PROMISE-KEEPING GOD
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Opening Prayer
Loving Father, wherever I go today, whatever I do, make me aware of your presence and ready to do your will.
Read GENESIS 24:1—28
For additional translations of the passage, use this link to Bible Gateway.
Genesis
Genesis 24
1 Abraham was now old and well advanced in years, and the LORD had blessed him in every way.
2 He said to the chief servant in his household, the one in charge of all that he had, “Put your hand under my thigh.
3 I want you to swear by the LORD, the God of heaven and the God of earth, that you will not get a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I am living,
4 but will go to my country and my own relatives and get a wife for my son Isaac.”
5 The servant asked him, “What if the woman is unwilling to come back with me to this land? Shall I then take your son back to the country you came from?”
6 “Make sure that you do not take my son back there,” Abraham said.
7 “The LORD, the God of heaven, who brought me out of my father’s household and my native land and who spoke to me and promised me on oath, saying, ‘To your offspring I will give this land’-he will send his angel before you so that you can get a wife for my son from there.
8 If the woman is unwilling to come back with you, then you will be released from this oath of mine. Only do not take my son back there.”
9 So the servant put his hand under the thigh of his master Abraham and swore an oath to him concerning this matter.
10 Then the servant took ten of his master’s camels and left, taking with him all kinds of good things from his master. He set out for Aram Naharaim and made his way to the town of Nahor.
11 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.
12 Then he prayed, “O LORD, God of my master Abraham, give me success today, and show kindness to my master Abraham.
13 See, I am standing beside this spring, and the daughters of the townspeople are coming out to draw water.
14 May it be that when I say to a girl, ‘Please let down your jar that I may have a drink,’ and she says, ‘Drink, and I’ll water your camels too’-let her be the one you have chosen for your servant Isaac. By this I will know that you have shown kindness to my master.”
15 Before he had finished praying, Rebekah came out with her jar on her shoulder. She was the daughter of Bethuel son of Milcah, who was the wife of Abraham’s brother Nahor.
16 The girl was very beautiful, a virgin; no man had ever lain with her. She went down to the spring, filled her jar and came up again.
17 The servant hurried to meet her and said, “Please give me a little water from your jar.”
18 “Drink, my lord,” she said, and quickly lowered the jar to her hands and gave him a drink.
19 After she had given him a drink, she said, “I’ll draw water for your camels too, until they have finished drinking.”
20 So she quickly emptied her jar into the trough, ran back to the well to draw more water, and drew enough for all his camels.
21 Without saying a word, the man watched her closely to learn whether or not the LORD had made his journey successful.
22 When the camels had finished drinking, the man took out a gold nose ring weighing a beka and two gold bracelets weighing ten shekels.
23 Then he asked, “Whose daughter are you? Please tell me, is there room in your father’s house for us to spend the night?”
24 She answered him, “I am the daughter of Bethuel, the son that Milcah bore to Nahor.”
25 And she added, “We have plenty of straw and fodder, as well as room for you to spend the night.”
26 Then the man bowed down and worshiped the LORD,
27 saying, “Praise be to the LORD, the God of my master Abraham, who has not abandoned his kindness and faithfulness to my master. As for me, the LORD has led me on the journey to the house of my master’s relatives.”
28 The girl ran and told her mother’s household about these things.
Reflect
As you look back over your life, thank God for his provision and his faithfulness.Abraham wants his son to marry within the family—a common practice at the time, ensuring liaisons with pagan neighbors were avoided. The faithful servant who responds to Abraham’s request reaches his destination and locates the well in the evening, a place and time where he is likely to find local young women fetching water. We are told that God sent an angel before him to prepare the way (v. 7). The servant also asks God for success (just as Nehemiah would do in Nehemiah 1:11).
Notice how God honors the very specific requests in the servant’s prayer (vv. 14—20) and provides for Abraham’s family yet again. It transpires that Rebekah is the daughter of Isaac’s cousin—no coincidence there! What a generous and loving God we serve (Matthew 7:11; Ephesians 3:20, 21)!
As we seek God’s guidance for our lives, we can learn from this story. Bearing in mind God’s covenant promise, Abraham worked out a plan for his son’s marriage (vv. 3, 4). His shrewd servant was specific in his prayer (v. 14) and considered the outcome carefully before proceeding (v. 21). When we take steps of faith, we can ask God to give us success. We need to use our judgment and act (Isaiah 30:21). God won’t let us down. We can trust him.
Apply
Might there be a situation where you have asked God for direction but now need the courage to step out in faith?
Closing prayer
Thank you, Lord, that where I lack wisdom, I can come to you, knowing you will guide me in the decisions I need to make and that I can trust you for the outcome.
Book and Author Intros
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