Gen. 24:23-3223And said, Whose daughter art thou? tell me, I pray thee: is there room in thy father's house for us to lodge in? 24And she said unto him, I am the daughter of Bethuel the son of Milcah, which she bare unto Nahor. 25She said moreover unto him, We have both straw and provender enough, and room to lodge in. 26And the man bowed down his head, and worshipped the Lord. 27And he said, Blessed be the Lord God of my master Abraham, who hath not left destitute my master of his mercy and his truth: I being in the way, the Lord led me to the house of my master's brethren. 28And the damsel ran, and told them of her mother's house these things. 29And Rebekah had a brother, and his name was Laban: and Laban ran out unto the man, unto the well. 30And it came to pass, when he saw the earring and bracelets upon his sister's hands, and when he heard the words of Rebekah his sister, saying, Thus spake the man unto me; that he came unto the man; and, behold, he stood by the camels at the well. 31And he said, Come in, thou blessed of the Lord; wherefore standest thou without? for I have prepared the house, and room for the camels. 32And the man came into the house: and he ungirded his camels, and gave straw and provender for the camels, and water to wash his feet, and the men's feet that were with him. (Genesis 24:23‑32)
“AND [he] said, Whose daughter art thou? tell me, I pray thee: is there room in thy father’s house for us to lodge in?” v. 23.
These two questions the servant asked Rebekah were important ones. First, as to her lineage. Abraham had instructed him to find a wife for Isaac from among his own kindred. We have seen how this expressed (in type) that God will have no stranger as the bride of His Son, but only those who, “made nigh by the blood of Christ” are “no more strangers, but are of the household of God.” Rebekah answered, “I am the daughter of Bethuel,” who was Abraham’s nephew; thus she was fully qualified according to Abraham’s demands.
The second question: “Is there room in thy father’s house for us to lodge in?” was equally important; for if he had not been welcomed into their dwelling he could not have revealed the message he had come to deliver, and Rebekah would never have received her blessing. She replied: “We have both straw and provender enough, and room to lodge in.” v. 25. What joy must have filled the servant’s heart at these answers! His first response was to bow his head and worship the Lord. “And he said, Blessed be the LORD God of my master Abraham, who hath not left destitute my master of His mercy and His truth: I being in the way, the LORD led me to the house of my master’s brethren.” v. 27.
Rebekah then ran to tell her family of what had taken place. Her brother Laban, seeing the gifts and hearing these words, went out to the man, exclaiming: “Come in, thou blessed of the LORD; wherefore standest thou without? for I have prepared the house, and room for the camels. And the man came into the house; and he ungirded his camels, and gave straw and provender for the camels’ and water to wash his feet, and the men’s feet that were with him.” vv. 31, 32.
It is important to not only “come to the well,” but to have room in the heart for the Spirit of God, that He may have His way and not be hindered in His desire to present Christ to the soul. It is therefore happy to see how the servant was brought inside and the house with its facilities opened to him. Does your heart dight in being open to the “Holy Spirit of truth and of comfort,” dear Christian? And is your house in such order that He is able to come in and find nothing to interfere with blessed communion? Here alone is the secret of Christian joy. Knowledge, service and self-sacrifice may all be outward expressions of a believer’s walk, but without the exercise of the Holy Spirit, if one is not constrained by the love of Christ, these things are not suited to God. “Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not [love], I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge... and have not [love], I am nothing.” 1 Cor. 13:1, 21Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. 2And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing. (1 Corinthians 13:1‑2).
ML-03/13/1966