Genesis 24:15 — meaning, Hebrew and Greek word study, commentary
Genesis 24:15
And it came to pass, before he had done speaking, that, behold, Rebekah came out, who was born to Bethuel, son of Milcah, the wife of Nahor, Abraham’s brother, with her pitcher upon her shoulder.
to go (causatively · verb, qal active participle, feminine singular construct
who
אֲשֶׁ֤ר'a.Sher
H834
who · relative particle
born
יֻלְּדָה֙yu.le.Dah
H3205
to bear young · verb, pual perfect, 3rd person feminine singular
Bethuel
לִבְתוּאֵ֣לliv.tu.'El
H1328
Bethuel · preposition + proper noun, a man's name
son
בֶּןben-
H1121
a son (as a builder of the family name) · noun, common masculine singular construct
Milcah
מִלְכָּ֔הmil.Kah
H4435
Milcah · proper noun, a woman's name
wife
אֵ֥שֶׁת'E.shet
H802
a woman · noun, common feminine singular construct
Nahor
נָח֖וֹרna.Chor
H5152
Nochor · proper noun, a man's name
Abraham’s
אַבְרָהָ֑ם'av.ra.Ham
H85
Abraham · proper noun, a man's name
brother
אֲחִ֣י'a.Chi
H251
a brother (used in the widest sense of literal relation… · noun, common masculine singular construct
pitcher
וְכַדָּ֖הּve.kha.Dah
H3537
properly · conjunction + noun, common feminine singular construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person feminine singular
shoulder
שִׁכְמָֽהּshikh.Mah
H7926
the neck (between the shoulders) as the place of burdens · noun, common masculine singular construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person feminine singular
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
Genesis 11:29 And Abram and Nahor took them wives: the name of Abram’s wife was Sarai; and the name of Nahor’s wife, Milcah, the daughter of Haran, the fa…
Genesis 24:45 And before I had done speaking in mine heart, behold, Rebekah came forth with her pitcher on her shoulder; and she went down unto the well,…
Isaiah 65:24 And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear.
Psalms 65:2 O thou that hearest prayer, unto thee shall all flesh come.
Daniel 9:20-23 And whiles I was speaking, and praying, and confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my supplication before the LOR…
Genesis 22:20-23 And it came to pass after these things, that it was told Abraham, saying, Behold, Milcah, she hath also born children unto thy brother Nahor…
Exodus 2:16 Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters: and they came and drew water, and filled the troughs to water their father’s flock.
Psalms 34:15 The eyes of the LORD are upon the righteous, and his ears are open unto their cry.
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Genesis 24:10-28
Abraham's servant now begins to make a figure in this story; and, though he is not named, yet much is here recorded to his honour, and for an example to all servants, who shall be honoured if, by faithfully serving God and their masters, they adorn the doctrine of Christ (compare Pro 27:18 with Tit 2:10); for there is no respect of persons with God, Col 3:24, Col 3:25. A good servant that makes conscience of the duty of his place, and does it in the fear of God, though he make not a figure in the world nor have praise of men, yet shall be owned and accepted of God and have praise of him. Observe here,
I. How faithful Abraham's servant approved himself to his master. Having received his charg…
before he had done speaking . . . behold, Rebekah came out--As he anticipated, a young woman unveiled, as in pastoral regions, appeared with her pitcher on her shoulder. Her comely appearance, her affable manners, her obliging courtesy in going down the steps to fetch water not only to him but to pour it into the trough for his camels, afforded him the most agreeable surprise. She was the very person his imagination had pictured, and he proceeded to reward her civility.
Adam Clarke on Genesis 24:15
Behold, Rebekah came out - How admirably had the providence of God adapted every circumstance to the necessity of the case, and so as in the most punctual manner to answer the prayer which his servant had offered up!
John Gill on Genesis 24:15
And it came to pass, before he had done speaking,.... In his heart, Genesis 24:45; for his prayer was mental; while the last words were dropping from him, that very moment, as the Targum of Jonathan; so soon were his prayers heard and answered, Isaiah 65:24,
that behold Rebekah came out; out of Haran, the city of Nahor:
who was born to Bethuel, son of Milcah, the wife of Nahor, Abraham's brother; a daughter of Bethuel, which Bethuel was the eighth and last son of Milcah, and who was the daughter of Haran and the wife of Nahor, both brothers to Abraham: this is the genealogy of Rebekah, and for the sake of her is the account of Nahor's family given, Genesis 22:20,
with her pitcher upon her…
The Church Fathers
Now, dearly beloved, let us briefly see, as far as we can, what these facts mean. When blessed Abraham directed his servant to take a wife for his son, he portrayed an image of God the Father. Just as when he offered the boy as a burnt offering, he then presented an image of God the Father, so also his servant signified the words of prophecy. For this reason Abraham sent his servant into a distant land to take a wife for his son, because God the Father intended to send his prophetic word throughout the world to search for the Catholic church as a spouse for his only-begotten Son. Just as through Abraham's servant a bride is brought for blessed Isaac, so by his prophetic word the church of the Gentiles is invited to Christ the true bridegroom from distant lands. But where is found that spouse who was to be joined to Christ? Where, unless near the water? It is true, dearly beloved: If the church had not come to the waters of baptism, it would not have been joined to Christ. For this reason Rebekah found Abraham's servant at the well, and the church finds Christ at the sacrament of baptism.
But perhaps you say: if the servant bears the figure of the prophetic word, how is he given drink by Rebekah, whom he himself ought rather to give drink to? Consider, then, whether perhaps, just as the Lord Jesus also — although he himself is the "bread of life" and himself feeds hungering souls — himself again confesses that he hungers, when he says, "I hungered, and you gave me to eat," and again, although he himself is "living water" and gives drink to all who thirst, himself again says to the Samaritan woman, "Give me to drink" — so also the prophetic word, although it itself gives drink to those who thirst, is nevertheless itself said to be given drink by these, when it receives the exercises and vigils of the diligent. This soul, then, such a one, which does all things patiently, which is so ready and supported by such great learning, which has been accustomed to draw the streams of knowledge from the depths — this soul can be united in the marriage of Christ. Unless, therefore, you come daily to the wells, unless you daily draw waters, not only will you be unable to give others to drink, but you yourself also will suffer "thirst for the word of God." Hear the Lord too saying in the Gospels: "Let him who thirsts come and drink." But you, as I see, "neither hunger nor thirst for righteousness"; and how will you be able to say: "As the deer longs for the fountains of waters, so my soul longs for you, O God. My soul has thirsted for the living God; when shall I come and appear before his face?"
Dictionary and topics
Abraham — Father of a multitude, son of Terah, named (Gen. 11:27) before his older brothers Nahor and Haran, because he was the heir of the promises. Till the age of seventy, Abram sojourned among his kindred…
Bethuel — Man of God, or virgin of God, or house of God. (1.) The son of Nahor by Milcah; nephew of Abraham, and father of Rebekah (Gen. 22:22, 23; 24:15, 24, 47). He appears in person only once (24:50). (2.)…
Eliezer — God his help. (1.) “Of Damascus,” the “steward” (R.V., “possessor”) of Abraham’s house (Gen. 15:2, 3). It was probably he who headed the embassy sent by Abraham to the old home of his family in…
Gate — (1.) Of cities, as of Jerusalem (Jer. 37:13; Neh. 1:3; 2:3; 3:3), of Sodom (Gen. 19:1), of Gaza (Judg. 16:3). (2.) Of royal palaces (Neh. 2:8). (3.) Of the temple of Solomon (1 Kings 6:34, 35; 2…
Hivites — One of the original tribes scattered over Palestine, from Hermon to Gibeon in the south. The name is interpreted as “midlanders” or “villagers” (Gen. 10:17; 1 Chr. 1:15). They were probably a branch…
Isaac — Laughter. (1) Israel, or the kingdom of the ten tribes (Amos 7:9, 16). (2.) The only son of Abraham by Sarah. He was the longest lived of the three patriarchs (Gen. 21:1-3). He was circumcised when…
Laban — White. (1.) The son of Bethuel, who was the son of Nahor, Abraham’s brother. He lived at Haran in Mesopotamia. His sister Rebekah was Isaac’s wife (Gen. 24). Jacob, one of the sons of this marriage,…
Mesopotamia — The country between the two rivers (Heb. Aram-naharaim; i.e., “Syria of the two rivers”), the name given by the Greeks and Romans to the region between the Euphrates and the Tigris (Gen. 24:10; Deut.…
Milcah — (queen or counsel).
Pitcher — A vessel for containing liquids. In the East pitchers were usually carried on the head or shoulders (Gen. 24:15-20; Judg. 7:16, 19; Mark 14:13).
Before he had done speaking. The sequel sufficiently demonstrates that his wish had not been foolishly conceived. For the quickness of the answer manifests the extraordinary indulgence of God, who does not suffer the man to be long harassed with anxiety. Rebekah had, indeed, left her house before he began to pray; but it must be maintained that the Lord, at whose disposal are both the moments of time and the ways of man, had so ordered it on both sides as to give clear manifestation of his Providence. For sometimes he keeps us the longer in suspense, till, wearied with praying, we may seem to have lost our labor; but in this affair, in order that his blessing might not seem doubtful, he sudd…
The servant then went, with ten camels and things of every description belonging to his master, into Mesopotamia to the city of Nahor, i.e., Haran, where Nahor dwelt (Gen 11:31, and Gen 12:4). On his arrival there, he made the camels kneel down, or rest, without the city by the well, "at the time of evening, the time at which the women come out to draw water," and at which, now as then, women and girls are in the habit of fetching the water required for the house (vid., Robinson's Palestine ii. 368ff.). He then prayed to Jehovah, the God of Abraham, "Let there come to meet me to-day," sc., the person desired, the object of my mission. He then fixed upon a sign connected with the custom of th…
"Rebekah," it says, "was coming with the daughters of the city to draw water from the well." Rebekah came daily to the wells, daily she drew water. And because she was daily free to be at the wells, therefore she could be found by Abraham's servant and joined in marriage to Isaac. Do you suppose these are fables, and that the Holy Spirit is narrating mere histories in the Scriptures? This is the instruction of souls and spiritual teaching, which trains you and teaches you to come daily to the wells of the Scriptures, to the waters of the Holy Spirit, and always to draw and carry home a full vessel, just as holy Rebekah also did, who could not otherwise have been joined to so great a Patriarch as Isaac, who "was born of promise," except by drawing waters, and by drawing them in such abundance that she could give drink not only to those who were at home, but also to Abraham's servant — and not only to the servant, but that she abounded so far in the waters she drew from the wells that she could also water the camels, "until," it says, "they left off drinking." All the things that are written are mysteries: Christ too wishes to betroth you to himself; for he speaks to you through the prophets, saying: "I will betroth you to myself forever, and I will betroth you to myself in faith and in mercy, and you shall know the Lord." Because, therefore, he wishes to betroth you to himself, he sends this servant ahead to you. This servant is the prophetic word, which, unless you first receive it, you will not be able to be wedded to Christ. Know, however, that no one untrained and unskilled receives the prophetic word, but only one who knows how to draw water from the depth of the well and who knows how to draw it in such abundance that it suffices even for those who seem irrational and perverse, whose figure the camels bear — so that he too may be able to say that "I am a debtor to the wise and to the unwise." Indeed, this servant had thus spoken in his heart: "of these virgins," he says, "who come to the water, whichever shall say to me, 'Drink, and I will water your camels,' she it is who shall be the bride of my lord." So then Rebekah, whose name means patience, when she saw the servant and beheld the prophetic word, "lets down" the "water-jar" from her shoulder. For she lets down the lofty arrogance of Greek eloquence, and, inclining herself to the humble and simple…
The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).
— Is converse with God; the intercourse of the soul with God, not in contemplation or meditation, but in direct address to him. Prayer may be oral or mental, occasional or constant, ejaculatory or…
Rebekah — A noose, the daughter of Bethuel, and the wife of Isaac (Gen. 22:23; 24:67). The circumstances under which Abraham’s “steward” found her at the “city of Nahor,” in Padan-aram, are narrated in Gen.…
Well — (Heb. beer), to be distinguished from a fountain (Heb. ‘ain). A “beer” was a deep shaft, bored far under the rocky surface by the art of man, which contained water which percolated through the strata…
Woman — Was “taken out of man” (Gen. 2:23), and therefore the man has the preeminence. “The head of the woman is the man;” but yet honour is to be shown to the wife, “as unto the weaker vessel” (1 Cor. 11:3,…
Bethuel · General references — General references
Incest · General references — General references
Laban · Brother of Rebekah — Brother of Rebekah
Milcah · 1. The wife of Nahor and the mother of Bethuel — 1. The wife of Nahor and the mother of Bethuel
Servants · Good — Exemplified: Eliezer — Good — Exemplified: Eliezer
Symbols And Similitudes · Offering water to drink — Offering water to drink
Woman · Often engaged in: Drawing and carrying water — Often engaged in: Drawing and carrying water
Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).
