… Sarah does not are available in ch. 24. Lookin right back over the tale, the fresh new reference would-be only to the daddy who, at the beginning of the fresh new chapter, believed that he had been close to dying. It’s possible hence your finishing phrase went: ‘So Isaac try comfortable after the death of his dad.’…

Gunkel’s solution is maybe not adequate, yet not. His conflict one “if the slave pertains to Isaac, Isaac tells him one his dad keeps died in the interim,” ignores the fact that the latest slave refers to Isaac just like the “their learn” up until the a couple of got a chance to talk (v. 65), where point, brand new servant would not have identified that Abraham had died. Additionally, the new find in the Isaac wanting comfort to have his mom’s passing links of course so you can Sarah death (ch. 23), and therefore there’s absolutely no justification to help you emend the fresh new verse to help you “father.”

A good Fragment out of Customs

I suggest one to to begin with it absolutely was Isaac, allegedly by himself initiative, just who delivers out of his slave to get your a spouse. Therefore, if slave returns that have Rebecca, the guy merchandise their particular directly to Isaac.

While i argue in my own “Isaac prior to He was Abraham’s Child” (TheTorah 2020), Abraham was previously a different patriarch, exactly who served by yourself since the “father” of the country

An editor revised the majority of this new narrative (vv. 1–52), you to definitely in the first place concerned about Isaac just, presenting Abraham given that individual that cared for their young man and you can arranged having their marriage in advance of his dying. For this reason, the man makes reference to “their grasp Abraham” (vv. several, 27, 42, 48) which is titled “Abraham’s servant” (vv. 34, 52), and much of one’s discussion is about the latest servant in search of an excellent wife to your master’s young man.

A great fragment of the very first brand of the fresh narrative is managed from v. 53, and that describes the new servant’s provide so you can Rebecca’s cousin and you can mom, before prevent of the story, with only a small number of article glosses (vv. 59, and you may 67a).

Right here, the brand new slave is referred to only just like the “brand new slave” otherwise “the person” (vv. 53, 58, 61, 65 [twice], 66), which could just as easily be a regard to Isaac’s slave. Way more significantly, beginning with verse 54, we find “the brand new slave” speaking-to Rebecca’s mom and you may sister about “my learn” (vv. 54, 56) unlike “my personal grasp Abraham” (such as vv. 12, 27, 35–37, 39, 42, 48):

?????? ??:?? ????????? ??????? ?????? ????? ??????? ????? ?????????? ????????? ????????? ???????????? ????? ????????? ???????????. ??:?? ??????????? ???????????? ???? ????????????? ?????? ???? internationalwomen.net se webbplatsen?? ??????????? ??????????? ???????? ????????? ??????????? ????????. ??:?? ????????? ??????? ??? ?????????? ????? ???????? ????????? ????????? ???????????? ????????? ????????.

Gen The fresh servant presented objects away from gold and silver, and you can garments, and you may provided these to Rebecca; and he gave presents so you can their aunt and her mother. Then and guys that have your ate and used, and they invested the evening. When they emerged next day, he said, “Render me personally get off to consult with my learn.”… He said to all of them, “Do not delay myself, since YHWH has made my personal errand profitable. Give myself get off which i might go to my master.”

From this point up to verse 65, the new servant appears to be talking about Isaac as he states “my master;” this is certainly obvious when he shows you in order to Rebecca just who the person approaching them try.

As to why was the storyline reworked to help make the effort into the ‘s rather than Isaac’s? To start with, the Abraham and Isaac reports was separate living, and you will just weren’t connected: Isaac was not Abraham’s young man. Meanwhile, Isaac and his son Jacob-the daddy out-of Israel-belonged to a parallel, independent, federal lifestyle.