Abraham knew that it was through Isaac that God would fulfill His promises. Isaac's descendants would someday become a great multitude, but, more importantly, it was from Isaac's family line that the Messiah would be born.

The mother of Isaac's children must be a righteous woman who would teach her children about the true God. This wouldn't happen if Isaac were to marry one of the Canaanite women who lived in the area. For the Canaanites were idol worshippers.

Deciding that Isaac must marry a woman from his old homeland and people that had some knowledge of the true God, Abraham called upon his oldest and most trusted servant.

"Swear by the Lord, the God of heaven," Abraham instructed him, "that you will not choose a wife for my son from among the Cananites. Go rather to my people and take a wife for my son Isaac."

"But suppose the woman doesn't want to come with me to this land?" the servant asked, "Shall I take your son to your old home land?"

"See that you don't take Isaac there!" Abraham said firmly, "The Lord God of heaven who called me out of that land and took me from my kindred and told me, 'Unto your seed will I give this land,' will send his angel with you and see that you find a wife for my son. But if the woman is unwilling to follow you, than I release you from your promise. You must never take my son to that land!"

Then the servant promised that he would do everything Abraham asked of him.

Taking ten of Abraham's camels the servant loaded them with select items that he envisioned he might need in his quest. Then he set out on his journey.

As it happened, the caravan reached the outskirts of the city at evening just at the time when the women were coming out to draw water from the well.

After making his camels kneel down by the well, Abraham's servant turned to God for help and guidance.

"O Lord God of my master Abraham," he prayed, "Bless my efforts and show kindness to my master. See, I'm standing by Hebron's well where the women come to draw water. Let it happen that the girl to whom I say, 'Lower your pitcher, please, that I may drink', and she answers, 'Drink, and I'll give your camels water also,' let her be the one you've selected to be Isaac's wife. That way I'll know that you have answered my prayer and shown your kindness to my master."

Before Abraham's servant had completed his prayer a young woman appeared carrying a pitcher on her shoulder. The servant was struck at once by the girl's beauty and grace.

The girl went down to the well, and filled her pitcher. As she came up again the servant ran to meet her, and said, "Let me, I pray thee, drink a little water from your pitcher."

"Drink, my lord" she said, and quickly lifted the pitcher down so that the man might drink.

And when he had done drinking, she said, "I will draw water for your camels also, until they have done drinking." And she quickly emptied her pitcher into the trough, and ran again to the well where she draw water for all his camels.

And the man wondering at her said nothing, wating to see whether the LORD had made his journey prosperous or not.

When the camels were done drinking, that the man took a golden earring of half a shekel weight, and two bracelets for her hands of ten shekels weight of gold, and said, "Whose daughter are you? Tell me, please, is there room in your father's house for us to spend the night?"

And she answered, "I am Rebekah, the daughter of Bethuel the son of Milcah, which she bare unto Nahor. We have both straw and provender enough, and room to lodge in."

Then the man bowed down his head, and worshipped the LORD, and said, "Blessed be the LORD God of my master Abraham, who has not left destitute my master of His mercy and His truth: for, the LORD has led me to the house of my master's brethren!"

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