Daily Devotions
Genesis
"He who finds a wife finds a good thing, And obtains favour from the Lord." Proverbs 18:22
Text: Genesis 24 : 1 - 67
DEEP CONCERN
Isaac was now a young man! Sarah had passed on. Abraham wasn’t getting any younger. Of deep concern was finding a good wife for Isaac. Patriarchal responsibilities included the challenge of finding a suitable wife for his heir, Isaac.
“Now Abraham was old, well advanced in age;
and the Lord had blessed Abraham in all things.
So Abraham said to the oldest servant of his house,
who ruled over all that he had,
‘Please, put your hand under my thigh, and I will make you swear
by the Lord, the God of heaven and the God of the earth, that
you will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the
Canaanites, among whom I dwell; but you shall go to my country
and to my family, and take a wife for my son Isaac.'”GENESIS 24:1-4
1. A solemn oath
The oath that Abraham required from his servant (most likely Eliezer of Damascus – Cf. Genesis 15:2) underscored the significance of the task that was entrusted. The old and trustworthy servant was tasked to search for a suitable wife for his young master, Isaac.
The oath was taken in the name of “The Lord, the God of heaven and the God of the earth”. What a formal way of addressing the Lord. But that’s normal in oath-taking!
2. “The daughters of the Canaanites”
Abraham must have had his reasons for rejecting the possibility of having a Canaanite lady to become Isaac’s wife.
a) Religious and Spiritual reasons
Foremost in Abraham’s mind must be the problem of not sharing the same faith. He had come to value his faith in the Lord. Apart from those in his household, he hardly knew of anyone else having the same faith in the Lord, the God of heaven and of the earth.
b) Compatibility
Isaac was particularly close to his mother. Her death had caused him to mourn deeply (Genesis 24:67c). There were many “daughters of the Canaanites” among whom Abraham lived. However, Isaac did not seem to show any interest in any one. His attachment to his mother was deep indeed!
3. “My country…my family”
Abraham felt sure that a member of his clan would probably be a better choice. The least he could do was to send his trusted and faithful servant to his family to see if there was someone who would respond to the offer of marriage to Isaac!