Genesis 24:1-9

I. Abraham Sends a Messenger to Procure Isaac's Bride

"And Abraham was old, and well stricken in age: and Jehovah had blessed Abraham in all things. And Abraham said unto his servant, the elder of his house, that ruled over all that he had, Put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh: and I will make thee swear by Jehovah, the God of heaven, and the God of the earth, that thou wilt not take a wife for my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell: but thou shalt go unto my country, and unto my kindred, and take a wife for my son Isaac. And the servant said unto him, Peradventure the woman will not be willing to follow me unto this land: must I needs bring thy son again unto the land from whence thou camest? And Abraham said unto him, Beware thou that thou bring not my son thither again. Jehovah, the God of heaven, who took me from my father's house, and from the land of my nativity, and who spake unto me, and who sware unto me, saying, Unto thy seed will I give this land; he will send his angel before thee, and thou shalt take a wife for my son from thence. And if the woman be not willing to follow thee, then shalt thou be clear from this my oath; only thou shalt not bring my son thither again. And the servant put his hand under the thigh of Abraham his master, and sware to him according to this matter."

The servant here would appear to be not the same as the Eliezer mentioned in Genesis 15:2, as it would seem nearly impossible for that servant to have continued in a state of health and vigor long enough to have enabled him to carry out such a mission as that entrusted to the servant here.

"Thy hand under my thigh ..." (Genesis 24:2). "This is euphemistic for the genital organs,"[1] and it was considered the most sacred oath among the Hebrews. The words of Abraham in these nine verses are "the last recorded words of Abraham."[2]

Note that Isaac did not, in person, go on this mission, and that the primary requirement to be met by the bride was that she should be WILLING to follow the messenger who would lead her to her husband.

AS WITH CHRIST AND HIS BRIDE

Christ does not, in person, and visibly, engage in the search for his Bride; one "sent," the blessed Holy Spirit is the agent charged with the duty of finding, identifying, and leading the Bride to Christ, Unger understood this:

"This unnamed servant furnishes a picture of the Holy Spirit, who takes treasures of the bridegroom to win the Bride, who enriches the Bride with gifts, and brings the Bride to the Bridegroom. Rebekah prefigures the Church, and Isaac typifies Christ."[3]