Genesis 24:63
ESV
And Isaac went out to meditate in the field toward evening. And he lifted up his eyes and saw, and behold, there were camels coming.
NIV
He went out to the field one evening to meditate, and as he looked up, he saw camels approaching.
NASB
Isaac went out to meditate in the field toward evening; and he raised his eyes and looked, and behold, camels were coming.
CSB
In the early evening Isaac went out to walk in the field, and looking up he saw camels coming.
NLT
One evening as he was walking and meditating in the fields, he looked up and saw the camels coming.
KJV
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.
NKJV
And Isaac went out to meditate in the field in the evening; and he lifted his eyes and looked, and there, the camels were coming.
What does Genesis 24:63 mean?
Isaac, 40, is now living in the Negeb region (Genesis 25:20). He surely knows that Abraham's servant has been sent to find him a wife from among his father's extended family (Genesis 24:3–4). On this evening, he goes out to meditate in a field. Scholars are not exactly sure what is meant by the word translated as "to meditate" here. The term is related to thoughtfulness and communication, but is only used here in the Bible. Was some form of meditation a regular discipline of Isaac's or was he just thinking through some things on his mind? We don't really know. The English term "meditate" is used to translate other Hebrew words used in a positive sense elsewhere in Scripture (Psalm 1:2; Joshua 1:8), and is not the same as the modern concept espoused by eastern philosophies such as Buddhism.In any case, Isaac looks up and sees the train of camels coming toward him. This is his first glimpse of Rebekah.
