Genesis 24:52 - Printer Friendly

ESV: When Abraham’s servant heard their words, he bowed himself to the earth before the LORD.

NIV: When Abraham's servant heard what they said, he bowed down to the ground before the LORD.

NASB: When Abraham’s servant heard their words, he bowed himself to the ground before the Lord.

CSB: When Abraham's servant heard their words, he bowed to the ground before the Lord.

NLT: When Abraham’s servant heard their answer, he bowed down to the ground and worshiped the Lord.

KJV: And it came to pass, that, when Abraham's servant heard their words, he worshipped the LORD, bowing himself to the earth.

NKJV: And it came to pass, when Abraham’s servant heard their words, that he worshiped the Lord, bowing himself to the earth.

Abraham's servant again demonstrates his trust in the Lord, the God of Abraham. His mission to find a wife for Isaac among Abraham's relatives has been successful well beyond what he likely imagined. Within the space of a few hours, he has gone from asking the Lord to lead him to the woman appointed for Isaac (Genesis 24:12–15) to securing an agreement from Rebekah's family to allow her to travel with him back to Canaan for the marriage (Genesis 24:51).

The servant has acted in complete dependence on the Lord and now responds again by bowing before God in praise and worship for the success of his master's mission.

In a way, the servant's relationship with God comes very close to our own. Rarely do Christians experience the kind of visits from the Lord that Adam, Noah, and Abraham did. Most often, we bring to Him our requests, speaking to Him in our hearts (Genesis 24:45), and we take on faith that the circumstances that unfold include His direction to go one way or another. In looking back, we accept that the Lord has been leading us along the way to accomplish His will, especially as we have been in submission to Him.

That's certainly how Abraham's servant viewed his own interactions with the Lord.

Genesis 24:28–59 describes how Abraham's servant, confident he has found God's intended woman for Abraham's son, approaches Rebekah's family to ask for her hand in marriage to Isaac. After being welcomed into their household, the servant tells, in great detail, the story of how God has lead him to Rebekah and their home. Rebekah's father and brother quickly agree that they must allow this marriage to happen. After a bit of negotiation the next morning about when Rebekah will travel to Canaan, Rebekah agrees to leave that very day.

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.