When Abraham sent his servant to find Isaac a wife among his kinsfolk, his servant had no idea of what qualities he should be looking for.

Should he search among the available damsels for the most beautiful, or the most submissive (a quality a misogynist might considered key to making a good wife)?

As recorded in Genesis 24, when the servant arrived in the city of Nahor, he prayed unto the God of Abraham that He would show him kindness in figuring out which of the damsels was the right one for his master’s son Isaac.

In short, he formulated a bit of a test. He would ask the damsels that came to the well of water for a drink. And if a damsel would then say drink, and I will water thy camels also (all 10 of them), he would then know that this was the right person that the Lord had selected.

So what is so significant about this?

Great question.

In essence, Abraham’s servant could have contrived a method of finding Isaac a wife based upon beauty, or submissiveness, or ability to carry a heavy load. But all of these criteria would have missed the mark.

Instead, Abraham’s servant came up with a method to determine which of all the damsels was the most graceful.

Graceful?

Yes. Who else would volunteer to water 10 camels (or to serve, or to give life) when a stranger simply asked for a drink of water?

Through this act of grace on Rebekah’s part in serving a total stranger, she became the recipient of an even greater endowment of grace. Not only was she then enabled to marry Isaac, the son of righteous Abraham, but more importantly, she cemented her place in the earthy lineage that would one day lead to the Christ.

NOTES:

(1) So how much water does a camel drink? A camel that has not had water recently can drink up to 40 gallons. Water weighs 8.3 pounds per gallon, or 332 pounds per 40 gallons, which is enough for a single camel. If Abraham’s servant had 10 camels, Rebekah would have drawn 400 gallons of water, or 3320 pounds of water by hand (that is over 1 and 1/2 tons).

(2) It is highly unlikely that Rebekah just so happened to serve Abraham’s servant on the single day an act of grace was needed to unlock the blessings of Heaven. Said differently, her act of kindness towards Abrahams servant was not a one-off. It is more likely that Rebekah was graceful by nature. It is highly likely and in harmony with the scriptures that she was a choice daughter of our Heavenly Father who was always loving, always lifting, and always serving. She wasn’t worried about what was in it for her. Her service was never calculated. She just gave. She always lifted where she stood. And one day her selfless generosity was key to unlocking a most precious opportunity and blessing.

(3) It has been incorrectly surmised that Abraham’s servant was looking for qualities in a damsel that might have chauvinistically been considered optimal for being a good wife … such as being submissive or being a work horse. Any ideas along these lines are degrading and not in harmony with the scriptures or in how our Father in Heaven views His children, whether male or female. Rebekah was neither submissive or a work horse. She was graceful. That is a big difference. When one is graceful, they have the weight of Heaven behind them. This single characteristic is the key to a successful marriage.

(4) In Exodus 2, soon after Moses fled Egypt, he came upon a well of water. The priest of Midian, Reuel, had seven daughters, who came to this well to draw water for their father’s flocks. As Moses was watching, other men arrived and attempted to drive off Reuel’s flocks. Moses then arose to Reuel’s daughters defense, gathered the sheep, and watered their flocks. As a direct result of this, Moses was invited into the household of Reuel, and in time married his daughter Zipporah. Moses also received the priesthood through Reuel, all of which would have never happened had he not shown grace to Reuel’s seven daughters when they were total strangers.

(5) In Genesis 29, Jacob first meets Rachel at a well of water. In their first interaction, Jacob watered the flocks of Rachel’s father Laban. Again, an act of grace led to a marriage that was sanctioned and supported by the Heavens.