Genesis 24:34-38, 42-49, 58-67
Today in our lessons we take a pause from tests of loyalty and the divisiveness that the way of the cross brings. We have this momentary breath of fresh air, a part of the Hebrew Bible we often breeze right by because it is not particularly contentious or gory or scandalous. Our Genesis reading this morning is an abridged version of a love story, one of the most ancient love stories we know of- the story of Isaac and Rebekah.
We only get the bare bones of this tale. You might notice in your bulletin that the reading jumps around, skipping verses and whole chunks of the chapter. Rebekah’s story is more than who she’s related to or how many children she will bear. She is a matriarch in her own right, and the central character in this love story. She makes her own decisions, and hers is the first marriage in scripture to be described as a loving one. Adam is not described as loving Eve. Abraham is never depicted as saying anything like “I love you” to Sarah. But Isaac, in the first use of the word for romantic love in scripture, loves his wife. Not only does Isaac love Rebekah, but unlike his own father, unlike his male relatives or his future sons, Isaac is monogamous, and Rebekah is his only spouse. From their very beginning, Isaac and Rebekah choose one another, and it is through their marriage that Israel is born.
Abraham’s heir speaks very seldom in scripture, and this week Isaac is once again somewhat of a secondary character in his own story. Abraham sends a servant to his relatives back home to look for a wife for his son Isaac, a common practice at the time to ensure the continuation of the family line. We enter the story in the middle of a conversation, in which that servant is recounting his encounter the woman he believes God has chosen to be Isaac’s wife. The servant asks God to give him a sign to prove which woman was the right one for his master’s heir, and that sign is more than it might appear to us. The sign itself is simple- whichever woman is chosen would offer him not only water for his own thirst, but enough water to refresh all the camels he brought with him. This is more than a kindness or a show of hospitality, not something most people would be likely to do for someone they didn’t know. The woman who answers the servant’s prayer will need to be strong, and generous, and hospitable. Watering a traveling party of camels from a well is a feat of physical strength and endurance. Rebekah has done just that, hauling up large jugs of water again and again to water parched pack animals for a complete stranger. When the servant asks the strong young woman who her family is, her answer tells us both that she is related to Abraham and that she is from a family that traces its roots through the women. Rather than just being her father’s child, she tells the visitor who her grandmother is. In parts of the passage that were skipped for brevity, it is clear that Rebekah’s mother holds authority in their family, and that Rebekah has significant agency in the household. It is Rebekah herself who invites the servant back to her mother’s house to rest and be welcomed, and it is Rebekah who ultimately consents to going with him back to Abraham and Sarah’s home to meet their son.
In just a few short verses, we get a picture of who Rebekah is. Rebekah who puts in hard work when she encounters someone in need. Rebekah who remembers and honors where she comes from, naming both of her parents in her lineage. Rebekah who gets involved in the bargaining for her future, and who says “I will” when asked if she is ready to go on a life-changing journey. Rebekah who asks questions and pays attention. Rebekah who offers comfort to her loved ones in times of loss. Rebekah who will pray to God when challenges come, and who will hear God’s voice answer her. The love story of Isaac and Rebekah is so special because it is not a story of a man in a patriarchal society and the woman he bought like property or treated like a vessel. This is a love story because Rebekah is a whole person, with her own life and personality and history that led her to say yes to the man who turned her head as he was walking in the field. The love between Rebekah and Isaac is possible because of who Rebekah is, both because of and despite the expectations that shaped her world. Rebekah is the main character in her own story, not the love interest in someone else’s.
I wanted us to spend some time with Rebekah today because so often we allow ourselves to believe that women’s stories do not exist in the Bible, or that the stories of women in scripture are all defined by violence and passivity and patriarchy. We might have heard parts of their stories as object lessons for why humility is virtuous or submissiveness is valuable. We often only know our matriarchs of the faith by the men they were told to marry or the children they raised, or perhaps by the ways they fell short of some fictional ideal. Just as there are imperfect men in scripture, there are fascinating and complicated women like Rebekah. People of all genders are part of the story of God. Their stories matter, they always have. Our stories matter, and we must keep telling them.
Mother A Writes 