The courtship, by proxy, of Rebekah is our first fascinating love story of the Bible. There are several lessons within this narrative which many sisters could do well to take to heart. Rebekah was a very fine woman, and her personal character is clearly brought out in the Scripture so that we have no doubt at all that this young woman was chosen for her good qualities and her suitability to the position whom she served. God chooses out the servants who are to serve Him in special ways, and women are no exception.
Abraham was most anxious that his son Isaac have a suitable wife. This can be readily understood when we consider the promises that God had made to Abraham—”If a man can number the dust of the earth, then shall thy seed also be numbered”, was one of them ; and after Abraham’s greatest test of faith, when he did not withhold his only son from sacrifice — “in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore ; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies ; and in thy seed shall all families of the earth be blessed ; because thou has obeyed my voice.” With so much responsibility put upon him, it was most imperative that a woman of the same kind as he and his household be found for his son. When we read the story, there is no doubt in our minds that these kin-folks of Abraham were of the same faith. They believed in God, and were obedient to His commands. Though other parts of Abraham’s family had been idolatrous, he obviously knew of the faithful ones, and it is to them that he sent his most trusted servant.
Actually, there was nothing out of the ordinary in choosing a wife for his son. This was quite often done in the Eastern countries of that time ; indeed, it is still done today in some parts of the world. But the point which is emphasized, and which is meant for us to see, is that the wife for Isaac must be of the same faith. Marriage is a serious thing indeed, and Abraham took is so. He considered it of such importance that, rather than send Isaac to attend to the matter (and at forty years of age, we would think he was capable of sensible choice?) he made his servant swear an oath to him that he would fulfill his wishes concerning the getting of a wife for his son, and then sent him about two hundred miles away into another country, where he knew his brother Bethuel to be.
The faith of Abraham was such that even his servant had the same love of God and trust in the working out of the plan of God. With this serious charge weighing heavily upon him, he prayed that God might show him, by a sign that He was with him. The events which followed happened so miraculously, and in such exact order as he had requested of God, that the man was stricken with wonder. As he approached into the region where he hoped to find his master’s people, he saw a maid, with a pitcher on her shoulder, coming toward the well nearby where he stood. Rebekah was beautiful to look upon, with the fine dark eyes and pleasing countenance of a good Hebrew woman. As is quite often the case, the character of the woman was evident, and almost with trepidation, the servant asked her for a drink. Immediately, she courteously gave from her pitcher and offered to serve the camels also. This was the “sign” which the wondering servant was seeking! After questioning her, and being reassured that she was of Bethuel’s family, the brother of Abraham, the servant “bowed down his head and worshiped the Lord”. Explaining who he was, and after giving her an earring and bracelets, she fetched her brother Laban, who after hearing the story, (it certainly would be a strange happening for all of them !) brought this man to his father’s house. Again, the servant explains who he is, and tells them of his mission and of how he prayed to God for the right woman to be shown him, and how it had all miraculously taken place.
Abraham’s faith was accounted to him for righteousness ; how well we can see that God rewarded Abraham’s faith in this undertaking.
The big moment came for Rebekah when the servant asked that she accompany him back to his master at once. This was most unusual, as most girls approaching marriage, would have a period of preparation in which to get clothing ready: assembly of the dowry, and time for some of the family to accompany her. But the servant. knowing the age of Abraham and that it was urgent to have her in the household as soon as possible, urged that she go immediately. So when the question was put to Rebekah, do we see a fluttery maiden, objecting to being rushed, and that she had so much to do etc. ? Nothing of the kind, for the brave young woman simply said three small words : “I will go”. What a vivid portrayal of character is given to us in those simple words ! Rebekah understood that much was dependent upon her, and she did not shirk her responsibility. Her faith was so strong that she had no fear for what the future had for her.
There is a striking resemblance in this confident action taken by Rebekah to another day, thousands of years later. Could it be that she has been given to us as a type of the Bride of Christ, who, when she is called upon by an angelic messenger to, “Come, the Master calleth for thee”, will look up and with all the joy of fulfilled desire answer, “I will come” ? Surely, here is a real likeness in this ancient event portrayed for us in the Scriptures.
The journey for Rebekah and her maid would be long, tedious, and filled with anxiety, no doubt. Having never seen Isaac, it would only be a natural thing for Rebekah to wonder what he was like, and what sort of a life lay ahead for her. The calm manner in which she behaved when she sighted Isaac in the field, as they approached at evening time, again shows the calm spirit and strength of the young women. Instinctively, she sensed that this man was to be her husband, so she hurriedly covered herself as was proper for woman to do at that time. What a strange way of doing things, we say. Yet, these two people were so brought up that they never questioned their elders’ way of ordering things — it was the Law that mother and father be obeyed.
It is also clearly shown that they were both faithful to God in all their actions. It was the man’s responsibility to carry on the future generation through marriage — the right marriage — and it was the woman’s purpose in life to be given to a husband and to bear sons. There could be no question about it. “And Isaac loved Rebekah” we are told ; a simple statement of fact. She filled all his desires in a wife — she was beautiful, dutiful, and a God-fearing woman. What more could any man ask for?
We are shown that Rebekah continued to be a God-fearing woman. For after she had conceived, and in time become puzzled regarding the small tumult going in within her womb, she made an occasion to seek God in prayer and to ask of her Heavenly Father what it meant? She, “asked of the Lord” and her questions were answered. She was told that strange things were to happen to those twins which she was to bear. That each should become the head of a great nation, and that the elder son would be servant to the younger.
What startling, and puzzling words they must have been to her ; and like other women who were to follow after her, she no doubt “pondered them in her heart”. From the moment of their birth, Rebekah’s twin sons were unusual. As God had told her, “the elder shall serve the younger”, so at birth, the hand of the younger child came forth grasping the heel of the eldest child. From small boys they showed a vast difference in their dispositions. Esau was an out-door boy ; Jacob was more inclined to stay at home. And contrary to the gospel of modern-day psychologists, Isaac and Rebekah played favorites! Isaac loved his rough, tough, out-of-door hunter son Esau, while Rebekah favored Jacob,
When Esau was forty years old, he gave his mother and father great “bitterness of spirit” because he married two Hittite women. This would mean, also, that these two women would be within the family household, as the custom of those times was for the families to live together as long as the father and mother were living. Rebekah would remain the “first lady” of the house, so-to-speak, and we can well imagine what it would do to her righteous, Hebrew, way of life to have the two daughters-in-law of foreign ways living with them! We can sympathize with her as she speaks to her husband later, requesting him to send Jacob away : “I am weary of my life because of the daughters of Heth”.
To encourage her son Jacob to deceive his father is taken in varying light — she knew what God had said would happen between the two sons, and that God intended Jacob to receive the first-born blessing. She loved her husband, and as all good Hebrew women, she would always be in subjection to him — yet she knew in her heart that to give Esau the blessing, Isaac would be disobeying God. Then the question comes to mind : did Isaac know what God had said regarding the two brothers? But surely, we reason, Rebekah would have told her husband what God had said to her? Then, are we to think that Isaac, in his old age — sickness, blindness, and selfish petulance which accompanies these things — deliberately chose to give the birthright to his favorite son, rather than obey God? And is that why he “trembled exceedingly” at the moment when he realized that he had unwittingly given the blessing to Jacob, after all ? Whatever was in the heart of either Isaac or Rebekah at this time, we cannot judge. Suffice it that the Will of God was carried out, and Rebekah was the instrument. Her quick matter-of-fact action saved the serious situation, and was quite in character. She then had to think quickly again, and in order to save her dearly beloved son, had to send him out of the country to her own people — and thereby setting in motion a chain of events which were also the pattern of the Plan of God.
We hear no more about Rebekah. The narrative follows the life of Jacob, and we see that it is many years before he returns again to his native country. If Rebekah was living then, there is no indication ; but of a certainty, we know that Rebekah’s life would not be a happy one after her son Jacob had left her. She was a wonderful woman, and carried out her duty to the Lord in the right way . . . never thinking of herself, but always what would be best for others. She made personal sacrifices on two occasions which are recorded for our eyes to see, but no doubt those two were not the only sacrifices which Rebekah made. All good women, good sisters of Christ, know that they have to sacrifice many times over in order to serve the Lord righteously.
The Origin of the Organic World – Part One