Genesis 23-24

07 Jan 2026 - Theology

Genesis 23-24 - Isaac and Rebekah

Genesis 23

Genesis 23:2 - “Sarah died in Kiriath-arba - which is now Hebron - in the land of Canaan; and Abraham mourned for Sarah and bewailed her.”

When is now? This shows us:

that the story was written after the place was renamed
the phrase was written to help people now and in the future to recognize the place you are writing about

Abraham wanted to bury his wife Sarah, but he owned no land. So he bought the field of Machpelah, near Mamre, and buried Sarah in the cave that was in that field.

Genesis 24

“Hand under the thigh” - swearing by holding on to the covenant (in this case circumcision) to make a promise. This could literally mean under the thigh, the feet, or be a euphemism for the groin area.

Mishpucha = larger extended family network, including even close family friends

If God doesn’t provide, then the eldest servant would be free and clear of this “hand under the thigh” oath (8).

Abraham has a very large mishpucha and estate. This eldest servant is his chief servant. In Genesis 15, Abraham refers to this chief servant Eliezer (15:2). He was the next highest ranking male after Abraham, and was going to receive his inheritance before Abraham had sons.

Eliezer doesn’t want to pick just any girl for Isaac, so he prays to the Lord God with a crazy request.

1 camel = 10-20 trips down a cistern to get enough water. Eliezer brought 10 camels (verse 10), so he is looking for someone who will go into a cistern to draw water 100 to 200 times for his camels! The Lord God answers his prayer even before he was done speaking in verse 15.

Eliezer is looking for someone with the same type of character as Abraham’s family, specifically the radical hospitality. Rebekah ‘hasted’ and ‘ran’ to draw the water (20), just like Abraham did in Genesis 18.

Notice that the servant gave Rebekah gifts (22), even before he knows that she is related to Abraham (23-24).

References

The Hebrew - Greek Key Study Bible (KJV Version)
The BEMA Podcast, Episode 12: A Mission Realized
The Torah Portion-by-Portion by Rabbi Seymour Rossel (2007)