Kejadian 24:61-67

24:61 Then Rebekah and her female servants mounted the camels and rode away with ¹  the man. So Abraham’s servant ²  took Rebekah and left.

24:62 Now ³  Isaac came from ⁴  Beer Lahai Roi, ⁵  for ⁶  he was living in the Negev. ⁷  24:63 He ⁸  went out to relax ⁹  in the field in the early evening. ¹⁰  Then he looked up ¹¹  and saw that ¹²  there were camels approaching. 24:64 Rebekah looked up ¹³  and saw Isaac. She got down from her camel 24:65 and asked ¹⁴  Abraham’s servant, ¹⁵  “Who is that man walking in the field toward us?” “That is my master,” the servant replied. ¹⁶  So she took her veil and covered herself.

24:66 The servant told Isaac everything that had happened. 24:67 Then Isaac brought Rebekah ¹⁷  into his mother Sarah’s tent. He took her ¹⁸  as his wife and loved her. ¹⁹  So Isaac was comforted after his mother’s death. ²⁰ 

Mazmur 45:10-11

45:10 Listen, O princess! ²¹ 

Observe and pay attention! ²² 

Forget your homeland ²³  and your family! ²⁴ 

45:11 Then ²⁵  the king will be attracted by ²⁶  your beauty.

After all, he is your master! Submit ²⁷  to him! ²⁸ 

[24:61]  ¹ tn Heb “And she arose, Rebekah and her female servants, and they rode upon camels and went after.”

[24:61]  ² tn Heb “the servant”; the word “Abraham’s” has been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[24:62]  ³ tn The disjunctive clause switches the audience’s attention to Isaac and signals a new episode in the story.

[24:62]  ⁴ tn Heb “from the way of.”

[24:62]  ⁵ sn The Hebrew name Beer Lahai Roi (בְּאֵר לַחַי רֹאִי, bÿ’er lakhay ro’i) means “The well of the Living One who sees me.” See Gen 16:14.

[24:62]  ⁶ tn This disjunctive clause is explanatory.

[24:62]  ⁷ tn Or “the South [country].”

[24:62]  sn Negev is the name for the southern desert region in the land of Canaan.

[24:63]  ⁸ tn Heb “Isaac”; the proper name has been replaced by the pronoun (“he”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[24:63]  ⁹ tn The meaning of this Hebrew term is uncertain (cf. NASB, NIV “to meditate”; NRSV “to walk”).

[24:63]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “at the turning of the evening.”

[24:63]  ¹¹ tn Heb “And he lifted up his eyes.” This idiom emphasizes the careful look Isaac had at the approaching caravan.

[24:63]  ¹² tn Heb “and look.” The clause introduced by the particle הִנֵּה (hinneh, “look”) invites the audience to view the scene through Isaac’s eyes.

[24:64]  ¹³ tn Heb “lifted up her eyes.”

[24:65]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “and she said to.”

[24:65]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “the servant.” The word “Abraham’s” has been supplied in the translation for clarity.

[24:65]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “and the servant said.” The order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse has been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[24:67]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “her”; the referent has been specified here in the translation for clarity.

[24:67]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “Rebekah”; here the proper name was replaced by the pronoun (“her”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[24:67]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “and he took Rebekah and she became his wife and he loved her.”

[24:67]  ²⁰ tn Heb “after his mother.” This must refer to Sarah’s death.

[45:10]  ²¹ tn Heb “daughter.” The Hebrew noun בת (“daughter”) can sometimes refer to a young woman in a general sense (see H. Haag, TDOT 2:334).

[45:10]  sn Listen, O princess. The poet now addresses the bride.

[45:10]  ²² tn Heb “see and turn your ear.” The verb רָאָה (ra’ah, “see”) is used here of mental observation.

[45:10]  ²³ tn Heb “your people.” This reference to the “people” of the princess suggests she was a foreigner. Perhaps the marriage was arranged as part of a political alliance between Israel (or Judah) and a neighboring state. The translation “your homeland” reflects such a situation.

[45:10]  ²⁴ tn Heb “and the house of your father.”

[45:11]  ²⁵ tn After the preceding imperatives, the jussive verbal form with vav (ו) conjunctive is best understood as introducing a purpose (“so that the king might desire your beauty”) or result clause (see the present translation and cf. also NASB). The point seems to be this: The bride might tend to be homesick, which in turn might cause her to mourn and diminish her attractiveness. She needs to overcome this temptation to unhappiness and enter into the marriage with joy. Then the king will be drawn to her natural beauty.

[45:11]  ²⁶ tn Or “desire.”

[45:11]  ²⁷ tn Or “bow down.”

[45:11]  ²⁸ sn Submit to him. The poet here makes the point that the young bride is obligated to bring pleasure to her new husband. Though a foreign concept to modern western culture, this was accepted as the cultural norm in the psalmist’s day.