Genesis 24:11 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And he made the camels kneel down outside the city by the well of water at the time of evening, the time when women go out to draw water.

NIV: He had the camels kneel down near the well outside the town; it was toward evening, the time the women go out to draw water.

NASB: He made the camels kneel down outside the city by the well of water when it was evening, the time when women go out to draw water.

CSB: At evening, the time when women went out to draw water, he made the camels kneel beside a well outside the town.

NLT: He made the camels kneel beside a well just outside the town. It was evening, and the women were coming out to draw water.

KJV: And he made his camels to kneel down without the city by a well of water at the time of the evening, even the time that women go out to draw water.

NKJV: And he made his camels kneel down outside the city by a well of water at evening time, the time when women go out to draw water.

Abraham's servant is on a mission to find a wife for Abraham's son, Isaac. He has been sent to find the family which Abraham left behind in Mesopotamia. The servant is not named, though some believe this is Eliezer, mentioned earlier as Abraham's prospective heir (Genesis 15:2).

Having arrived at his destination in the evening, Abraham's servant needed to water the camels. He makes them kneel down by the town well outside the city. It was the time women would typically come to the well to draw water for their families. Abraham's servant is likely tired from his journey, but he has a specific plan in mind to find the right woman for his master's son (Genesis 24:12).

Genesis 24:10–27 follows Abraham's servant from Canaan to Mesopotamia on his mission to find a wife for Isaac from among Abraham's people. Arriving at the town of Nahor, the servant prays that God will reveal the right woman by allowing her to be the one to offer to water his ten camels without being asked. A young woman named Rebekah immediate does exactly that. When the servant learns this young woman is also the granddaughter of Abraham's brother Nahor, he quickly worships God for bringing him to the right woman in so little time.

Abraham asks his most trusted servant to travel to his former homeland to find a wife for his son Isaac. Swearing to do so, the servant arrives at the city of Nahor and asks the Lord to show him which young women is appointed for Isaac. Finding Rebekah, the very granddaughter of Abraham's brother Nahor, the servant reveals the reason for his journey to her family. Her father Bethuel and brother Laban agree to allow Rebekah to travel to Canaan and marry Isaac, which she does.

Genesis 24 takes place a few years after Sarah has died. Abraham becomes urgent to find Isaac a wife, not among the women of Canaan, but from his own people back in Mesopotamia. His trusted servant, sent to accomplish this mission with the help of the Lord, eventually returns with Rebekah, the granddaughter of Abraham's own brother. Isaac is married to her at the age of 40. Abraham's death is recorded in the following chapter.

The book of Genesis establishes fundamental truths about God. Among these are His role as the Creator, His holiness, His hatred of sin, His love for mankind, and His willingness to provide for our redemption. We learn not only where mankind has come from, but why the world is in its present form. The book also presents the establishment of Israel, God's chosen people. Many of the principles given in other parts of Scripture depend on the basic ideas presented here in the book of Genesis. Within the framework of the Bible, Genesis explains the bare-bones history of the universe leading up to the captivity of Israel in Egypt, setting the stage for the book of Exodus.

Accessed 5/1/2024 8:58:15 AM