Genesis 24:13

Guidance and decisions Prayer

¹¹ As evening approached, he made the camels kneel down near the well outside the town at the time when the women went out to draw water.

¹² “O LORD, God of my master Abraham,” he prayed, “please grant me success today, and show kindness to my master Abraham.

Here I am, standing beside the spring, and the daughters of the townspeople are coming out to draw water.

¹⁴ Now may it happen that the girl to whom I say, ‘Please let down your jar that I may drink,’ and who responds, ‘Drink, and I will water your camels as well’—let her be the one You have appointed for Your servant Isaac. By this I will know that You have shown kindness to my master.”

¹⁵ Before the servant had finished praying, Rebekah came out with her jar on her shoulder. She was the daughter of Bethuel son of Milcah, the wife of Abraham’s brother Nahor.

Here the Bible tells a story about someone else. Ask yourself what it can say to us today. Do read the surrounding verses too, because the context often says more than a single verse.

Compare

BSB: Here I am, standing beside the spring, and the daughters of the townspeople are coming out to draw water.
KJV: Behold, I stand here by the well of water; and the daughters of the men of the city come out to draw water:
WEB: Behold, I am standing by the spring of water. The daughters of the men of the city are coming out to draw water.
ASV: Behold, I am standing by the fountain of water. And the daughters of the men of the city are coming out to draw water.
DARBY: Behold, I stand [here] by the well of water, and the daughters of the men of the city come out to draw water.
BLB: Behold, I am standing by the spring of water, and the daughters of the men of the city are coming out to draw water.

ÅB: Se, nå står jeg her ved denne kilde mens døtrene til mennene i byen kommer ut for å hente vann.
OTB: Se, jeg står her ved kilden, og døtrene til byens folk kommer ut for å hente vann.
B1930: Se, nu står jeg her ved denne kilde mens døtrene til mennene i byen kommer ut for å hente vann.

Study notes (Tyndale)

Original text and word study

Cross references

Genesis 24:43
Here I am, standing beside this spring. Now if a maiden comes out to draw water and I say to her, ‘Please let me drink a little water from your jar,’
Read in context
Psalms 37:5
Commit your way to the LORD; trust in Him, and He will do it.
Read in context
Judges 5:11
the voices of the singers at the watering places. There they shall recount the righteous acts of the LORD, the righteous deeds of His villagers in Israel. Then the people of the LORD went down to the gates:
Read in context
Genesis 24:11
As evening approached, he made the camels kneel down near the well outside the town at the time when the women went out to draw water.
Read in context
John 4:7
When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, “Give Me a drink.”
Read in context
Proverbs 3:6
in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.
Read in context
1 Samuel 9:11
And as they were climbing the hill to the city, they met some young women coming out to draw water and asked, “Is the seer here?”
Read in context
Genesis 29:9–10
While he was still speaking with them, Rachel arrived with her father’s sheep, for she was a shepherdess.
Read in context