May the mumbling commence!
What message are we burning to tell others? What message is more important to a travel
weary person than food and rest? It’s
the message of the Lord moving in our lives.
Read from Peterson’s The Message:
And the girl
was off and running,
telling everyone in her mother’s house what had happened.
Rebekah
had a brother named Laban. Laban ran outside to the man at the spring. He had seen the
nose ring and the bracelets on his sister and had heard her say, “The man said this and this and this to me.” So he went to the
man and there he was, still standing with his camels at the spring. Laban welcomed him:
“Come on in, blessed of God! Why are you
standing out here? I’ve got the house ready for you; and there’s also a place for your camels.”
So the
man went into the house. The camels were
unloaded and given straw and feed. Water was brought to bathe the feet of the man and the men with
him. Then
Laban brought out food. But the man said, “I won’t eat until I tell my story.”
Laban
said, “Go ahead; tell
us.”
The
servant said, “I’m
the servant of Abraham. God has
blessed my master – he’s a great man; God has
given him sheep and cattle, silver and gold, servants and maidservants, camels
and donkeys. And then to top it off, Sarah,
my master’s wife, gave him a son in her old age and he has passed everything on to his son. My master made me
promise, ‘Don’t get a wife for my
son from the daughters of the Canaanites in whose land I live. No, go to my father’s home,
back to my family,
and get a wife for my son there.’ I said to my master, ‘But what if the woman won’t come
with me?’ He said, ‘God before whom I’ve
walked faithfully will send his angel with you and he’ll make things work out so that you’ll bring back a wife for my son from my family,
from the house
of my father. Then you’ll be set
free from the oath. If you go to my
family, and they won’t give her to you, you will also be free from the oath.’”
(Genesis 24:28-41)
Now read the same passage from the NIV translation:
The girl ran and told her mother's household
about these things. Now Rebekah had a brother named Laban, and he hurried out to the man
at the spring. As soon as he had seen the nose ring, and the bracelets
on his sister's arms, and had heard Rebekah tell
what the man said to her, he went out to the
man and found him
standing by the camels near the spring.
"Come, you
who are blessed by the Lord,"
he said. "Why
are you standing out here? I have prepared
the house and a place for the camels."
So the man went to the house, and the camels were
unloaded. Straw and fodder were brought for the camels, and water
for him and his men to wash their feet. Then food was set
before him, but he said, "I will not
eat until I have told you what I have to
say."
"Then tell us," Laban said.
So he said, "I am Abraham's servant. The Lord has
blessed my master abundantly, and he has become
wealthy. He has
given him sheep and cattle, silver and gold, menservants and maidservants, and camels and donkeys. My master's wife Sarah has borne him a son in her
old age, and he has given him everything he
owns. And
my master made me swear an oath, and said,
'You must not get a
wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, in whose land I live,
but go to my
father's family and to my own clan, and get a wife for my son.'
Then I asked my master, 'What if the woman will not come
back with me?'
He replied, 'The Lord, before whom I have
walked, will send his angel with you and make your
journey a success, so that you can get a
wife for my son from my own clan and from my father's family. Then, when you go to
my clan, you will be released from my oath even if they refuse to give her to
you – you will be released from my oath.' (Genesis 24:28-41)
I see nothing in this passage between Peterson’s work
and the NIV that gives me pause. The
Spirit and heart of the Scripture is still intact.
The oath and the presence of the Lord in this passage
are equally important for Laban and the rest of Rebekah’s family to know. All of this prefaces the actual prayer and
the immediate answer to the prayer.
These miraculous things could not have happened without the precise oath
given between Abraham and his trusted servant.
Such trust and love always sets the Lord moving in our lives!
Enough mumbling for now…
Peace Out
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