Genesis 24

God blesses in all things

1 And Abraham was old and far gone in age: and the LORD had blessed Abraham in all things. 2 And Abraham said to his slave, the oldest in his house, the one that ruled over all that he had, Please put your hand under my thigh: 3 And I will make you swear by the LORD, the God of the heavens, and the God of the earth, that you will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell: 4 But you will go to my country, to my relatives, and take a wife for my son, for Isaac.

• 2 Corinthians 6:14 Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship does righteousness have with unrighteousness? And what communion does light have with darkness?

• Psalm 96:5 For all the gods of the nations are idols: but the LORD made the heavens.

5 And the servant said to him, What if the woman is not willing to follow me to this land: must I take your son back again to the land where you came from? 6 And Abraham said to him, Beware that you do not take my son back there. 7 The LORD God of heaven who took me from my father's house and from the land of my relatives and who spoke to me and swore to me saying, To your seed I will give this land; he will send his angel before you, and you will take a wife for my son from there. 8 And if the woman is not willing to follow you, then you will be clear from my oath: only do not take my son back there.

• The Lord sends His angel before us. We are not to go back into our old life, to sin, to self, to our old idols, or to our flesh to live.

• Galatians 5:1 Stand fast therefore in the liberty with which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with the yoke of bondage.

• Psalm 37:5 Commit your way unto the LORD; trust also in him; he will bring it to pass.

9 And the servant put his hand under the thigh of Abraham his master and swore to him concerning that matter. 10 And the servant took ten camels from the camels of his master and left; for all the goods of his master were in his hand: and he arose and went to Mesopotamia to the city of Nahor. 11 And he made his camels kneel down outside the city by a well of water at the time of the evening, the time that women go out to draw water. 12 And he said, O LORD God of my master Abraham, Please let me meet her this day and show kindness to my master Abraham.13 Behold, I am standing here by the well of water; and the daughters of the men of the city come out to draw water: 14 Let it happen that the maiden to whom I say, Please let down your pitcher so that I may drink; and she says, Drink, and I will give your camels water also: let her be the one that you have designed for your servant Isaac; by this I will know that you have shown kindness to my master.15 And it happened before he finished speaking that, behold, Rebekah came out, who was born to Bethuel, son of Milcah, the wife of Nahor, Abraham's brother, with her pitcher on her shoulder. 16 And the girl was very beautiful to look upon, a virgin, no man had known her: and she went down to the well and filled her pitcher and came up. 17 And the servant ran to meet her and said, Please let me sip a little water from your pitcher. 18 And she said, Drink, my lord: and she hurried and let down her pitcher on her hand and gave him a drink. 19 And when she finished giving him a drink she said, I will draw water for your camels also until they are done drinking.

• Isaiah 65:24 And it will come to pass that before they call, I will answer; and while they are still speaking, I will hear.

He has not forsaken His love

20 And she hurried and emptied her pitcher into the trough and ran again to the well to draw water and drew for all his camels. 21 And the man watched her and kept silent in order to know whether the LORD had made his journey prosperous or not. 22 And it happened as the camels finished drinking that the man took a golden earring weighing half a shekel and two bracelets for her hands weighing ten shekels of gold; 23 And said, Whose daughter are you? Please tell me: is there room in your father's house for us to lodge? 24 And she said to him, I am the daughter of Bethuel, the son of Milcah, which she bore to Nahor. 25 And she said to him, Both straw and feed are plentiful with us and also a room pass the night. 26 And the man bowed down his head and worshipped the LORD. 27 And he said, Blessed be the LORD God of my master Abraham, who has not forsaken his love and truth to my master Abraham: I being in the way, the LORD led me to the house of my master's brother.

• Psalm 48:14 For this God is our God forever and ever: he will be our guide even unto death.

He sends His angel before us and prospers our way

28 And the girl ran and told those of her mother's house these things. 29 And Rebekah had a brother whose name was Laban: and Laban ran out to the man, to the fountain. 30 And it happened when he saw the earring and bracelets on his sister's hands, and when he heard the words of Rebekah his sister, saying, The man said this to me, that he came to the man; and behold, he stood by the camels at the fountain. 31 And he said, Come in you blessed of the LORD; why do you stand outside? For I have prepared the house and room for the camels. 32 And the man came into the house: he unloaded his camels, gave straw and provender for the camels, and water to wash his feet, and the men's feet that were with him. 33 But when food was set before him to eat he said, I will not eat until I have told my errand. And he said, Speak. 34 And he said, I am Abraham's servant. 35 And the LORD has greatly blessed my master; and he is become great: and he has given him flocks, herds, silver, gold, menservants, maidservants, camels, and asses. 36 And Sarah my master's wife bore a son to my master when she was old: and he has given to him all that he has. 37 And my master made me swear saying, You will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, in whose land I dwell: 38 But you will go to my father's house and to my relatives and take a wife for my son. 39 And I said to my master, What if the woman will not follow me. 40 And he said to me, The LORD, before whom I walk, will send his angel with you and prosper your way; and you will take a wife for my son from my relative and from my father's house: 41 You will be clear from this my oath when you come to my relatives if they do not give you one, you will be clear from my oath.

• Abraham had faith that God would prosper the trip and provide the chosen wife for Isaac.

• John 3:35 The Father loves the Son, and has given all things into his hand.

42 And I came this day to the well and said, O LORD God of my master Abraham, if now you prosper my way that I go: 43 Behold, I stand by the well of water; and it will come to pass, that when the virgin comes out to draw water and I say to her, Please give me a little water from your pitcher to drink; 44 And she says to me, Both you drink and I will also draw for your camels: let that one be the woman whom the LORD has designed for my master's son. 45 And before I had finished speaking in my heart, behold, Rebekah came out with her pitcher on her shoulder; and she went down to the well, and drew water:and I said to her, Please let me drink. 46 And she hurried and let down her pitcher from her shoulder and said, Drink, and I will give your camels water also: so I drank, and she watered the camels also. 47 And I asked her and said, Whose daughter are you? And she said, The daughter of Bethuel, Nahor's son, whom Milcah bore to him: and I put the earring on her face and the bracelets on her hands.

He leads us in the right way

48 And I bowed down my head and worshipped the LORD and blessed the LORD God of my master Abraham who had led me in the right way to take my master's brother's daughter to his son. 49 Now tell me if you will deal kindly and truly with my master: and if not, tell me so that I may turn to the right hand or to the left. 50 Then Laban and Bethuel answered and said, The thing comes from the LORD: we cannot speak to you bad or good. 51 Behold Rebekah is before you, take her and go; let her be your master's son's wife as the LORD has spoken.

• Bethuel was Rebekah’s father.

52 And when Abraham's servant heard their words he worshipped the LORD, bowing himself to the earth. 53 And the servant brought out articles of silver, jewels of gold, and clothing, and gave them to Rebekah: he also gave precious things to her brother and to her mother. 54 And they ate and drank, he and the men that were with him, and stayed all night; and they rose up in the morning, and he said, Send me away to my master. 55 And her brother and her mother said, Let the girl stay with us days/a year, at the least ten (months); after that she will go. 56 And he said to them, Do not hinder me, since the LORD has prospered my way; send me away so that I may go to my master.

• The faithful servant was not distracted by anything.

• Proverbs 22:29 Do you see a man diligent in his business? He will stand before kings; he will not stand before obscure men.

57 And they said, We will call the girl and ask her. 58 And they called Rebekah and said to her, Will you go with this man? And she said, I will go. 59 And they sent away Rebekah their sister, her nurse, Abraham's servant, and his men. 60 And they blessed Rebekah and said to her, You are our sister, be the mother of thousands of millions, and let your seed possess the gate of those who hate them.

• Rebekah’s family spoke a blessing over her before she left them.
• God brought this blessing to pass for she is mother of the Jacob/Israel, through whom God made the nation Israel that God will rule through forever; she is the great-great etc grandmother of the Savior of all (Colossians 1:20).

61 And Rebekah arose with her maids and they rode on the camels and followed the man: and the servant took Rebekah and went his way. 62 And Isaac came from the way of the well Lahai-roi; for he lived in the south country. 63 And Isaac went out to meditate/pray in the field at the evening: and he lifted up his eyes and looked and saw the camels were coming.

• This well was named by Hagar in Genesis 16:13.
• Meditating in God’s word is the only lasting secret to prosperity.
• The word ‘meditate’ means to chew the cud. Like a cow keeps bringing up the grass she ate earlier and chewing on it, so we meditate on the green pastures of God’s word, bringing the things we’ve read to mind and thinking about them.

• Psalm 1:1-3 Blessed is the man that does not walk in the counsel of the ungodly or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of the scornful. 2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law he meditates day and night. 3 He will be like a tree planted by the rivers of water that brings forth fruit in its season; his leaf will not wither; and whatever he does will prosper. (See also Joshua 1:8).

64 And Rebekah raised her eyes and when she saw Isaac, she dismounted from camel. 65 For she had said to the servant, What man is this that walks in the field to meet us? And the servant had said, It is my master: so she took a veil and covered herself. 66 And the servant told Isaac all things that he had done. 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.

• Genesis 2:18 And the LORD God said, It is not good for the man to be alone; I will make him a helper fitting him.

• Matthew 22:2 The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king, who made a marriage for his son,

• Revelation 21:9 Come here, I will show you the bride, the Lamb's wife.

                                             Genesis 25

1 Then Abraham added a wife. Her name was Keturah. 2 And she bore him Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak, and Shuah. 3 Jokshan begot Sheba and Dedan. And the sons of Dedan were Asshurim, Letushim, and Leummim. 4 And the sons of Midian were Ephah, Epher, Hanoch, Abidah, and Eldaah. All these were the children of Keturah. 5 Now Abraham gave all that was his to Isaac. 6 But Abraham gave gifts to the sons of the concubines that Abraham had; and while he was still living he sent them eastward, away from Isaac his son, to an eastern land.

• Abraham did this so that Isaac would have peace after Abraham’s death instead of having to fight the half brothers for his life and property.
• All the kings of Israel, plus many Arab nations are descendants of Abraham. In addition, the eternal King of Kings came from God fulfilling this promise to Abraham.

• Revelation 21:7 He who overcomes will inherit all things. I will be his God and he will be my son.

7 This is the sum of the years of Abraham's life that he lived: one hundred and seventy-five years. 8 Then Abraham breathed his last and died in a good old age, an old man full of years, and was gathered to his people. 9 And his sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him in the cave of Machpelah which is before Mamre, in the field of Ephron the son of Zohar the Hittite, 10 the field that Abraham purchased from the sons of Heth. There Abraham was buried, and Sarah his wife.

• God desires to bless and satisfy with long life (Psalm 91:16).

11 And it happened, after the death of Abraham, that God blessed his son Isaac. And Isaac lived by the well of the Living One, my Beholder/my One who sees me.

• John 4:14 but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life. Jesus
   

12 Now this is the genealogy of Ishmael, Abraham's son, whom Hagar the Egyptian, Sarah's maidservant, bore to Abraham. 13 And these were the names of the sons of Ishmael, by their names, according to their generations: The firstborn of Ishmael, Nebajoth; then Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam, 14 Mishma, Dumah, Massa, 15 Hadar, Tema, Jetur, Naphish, and Kedemah. 16 These were the sons of Ishmael and these were their names, by their towns and their settlements, twelve princes according to their nations.

• This scripture records God’s fulfillment of three promises: Genesis 17:4 (I will make you a father of many nations)  Genesis 16:10-11, and Genesis 17:20.

17 These were the years of the life of Ishmael: one hundred and thirty-seven years; and he breathed his last and died and was gathered to his people. 18 (They dwelt from Havilah as far as Shur, which is east of Egypt as you go toward Assyria.) He died in the presence of all his brothers.

• The phrase 'gahtered to his people' shows us that Ishmael became a believer in the God who would die to save him. People who die without believing go into the Lake of Fire.
   

The Lord hears and gives conception

19 This is the genealogy of Isaac, Abraham's son. Abraham begot Isaac. 20 Isaac was forty years old when he took Rebekah as wife, the daughter of Bethuel the Syrian/Aramean of Padan Aram, the sister of Laban the Syrian. 21 Now Isaac pleaded with the LORD for his wife because she was barren; and the LORD granted his plea and Rebekah his wife conceived. 22 But the children struggled together within her; and she said, If all is well, why am I like this? So she went to inquire of the LORD. 23 And the LORD said to her: Two nations are in your womb, two peoples will be separated from your body; one people will be stronger than the other, and the older will serve the younger.

• God answers our questions and tells us the future

24 So when her days were fulfilled for her to give birth, indeed there were twins in her womb. 25 And the first came out red. He was like a hairy garment all over; so they called his name Esau. 26 Afterward his brother came out, and his hand took hold of Esau's heel; so his name was called Jacob. Isaac was sixty years old when she bore them. 27 So the boys grew. And Esau was a skillful hunter, a man of the field; but Jacob was a mild man, dwelling in tents. 28 And Isaac loved Esau because he ate of his game, but Rebekah loved Jacob.29 Now Jacob cooked a stew; and Esau came in from the field and he was faint. 30 And Esau said to Jacob, Please feed me with that same red stew for I am faint. This is the reason his name was called Edom/red. 31 But Jacob said, Sell me your birthright today. 32 And Esau said, Look, I am about to die; what good is this birthright to me? 33 Then Jacob said, Swear to me this day. So he swore to him, and sold his birthright to Jacob. 34 And Jacob gave Esau bread and stew of lentils; then he ate and drank and got up and left. And Esau despised the birthright.

• Esau sold his birthright by direct purchase for a bowl of beans.

• Hebrews 12:16…so that there is not any fornicator, or profane person like Esau, who sold his birthright for one morsel of food sold.

• 1 Samuel 2:30… those that honor me I will honor, and those that despise me will be lightly esteemed.

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SUMMARY: Genesis 24-25

• God blesses us in all things
• He has not forsaken His love
• He sends His angel before us and prospers our way
• He leads us in a right way
• God calls forth the generations
• He hears our prayers
• He gives conception