Identity of Isaac's Wife in Genesis
The Identity of Isaac's Wife in Genesis
The biblical account in Genesis identifies Isaac's wife as Rebekah, daughter of Bethuel and sister of Laban [1]. Rebekah's genealogy is detailed in Genesis 22:20-24 and 24:15, 29, establishing her as a member of Abraham's family through her father Bethuel, who was the son of Nahor, Abraham's brother [2, 4].
Rebekah's marriage to Isaac is narrated in Genesis 24, where Abraham's servant is sent to Mesopotamia to find a wife for Isaac from among Abraham's relatives. The servant meets Rebekah at a well, where she demonstrates kindness and hospitality by offering him water and drawing water for his camels. This encounter is seen as a sign from God that Rebekah is the chosen bride for Isaac [9].
Rebekah's character is described in various biblical sources. According to Easton's Bible Dictionary, she "can hardly be regarded as an amiable woman" due to her actions, including her partiality towards Jacob and her role in deceiving Isaac [2]. Smith's Bible Dictionary also notes her strong will and favoritism towards Jacob, which influenced the dynamics within her family [5].
The age of Isaac at the time of his marriage to Rebekah is specified as forty years [1, 3]. This event occurred in the 140th year of Abraham's life, three years after Sarah's death, as noted by Augustine in "City of God" [11].
The significance of Rebekah's marriage to Isaac is highlighted in the context of maintaining the covenant faith. Tyndale House commentary on Genesis 25:19-20 notes that Isaac's marriage to Rebekah, rather than a Canaanite, helped to preserve the faith by connecting his family to Abraham's ancestors [10].
Rebekah's role in the biblical narrative extends beyond her marriage. She is involved in significant events, including the birth of Esau and Jacob and the deception of Isaac to favor Jacob [5]. The protection of Rebekah by God is also noted, particularly during Isaac's sojourn in Gerar, where she is preserved from harm despite Isaac's claim that she was his sister [7, 8].
The biblical account and subsequent interpretations emphasize Rebekah's importance in the patriarchal narrative, highlighting both her actions and her role within the family dynamics. The details of her life and character continue to be a subject of study and interpretation across various Christian traditions [2, 5, 6].
The historical and cultural context of Rebekah's marriage to Isaac underscores the importance of familial ties and the preservation of the covenant lineage. As noted by Keil & Delitzsch, the protection of Rebekah at Gerar demonstrates God's providential care for the patriarchs and their families [8].
Sources
- Genesis “Genesis 25:20 (BBE) — Isaac was forty years old when he took Rebekah, the daughter of Bethuel the Aramaean of Paddan-aram, and the sister of Laban the Aramaean, to be his wife.”
- Easton's Bible Dictionary “Easton's Bible Dictionary: Rebekah — A noose, the daughter of Bethuel, and the wife of Isaac (Gen. 22:23; 24:67). The circumstances under which Abraham's "steward" found her at the "city of Nahor," in Padan-aram, are narrated in Gen. 24-27. "She can hardly be regarded as an amiable woman. When we first see her she is ready to leave her father's house for ever at an hour's notice; and her future life showed not only a full share of her brother Laban's duplicity, but the grave fault of partiality in her relations to her children, and a strong will, which soon controlled the gentler nature of her”
- Smith's Bible Dictionary “Smith's Bible Dictionary: Isaac — (laughter), the son whom Sara bore to Abraham, in the hundredth year of his age, at Gerar. (B.C. 1897.) In his infancy he became the object of Ishmael's jealousy; and in his youth the victim, in intention, of Abraham's great sacrificial act of faith. When forty years old he married Rebekah his cousin, by whom, when he was sixty, he had two sons, Esau and Jacob. Driven by famine to Gerar, he acquired great wealth by his flocks but was repeatedly dispossessed by the Philistines of the wells which he sunk at convenient stations. After the deceit by which Jacob ac”
- Easton's Bible Dictionary “Easton's Bible Dictionary: Isaac — Laughter. (1) Israel, or the kingdom of the ten tribes (Amos 7:9, 16). (2.) The only son of Abraham by Sarah. He was the longest lived of the three patriarchs (Gen. 21:1-3). He was circumcised when eight days old (4-7); and when he was probably two years old a great feast was held in connection with his being weaned. The next memorable event in his life is that connected with the command of God given to Abraham to offer him up as a sacrifice on a mountain in the land of Moriah (Gen. 22). (See [296]ABRAHAM.) When he was forty years of age Rebekah was chosen fo”
- Smith's Bible Dictionary “Smith's Bible Dictionary: Rebekah — (ensnarer), daughter of Bethuel, (Genesis 22:23) and sister of Laban, married to Isaac. She is first presented to us in (Genesis 24:1) ... where the beautiful story of her marriage is related. (B.C. 1857.) For nineteen years she was childless: then Esau and Jacob were born, the younger being the mother's companion and favorite. (Genesis 25:19-28) Rebekah suggested the deceit that was practiced by Jacob on his blind father. She directed and aided him in carrying it out, foresaw the probable consequence of Esau's anger, and prevented it by moving Isaac to send”
- Genesis (Methodist/Wesleyan) “Adam Clarke on Genesis 22:23: Bethuel begat Rebekah - Who afterward became the wife of Isaac.”
- Genesis (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on Genesis 26:6: And Isaac dwelt in Gerar. Continued there; in this he was obedient to the command and will of God. And Isaac dwelt in Gerar. Continued there; in this he was obedient to the command and will of God. Genesis 26:7 gen 26:7 gen 26:7 gen 26:7And the men of the place asked him of his wife,.... The inhabitants of Gerar inquired of Isaac who she was, whether she was his wife or not, or in what relation she stood in to him; this was not a mere civil inquiry, but what arose from the prevalence of lust in them towards her; and yet it was under some restraint, they being not ”
- Genesis (Lutheran) “Keil & Delitzsch on Genesis 26:6: Protection of Rebekah at Gerar. - As Abraham had declared his wife to be his sister both in Egypt and at Gerar, so did Isaac also in the latter place. But the manner in which God protected Rebekah was very different from that in which Sarah was preserved in both instances. Before any one had touched Rebekah, the Philistine king discovered the untruthfulness of Isaac's statement, having seen Isaac "sporting with Rebekah," sc., in a manner to show that she was his wife; whereupon he reproved Isaac for what he had said, and forbade any of his people to touch Rebe”
- Genesis (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on Genesis 24:47: And it came to pass, that when Abraham's servant heard these words,.... That Laban and Bethuel said; and no doubt but the mother of Rebekah, and she herself consented that she should be the wife of Isaac, believing it was agreeable to the will of God: he worshipped the Lord, bowing himself to the earth; in the most humble manner he prostrated himself before the Lord, acknowledging his kindness, and goodness, his faithfulness and truth, his power and his providence in this affair.”
- Genesis (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on Genesis 25:19: 25:19–35:29 This account of the family of Isaac, the chosen son of Abraham, mostly recounts Jacob’s struggle for the blessing (25:27-34; chs 27–33). 25:19-26 Jacob’s struggle for supremacy began before the twins were born (see Hos 12:3). 25:19-20 Isaac . . . married Rebekah: Isaac’s marriage tied him and his family even more closely to Abraham’s ancestors. Had he married a Canaanite, the covenant faith would have been imperiled by this corrupt, syncretistic people.”
- Schaff ANF/NPNF (Patristic) “NPNF1 Vol 2: Augustine — City of God, Christian Doctrine — CHAP. 33.--OF REBECCA, THE GRAND-DAUGHTER OF NAHOR, WHOM ISAAC TOOK TO WIFE.: Isaac married Rebecca, the grand-daughter of Nahor, his father's brother, when he was forty years old, that is, in the 140th year of his father's life, three years after his mother's death. Now when a servant was sent to Mesopotamia by his father to fetch her, and when Abraham said to that servant, "Put thy hand under my thigh, and I will make thee swear by the Lord, the God of heaven, and the Lord of the earth, that thou shalt not take a wife unto my son Isa”