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Genesis 24

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1 And Abraham [is] old, he hath entered into days, and Jehovah hath blessed Abraham in all [things];

2 and Abraham saith unto his servant, the eldest of his house, who is ruling over all that he hath, `Put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh,

3 and I cause thee to swear by Jehovah, God of the heavens, and God of the earth, that thou dost not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanite, in the midst of whom I am dwelling;

4 but unto my land and unto my kindred dost thou go, and hast taken a wife for my son, for Isaac.'

5 And the servant saith unto him, `It may be the woman is not willing to come after me unto this land; do I at all cause thy son to turn back unto the land from whence thou camest out?'

6 And Abraham saith unto him, `Take heed to thyself, lest thou cause my son to turn back thither;

7 Jehovah, God of the heavens, who hath taken me from the house of my father, and from the land of my birth, and who hath spoken to me, and who hath sworn to me, saying, To thy seed I give this land, He doth send His messenger before thee, and thou hast taken a wife for my son from thence;

8 and if the woman be not willing to come after thee, then thou hast been acquitted from this mine oath: only my son thou dost not cause to turn back thither.'

9 And the servant putteth his hand under the thigh of Abraham his lord, and sweareth to him concerning this matter.

10 And the servant taketh ten camels of the camels of his lord and goeth, also of all the goods of his lord in his hand, and he riseth, and goeth unto Aram-Naharaim, unto the city of Nahor;

11 and he causeth the camels to kneel at the outside of the city, at the well of water, at even-time, at the time of the coming out of the women who draw water.

12 And he saith, `Jehovah, God of my lord Abraham, cause to meet, I pray Thee, before me this day -- (and do kindness with my lord Abraham;

13 lo, I am standing by the fountain of water, and daughters of the men of the city are coming out to draw water;

14 and it hath been, the young person unto whom I say, Incline, I pray thee, thy pitcher, and I drink, and she hath said, drink, and I water also thy camels) -- her Thou hast decided for Thy servant, for Isaac; and by it I know that Thou hast done kindness with my lord.'

15 And it cometh to pass, before he hath finished speaking, that lo, Rebekah (who was born to Bethuel, son of Milcah, wife of Nahor, brother of Abraham) is coming out, and her pitcher on her shoulder,

16 and the young person [is] of very good appearance, a virgin, and a man hath not known her; and she goeth down to the fountain, and filleth her pitcher, and cometh up.

17 And the servant runneth to meet her, and saith, `Let me swallow, I pray thee, a little water from thy pitcher;'

18 and she saith, `Drink, my lord;' and she hasteth, and letteth down her pitcher upon her hand, and giveth him Drink.

19 And she finisheth giving him drink, and saith, `Also for thy camels I draw till they have finished drinking;'

20 and she hasteth, and emptieth her pitcher into the drinking-trough, and runneth again unto the well to draw, and draweth for all his camels.

21 And the man, wondering at her, remaineth silent, to know whether Jehovah hath made his way prosperous or not.

22 And it cometh to pass when the camels have finished drinking, that the man taketh a golden ring (whose weight [is] a bekah), and two bracelets for her hands (whose weight [is] ten [bekahs] of gold),

23 and saith, `Whose daughter [art] thou? declare to me, I pray thee, is the house of thy father a place for us to lodge in?'

24 And she saith unto him, `I [am] daughter of Bethuel, son of Milcah, whom she hath borne to Nahor.'

25 She saith also unto him, `Both straw and provender [are] abundant with us, also a place to lodge in.'

26 And the man boweth, and doth obeisance to Jehovah,

27 and saith, `Blessed [is] Jehovah, God of my lord Abraham, who hath not left off His kindness and His truth with my lord; -- I [being] in the way, Jehovah hath led me to the house of my lord's brethren.'

28 And the young person runneth, and declareth to the house of her mother according to these words.

29 And Rebekah hath a brother, and his name [is] Laban, and Laban runneth unto the man who [is] without, unto the fountain;

30 yea, it cometh to pass, when he seeth the ring, and the bracelets on the hands of his sister, and when he heareth the words of Rebekah his sister, saying, `Thus hath the man spoken unto me,' that he cometh in unto the man, and lo, he is standing by the camels by the fountain.

31 And he saith, `Come in, O blessed one of Jehovah, why standest thou without, and I -- I have prepared the house and place for the camels!'

32 And he bringeth in the man into the house, and looseth the camels, and giveth straw and provender for the camels, and water to wash his feet, and the feet of the men who [are] with him:

33 and setteth before him to eat; but he saith, `I do not eat till I have spoken my word;' and he saith, `Speak.'

34 And he saith, `I [am] Abraham's servant;

35 and Jehovah hath blessed my lord exceedingly, and he is great; and He giveth to him flock, and herd, and silver, and gold, and men-servants, and maid-servants, and camels, and asses;

36 and Sarah, my lord's wife, beareth a son to my lord, after she hath been aged, and he giveth to him all that he hath.

37 `And my lord causeth me to swear, saying, Thou dost not take a wife to my son from the daughters of the Canaanite, in whose land I am dwelling.

38 If not -- unto the house of my father thou dost go, and unto my family, and thou hast taken a wife for my son.

39 `And I say unto my lord, It may be the woman doth not come after me;

40 and he saith unto me, Jehovah, before whom I have walked habitually, doth send His messenger with thee, and hath prospered thy way, and thou hast taken a wife for my son from my family, and from the house of my father;

41 then art thou acquitted from my oath, when thou comest unto my family, and if they give not [one] to thee; then thou hast been acquitted from my oath.

42 `And I come to-day unto the fountain, and I say, Jehovah, God of my lord Abraham, if Thou art, I pray Thee, making prosperous my way in which I am going --

43 (lo, I am standing by the fountain of water), then the virgin who is coming out to draw, and I have said unto her, Let me drink, I pray thee, a little water from thy pitcher,

44 and she hath said unto me, Both drink thou, and also for thy camels I draw -- she is the woman whom Jehovah hath decided for my lord's son.

45 `Before I finish speaking unto my heart, then lo, Rebekah is coming out, and her pitcher on her shoulder, and she goeth down to the fountain, and draweth; and I say unto her, Let me drink, I pray thee,

46 and she hasteth and letteth down her pitcher from off her and saith, Drink, and thy camels also I water; and I Drink, and the camels also she hath watered.

47 `And I ask her, and say, Whose daughter [art] thou? and she saith, Daughter of Bethuel, son of Nahor, whom Milcah hath borne to him, and I put the ring on her nose, and the bracelets on her hands,

48 and I bow, and do obeisance before Jehovah, and I bless Jehovah, God of my lord Abraham, who hath led me in the true way to receive the daughter of my lord's brother for his son.

49 `And now, if ye are dealing kindly and truly with my lord, declare to me; and if not, declare to me; and I turn unto the right or unto the left.'

50 And Laban answereth -- Bethuel also -- and they say, `The thing hath gone out from Jehovah; we are not able to speak unto thee bad or good;

51 lo, Rebekah [is] before thee, take and go, and she is a wife to thy lord's son, as Jehovah hath spoken.'

52 And it cometh to pass, when the servant of Abraham hath heard their words, that he boweth himself towards the earth before Jehovah;

53 and the servant taketh out vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and garments, and giveth to Rebekah; precious things also he hath given to her brother and to her mother.

54 And they eat and drink, he and the men who [are] with him, and lodge all night; and they rise in the morning, and he saith, `Send me to my lord;'

55 and her brother saith -- her mother also -- `Let the young person abide with us a week or ten days, afterwards doth she go.'

56 And he saith unto them, `Do not delay me, seeing Jehovah hath prospered my way; send me away, and I go to my lord;'

57 and they say, `Let us call for the young person, and ask at her mouth;'

58 and they call for Rebekah, and say unto her, `Dost thou go with this man?' and she saith, `I go.'

59 And they send away Rebekah their sister, and her nurse, and Abraham's servant, and his men;

60 and they bless Rebekah, and say to her, `Thou [art] our sister; become thou thousands of myriads, and thy seed doth possess the gate of those hating it.'

61 And Rebekah and her young women arise, and ride on the camels, and go after the man; and the servant taketh Rebekah and goeth.

62 And Isaac hath come in from the entrance of the Well of the Living One, my Beholder; and he is dwelling in the land of the south,

63 and Isaac goeth out to meditate in the field, at the turning of the evening, and he lifteth up his eyes, and looketh, and lo, camels are coming.

64 And Rebekah lifteth up her eyes, and seeth Isaac, and alighteth from off the camel;

65 and she saith unto the servant, `Who [is] this man who is walking in the field to meet us?' and the servant saith, `It [is] my lord;' and she taketh the veil, and covereth herself.

66 And the servant recounteth to Isaac all the things that he hath done,

67 and Isaac bringeth her in unto the tent of Sarah his mother, and he taketh Rebekah, and she becometh his wife, and he loveth her, and Isaac is comforted after [the death of] his mother.

   

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Arcana Coelestia #3061

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3061. 'O Jehovah, the God of my master Abraham' means of the Divine itself, which is the Father, with the Divine Human, which is the Son, that is to say, communication of these. This is clear from what has been stated and shown several times above, namely the following:

'Jehovah God' is the Lord's Divine itself, which is called the Father, while 'Abraham' represents His Divine Human, 2833, 2836.

Jehovah in the Old Testament Word is the Lord Himself, see 1736, 1815, 2921.

The Most Ancient Church before the Flood, and the Ancient Church after the Flood, meant by 'Jehovah' none other than the Lord, 1343, 1676, 1990, 2016, 3035.

Within the Lord exists the Trinity of the Divine itself, the Divine Human, and the Divine Holy proceeding, and these are one, 1999, 2149, 2156, 2288, 2329, 2447.

The entire Trinity within the Lord is Jehovah, 2156, 2329; and every single thing in the Lord is Jehovah, 1902, 1921.

The Lord is one with the Father, and no other is meant in heaven by the Father, 14, 15, 1725, 1729, 1733, 1815, 2005, 2018, 2025, 2803, 3038.

The Lord constitutes the whole of heaven since He is its All; from Him comes the whole of innocence, peace, love, charity, mercy, and conjugial love, as do all Good and Truth; Moses and the Prophets, and so the Word in every detail, have reference to Him; and all the religious observances of the Church were representative of Him, 2751.

As to the Divine Human the Lord is called the Son, 2628.

The Lord's Divine Human was not only conceived but also born from His Divine Essence, which is Jehovah, 2798.

Thus as to the Human the Lord became Jehovah, and Life from Himself, 1603, 1737

[2] The Lord has existed from eternity, as is quite clear from the Word, see 2803, even though He was born at a particular point in time. For He it was who spoke through Moses and the Prophets (having also appeared to many) in whose writings it is said that He was Jehovah. But this very deep arcanum cannot be revealed to anyone except to those who possess Divine perception, and so to scarcely any apart from members of the Most Ancient Church, who were celestial and possessed such perception. From these people I have heard that Jehovah Himself was the Lord as regards the Divine Human whenever He came down into heaven or flowed in by way of heaven, for heaven resembles one human being as to all its members, and for that reason is also called the Grand Man, 684, 1276, 2996, 2998, 3021. The Divine itself within heaven or the Grand Man was the Divine Human, and was Jehovah Himself clothed in that manner with the Human.

[3] But when the human race had become such that the Divine itself clothed as the Divine Human could no longer exert any influence on it, that is, when Jehovah could no longer reach down to mankind in that way because it had moved so far away, Jehovah, who is the Lord as regards the Divine Essence, came down and took upon Himself the Human, which was by conception Divine, but by birth from the virgin was like that of any other human being. But what He received from the virgin He cast out, and by Divine means made Divine the Human that had been born. From this Human made Divine proceeds all that is holy. Thus the Divine Human has come into being as an Essence by itself which fills the whole of heaven and causes those to be saved who previously could not be saved. This now is the Lord, who alone as to the Divine Human is Man, and from whom everyone has it to be [truly] human, 49, 288, 477, 565, 1894.

  
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Thanks to the Swedenborg Society for the permission to use this translation.

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Arcana Coelestia #1343

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1343. That 'Eber' was a nation, the Hebrew nation, which took its name from 'Eber' as its forefather, and which means the worship in general of the second Ancient Church, is clear from the references to him in the historical sections of the Word. Because a new form of worship began with that nation, all those were called Hebrews whose worship was similar to it. Their worship was like that re-established at a later time among the descendants of Jacob, its chief features being that they called their God Jehovah and held sacrifices. The Most Ancient Church was of one mind in acknowledging the Lord and calling Him Jehovah, as is clear also from the early chapters of Genesis and elsewhere in the Word. The Ancient Church, that is, the Church after the Flood also acknowledged the Lord and called Him Jehovah, especially those who possessed internal worship and were called 'the sons of Shem'. The remainder whose worship was external also acknowledged Jehovah and worshipped Him. But when internal worship became external, and still more when it became idolatrous, and when each nation started to have its own god to worship, the Hebrew nation retained the name of Jehovah and called their own God Jehovah. In this they were different from all other nations.

[2] Along with external worship, Jacob's descendants in Egypt, including Moses himself, lost knowledge even of this fact, that their God was called Jehovah. Consequently they had first of all to be taught that Jehovah was the God of the Hebrews, and the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, as becomes clear from the following in Moses,

Jehovah said to Moses, You and the elders of Israel shall go in to the king of Egypt, and you shall say to him, Jehovah the God of the Hebrews has met with us; and now let us go, pray, a three days' journey into the wilderness, and let us sacrifice to Jehovah our God. Exodus 3:18.

In the same author,

Pharaoh said, Who is Jehovah that I should hearken to His voice to send Israel away? I do not know Jehovah, and moreover I will not send Israel away. And they said, The God of the Hebrews has met with us; let us go, pray, a three days' journey into the wilderness, and let us sacrifice to Jehovah our God. Exodus 5:2-3.

[3] The fact that Jacob's descendants lost in Egypt, along with the worship, even the name of Jehovah becomes clear from the following in Moses,

Moses said to God, Behold, when I come to the children of Israel and say to them, The God of your fathers has sent me to you, and they say to me, What is His name? What shall I tell them? And God said to Moses, I Am Who I Am. And He said, Thus shall you say to the children of Israel, I Am has sent me to you. And God said moreover to Moses, Thus shall you say to the children of Israel, Jehovah the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you; this is My name for ever. Exodus 3:13-15.

[4] From this it is evident that even Moses did not know it and that they were distinguished from everyone else by the name of Jehovah, the God of the Hebrews. Hence also Jehovah is elsewhere called the God of the Hebrews,

You shall say to Pharaoh, Jehovah the God of the Hebrews has sent me to you. Exodus 7:16.

Go in to Pharaoh and say to him, Thus said Jehovah the God of the Hebrews. Exodus 9:1, 13.

Moses and Aaron went in to Pharaoh and said to him, Thus said Jehovah the God of the Hebrews Exodus 10:3.

In Jonah,

I am a Hebrew, and I fear Jehovah, the God of heaven. Jonah 1:9.

And also in Samuel,

The Philistines heard the noise of the shouting and said, What does the noise of this great shouting in the camp of the Hebrews mean? And they learned that the Ark of Jehovah had come to the camp. The Philistines said, Woe to us! Who will deliver us from the hand of these mighty gods? These are the gods who smote the Egyptians with every sort of plague in the wilderness. Acquit yourselves like men, O Philistines, lest you be slaves to the Hebrews. 1 Samuel 4:6, 8-9.

Here also it is evident that nations were distinguished from one another by the gods whose names they called on, and that the Hebrew nation was distinguished by that of Jehovah.

[5] The fact that sacrifices were the second essential feature of the worship of the Hebrew nation is also evident from the words from Exodus 3:18; 5:2-3, quoted above, as well as from the fact that the Egyptians abhorred the Hebrew nation on account of this form of worship, as is clear from the following in Moses,

Moses said, It is not right to do so, for we would be sacrificing to Jehovah our God what is abhorrent to the Egyptians; behold, we would be sacrificing what is abhorrent to the Egyptians in their eyes; will they not stone us? Exodus 8:26.

Consequently the Egyptians also abhorred the Hebrew nation so much that they refused even 'to eat bread' with them, Genesis 43:32. From this it is also evident that not merely the descendants of Jacob constituted the Hebrew nation but everybody who possessed that kind of worship. This also was why in Joseph's day the land of Canaan was called the land of the Hebrews,

Joseph said. By theft I have been taken away out of the land of the Hebrews. Genesis 40:15.

[6] The fact that sacrifices took place among the idolaters in the land of Canaan becomes clear from many references, for they used to sacrifice to their gods - to the baals and to others What is more, Balaam, who came from Syria where Eber had lived, that is, where the Hebrew nation had originated, before Jacob's descendants entered the land of Canaan, not only offered sacrifices but also called his God Jehovah. As to the fact that Balaam came from Syria where the Hebrew nation had originated, see Numbers 23:7; that he offered sacrifices, Numbers 22:39-40; 23:1-3, 14, 29; that he called his God Jehovah, Numbers 22:18, and elsewhere in those chapters. And Genesis 8:20 speaks of Noah offering burnt offerings to Jehovah - though this is not true history but made-up history - for 'burnt offerings' means the holiness of worship, as may be seen in that story. These considerations now show what 'Eber' or 'the Hebrew nation' means.

  
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Thanks to the Swedenborg Society for the permission to use this translation.