opened up and ordered his way. This was evidence that "the thing proceeds from the Lord," as both Laban and Bethuel recognized. So they consented to Rebekah's departure and left the final word to her, though they pleaded for delay.

We may observe how Eliezer acts with the decision given by a single eye. We do not only see prayer in the Spirit, and worship. We also see a walk remarkably devoted to the will and word of his master, who sent him on this mission for his son. He is set on this alone. It was quite outside the world and its objects. Eliezer will not turn aside from his errand. He lets no bodily need come between him and the task he must put first. All other claims must bend to it.

It is the moment when the Divine Eliezer delivers up the true Rebekah to be the everlasting and beloved companion of the Son (Gen. 24). Many have pointed out that the word translated "shout" here means a call. It is not a general call, but a call to persons in relationship. His shout does not concern the world — at any rate, not just then; it is for His own. "The sheep hear His voice." "They know His voice" (John 10:3-4).

In Scripture, everywhere and always, you will find the mark of true piety to be this. The first effect of blessing is turning back to God and owning it there. It is not the personal enjoyment of the blessing, which, without this turning back, turns us away from God. The love that gave it is more present than even the gift. See Eliezer at the well (Genesis 24), the healed Samaritan leper (Luke 17), and many other examples. The One who gives is more and more before us than the gift itself.

If he was the father's servant and devoted to the son's honour, God in His covenant name was before his heart from first to last… Her reply to his question about her parentage settled the matter. So he could not hesitate to give her suitable ornaments. Once more he bowed down in worship of Jehovah. Those of the house agreed that the matter came from Him. They told the man to take Rebekah to be Isaac's wife. Again the servant bowed down to the earth before Jehovah, and the gifts flowed still more to the bride in particular, but in abundance to all the rest as well.

It was, no doubt, homage rather than worship in the proper Christian sense. That is, it was individual — not the praise of God's children or of the assembly. Still, it is the figure of worship. Did it ever strike you that there is more of such homage or worship in this chapter than in all the other chapters of Genesis put together? Why should this be so? Can anyone doubt that it is because God has now made the way for true worshippers? In Christ the Son, God has now revealed Himself, according to truth and according to love.

Do we still know worship in our personal as well as in our collective lives? It is not just a matter of emotion. It is a state of heart. Someone is so overwhelmed with what God has done, and with what God is, that he can only "bow" and worship.

He tells Laban about the matter, and how God has guided him. He uses no argument. He does not say it would be wise to act in such and such a way. He simply commits the outcome of the affair to God. "Then Laban and Bethuel answered and said, The thing proceeds from the LORD." Suppose we stopped spending our time reasoning. Suppose we were more simple and obedient, and presented things as the Holy Spirit tells them to us. The result would be better. But we often substitute our human wisdom for the commands of God.

He had only one thing before him. He had not come to enrich Bethuel's house or to improve conditions in Mesopotamia, but to take a bride for Isaac out of both. Here we see a striking picture of the Holy Spirit and His mission. It is not to improve world conditions, but to take out of the Gentiles "a people for His name" (Acts 15:14).

The gospel sent by the Holy Spirit is giving. Every other gospel is asking something from man, who finds he has nothing to give.

The jewel of silver comes first. As we look at its beauty, we see one word engraved on it in sparkling letters: REDEMPTION. Gold is the symbol of DIVINE RIGHTEOUSNESS. The clothing tells of a suitable covering. So you see the believer has three things: redemption, righteousness, and clothing. They are all free gifts. You do not have to buy them; you are not to work for them. Eliezer gave to Rebekah, and she received.

Look at how symbols are used in Scripture — in the building of the tabernacle, for example. You will find that silver answers to divine grace, and gold answers to divine righteousness… No gifts were ever given that flowed so plainly from the grace of God in Christ, and rested on God's righteousness.

The jewels of silver, jewels of gold, and clothing suited the glory of the place they came from, the place she was invited to. Once accepted and worn by Rebekah, they would make her fit for the scene and home she was called to. More than that: she receives and owns them before she has to decide whether or not she will accept the call to be Isaac's bride.

Do not let the question of unfitness hold you back. God does not invite you without setting before you the jewels and clothing that will fit you for His presence and for the place He calls you to. It is He who fits you — keep that in mind; you cannot fit yourself. Every attempt to fit yourself will only end in you being dressed in filthy rags.

Just as Abraham's servant brought from the treasury of Isaac "jewelry of silver and of gold, and garments, and… costly ornaments" (Gen. 24:53), so the Holy Spirit has come from where the true Isaac is, to show us all the things the Father has given into His hand.

He unfolds to us the mind of the Father concerning Christ: He takes of the things of Christ and shows them to us. So He awakens love to Christ, and then He adorns us with the beautiful things of Christ. He makes us witnesses of redeeming love — the jewels of silver. He makes us witnesses of divine righteousness — the gold. He makes us witnesses of practical sanctification — the clothing.

Was not her family better off for the visit of Abraham's servant?… Yet the blessings offered to people in the gospel invitation of "today, if you hear his voice" are only taken up, realised and enjoyed by believing souls. The bulk of Christendom may go on content with only the outward appearance and trappings of religion, so called.

She takes the jewels, it is true; but the news the servant brought matters most to her… Rebekah was not choosing between Isaac with a share in Abraham's wealth and staying poor and lonely. The question was this. Would she take the portion the Lord was now bringing her, or the one her relatives and her circumstances in the world had provided?

The servant is ready to eat and to stay overnight only after full consent has been received, after he has worshipped again, and after the gifts have been given. And he stays only one night (v.54). How many of us would travel for many days to stay somewhere for only one night?

Then they were able to enjoy sweet fellowship together as they ate their evening meal. He stayed only overnight. As a true servant, he intended to return to his master. He had finished his mission, so it was time to return (v. 54).

The servant says, "Send me away to my master." He had come to Mesopotamia to secure the bride. Having done that, he would gladly be away. He had not come to stay in Mesopotamia. … It was not to secure the bride and settle her in the old home, but to secure the bride and lead her to a new home. And very wonderfully he forms the same mind in Rebekah. … He wills to go, and she is made willing to go.

We see Eliezer asking to be allowed to leave quickly. He must move fast in this business, so as to bring Rebekah to his master's son. … He does not trouble himself about Laban's house; he gives no thought to Laban's request and does not stop for it. His love for his master makes him put his orders before everything else.

They might easily have retraced the road to Padan-aram — Eliezer did so. They had not forgotten the way, for he did not mistake a step nor did he have to ask it. … But Eliezer went there only to do a certain business and to return. In a moral sense, his visit to the land his master Abraham had come out of was no return to it. He did not linger there beyond the term of the appointed service. "Send me away to my master," was his word then, and no pleading or kindness could change it.

When Abraham's servant went to find a wife for Isaac (Gen. 24:55-56), he refused to be detained. But this Levite stayed the three days and planned to leave early on the fourth day. But the woman's father urged him to stay another day (v. 7) and he gave in to this. Then on the fifth day, instead of leaving early, he gave in to the urging to remain till afternoon! … This wavering indecision is a sad comment on the character of the Levite, one who had the place of the Lord's servant!

When all is settled and the earnest is given, there is no lingering on the part of the messenger. "Send me away to my master," is his word. When they would detain him for a few days, he replies, "Hinder me not." The Spirit does not wish to be detained here; His word is always "Hinder me not." Is something holding you here — some "harmless thing" — some toying with this world's pleasures? Then you are hindering the Spirit of God.

For the church, there are always a thousand factors to hinder her in going (and the Spirit in drawing her). Natural relationships may be one of the most powerful influences. Yet the Spirit knows His mission. He does not rest until He reaches His aim and the bride is fully free of her old surroundings. What are the factors in our lives where the Spirit has to say "hinder me not"?

How many of us would travel for many days to stay somewhere for only one night? Naturally speaking, it is easy to understand why Rebecca's brother and mother ask the servant to extend his stay — and Rebecca's — for ten days or so (v.55).

However, her brother and her mother urged that they should wait some days, at least ten. No doubt they wanted time to get used to the thought of the young lady leaving home (v. 55).

We see Eliezer asking to leave quickly. He must be quick in this business, so as to bring Rebekah to his master's son. His mission is finished, and he says, "Do not hinder me." He does not trouble himself about Laban's house. He gives no thought to Laban's request, and he does not stop because of it. His love for his master makes him put his orders before everything else.

This is usually where we show our weakness. We spare the flesh and neglect what we owe to God. In reality we are sparing ourselves, because we are afraid of not pleasing others. I have seen men who are faithful in what they have to say to others, and God blesses them when they speak simply and without hesitation.

Her relatives want the moment of decision put off, and you want that too, don't you? "Some day," you say, "but not just now." You want to defer it. This is the plausible voice of the devil. If you are not turned to the Lord, your back is towards Him; you are still in your sins, and they will bring you to judgment. Those ten days are a quiet trap. Felix was a man of ten days. "Go away for the present. When I get an opportunity I will summon you." Ah, poor Felix, when did his opportunity ever come? He never had a better one. Oh, turn now to Jesus!

How like this is to worldly believers! They put off complete surrender to Christ, and put off laying their lives fully at His blessed feet. In place of consecration to Him they take half measures and compromises with the flesh and the world — dishonouring to the Lord and disastrous for the believer. There is nothing like full surrender to the Lord's will.

If we allow the Holy Spirit to have His way with us — if we do not hinder Him — He will shape our minds to match His own. He will make us think as He thinks about Christ. He will detach our hearts from the things where Christ is not, and engage our affections with Christ where He is. Too often we hinder the work of the Spirit by clinging to the world, its politics, its pleasures, and its religion. But the world cannot hinder if our hearts are set upon reaching Christ in glory.

Rebekah's relatives pleaded for delay, and the relatives of believers today often do the same. If we have no relatives to do this, our own foolish hearts will do it even better. The servant, however, would allow no delay. So the question went to Rebekah, for the final decision rested with her — "Will you go with this man?" Was she ready to trust herself to the servant, who was acting for Isaac, and to do so at once? Her answer was simple and decisive — "I will go."

Abraham's servant can be seen as a picture and as an example. As a picture, he clearly shows the work of the Holy Spirit, who came into this world after the death and resurrection of Christ. He came to gather a bride for Christ, and to bring her across the wilderness to the true Isaac. As an example, he shows the marks that should always set apart a servant of God... He is also fully devoted to doing his master's will. He will not eat until he has told his errand. And he will not stay on once the Lord has prospered his way (vv. 33, 56).

We see Eliezer asking to leave quickly. He must hurry in this business, so that he can bring Rebekah to his master's son. His mission is done, so he says, "Hinder me not." He does not trouble himself about Laban's house, and he pays no attention to his request. He does not stop because of it. His love for his master makes him put his orders before everything else.

Abraham's servant was keen to finish his task, so he urged them to let him leave without delay. The mother and brother, however, pressed for Rebekah to stay at home for at least ten days, and then she might go. How like this are worldly believers! They put off full surrender to Christ, and put off laying their lives at His blessed feet with a whole heart. In place of giving themselves to Him, they offer half measures and compromises with the flesh and the world. These dishonour the Lord, and they are disastrous for the believer.

HINDER ME NOT. This is what I want to stress. To me, the Spirit's voice sounds out in these words... Worldly ways and entanglements hinder the Spirit in His great work. Coldness towards Christ grieves Him deeply. Pride and self-satisfaction quench what He is doing, and no pride is more hateful to Him than religious pride. He cannot take the things of Christ and show them to us if we are indifferent, or inattentive, or self-centred. Worldliness is bad, very bad, and it shows a divided heart. But religious pretence is worse, for SELF is the beginning and the end of it, and Christ and His things are made to serve self.

The relatives wanted to keep Rebekah at least ten days. The servant wants to be away, and by his report of Isaac he forms the same mind in Rebekah. Suppose we let the Holy Spirit have His way with us, and do not hinder Him. Then He will shape our minds to match His own. We will think as He thinks about Christ. He will pull our hearts away from the things where Christ is not, and fix our affections on Christ where He is.

Natural feeling might plead to keep her a few days, at least ten. But she had only heard and believed the report, and her heart is made up, like the Christian toward Christ... Brother, mother, house, family, country all speak in vain. And the servant was true to his errand of love, to bring the bride home. This is the very pattern of the Spirit at work in the new man, making Christ the one absorbing object... The servant is not distracted — he has only "one thing" to do... When His love is truly known, it makes true love in return. Here, Rebekah's simple answer is, "I will go."

Rebekah hears the message one day and starts the next. Many have put off coming to Christ for ten days and have spent them in hell. I beg you to come now to Jesus.

The decision must come from Rebekah's own lips. In a way, we reach the climax of the whole story here. We have seen the Father's plan, and the Spirit's mission, carried out with care and without tiring. The call has gone out, and it is clear beyond doubt (she would have to come, and Isaac would not go). What will the response be?

The servant, however, would allow no delay. So they put the question to Rebekah, for the final decision rested with her — "Will you go with this man?" Was she ready to trust herself to the servant, who was acting for Isaac, and to do so at once? Her answer was simple and decisive — "I will go."

"Her brother and her mother said, Let the young woman remain with us a while, at least ten days; after that she may go" (v. 55). That was the delaying speech of that day, and many a soul solemnly echoes it today. Do you say, "I will decide for Christ in a few days at the least: at most, ten"? Ten days from now! Oh, no! It must be now if you want to be with Christ in glory.

Rebekah's relatives pleaded for delay, and so often do the relatives of believers today, and if we have no relatives to do this our own foolish hearts will do it even more effectively.

He longs to be away and reach Isaac, and he creates the same desires in the heart of Rebekah. He wills to go, and she is made willing to go. Her relatives can understand that the servant wants to be away to his master. But they would rather keep Rebekah a while — at least ten days. So they call the young woman and ask her. They only discover how well the servant had done his work. He had formed his own mind in her mind, so that if he was longing to go, she was ready to go.

Whether we allow the world to hinder us or not depends not upon the world but upon ourselves. The brother and mother may seek to keep Rebekah back. They admit it themselves, for they say, "Let us call the young woman and ask her." If, like Rebekah, our answer is "I will go," the Spirit will so stir our hearts that nothing in the world can hold us back, however strong or attractive it is.

The great question for Rebekah — "Will you go with this man?" — is still the question for each one of us. Do we recognise the presence of the Holy Spirit, and are we ready at any cost to follow His leading?

Rebekah's answer to her relations was, "I will go." No one else can decide for you. You have a soul, and its eternal welfare depends on your answer. You have a soul to be saved or lost. Oh, will you let anyone, anything, come in between the Lord and your soul? Decide, decide now.

Rebekah's relatives pleaded for delay. The relatives of believers today so often do the same. And if we have no relatives to do this, our own foolish hearts will do it even more effectively. The servant, however, would allow no delay. So they put the question to Rebekah, for the final decision rested with her — "Will you go with this man?" Was she ready to entrust herself at once to the servant, who was acting on behalf of Isaac? Her answer was simple and decisive — "I will go."

Rebecca's affection for the absent bridegroom decided the matter. She took a decision of faith. If the report about Isaac, about her future and her high destiny was true, then nothing would keep her where she was. What was her former work of looking after Laban's sheep compared with the place of the wife of the son who was the heir of all things?

Let us remember that he is a picture of the Spirit of God. The Spirit acts with positive decision, and produces firm decision in the hearts of those whom He influences. We see this again in Rebekah's reply without hesitation when they ask her, "Will you go with this man?" She answers at once, "I will go" (v. 58). Such is the response that the grace of God brings forth from the hearts of those who are drawn to the blessed person of the Lord Jesus. Natural relationships fade into the background when Christ becomes the Object of the heart. He must have first place.

Rebekah was not a penniless orphan. She had a father and mother, a home in Mesopotamia, and prospects of wealth and possessions in the land of her birth. To enjoy all these blessings she had no need to leave her native land and face a wilderness journey. Yet she leaves it all. She forgets her own people and her father's house, and she faces a wilderness journey to reach a person whom she has never seen. Such is the mighty attractive power of a person when faith and affection for that person have been awakened.

Suppose Rebekah had hesitated and had kept thinking about the country she had left. She would have been unhappy. She would have had neither Isaac's house nor her father Bethuel's. If she had left all and yet had neither one home nor the other, her heart would have been alone in the wilderness, in an impossible position. But she has left all. As she talks with Eliezer, the servant, she fills her mind with what interests her heart. That lifts her heart above the things she has now left for ever. And she journeys in peace towards the home of her bridegroom.

What was Rebekah's answer when her relations said to her, "Will you go with this man?" She said, "I will go." No one else can decide for you. You have a soul, its eternal welfare depends on your answer. You have a soul to be saved or lost. Oh, will you let anyone, anything, come in between the Lord and your soul? Decide, decide now.

The servant says, "Send me away to my master." He had come to Mesopotamia to secure the bride, and having done that he would gladly be away. He had not come to stay there. His mind was not to secure the bride and settle her in the old home, but to secure the bride and lead her to a new home. And very blessedly he forms the same mind in Rebekah.

Rebekah now becomes the main figure, along with the trusted servant of the father and the son. Here the servant puts aside the family's natural feelings. His one thought is to carry out his mission. They would have her stay a while. But the better his errand goes, the less delay he will allow. The bride has to decide the matter.

Rebekah takes her nurse with her, but they had little time to pack their suitcases. She would not need the possessions she owned in Haran, for Isaac would certainly supply her with all she needed and much more. The things we leave behind in coming to Christ are nothing compared to the riches of the spiritual blessings that He has laid up for us.

Rebekah was not a penniless orphan; she had a father and mother, a home in Mesopotamia with prospects of wealth and possessions in the land of her birth. To enjoy all these blessings she had no need to leave her native land and face a wilderness journey. Still, all is left. She forgets her own people and her father's house, and travels through the wilderness to reach a person she has never seen. Such is the mighty power of a person to draw, once faith and affection for that person are awake.

Rebekah's nurse: she went with her mistress when she left Padan-aram and remained with her till her death; she was buried under the "oak of weeping." Gen. 24:59; Gen. 35:8.

She goes out to meet the bridegroom. The faithful servant who had won her heart to Isaac continues his care, and guides her across the desert. They send her away with abundant blessings, though those blessings fall short of her real position. But the picture is unmistakable. It is the bride, delivered out of the present evil age according to the will of God our Father, to belong to Him who is in heaven, soon to join Him there.

Full provision for the way is made, not at her cost, and she can forget what is behind because of the prospect ahead of her. Empty wastes lie between the place she has left and her future home. It is a long journey. But a power not her own carries her. And no doubt her guide lightens the road as she learns more and more about the one she is going to. How simple it all is! The Spirit of God leads the willing heart on to meet the Lord.

Suppose Rebekah had hesitated and thought about the country she had left. She would have been unhappy. She would have had neither Isaac's house nor her father Bethuel's. She would have left all and had neither one thing nor the other. Her heart, alone in the wilderness, would have found that position impossible. But she has left all. As she talks with Eliezer, she fills her mind with what interests her heart, and that lifts her above the things she has now left for ever.

How is it, then, that we are so little attached in affection to Christ, and so little detached from things here? Is it not that we hinder? So the servant's word, "Hinder me not," should have a powerful voice for us... We can cling to the world — its politics, its religion, its pleasures. We may even be so taken up with right things — country, family, and father's house — that we hinder the Holy Spirit.

"Thousands of millions" sounds somewhat exaggerated, but we understand that "ten thousand" would be a more exact translation than "million." With that correction we have to admit that their blessing has come to pass, but only as the fruit of her going out to Isaac under the leadership of the servant.

Rebekah leaves home with the blessings of her family, desiring that she might be the mother of thousands of millions (v. 60). No doubt God put this language into their mouths, for it has been truly prophetic, just as is the second expression, "may your offspring possess the gate of those who hate him." Israel has been hated by many nations, but will take over authority in the gates of their enemies, the very place of governmental judgment.

When God speaks of the seed as many as the sand or the stars, He gives them a Jewish character of blessing. "Your offspring (that is, the many descendants) shall possess the gate of his enemies." God promises the final power and glory of Israel in the earth, putting down their foes, and so forth.

It is in Christ that all the nations of the earth shall be blessed; it is Christ who shall possess the gate of His enemies (Gen. 22:17-18).

"And they sent away Rebekah their sister, and her nurse, and Abraham's servant and his men," with rich blessings, though those blessings fell short of her real position. But the picture is unmistakable. It is the bride, delivered out of this present evil age according to the will of God our Father, to belong to Him who is in heaven and soon to join Him there. The chosen young woman pictures her, setting out on her long journey to meet the one she is promised to.

The immediate result of her decision was that "they sent away Rebekah their sister, and her nurse, and Abraham's servant and his men." If we make it clear that we are forgetting the things behind and are set on heavenly things, it will not simply be a question of our giving up the world. Instead, the world will give us up; we shall be "sent away."

Verse 61 gives a beautiful picture of the present situation of the church. Rebekah got up and "followed the man." So the church is on a journey, in a desert where she will find nothing of interest to her. Guidance on this journey is given by the Spirit of God (not, of course, against or even without the written Word of God). Like Rebekah, the church has never seen the One she is travelling to meet, but she follows the Spirit by faith. As long as she is occupied with the Lord Jesus the journey will not be hard; otherwise it would be unbearable. Returning to Mesopotamia was not an option for Rebekah. Going back was giving up Isaac.

What simple faith, and confidence in love, and hope abounding in her heart! There is no such combination of fitting affections in any bride you could name in the entire Old Testament. Dependence on her guide along the dreary way was what sustained her heart. She looked on to the one who was about to bring her into the enjoyment of the most tender of all relationships. What full and trustworthy reports the wise and faithful servant must have told her! They turned her mind away from looking back at her old home. They filled her with worthy expectation of such a father and such a son as awaited her!

Now let us look at Rebekah's position; she had neither the house of Laban nor that of Isaac. It is the same with us. We have neither the earth we are on, nor the heaven we are going to. Rebekah had left everything, and said, "I will go." Eliezer, a picture of the Holy Spirit, talks to Rebekah during the journey about what is in the house of her bridegroom's father. This is precious conversation for the soul that needs the encouragement of seeing these things. It helps the soul endure the tiredness and difficulties of the journey, and not think about the house and the country it came out of! For Rebekah was going across the desert, just as we are. Eliezer, the faithful servant leading her, took care to comfort her. He spoke to her of the precious things in the father's house.

The camel is not a clean animal. It chews the cud, but it does not divide the hoof. The servant is a picture of the work of the Holy Spirit, leading the church through the wilderness to meet the Lord. We are like the camels — we have bodies that connect us with the earth, but we have a power with us that leads us onward.

"The servant took Rebekah and went his way." He took charge of her. We do not know how long the journey lasted. Most likely she did not know the route, nor how soon she would meet Isaac. But the bridegroom Isaac must have been always in her heart and before her eyes. And so it is with God's called-out ones, who make up the church. On the journey they are in the charge and keeping of the Holy Spirit. We do not know how long the journey to the meeting place may last.

Nothing is said about the length of the journey or how many days it took: faith could bear this without complaint. So too, when our expectation of seeing our heavenly Bridegroom is fresh and real in our hearts, we shall not complain about our present circumstances.

This means "well of the living and seeing one." A well situated between Kadesh and Bered, "in the way to Shur," so in the south. Here the angel of the LORD met Hagar when she fled from Sarai. Her cry on that occasion — "You are a God of seeing" — gave the well its name (Genesis 16:14). Isaac lived near this same well, Lahai-roi.

Isaac's well, the place he loved most of all, was this Lahai-roi. The well told him, as it once told Hagar, of the gracious watching care of an ever-living, ever-present God. What a world this is, where sin has made Him a stranger, and where it has become necessary to seek God at all!

He comes from the well Lahairoi — a word of deep meaning, for it means "the well of Him that lives and sees" (Genesis 16:14). As we travel on our way, how good to know that at the end of the journey we shall find One who has not forgotten His people. He sees and He lives — yes, the word is "He always lives" (Hebrews 7:25).

The older Authorised Version reads, "You, God, see me." That carries a most solemn truth. But surely it is a much greater thought for me to see God in Christ. It is not only that He sees me, but that I see Him revealed in perfect grace. "Isaac had just returned from Beer-lahai-roi" when he met Rebekah. This is the true and proper setting for the saint of God: standing in the full daylight of God revealed in Christ, and feeding where the new nature grows and becomes very fruitful.

The "south country" is the Negev. It was part of Canaan — the southern district that borders on the nearby wilderness. There he went out to meditate in the field at evening.

The servant's mission in Mesopotamia always looked ahead to the great day when he would guide the bride across the desert and present her to Isaac. In all these scenes Isaac had taken no active part, nor had he left the land of Canaan. All was left in the hands of the servant. Still, Isaac was far from indifferent to the servant's mission and the coming of the bride.

From the well of Lahai-roi (the living and the seeing one) Isaac came. Isaac and Rebekah met. The servant presented her to Isaac and gave his report. As Isaac came out from Lahai-roi, so our Lord will come out from the place where He now is. He will come into the air to meet His own (1 Thessalonians 4:15-18). No doubt Isaac waited for Rebekah. As she expected to meet him, so we are to wait for God's Son from heaven. Before night came, Isaac took her into his tent, and then came the marriage (Revelation 19).

The picture presents Isaac as one who is waiting for, and wanting, his bride. Our desire for Christ may often be weak, but He always longs for the moment when His bride is presented to Him.

The leading characteristics, then, are submission (Genesis 22) and meditation (Genesis 24:63) — a calm life given to quiet thought... the main course of his life is bound to be unheroic and unnoticed.

He was meditating in the field when he got his Rebekah, and he had prayed for the mercy when God gave him Esau and Jacob... we see in him a man who fell short of being a witness for God in public, though he was kind and devout at home.

In the passages quoted, the word means "to talk to one's self" about whatever is filling the mind. As those passages show, this would be done, as in David's case, in the presence of the Lord... If meditation is to be of value and for blessing, we must do it in the presence of God.

A Christian, when he goes to meditate, must lock himself away from the world. The world spoils meditation... "Isaac went out to meditate in the field" (Genesis 24:63). He went off on his own so that he could take a walk with God in meditation. The world's music will either play us to sleep or distract us in our meditations.

He comes from the well Lahai-roi — a word of deep significance, for it means "the well of Him that lives and sees" (Genesis 16:14). As we travel on our way, how good to know that at journey's end we will find One who has not forgotten His people. He sees and He lives.

Verse 54 speaks of "the morning," when the journey started. Verse 63 mentions "the evening," when the journey finished and Isaac met his bride. Note that he did not receive her sitting in state in his father's tent. He had gone out to meet her.

The servant was sent to find a bride for Isaac, and we read that at eventide Isaac was meditating in the field. The blessed Lord is waiting; He is waiting patiently in the evening of this present age... The test for this woman is whether she is ready to follow the servant's leading. The test for us is whether we are ready for the Holy Spirit to take up our affections with Christ alone.

Perhaps thoughts of getting a wife were the main subject of his meditation. Even so, it is a faint picture of something greater: the Lord Jesus Himself will come to meet His bride, the church, as she nears the end of her journey on earth... We too will be glad to be veiled, as it were, when we meet our Lord. We will want Him to be the real Object of attraction.

Not only did Isaac 'lift up his eyes' (v.63), but so did Rebecca (v.64). And when she did, 'she saw Isaac' — the one she had longed to meet, the one for whom she answered the call and made the journey. This is the hope of the church, to see the Lord Jesus face to face: 'For we shall see him as he is' (1 John 3:2)... Rebecca sees Isaac and knows that the journey is over. She gets down from the camel and covers herself with her veil, showing that she keeps her beauty for him alone.

When at last Rebekah lifted up her eyes and saw Isaac, she got down from the camel, for the journey was over. And when at last we see Him face to face, our journey will be over. It will not be long. The night is far gone; the day is at hand. When the moment comes, our being taken up will not take long — only the twinkling of an eye, and we shall be there.

Many have pointed out that the account tells the journey across the desert, however long it really took, as though it all happened within one day. Verse 54 speaks of "the morning," when the journey started. Verse 63 mentions "the evening," when the journey finished and Isaac met his bride. It is worth noting that he did not receive her while sitting in grand style in his father's tent. He received her as one who had gone out to meet her.

But the time is not long. Soon the bride sees a man walking in the fields, and her guide tells her that it is his master. Before he gave his account of everything, this faithful servant's last act was to say, "It is my master." What joy it will be to the Spirit of God — not only to have told us of Christ all our journey here, but before long to say to us, "This is He."

Are we as simple in faith, as prompt and unlagging? Our journey is nearly over now, and the cry has already gone out, "Behold the Bridegroom!" — for those to whom the Interpreter-Spirit has spoken. Should there not be something in us that answers to this beautiful action of Rebekah's, when "she dismounted from the camel" and "took her veil and covered herself"? It is He whose glory Isaiah saw, and before whom the seraphim cover themselves. He calls us to a place near Him, and the intimacy is already ours, if we enjoy it. Both will show themselves only in deeper and more self-abasing reverence.

Yes, the Bridegroom is coming! and the Spirit crying, Come out to meet Him. It is good to work for Him; it is far better to wait for Him... We need this hope in a world that lures on one side and destroys on the other, so that we purify ourselves as He is pure... Nothing can make up for this hope if it is lacking or even feeble.

Notice how he received her. He was not seated in state in his father's tent; he had gone out to meet her. The servant recognised the lonely man in the field, deep in thought, as his master. He passed that knowledge on to the bride, and she then veiled herself, so that, hidden from other eyes, she might be presented to him.

All the varied beauties that mark the saints of God are for the eye of Christ alone. The moment we do anything to attract the eye of man, the true character and beauty of the spiritual life are gone. When Rebekah saw Isaac she veiled herself — a very precious sign that she was to be for Isaac alone. The church ought always to have worn her veil. She should have kept herself for Christ alone, instead of displaying herself before the world that has refused and rejected her Lord.

Our journey is nearly over, and the cry has already gone out, "Behold, the bridegroom!" For those to whom the Spirit, our Interpreter, has spoken, should there not be something in us that answers to this beautiful action of Rebekah's? She got down from the camel, took a veil and covered herself. It is He whose glory Isaiah saw, before whom the seraphim cover themselves. We are called to a place near Him, and the intimacy is already ours, if we enjoy it. Both will only show themselves in deeper and more self-abasing reverence.

Second, we see the man uncovered and the woman covered. This tells us of the difference between them, understood spiritually. As we read here, "For man was not made from woman, but woman from man." These two things are true not only of Adam and Eve, but of Christ and the church. So in the assembly the woman is to carry the sign of subjection, the covered head, and the man is to appear without it, picturing "Christ and the church."

Isaac going out into the field, and the camels coming to him, is a faint picture of what will happen: the Lord Jesus Himself will come to meet His bride, the church, as she nears the end of her journey on earth. Of course the servant had to tell Rebekah who Isaac was, and then she covered herself with a veil (v. 65). She had no wish to display her beauty at that first moment. We too shall be glad to be, as it were, veiled when we meet our Lord, for we shall want Him to be the real Object of attraction.

After the meeting, Rebekah took a veil and covered herself. The bride made herself ready and the marriage followed, for "Isaac took Rebekah … and she became his wife, and he loved her." So too, our wilderness journey will end, and the great meeting will come. For the first time we shall see Him face to face, and He will receive us to Himself. Then we read, "the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His Bride has made herself ready."

Eliezer set all his thoughts on carrying out the divine errand, and he could not rest until he had told Isaac all the things that he had done.

Next comes complete and exclusive devotion to the service he had to perform. He would not eat until he had told his errand, and then there was no hesitation: he has one work and nothing else. If only it were so with all who are Christ's!

In the scene before us Eliezer conducts Rebekah to her bridegroom. So also the Holy Spirit conducts us to the end and the goal. What Rebekah first sees is Isaac; and Isaac takes his bride into his mother's tent. Now that she has the bridegroom, she takes no thought for anything else. She thinks no longer of the possessions, but of the bridegroom Himself. The important business was to bring the bride to the bridegroom.

We see the most reverent love in her beautiful behaviour. And in his love and kindness we see the promises and testimonies of Eliezer fulfilled... This may be like the Holy Spirit delivering up His sacred charge to the Son of the Father, though He will dwell in the church for ever.

This is just how the Holy Spirit is pleased to form our renewed souls. He forms them with the love of Christ, and with the grace of His life and His death. He forms them with the glory that was His from eternity as a divine Person, and with His present exaltation as the risen Man and Head to the church over all things. He forms them with His coming appearing in glory, when He will make good His title and put all things under Him, having abolished all rule and all authority and power. Yet He never changes in that purpose, or in the nearness of love He has for His bride.

Our Bridegroom has no need, as Isaac had, to hear what the servant had to tell. Yet no one can doubt this: in the communion of the Holy Spirit He takes every interest in her whom He loved as His own for heaven.

At the end of the church's pilgrimage the heavenly Bridegroom will come out into the air to meet her. He will then bring her into His Father's house... At the end of the journey the Bridegroom will be everything, and the present mission of the Holy Spirit will reach its perfect end.

Eliezer is a well-known type of the Holy Spirit "sent from heaven" on this gracious mission. He knows the mind of the father. He is in constant communication with God. He moves without hurry, straight to the point, and with dignity. He calls, wins, and adorns the bride. He carries and guards her through the wilderness until she is safely home. Then he hands her to the bridegroom, who goes out to meet her.

The last verse of our chapter tells us that in gaining his bride Isaac forgot the sorrow caused by his mother's death. Sarah here is a type of Israel, out of whom Christ came as to the flesh. Right now Israel stands disowned as a nation. But the Spirit has filled that gap, and more than filled it, by calling out the church.

Sarah's tent is, in type, for the bride on earth — Israel regathered. The Father's house is for the bride in heaven — the church — and for the friends of the Bridegroom.

In Genesis 22 you have the story of the Father's love to the Son. Note that this is the first time Scripture mentions love. The next time we find it, it is the love of the Bridegroom for the bride (chapter 24). He loves her, and she comforts him. That is just what you would expect in Scripture: first the love of the Father for the Son, then the love of the Bridegroom for the bride, who comforts him. Yes, love is always personal, and mutual.

Rebekah pictures the church in two main outward ways. She came out from among the Gentiles to be Isaac's bride, after his resurrection in figure. She entered Sarah's tent after Sarah's death. But the main moral point is that she believed without seeing… The mark that sets the church apart is this: faith in a message from her absent suitor wins her to betrothal. And so she receives the highest blessing and the closest affection.

After the meeting Rebekah took a veil and covered herself. The bride made herself ready and the marriage followed… So too, our wilderness journey will end. Then comes the great meeting, when for the first time we see Him face to face and He receives us to Himself. Then we read, "the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready." Christ will present the church to Himself all glorious, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing — "holy and without blemish." Then it will be clear that Christ has found an object suited to His love, and responsive to His love, and He will be satisfied.