Genesis 24:50

In this part of Genesis chapter 24, Abraham’s servant had just finished telling Rebekah’s family the purpose of his visit. He was sent by Abraham to find a wife for Isaac. He had prayed to the Lord and the Lord had guided him to this point. The Bible says in Genesis 24:50-56 “Then Laban and Bethuel answered and said, The thing proceedeth from the LORD: we cannot speak unto thee bad or good. Behold, Rebekah is before thee, take her, and go, and let her be thy master's son's wife, as the LORD hath spoken. And it came to pass, that, when Abraham's servant heard their words, he worshipped the LORD, bowing himself to the earth. And the servant brought forth jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment, and gave them to Rebekah: he gave also to her brother and to her mother precious things. And they did eat and drink, he and the men that were with him, and tarried all night; and they rose up in the morning, and he said, Send me away unto my master. And her brother and her mother said, Let the damsel abide with us a few days, at the least ten; after that she shall go. And he said unto them, Hinder me not, seeing the LORD hath prospered my way; send me away that I may go to my master.”

Abraham had received wisdom from God. Abraham knew that it would not be a good thing for Isaac to have a wife from the people of Canaan. In order to get a believing wife, Abraham sent his servant back to Abraham’s roots in Nahor. Abraham’s servant knew that this was a great responsibility that could only be properly fulfilled if he were led by the hand of the Lord. Abraham’s servant prayed to the Lord and the Lord brought Rebekah to him. Initially it sounded like Rebekah’s family approved of her leaving to become Isaac’s wife. They said to Abraham’s servant in Genesis 24:50-51, “The thing proceedeth from the LORD: we cannot speak unto thee bad or good. Behold, Rebekah is before thee, take her, and go, and let her be thy master's son's wife, as the LORD hath spoken.” But just because they initially approved does not mean that they would carry through with it. There are many people who say that they will do something, but who start back-tracking and do not complete what they once said. God keeps His Word, but often man does not keep his word.

Evidently Rebekah’s family had second-thoughts about letting her go. Her brother and her mother said in Genesis 24:55, “Let the damsel abide with us a few days, at the least ten; after that she shall go.” Obviously, Abraham’s servant realized that once Rebekah’s family started these delay tactics, that he might never get her back to Isaac. And therefore, Abraham’s servant insisted that there be no delay, and that a final decision be made one way or the other. He said in Genesis 24:56, “Hinder me not, seeing the LORD hath prospered my way; send me away that I may go to my master.”

It is interesting to notice what took place in Genesis 24:57-58. Rebekah was given the choice. It says, “And they said, we will call the damsel, and inquire at her mouth. And they called Rebekah, and said unto her, Wilt thou go with this man? And she said, I will go.” Of course, this is written in the book of Genesis about people who lived thousands of years ago. The young woman was allowed to make her own choice concerning whom she would marry. This choice was not done secretly or in isolation from her family members, but it did come down to her choice. Since marriage is one of the most important decisions of life, any marriage should primarily take place because of the decision being made by the two people who must make the marriage vow. If they have a good family, they should listen carefully to the advice of the family members, but ultimately it should be their decision. Cultures have done great harm where marriage has been decided upon by other than those being married.

Why did Rebekah make the decision that she made to go ahead and marry Isaac? The primary factor had to do with the Lord. Abraham’s servant had mentioned the Lord, and prayers to the Lord, and the leading of the Lord in telling the purpose of his visit. Rebekah heard these things. Evidently, her heart was also set upon doing the will of the Lord. The Lord leads those who trust in Him, even in the matter of marriage. The best thing that any young person can do to find the person to marry, is to be sensitive to the leading of the Lord. Follow the Lord and He will let you know. The Lord leads us to things that are practical and that make sense. He does not lead us to do stupid things that end up with us destitute and in trouble from a practical standpoint. Remember that Abraham’s servant in Genesis 24:22 had given Rebekah a golden earing and two golden bracelets. He also told Rebekah’s family in Genesis 24:35, “And the Lord hath blessed my master greatly; and he is become great: and he hath given him flocks, and herds, and silver, and gold, and menservants, and maidservants, and camels, and asses.” And then after telling his story to Rebekah’s family, more gifts were given. It says in Genesis 24:53, “And the servant brought forth jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment, and gave them to Rebekah: he gave also to her brother and to her mother precious things.” In our day and age a young Christian woman would do well to consider the current practical situation as well as the future possibilities for any young man that might be interested in her.

The Bible says in Genesis 24:59-67, “And they sent away Rebekah their sister, and her nurse, and Abraham's servant, and his men. And they blessed Rebekah, and said unto her, Thou art our sister, be thou the mother of thousands of millions, and let thy seed possess the gate of those which hate them. And Rebekah arose, and her damsels, and they rode upon the camels, and followed the man: and the servant took Rebekah, and went his way. And Isaac came from the way of the well Lahai-roi; for he dwelt in the south country. And Isaac went out to meditate in the field at the eventide: and he lifted up his eyes, and saw, and, behold, the camels were coming. And Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Isaac, she lighted off the camel. For she had said unto the servant, What man is this that walketh in the field to meet us? And the servant had said, It is my master: therefore she took a vail, and covered herself. And the servant told Isaac all things that he had done. And Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah's tent, and took Rebekah, and she became his wife; and he loved her: and Isaac was comforted after his mother's death.” An important phrase to take note of in this passage of scripture is found in verse 67 that says about Isaac’s attitude toward Rebekah, “And he loved her.” This is a marriage that was made in heaven. Of course, Isaac loved Rebekah. God had brought them together. There is always love when God brings two people together in marriage, because God is love. True love comes from God. That is one of the reasons that it is so important that a person be led by the Lord in finding the person to marry. Abraham was led of the Lord. Abraham’s servant was led of the Lord. And Rebekah’s and Isaac’s hearts were touched by the Lord. The result was love: love in marriage.

Notice how the marriage of Isaac and Rebekah is described in Genesis chapter 24:67, “And Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah's tent, and took Rebekah, and she became his wife; and he loved her: and Isaac was comforted after his mother's death.” Their marriage started once they lived together. True marriage takes place when a man and a woman are brought together by God and they live together, sharing the difficulties and the blessings of life. God’s purpose in designing marriage is that the man and the woman would be together. Having a legal marriage document is important based upon the society in which you live, but such a document did not exist thousands of years ago. When God created the first woman, the Bible says in Genesis 2:18, “And the Lord God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make an help meet for him.” It also says in Genesis 2:24, “Therefore shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.” Physically, and spiritually, and emotionally the man and woman are joined to each other. It is of course, the most intimate of all human relationships and should be the longest-lasting on this earth. In the ideal life the relationship with the parents should be a preparation for entering into an even closer relationship with the spouse. Of course, we live in the last days. People have gone crazy in a sense. There is iniquity on every hand. Too many people are not prepared for marriage when they reach adulthood. They are not prepared to be a joined to a spouse, and the spouse that they have chosen may not be ready either. It is sad that more people have not followed the plan of the Bible for finding a spouse. If only they prayed more earnestly for the leading of the Lord. If they had loving parents, they should have listened more closely to their advice before making a decision. A Christian must always choose a spouse who is a spiritual person who loves Jesus and wishes to serve Him. If every believer had followed the example of Rebekah and Isaac before getting married, more marriages would manifest the same characteristics that only God can give: love.

The Bible says in Genesis 25:1-10, “Then again Abraham took a wife, and her name was Keturah. And she bare him Zimran, and Jokshan, and Medan, and Midian, and Ishbak, and Shuah. And Jokshan begat Sheba, and Dedan. And the sons of Dedan were Asshurim, and Letushim, and Leummim. And the sons of Midian; Ephah, and Epher, and Hanoch, and Abida, and Eldaah. All these were the children of Keturah. And Abraham gave all that he had unto Isaac. But unto the sons of the concubines, which Abraham had, Abraham gave gifts, and sent them away from Isaac his son, while he yet lived, eastward, unto the east country. And these are the days of the years of Abraham's life which he lived, an hundred threescore and fifteen years. Then Abraham gave up the ghost, and died in a good old age, an old man, and full of years; and was gathered to his people. And his sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him in the cave of Machpelah, in the field of Ephron the son of Zohar the Hittite, which is before Mamre; The field which Abraham purchased of the sons of Heth: there was Abraham buried, and Sarah his wife.” God was faithful to His promise to Abraham. God promised to bless Abraham, and God blessed him in all things that Abraham did. We see this taking place when Abraham married again after the death of Sarah. Many children and many grandchildren resulted from this marriage.

The people of the Old Testament considered children to be among the greatest of blessings. For example, it says in Psalm 122: 3-5, “Lo, children are an heritage of the LORD: and the fruit of the womb is his reward. As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are children of the youth. Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them: they shall not be ashamed, but they shall speak with the enemies in the gate.” By the time that we get to the New Testament things started to change. Think closely about what Jesus said in Luke 21:23, “But woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck, in those days! for there shall be great distress in the land, and wrath upon this people.” Jesus said that there will come a time when those who are pregnant will have “woe.” That is not a blessing. That is a warning. In a very similar context the Apostle Paul wrote in First Corinthians 7:24-26, ”Brethren, let every man, wherein he is called, therein abide with God. Now concerning virgins I have no commandment of the Lord: yet I give my judgment, as one that hath obtained mercy of the Lord to be faithful. I suppose therefore that this is good for the present distress, I say, that it is good for a man so to be.”

The warning from Jesus and from the Holy Spirit through the Apostle Paul makes it very clear that there will be times of trouble when it is better not to have children and better not to even be married. Of course, it is not forbidden to do so; but those who do are likely to have more troubles than those who do not. This is true concerning the times of “distress” that both Jesus and Paul mentioned. Perhaps the day in which we live is one of these times of distress when there is so much worldliness and wickedness all around us. May the Lord Jesus give us wisdom and grace to overcome these terrible things that will befall some in their marriages and with their children.

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