圣經故事

The Marriage of Lsaac

Genesis

By this time Abraham had become a very old man ，and the Lord had blessed him in all that he did. Abraham said to his servant， who had been long in his service and was in charge of all his possessions¹， “Put your hand under my thigh: I want you to swear by the Lord， the God of heaven and earth， that you will not take a wife for my son from the women ofthe Canaan ites in whose land I dwell; you must go to my own country and to my own kindred to find a wife for my son Isaac.”--So the servant put his hand under his master Abraham's thigh and swore an oath² in those terms.

The servant took ten camels from his master's herds， and also all kinds of gifts from his master; he set out for Aram naharaim and arrived at the city where Nahor lived. Towards evening， the time when the women come out to draw water， he made the camels kneel³ down by the well outside the city. He said， “O Lord God of my master Abraham ，give me good fortune⁴ this day; keep faith with my master Abraham. Here I stand by the spring， and the women of the city are coming out to draw water. Let it be like this: I shall say to a girl， ‘Please lower your jar so that I may drink’; and if she answers，‘Drink， and I will water your camels also’， that will be the girl whom thou dost intend for thy servant Isaac. In this way I shall know that thou hast kept faith with my master.”

Before he had finished praying silently he saw Rebecca coming out with her waterjug on her shoulder. Abraham's servant hurried to meet her and said， “Give me a sip of water from your jar.”“Drink， sir，”she answered， and at once lowered her jar on to her hand to let him drink. When she had finished giving him a drink， she said， “Now I will draw water for your camels until they have had enough.”So she quickly empfied her jar into the water-through⁵ ， hurried again to the well to draw water and watered all the camels. When the camels had finished drinking， the man took a gold nose ringt weighing half a shekel⁶ ， and two bracelets⁷ for her wrists weighing ten shekels， also of gold， and said， “Tell me， please， whose daughter you are. Is there room in your father's house for us to spend the night?”She answered， “I am the daughter of Bethuel ，the son of Nahor and Milcah; and we have plenty of Bethuel ，the son of Nahor and Milcah; and we have plenty of straw and fodder⁸ and also room for you to spend the night.”So the man bowed down and prostrated⁹ himself to the Lord. He said， “Blessed be the Lord the God of my master Abraham， who has not failed to keep faith and truth with my master; for I have been guided by the Lord to the house of my master's kinsman.”

The girlran to her mother's house and told them what had happened. Now Rebecca had a brother named Laban; and， when he saw the nosering¹⁰， and also the bracelets on his sister's wrists， and heard his sister Rebecca tell what the man had said to her， he ran out to the man at the spring. When he came to him ， he said， When he came to him， he said， “Come in ， sir， whom the Lord had blessed. Why stay outside? I have prepared the house， and there is room for the camels.”So he brought the man into the house， unloaded the camels and provided straw and fodder for them ，and water for him and all his men to wash their feet. Food was set before him， but he said， “I will not eat until I have delivered¹¹my message.”Laban said， “Let us hear it.”He answered， “I am the servant of Abraham-- Now tell me if you will keep faith and truth with my master. If not ， say so ，and I will turn elsewhere.”

Laban and Bethuel answered， “This is from the Lord; we can say nothing for or against. Here is Rebecca herself; take her and go .She shall be the wift of your master's son， as the Lord has decreed¹² .So they let their sister Rebecca and her nurse go with Abraham's servant and his men.”

Isaac meanwhile had moved on as far as Beer-lahai-roi and was living in the Negeb. One evening when he had gone out into the open country to relieve himself， he looked up and saw camels approaching. When Rebecca raised her eyes and saw Isaac， she slipped hastily¹³ from her camel. Saying to the servant， “Who is that man walking across the open towards us?”The servant answered， “It is my master.”So she took her veil¹⁴ and covered herself. The servant related to Isaac all that had happened. Isaac conducted her into the tent and took her as his wife. So she became his wife， and he loved her and was consoled¹⁵ for the death of his mother.

故里娶妻

創世紀

這時亞伯拉罕已經老態龍鐘了。天主一直祝福他做的一切事情。亞伯拉罕對一個隨他很久的老管家說：“把你的手放在我的大腿下，我要你向天主、對天地的上帝發誓，你不要替我兒子從居住地的迦南人中娶妻。你必須到我的故鄉、到我的親族 那里去給我兒子以撒尋覓妻子。……于是那管家就把手放在他主人亞伯拉罕的大腿下面，遵照這些條件發了誓。”

老管家從他主人的牧群中挑選取了十頭駱駝，還從主人那里拿了品種多樣的禮品，便出發去阿蘭納哈蘭。他來到了拿鶴住的城市。傍晚，恰巧是婦女出來打水的時候，他讓駱駝跪在城外水井邊。他說：“啊，我的主人亞伯拉罕的天主上帝啊，讓我今天交上好運氣，請屬守你和我的主人亞伯拉罕的約言。我站在井邊這兒，城里的女人們都出城來打水了。讓事情這樣發展吧：我將對一個姑娘說：‘請把你的水罐拿下來，她讓我喝點水！’如果她回答說：‘請喝吧，我還給你的駱駝也喝點水。’那她就是你預定的仆人以撒將來的妻子。這樣，我就會知道你恪守和我的主人的約言了。”

他剛默禱完，就看見利百加肩上扛著水罐走出來。亞伯拉罕的老管家急忙走上前去對她說：“求你給我喝一點罐里的水。”“喝吧，先生。”她回答說，并馬上拿下水罐讓他喝。她給他喝完水后，又說：“現在我要取些水給你的駱駝飲，讓它們喝個飽。”說著她就迅速地把罐里的水全倒到水槽中，又趕到井邊去打水，并給所有的駱駝都飲了水。當駱駝喝完水后，老管家拿出一個約半舍客勒的金鼻環和兩只重十舍客勒的金鼻環和兩只重十舍客勒的金手鐲給那女子，說：“請告訴我，誰是你的長輩。你們家有地方給我們留宿嗎？”她回答：“我是拿鶴和密迦的兒子彼土利的女兒。我們家有足夠的糧草飼料、也有地方讓你過夜。”老管家向天主鞠躬說：“感謝我的主人亞伯拉罕的上帝，天主你沒有忘記以誠相待我主人，是天主引領我來到我主人的兄弟家里。”

那女孩跑到她母親住處，告訴他們這件事情。利百加有個哥哥叫拉班，當他看見金鼻環還有他妹妹手腕上的兩個鐲子，聽到他妹妹利百加告訴他那老管家的要求，他就出門跑到井邊老管家那里對他說：“請進來，先生，上帝保佑你。為什么還在外面站著，我已經為你收拾好房子，駱駝也有地方安置。”接著，他就把老管家帶進屋，卸了駱駝并喂以草料，還準備了水讓老管家和他的隨從們洗腳。食物也擺在他面前。老人卻說：“我要先傳達一個口信才吃飯。”拉班說：“我們在聽著。”老管家回答：“我是亞伯拉罕的仆人。（他詳細解釋了為什么他來到這里。）現在請告訴我，你們是否愿意以誠信待我主人，與他聯姻。如果不愿意，也請直說，我就到別處再找。”

拉班和彼土利回答：“既然這是上帝的旨意，我們還能說同意或不同意。利百加在這里，讓她隨你走吧，她將成為你主人的兒媳，就照天主說的去做吧。”這樣，他們就讓妹子利百加及她的乳母同亞伯拉罕的老家人和隨從們一起走了。

以撒這時候已搬到老遠的庇耳拉海萊，住在耐格伯。一天黃昏時，他走到野外去散心，抬頭看見有一個駱駝隊朝他走來。利百加遠遠地看見以撒，就連忙從駱駝上下來，問那老管家：“那邊朝我們走來的男人是誰？”老管家回答：“那就是我家的少爺。”利百加就取出面紗把臉蒙上。老管家就向以撒講述了全部經過，以撒將利百加領進帳篷，娶她為妻。這樣她就成為他的妻子，他也愛她。自從他母親去世后，以撒到這時才得到了一些寬慰。

1.possession n. 擁有，所有，領地，財產（常用復數）

2.swore and oath(swear an oath) 發誓

3.kneel vi. 跪下

4.fortune n. 財富，運氣，好運，命運

5.water-through 水槽

6.shekel n. 古希伯來或巴比倫的衡量單位（和錢幣）

7.bracelet n. 手鐲

8.fodder. n 飼料，草

9.prostrate vt. 弄倒，使屈，平躺

10.nosering n. 鼻環

11.deliver vt. 遞送，陳述，交付

12.decree n. 法令，政令 v.頒布

13.hastily adv.急速地，慌忙地，草率地

14.veil n. 面紗，面罩 vt. 戴面紗，隱藏，遮蔽，掩飾

15.console vt. 安慰，藉慰