Rebekah
Rebekah was the granddaughter of Nahor and Milcah, daughter of Bethuel, sister of Laban, wife of Isaac, daughter-in-law of Abraham and Sarah, and mother of Jacob and Esau. Through her son Jacob, who God renamed Israel, she is an ancestor of all of The Tribes Of Israel, including Judah (see The Chosen People) - therefore also an ancestor of Jesus Christ.
Although firmly settled in the land that we know today as Israel, Abraham wished for his son Isaac to marry among his own people, so he sent his chief servant back to Ur (see The Tigris-Euphrates Valley) to find him a wife
(Genesis 24:1-9).
1And Abraham was old, and well stricken in age: and the LORD had blessed Abraham in all things.
2And Abraham said unto his eldest servant of his house, that ruled over all that he had, Put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh:
3And I will make thee swear by the LORD, the God of heaven, and the God of the earth, that thou shalt not take a wife unto my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell:
4But thou shalt go unto my country, and to my kindred, and take a wife unto my son Isaac.
5And the servant said unto him, Peradventure the woman will not be willing to follow me unto this land: must I needs bring thy son again unto the land from whence thou camest?
6And Abraham said unto him, Beware thou that thou bring not my son thither again.
7The LORD God of heaven, which took me from my father's house, and from the land of my kindred, and which spake unto me, and that sware unto me, saying, Unto thy seed will I give this land; he shall send his angel before thee, and thou shalt take a wife unto my son from thence.
8And if the woman will not be willing to follow thee, then thou shalt be clear from this my oath: only bring not my son thither again.
9And the servant put his hand under the thigh of Abraham his master, and sware to him concerning that matter.
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Once there, the servant, no doubt with God's help, immediately found Rebekah, who agreed to return with the servant
(Genesis 24:10-65).
10And the servant took ten camels of the camels of his master, and departed; for all the goods of his master were in his hand: and he arose, and went to Mesopotamia, unto the city of Nahor.
11And 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.
12And he said O LORD God of my master Abraham, I pray thee, send me good speed this day, and shew kindness unto my master Abraham.
13Behold, I stand here by the well of water; and the daughters of the men of the city come out to draw water:
14And let it come to pass, that the damsel to whom I shall say, Let down thy pitcher, I pray thee, that I may drink; and she shall say, Drink, and I will give thy camels drink also: let the same be she that thou hast appointed for thy servant Isaac; and thereby shall I know that thou hast shewed kindness unto my master.
15And it came to pass, before he had done speaking, that, behold, Rebekah came out, who was born to Bethuel, son of Milcah, the wife of Nahor, Abraham's brother, with her pitcher upon her shoulder.
16And the damsel was very fair to look upon, a virgin, neither had any man known her: and she went down to the well, and filled her pitcher, and came up.
17And the servant ran to meet her, and said, Let me, I pray thee, drink a little water of thy pitcher.
18And she said, Drink, my lord: and she hasted, and let down her pitcher upon her hand, and gave him drink.
19And when she had done giving him drink, she said, I will draw water for thy camels also, until they have done drinking.
20And she hasted, and emptied her pitcher into the trough, and ran again unto the well to draw water, and drew for all his camels.
21And the man wondering at her held his peace, to wit whether the LORD had made his journey prosperous or not.
22And it came to pass, as the camels had done drinking, that the man took a golden earring of half a shekel weight, and two bracelets for her hands of ten shekels weight of gold;
23And said, Whose daughter art thou? tell me, I pray thee: is there room in thy father's house for us to lodge in?
24And she said unto him, I am the daughter of Bethuel the son of Milcah, which she bare unto Nahor.
25She said moreover unto him, We have both straw and provender enough, and room to lodge in.
26And the man bowed down his head, and worshipped the LORD.
27And he said, Blessed be the LORD God of my master Abraham, who hath not left destitute my master of his mercy and his truth: I being in the way, the LORD led me to the house of my master's brethren.
28And the damsel ran, and told them of her mother's house these things.
29And Rebekah had a brother, and his name was Laban: and Laban ran out unto the man, unto the well.
30And it came to pass, when he saw the earring and bracelets upon his sister's hands, and when he heard the words of Rebekah his sister, saying, Thus spake the man unto me; that he came unto the man; and, behold, he stood by the camels at the well.
31And he said, Come in, thou blessed of the LORD; wherefore standest thou without? for I have prepared the house, and room for the camels.
32And the man came into the house: and he ungirded his camels, and gave straw and provender for the camels, and water to wash his feet, and the men's feet that were with him.
33And there was set meat before him to eat: but he said, I will not eat, until I have told mine errand. And he said, Speak on.
34And he said, I am Abraham's servant.
35And the LORD hath blessed my master greatly; and he is become great: and he hath given him flocks, and herds, and silver, and gold, and menservants, and maidservants, and camels, and asses.
36And Sarah my master's wife bare a son to my master when she was old: and unto him hath he given all that he hath.
37And my master made me swear, saying, Thou shalt not take a wife to my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, in whose land I dwell:
38But thou shalt go unto my father's house, and to my kindred, and take a wife unto my son.
39And I said unto my master, Peradventure the woman will not follow me.
40And he said unto me, The LORD, before whom I walk, will send his angel with thee, and prosper thy way; and thou shalt take a wife for my son of my kindred, and of my father's house:
41Then shalt thou be clear from this my oath, when thou comest to my kindred; and if they give not thee one, thou shalt be clear from my oath.
42And I came this day unto the well, and said, O LORD God of my master Abraham, if now thou do prosper my way which I go:
43Behold, I stand by the well of water; and it shall come to pass, that when the virgin cometh forth to draw water, and I say to her, Give me, I pray thee, a little water of thy pitcher to drink;
44And she say to me, Both drink thou, and I will also draw for thy camels: let the same be the woman whom the LORD hath appointed out for my master's son.
45And before I had done speaking in mine heart, behold, Rebekah came forth with her pitcher on her shoulder; and she went down unto the well, and drew water: and I said unto her, Let me drink, I pray thee.
46And she made haste, and let down her pitcher from her shoulder, and said, Drink, and I will give thy camels drink also: so I drank, and she made the camels drink also.
47And I asked her, and said, Whose daughter art thou? And she said, the daughter of Bethuel, Nahor's son, whom Milcah bare unto him: and I put the earring upon her face, and the bracelets upon her hands.
48And I bowed down my head, and worshipped the LORD, and blessed the LORD God of my master Abraham, which had led me in the right way to take my master's brother's daughter unto his son.
49And now if ye will deal kindly and truly with my master, tell me: and if not, tell me; that I may turn to the right hand, or to the left.
50Then Laban and Bethuel answered and said, The thing proceedeth from the LORD: we cannot speak unto thee bad or good.
51Behold, Rebekah is before thee, take her, and go, and let her be thy master's son's wife, as the LORD hath spoken.
52And it came to pass, that, when Abraham's servant heard their words, he worshipped the LORD, bowing himself to the earth.
53And the servant brought forth jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment, and gave them to Rebekah: he gave also to her brother and to her mother precious things.
54And they did eat and drink, he and the men that were with him, and tarried all night; and they rose up in the morning, and he said, Send me away unto my master.
55And her brother and her mother said, Let the damsel abide with us a few days, at the least ten; after that she shall go.
56And he said unto them, Hinder me not, seeing the LORD hath prospered my way; send me away that I may go to my master.
57And they said, We will call the damsel, and enquire at her mouth.
58And they called Rebekah, and said unto her, Wilt thou go with this man? And she said, I will go.
59And they sent away Rebekah their sister, and her nurse, and Abraham's servant, and his men.
60And they blessed Rebekah, and said unto her, Thou art our sister, be thou the mother of thousands of millions, and let thy seed possess the gate of those which hate them.
61And Rebekah arose, and her damsels, and they rode upon the camels, and followed the man: and the servant took Rebekah, and went his way.
62And Isaac came from the way of the well Lahairoi; for he dwelt in the south country.
63And 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.
64And Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Isaac, she lighted off the camel.
65For she had said unto the servant, What man is this that walketh in the field to meet us? And the servant had said, It is my master: therefore she took a vail, and covered herself.
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Rebekah didn't simply leave to go live with complete strangers. She was the granddaughter of Abraham's brother , and therefore Isaac's second-cousin
(Genesis 24:48)
48And I bowed down my head, and worshipped the LORD, and blessed the LORD God of my master Abraham, which had led me in the right way to take my master's brother's daughter unto his son.
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They were married soon after her arrival in Israel
(Genesis 24:67)
67And 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.
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Isaac was then 40 years old
(Genesis 25:20),
20And Isaac was forty years old when he took Rebekah to wife, the daughter of Bethuel the Syrian of Padanaram, the sister to Laban the Syrian.
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Rebekah was much younger, perhaps late-teens or early twenties
(Genesis 24:16)
16And the damsel was very fair to look upon, a virgin, neither had any man known her: and she went down to the well, and filled her pitcher, and came up.
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Eventually the marriage produced two children - twin boys, Jacob and Esau. They were fraternal, not identical, twins - they were very different in appearance
(Genesis 27:11)
11And Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, Behold, Esau my brother is a hairy man, and I am a smooth man:
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, and personality
(Genesis 25:27)
27And the boys grew: and Esau was a cunning hunter, a man of the field; and Jacob was a plain man, dwelling in tents.
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. As with Isaac and his brother Ishmael, the conflict and competition between Jacob and Esau lasted their entire lives. There was no love between them. Part of it may have been due to blatant favoritism on the part of the parents as they were growing up - "Isaac ... loved Esau, but Rebekah loved Jacob."
(Genesis 25:28)
28And Isaac loved Esau, because he did eat of his venison: but Rebekah loved Jacob.
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When the time came for the then-elderly Isaac to give his blessing (in effect, a passing of family leadership) to his oldest son, which happened to be Esau (by a few minutes), Rebekah devised a plan to have Jacob get the blessing instead. Jacob had already bought Esau's birthright for that now-famous bowl of stew
(Genesis 25:27-34)
27And the boys grew: and Esau was a cunning hunter, a man of the field; and Jacob was a plain man, dwelling in tents.
28And Isaac loved Esau, because he did eat of his venison: but Rebekah loved Jacob.
29And Jacob sod pottage: and Esau came from the field, and he was faint:
30And Esau said to Jacob, Feed me, I pray thee, with that same red pottage; for I am faint: therefore was his name called Edom.
31And Jacob said, Sell me this day thy birthright.
32And Esau said, Behold, I am at the point to die: and what profit shall this birthright do to me?
33And Jacob said, Swear to me this day; and he sware unto him: and he sold his birthright unto Jacob.
34Then Jacob gave Esau bread and pottage of lentiles; and he did eat and drink, and rose up, and went his way: thus Esau despised his birthright.
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While Esau was out hunting for the wild game that Isaac had asked for before giving his blessing, Rebekah had Jacob disguise himself as Esau, to get the blessing from his nearly-blind father. The scheme worked - Jacob then had both the birthright, and the blessing
(Genesis 27:1-29)
1And it came to pass, that when Isaac was old, and his eyes were dim, so that he could not see, he called Esau his eldest son, and said unto him, My son: and he said unto him, Behold, here am I.
2And he said, Behold now, I am old, I know not the day of my death:
3Now therefore take, I pray thee, thy weapons, thy quiver and thy bow, and go out to the field, and take me some venison;
4And make me savoury meat, such as I love, and bring it to me, that I may eat; that my soul may bless thee before I die.
5And Rebekah heard when Isaac spake to Esau his son. And Esau went to the field to hunt for venison, and to bring it.
6And Rebekah spake unto Jacob her son, saying, Behold, I heard thy father speak unto Esau thy brother, saying,
7Bring me venison, and make me savoury meat, that I may eat, and bless thee before the LORD before my death.
8Now therefore, my son, obey my voice according to that which I command thee.
9Go now to the flock, and fetch me from thence two good kids of the goats; and I will make them savoury meat for thy father, such as he loveth:
10And thou shalt bring it to thy father, that he may eat, and that he may bless thee before his death.
11And Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, Behold, Esau my brother is a hairy man, and I am a smooth man:
12My father peradventure will feel me, and I shall seem to him as a deceiver; and I shall bring a curse upon me, and not a blessing.
13And his mother said unto him, Upon me be thy curse, my son: only obey my voice, and go fetch me them.
14And he went, and fetched, and brought them to his mother: and his mother made savoury meat, such as his father loved.
15And Rebekah took goodly raiment of her eldest son Esau, which were with her in the house, and put them upon Jacob her younger son:
16And she put the skins of the kids of the goats upon his hands, and upon the smooth of his neck:
17And she gave the savoury meat and the bread, which she had prepared, into the hand of her son Jacob.
18And he came unto his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I; who art thou, my son?
19And Jacob said unto his father, I am Esau thy first born; I have done according as thou badest me: arise, I pray thee, sit and eat of my venison, that thy soul may bless me.
20And Isaac said unto his son, How is it that thou hast found it so quickly, my son? And he said, Because the LORD thy God brought it to me.
21And Isaac said unto Jacob, Come near, I pray thee, that I may feel thee, my son, whether thou be my very son Esau or not.
22And Jacob went near unto Isaac his father; and he felt him, and said, The voice is Jacob's voice, but the hands are the hands of Esau.
23And he discerned him not, because his hands were hairy, as his brother Esau's hands: so he blessed him.
24And he said, Art thou my very son Esau? And he said, I am.
25And he said, Bring it near to me, and I will eat of my son's venison, that my soul may bless thee. And he brought it near to him, and he did eat: and he brought him wine and he drank.
26And his father Isaac said unto him, Come near now, and kiss me, my son.
27And he came near, and kissed him: and he smelled the smell of his raiment, and blessed him, and said, See, the smell of my son is as the smell of a field which the LORD hath blessed:
28Therefore God give thee of the dew of heaven, and the fatness of the earth, and plenty of corn and wine:
29Let people serve thee, and nations bow down to thee: be lord over thy brethren, and let thy mother's sons bow down to thee: cursed be every one that curseth thee, and blessed be he that blesseth thee.
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When Esau returned from the hunting trip, what Rebekah and Jacob had done was discovered. Isaac and Esau were outraged, but it was too late. Even though it had been obtained by an unintended recipient through deception, the blessing could be not given twice
(Genesis 27:30-40).
30And it came to pass, as soon as Isaac had made an end of blessing Jacob, and Jacob was yet scarce gone out from the presence of Isaac his father, that Esau his brother came in from his hunting.
31And he also had made savoury meat, and brought it unto his father, and said unto his father, Let my father arise, and eat of his son's venison, that thy soul may bless me.
32And Isaac his father said unto him, Who art thou? And he said, I am thy son, thy firstborn Esau.
33And Isaac trembled very exceedingly, and said, Who? where is he that hath taken venison, and brought it me, and I have eaten of all before thou camest, and have blessed him? yea, and he shall be blessed.
34And when Esau heard the words of his father, he cried with a great and exceeding bitter cry, and said unto his father, Bless me, even me also, O my father.
35And he said, Thy brother came with subtilty, and hath taken away thy blessing.
36And he said, Is not he rightly named Jacob? for he hath supplanted me these two times: he took away my birthright; and, behold, now he hath taken away my blessing. And he said, Hast thou not reserved a blessing for me?
37And Isaac answered and said unto Esau, Behold, I have made him thy lord, and all his brethren have I given to him for servants; and with corn and wine have I sustained him: and what shall I do now unto thee, my son?
38And Esau said unto his father, Hast thou but one blessing, my father? bless me, even me also, O my father. And Esau lifted up his voice, and wept.
39And Isaac his father answered and said unto him, Behold, thy dwelling shall be the fatness of the earth, and of the dew of heaven from above;
40And by thy sword shalt thou live, and shalt serve thy brother; and it shall come to pass when thou shalt have the dominion, that thou shalt break his yoke from off thy neck.
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Isaac apparently was willing to let the matter stand, but Esau had something else in mind. He planned to murder his brother Jacob, perhaps out of sheer rage, or maybe as a way to recover the blessing and birthright which would then pass back to him. Rebekah however heard about what Esau was planning, and sent Jacob back to live with her brother Laban
(Genesis 27:41-45)
41And Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing wherewith his father blessed him: and Esau said in his heart, The days of mourning for my father are at hand; then will I slay my brother Jacob.
42And these words of Esau her elder son were told to Rebekah: and she sent and called Jacob her younger son, and said unto him, Behold, thy brother Esau, as touching thee, doth comfort himself, purposing to kill thee.
43Now therefore, my son, obey my voice; arise, flee thou to Laban my brother to Haran;
44And tarry with him a few days, until thy brother's fury turn away;
45Until thy brother's anger turn away from thee, and he forget that which thou hast done to him: then I will send, and fetch thee from thence: why should I be deprived also of you both in one day?
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. It was while on that journey that Jacob had his Stairway To Heaven dream - what Rebekah and Jacob had done was actually God's will.
Rebekah had hoped that Jacob's living far away would only last until Esau's fury subsided
(Genesis 27:44)
44And tarry with him a few days, until thy brother's fury turn away;
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, but it was the last she ever saw of him - she died before his return many years later.
Rebekah was buried in Hebron in a family tomb where Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Jacob and Leah were all buried. Today, the place is known as the Tomb of The Patriarchs.
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