The Bible (Old and New Testaments)

Then the seruant put his hand vnder the thigh of Abraham his master, and sware to him for this matter.

So the seruant tooke ten camels of the camels of his master, and departed: (for he had all his masters goods in his hand:) and so he arose, and went to Aram Naharaim, vnto the citie of Nahor.

And he made his camels to lye downe without the citie by a well of water, at euentide about the time that the women come out to draw water.

And he said, O Lord God of my master Abraham, I beseech thee, send me good speede this day, and shew mercy vnto my master Abraham.

Lo, I stand by the well of water, whiles the mens daughters of this citie come out to drawe water.

Graunt therefore that ye maide, to whom I say, Bowe downe thy pitcher, I pray thee, that I may drinke: if she say, Drinke, and I will giue thy camels drinke also: may be she that thou hast ordeined for thy seruant Izhak: and thereby shall I know that thou hast shewed mercy on my master.

And nowe yer he had left speaking, beholde, Rebekah came out, the daughter of Bethuel, sonne of Milcah the wife of Nahor Abrahams brother, and her pitcher vpon her shoulder.

(And the maide was very faire to looke vpon, a virgine and vnknowen of man) and she went downe to the well, and filled her pitcher, and came vp.

Then the seruant ranne to meete her, and said, Let me drinke, I pray thee, a litle water of thy pitcher.

And she said, Drinke sir: and she hasted, and let downe her pitcher vpon her hand and gaue him drinke.

And when she had giuen him drinke, she said, I will drawe water for thy camels also vntill they haue drunken inough.

And she powred out her pitcher into the trough speedily; and ranne againe vnto the well to drawe water, and she drewe for all his camels.

So the man wondred at her, and helde his peace, to knowe whether the Lord had made his iourney prosperous or not.

And when the camels had left drinking, the man tooke a golden abillement of halfe a shekell weight, and two bracelets for her hands, of ten shekels weight of golde:

And he said, Whose daughter art thou? tell me, I pray thee, Is there roume in thy fathers house for vs to lodge in?

Then she said to him, I am the daughter of Bethuel the sonne of Milcah whom she bare vnto Nahor.

Moreouer she said vnto him, We haue litter also and prouender ynough, and roume to lodge in.

And the man bowed himselfe and worshipped the Lord,

And said, Blessed be the Lord God of my master Abraham, which hath not withdrawen his mercie and his trueth from my master: for when I was in the way, the Lord brought me to my masters brethrens house.

And the maide ranne and tolde them of her mothers house according to these wordes.

Now Rebekah had a brother called Laban, and Laban ranne vnto the man to the well.

For when he had seene the earings and the bracelets in his sisters hands, and when he heard the wordes of Rebekah his sister, saying, Thus said the man vnto me, then he went to the man, and loe, he stoode by the camels at the well.

And he saide, Come in thou blessed of the Lord: wherefore standest thou without, seeing I haue prepared the house, and roume for ye camels?

Then the man came into the house, and he vnsadled the camels, and brought litter and prouender for the camels, and water to wash his feete, and the mens feete that were with him.

Afterward the meate was set before him: but he saide, I will not eate, vntill I haue saide my message: And he said, Speake on.

Then he said, I am Abrahams seruant,

And the Lord hath blessed my master wonderfully, that he is become great: for he hath giuen him sheepe, and beeues, and siluer, and golde, and men seruants, and maide seruants, and camels, and asses.

And Sarah my masters wife hath borne a sonne to my master, when she was olde, and vnto him hath he giuen all that he hath.

Now my master made me sweare, saying, Thou shalt not take a wife to my sonne of the daughters of the Canaanites, in whose land I dwell:

But thou shalt go vnto my fathers house and to my kinred, and take a wife vnto my sonne.

Then I saide vnto my master, What if the woman will not follow me?

Who answered me, The Lord, before who I walke, will send his Angel with thee, and prosper thy iourney, and thou shalt take a wife for my sonne of my kinred and my fathers house.

Then shalt thou be discharged of mine othe, when thou commest to my kinred: and if they giue thee not one, thou shalt be free from mine othe.

So I came this day to the well, and said, O Lord, the God of my master Abraham, if thou nowe prosper my iourney which I goe,

Behold, I stand by the well of water: when a virgine commeth forth to drawe water, and I say to her, Giue me, I pray thee, a litle water of thy pitcher to drinke,

And she say to me, Drinke thou, and I will also drawe for thy camels, let her be ye wife, which the Lord hath prepared for my masters sonne.

And before I had made an end of speaking in mine heart, beholde, Rebekah came foorth, and her pitcher on her shoulder, and she went downe vnto the well, and drewe water. Then I said vnto her, Giue me drinke, I pray thee.

And she made haste, and tooke downe her pitcher from her shoulder, and said, Drinke, and I will giue thy camels drinke also. So I dranke, and she gaue the camels drinke also.

Then I asked her, and said, Whose daughter art thou? And she answered, The daughter of Bethuel Nahors sonne, whom Milcah bare vnto him. Then I put the abillement vpon her face, and the bracelets vpon her hands:

And I bowed downe and worshipped the Lord, and blessed the Lord God of my master Abraham, which had brought me the right way to take my masters brothers daughter vnto his sone.

Now therefore, if ye will deale mercifully and truely with my master, tell me: and if not, tell me that I may turne me to the right hand or to the left.

Then answered Laban and Bethuel, and said, This thing is proceeded of the Lord: we cannot therefore say vnto thee, neither euill nor good.

Beholde, Rebehak is before thee, take her and goe, that she may be thy masters sonnes wife, euen as the Lord hath said.

And when Abrahams seruant heard their wordes, he bowed himselfe toward the earth vnto the Lord.

Then the seruant tooke foorth iewels of siluer, and iewels of golde, and raiment, and gaue to Rebekah: also vnto her brother and to her mother he gaue gifts.

Afterward they did eate and drinke, both he, and the men that were with him, and taried all night. and when they rose vp in the morning, he said, Let me depart vnto my master.

Then her brother and her mother answered, Let the maide abide with vs, at the least ten dayes: then shall she goe.

But he said vnto them, Hinder you me not, seeing the Lord hath prospered my iourney: send me away, that I may goe to my master.

Then they said, We will call the maide, and aske her consent.

And they called Rebekah, and saide vnto her, Wilt thou go with this man? And she answered, I will go.

So they let Rebekah their sister goe, and her nourse, with Abrahams seruant and his men.

And they blessed Rebekah, and sayde vnto her, Thou art our sister, growe into thousande thousands, and thy seede possesse the gate of his enemies.

Then Rebekah arose, and her maydes, and rode vpon the camels, and followed the man. and the seruant tooke Rebekah, and departed.

Nowe Izhak came from the way of Beer-lahai-roi, (for he dwelt in the South countrey)

And Izhak went out. to pray in the fielde toward the euening: who lift vp his eyes and looked, and behold, the camels came.

Also Rebekah lift vp her eyes, and when she saw Izhak, she lighted downe from the camel.

(For shee had sayde to the seruant, Who is yonder man, that commeth in the fielde to meete vs? and the seruant had said, It is my master) So she tooke a vaile, and couered her.

And the seruant tolde Izhak all things, that he had done.

Afterward Izhak brought her into the tent of Sarah his mother, and he tooke Rebekah, and she was his wife, and he loued her: So Izhak was comforted after his mothers death.

Nowe Abraham had taken him another wife called Keturah,

Which bare him Zimran, and Iokshan, and Medan, and Midian, and Ishbak, and Shuah.

And Iokshan begate Sheba, and Dedan: And the sonnes of Dedan were Asshurim, and Letushim, and Leummim.

Also the sonnes of Midian were Ephah, and Epher, and Hanoch, and Abida, and Eldaah all these were the sonnes of Keturah.

And Abraham gaue all his goods to Izhak,

But vnto the sonnes of the concubines, which Abraham had, Abraham gaue giftes, and sent them away from Izhak his sonne (while he yet liued) Eastward to the East countrey.

And this is the age of Abrahams life, which he liued, an hundreth seuentie and fiue yeere.

Then Abraham yeelded the spirit, and died in a good age, an olde man, and of great yeeres, and was gathered to his people.

And his sonnes, Izhak and Ishmael buryed him in the caue of Machpelah, in the fielde of Ephron sonne of Zohar the Hittite, before Mamre.

Which fielde Abraham bought of the Hittites, where Abraham was buryed with Sarah his wife.

And after the death of Abraham God blessed Izhak his sonne, and Izhak dwelt by Beer-lahai-roi.

Nowe these are the generations of Ishmael Abrahams sonne, whome Hagar the Egyptian Sarahs handmayde bare vnto Abraham.

And these are the names of the sonnes of Ishmael, name by name, according to their kinreds; the eldest sonne of Ishmael was Nebaioth, then Kedar, and Adbeel, and Mibsam,

And Mishma, and Dumah, and Massa,

Hadar, and Tema, Ietur, Naphish, and Kedemah.

These are the sonnes of Ishmael, and these are their names, by their townes and by their castles: to wit, twelue princes of their nations.

(And these are the yeeres of the life of Ishmael, an hundreth thirtie and seuen yeere, and he yeelded the spirit, and dyed, and was gathered vnto his people)

And they dwelt from Hauilah vnto Shur, that is towardes Egypt, as thou goest to Asshur. Ishmael dwelt in the presence of all his brethren.

Likewise these are the generations of Izhak Abrahams sonne Abraham begate Izhak,

And Izhak was fourtie yeere olde, when he tooke Rebekah to wife, the daughter of Bethuel the Aramite of Padan Aram, and sister to Laban the Aramite.

And Izhak prayed vuto the Lord for his wife, because she was barren: and the Lord was intreated of him, and Rebekah his wife conceiued,

But the children stroue together within her: therefore shee sayde, Seeing it is so, why am I thus? wherefore she went to aske the Lord.

And the Lord sayd to her, Two nations are in thy wombe, and two maner of people shalbe diuided out of thy bowels, and the one people shall be mightier then the other, and the elder shall serue the yonger.

Therefore when her time of deliuerance was fulfilled, behold, twinnes were in her wombe.

So he that came out first was red, and he was all ouer as a rough garment, and they called his name Esau.

And afterward came his brother out, and his hande helde Esau by the heele: therefore his name was called Iaakob. Nowe Izhak was threescore yeere olde when Rebekah bare them.

And the boyes grew, and Esau was a cunning hunter, and liued in the fields: but Iaakob was a plaine man, and dwelt in tentes.

And Izhak loued Esau, for venison was his meate, but Rebekah loued Iaakob.

Nowe Iaakob sod pottage, and Esau came from the fielde and was wearie.

Then Esau sayd to Iaakob, Let me eate, I pray thee, of that pottage so red, for I am wearie. Therefore was his name called Edom.

And Iaakob sayd, Sell me euen nowe thy birthright.

And Esau sayd, Lo, I am almost dead, what is then this birthright to me?

Iaakob then said, Sweare to me euen now. And he sware to him, and solde his birthright vnto Iaakob.

Then Iaakob gaue Esau bread and pottage of lentiles: and he did eate and drinke, and rose vp, and went his way: So Esau contemned his birthright.

And there was a famine in the lande besides the first famine that was in the dayes of Abraham. Wherefore Izhak went to Abimelech King of the Philistims vnto Gerar.

For the Lord appeared vnto him, and sayde, Goe not downe into Egypt, but abide in the land which I shall shewe vnto thee.

Dwell in this lande, and I will be with thee, and will blesse thee: for to thee, and to thy seede I will giue all these countreys: and I will performe the othe which I sware vnto Abraham thy father.

Also I wil cause thy seede to multiply as the starres of heauen, and will giue vnto thy seede all these countreys: and in thy seede shall all the nations of the earth be blessed,

Because that Abraham obeyed my voyce and kept mine ordinance, my commandements, my statutes, and my Lawes.

So Izhak dwelt in Gerar.

And the men of the place asked him of his wife, and he sayd, She is my sister: for he feared to say, She is my wife, least, sayde he, the men of the place shoulde kill me, because of Rebekah: for she was beautifull to the eye.