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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 #3195

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3195. And he dwelt in the land of the south. That this signifies consequently in Divine light, is evident from the signification of “dwelling,” as being to live (see n. 1293), and as being predicated of good (n. 2268, 2451, 2712); and from the signification of the “land of the south,” as being Divine light; for the “south” signifies light, and indeed the light of intelligence, which is wisdom (n. 1458); but the “land of the south” signifies the place and state where this light is; so here, that “Isaac came from coming from Beer-lahai-roi, and he dwelt in the land of the south,” signifies that Divine good rational, because born from Divine truth, was in Divine light.

[2] In the Word frequent mention is made of “light,” and by this in the internal sense is signified the truth which is from good; but in the supreme internal sense there is signified the Lord Himself, because He is good and truth itself. Moreover there actually is light in heaven, but infinitely brighter than the light on earth (seen. 1053, 1117, 1521-1533, 1619-1632); and in this light spirits and angels see one another, and by means of it is displayed all the glory which is in heaven. In regard to its lucidity, this light does indeed appear like the light in the world; but still it is not like it, for it is not natural, but spiritual, having in it wisdom; so that it is nothing else than wisdom which so shines before the eyes of the angels; and therefore the wiser the angels are, the brighter is the light in which they are (n. 2776). Moreover this light illumines the understanding of man, especially that of a regenerate man; but it is not perceived by man so long as he is in the life of the body, because of the light of the world, which then is regnant.

Moreover the evil spirits in the other life see one another, and also see many representatives which exist in the world of spirits, and this indeed they do from the light of heaven; but their lumen is such as proceeds from a fire of coals, for the light of heaven is changed into such a lumen when it comes to them.

[3] As regards the very origin of light, this has been from eternity from the Lord alone; for Divine good itself and Divine truth, from which light comes, is the Lord. The Divine Human, which was from eternity (John 17:5), was this light itself. And whereas this light could no longer affect the human race, which had removed itself so far from good and truth, thus from light, and had cast itself into darkness, therefore the Lord willed to put on by birth the human itself; for thus He could illumine not only the rational but also the natural things of man; for He made both the rational and the natural in Himself Divine, in order that He might also be a light to those who were in such gross darkness.

[4] That the Lord is light, that is, good itself and truth itself, and that thus from Him is all intelligence and wisdom, consequently all salvation, is evident from many passages in the Word, as in John:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and God was the Word; in Him was life, and the life was the light of men. John came to bear witness of the light; he was not that light, but came that he might bear witness of the light. That was the true light which enlighteneth every man that cometh into the world (John 1:1, 4, 7-9).

The “Word” was the Divine truth, thus the Lord Himself as to the Divine Human, concerning which it is said that “the Word was with God, and God was the Word.”

[5] In the same Evangelist:

This is the judgment, that light is come into the world, but men loved the darkness rather than the light (John 3:19); where “light” denotes the Divine truth. Again:

Jesus said, I am the light of the world; he that followeth Me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life (John 8:12).

Yet a little while is the light with you; walk while ye have the light, lest darkness seize upon you; while ye have the light, believe in the light, that ye may be sons of light (John 12:35-36).

He that seeth Me seeth Him that sent Me; I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth in Me may not abide in the darkness (John 12:45-46).

In Luke:

Mine eyes have seen Thy salvation, which Thou hast prepared before the face of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of Thy people Israel (Luke 2:30-32).

This is the prophecy of Simeon concerning the Lord when he was born.

[6] In Matthew:

The people that sat in darkness saw a great light, and to them that sat in the region and shadow of death, did light spring up (Matthew 4 Isaiah 9:2);

from which passages it is very plain that the Lord as to the Divine good and truth in the Divine Human, is called “light.” Also in the prophecies of the Old Testament, as in Isaiah:

The light of Israel shall be for a fire, and His Holy One for a flame (Isaiah 10:17).

I Jehovah have called thee in righteousness, and I will give thee for a covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles (Isaiah 42:6).

I have given thee for a light of the Gentiles, that thou mayest be My salvation, unto the end of the earth (Isaiah 49:6).

Again:

Arise, shine, for thy light is come, and the glory of Jehovah is risen upon thee. The gentiles shall walk to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising (Isaiah 60:1, 3).

[7] That all the light of heaven, consequently wisdom and intelligence, is from the Lord, is thus taught in John:

The holy city New Jerusalem, descending from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband, hath no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it; the glory of God will enlighten it, and the Lamb is the lamp thereof (Revelation 21:2, 23).

Again, speaking of the same:

There shall be no night there, and they need no lamp, neither light of the sun, for the Lord God giveth them light (Revelation 22:5).

[8] Again in Isaiah:

The sun shall be no more thy light by day, neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee; but Jehovah shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory; thy sun shall no more go down, neither shall thy moon withdraw itself, for Jehovah shall be thine everlasting light (Isaiah 60:19-20).

“The sun shall be no more thy light by day, neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee” denotes that this will be the case with the things not of natural, but of spiritual light, which is signified by “Jehovah being an everlasting light.” That “Jehovah” as mentioned here and elsewhere in the Old Testament, is the Lord, may be seen above (n. 1343, 1736, 2156, 2329, 2921, 3023, 3035).

[9] And that He is the light of heaven He also manifested to the three disciples, Peter, James, and John, at his transfiguration, when:

His face did shine as the sun, and His raiment became as the light (Matthew 17:2).

His “face as the sun” was the Divine good; His “raiment as the light” was the Divine truth. Hence it may be known what is meant by the expression in the benediction:

Jehovah make His faces shine upon thee, and be merciful unto thee (Numbers 6:25).

That the “faces of Jehovah” are mercy, peace, and good, may be seen above (n. 222, 223); and that the “sun” is the Divine love; thus that it is the Divine love of the Lord which appears as a sun in the heaven of angels, may also be seen above (n. 30-38, 1053, 1521, 1529-1531, 2441, 2495).

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