000 Allen FMT (i-xxii) - The Presbyterian Leader

58 Proper 9 [14]/Year A
would give a specific response to the servant’s request for water would be
not only the spouse but a means whereby God showed steadfast love
(hesed) to Abraham (Gen. 24:12, 14). J. Gerald Janzen points out that a
meeting at a well is often a type-scene of promise and generativity (e.g.,
Rachel and Jacob, Zipporah and Moses, the Samaritan woman and Jesus). 14
Rebekah appeared at the well and exhibited hospitality toward the servant
similar to that of Sarah and Abraham toward the visitors at Mamre
(Proper 6/Year A), reminding the reader of the theological potential of
welcoming strangers, and revealing Rebekah to be made from the same
stuff as the ancestral couple (Gen. 24:10–33).
The servant emphasized Abraham’s impressive holdings while interpreting
the events that led to the servant seeking Rebekah for Isaac (Gen.
24:34–49).When the brother (Laban) and father (Bethuel) agreed that
God made the arrangement, the servant gave impressive gifts beyond the
bride price (24:50–54).
Nevertheless, when the servant was ready to return with Rebekah to
Isaac, her family wanted her to remain a few days. When asked her preference,
Rebekah said immediately “I will [go]” (Gen. 24:58), exhibiting
the spirit of Sarah and Abraham, who responded similarly to God’s invitation
in Genesis 12:1–3. As the story of Rebekah unfolds, readers recognize
that God works through women as active participants in keeping the
promise. Indeed, in 24:60, a blessing is pronounced over Rebekah that she
will be the mother of myriads who will gain possession of land, the same
promise given to Sarah and Abraham in Genesis 22:17b. Her actions are
part of the way God keeps the promise.
A compelling dimension in the saga told in Genesis 12–50 is that the
promise God made to Sarah and Abraham (Second Sunday in Lent/Years
A, B, and C) did not come to complete fulfillment in one easy moment
but encountered multiple challenges over generations. Consequently,
readers recognize that the promises of God may be fulfilled after periods
of time during which the readers need to be faithful and patient.
Janzen notes further that the notion of divine “steadfast love and faithfulness,”
so important in the life of Israel (e.g., Exod. 34:6) and to Paul in
Romans 9–11, is given formative expression in Genesis 24. Here we see
that “the problem of existence” turns not just on human sin and divine
forgiveness but “equally—if not more—on the question of divine faithfulness
to a needy world.” 15
Rebekah and Isaac are only once jointly cited in the New Testament
(Rom. 9:6–10; Isaac only, Gal. 4:28). Isaac is mentioned several times: as
part of the genealogy of Jesus (Matt. 1:2; Luke 3:34); as a central figure in