Eliezer's Prayer
INTRODUCTION TO PARASHAT HASHAVUA
PARASHAT
CHAYE-SARA
Eliezer's
Prayer
By Rav
Michael Hattin
Introduction
Parashat Chayei Sarah begins with a brief
and fleeting account of Sarah's death, and the subsequent securing of a burial
plot for her at the Cave of Machpela by Avraham.
Sensing his own inescapable mortality in light of his beloved Sarah's
demise, and fearing for the continuation of their spiritual legacy, Avraham
summons his loyal servant Eliezer.
He directs him to return to Avraham's birthplace and family in order to find a
suitable wife for Yitzchak, their precious progeny. The servant dutifully undertakes the
journey, and after a fervent prayer to the Creator, he chances upon Rivka the
daughter of Betuel, Avraham's kinsman.
After protracted negotiations with her family and subsequent to receiving
her own assent, she accompanies him back to Canaan, soon becoming the wife of
Yitzchak. The parasha concludes with
Avraham taking another wife, producing more offspring, but ultimately selecting
Yitzchak as his one true heir.
Avraham's timely death and honored burial at Machpela are succinctly described. The concluding verses of the section
briefly outline the descendents of Yishmael, Avraham's son by Hagar, Sarah's
maidservant.
The main
themes of the parasha are thus seen to revolve around the unceasing cycles of
death and rebirth. Sarah dies,
Yitzchak and Rivka unite, Avraham remarries, has children and expires, and
Yishmael has descendants and eventually dies also. Marriage, the bringing together of a
man and a woman who through the vehicle of their children will perpetuate their
own memory, is cast as the abiding bond between both worlds. Thus, the pivotal (and textually
central) event of the parasha is the marriage of Yitzchak to Rivka. In time, it is a moment that is
preceded by the death of Sarah and succeeded by the passing of Avraham. In substance, it is the embodiment of
something much more noteworthy, for the imperishability of those older two is
bound up in the union of their son to Rivka, the descendent of Avraham's brother
Nachor.
Eliezer's Journey and Arrival at Charan
The Torah
devotes much attention to the account of Eliezer and Rivka's initial meeting,
and this week we shall consider some of its more salient implications. Journeying eastwards from Canaan
accompanied by ten camels heavily laden with tokens of Avraham's wealth, Eliezer
eventually makes his way to Aram Naharaim, the city of Nachor. Located between the headwaters of the
Euphrates and Tigris Rivers, Aram Naharaim stands at the northern arc of the
so-called Fertile Crescent, and is a fecund and well-watered region.
Arriving
at the city's outskirts towards evening, Eliezer settles the camels at the
watering hole, and offers a fervent and poignant prayer for Divine intervention
in finding a wife for Yitzchak:
"Oh God,
Lord of my master Avraham, chance before me this day, and act favorably towards
my master Avraham. Behold, I am
standing at the water spring as the daughters of the city dwellers go out to
draw water. If I say to one of the
young women: 'please tilt your jug of water so that I may drink' and she
replies: 'Drink, and I will also water your camels,' then she will be the one
whom you have designated for your servant Yitzchak, and then I shall know that
you have acted favorably towards my master." (Bereishit 24:12-14)
A Curious Prayer Quickly Answered
A
stranger in unfamiliar territory, Eliezer settles the camels at the watering
hole, for that location constitutes the natural gathering place of every ancient
town and village. Turning to God to
assist him in finding a wife for Yitzchak, he proceeds to ask for a Divine
portent. If the unsuspecting maiden
will not only offer water to him but will also volunteer to water his camels,
then that will be a reliable sign that God has selected her as Yitzchak's wife! Sure enough, the supplication having
scarcely left his lips, Eliezer approaches a young woman who has just filled her
jug from the well and is ascending towards the village. Apprehensively, he requests a drink. The woman responds in the
affirmative, and quickly offers him water.
Allowing him to drink his fill, she then proposes to water his camels
until they are satiated.
Expectantly, Eliezer looks on, and only after she has completed the task of
caring for the camels, he inquires as to her identity.
"I am the
daughter of Betuel," she exclaims, "who is the son of Milka and Nachor. We have much hay and provender for
the camels, as well as a place to sleep.
The man (Eliezer) kneeled and prostrated himself before God" (Bereishit
24:26).
How
remarkable is the narrative, how supernatural is its descriptive prose! Asking for a sign of Divine concern,
Eliezer is immediately showered with a miraculous show of Providence. Not only does the first damsel he
approaches offer him and his camels water, but as luck would have it, she is
also a close relative of Avraham and Sarah, for her grandfather Nachor is none
other than Avraham's brother!
Additionally, the text points out, she is exceptionally beautiful and a virgin,
additional qualities that will enamor her to her potential suitor.
The Quotidian Quality of God's Ongoing
Involvement
Clearly,
the Torah is first and foremost interested in communicating a fundamental axiom
of its worldview: God is involved in the lives of human beings. Although
seemingly often absent, unaware or deaf to our pleas, God is involved. He is at once transcendent and
immediate, absolute but close by.
The events of our lives and the choices that we make are of interest to Him, and
His intervention and providence is constant.
Sometimes, that intervention is more obvious, occasionally it borders on
being overt, but most of the time it is hidden and almost imperceptible. In this unusual account, the Torah
makes it emphatically evident that God is not oblivious to our prayers and is
capable of granting them if that is His will.
Remarkably, although the account of Rivka's selection is what we might describe
in hindsight as 'miraculous,' there is absolutely nothing miraculous in the
episode itself. Eliezer requests a
sign that is mundane in the extreme, considering the circumstances. He does not pray for any sort of omen
that we might consider to be supernatural or abnormal. Having journeyed from afar, he is
thirsty, the camels are thirsty, and water is what they need. As the heat of the day dissipates,
and the cool evening breeze begins to blow, the townspeople are wont to go down
to the well to gather their water.
The onlookers at the well who see him approach the young woman can detect
nothing unusual in his manner or peculiar about his words, because both are
perfectly discernible and typical for the context. At the same time, Eliezer notices no
magic halos around the head of the lucky damsel, no ethereal sounds of tingling
bells in her gait or angelic figures dancing before her, in response to his
prayers. In other words, the Divine
response to Eliezer's entreaty is communicated with as much ordinariness as the
entreaty itself.
We must
therefore qualify our general principle of Providence that lies at the
foundation of the Torah's teachings, for that qualification puts this teaching
in direct variance to idolatrous and mythical conceptions of the gods. It seems that not only is the God of
the Patriarchs aware of human affairs, cognizant of human needs, and ready to
respond to human prayers.
Additionally though, and perhaps more significantly, His response is more often
than not a subdued and understated communication, customarily consisting of no
more and no less than a 'fortuitous' confluence of events yielding a particular
outcome. It is rarely if ever
accompanied by supernatural wonders or announced by magical marvels. This stands in glaring contrast to
the classical pagan formulation.
There, when the gods deign to respond, they do so with a paranormal display of
their prowess that can only be described in legendary terms.
Thus, a
discerning student of the Torah may be able to detect an echo of God's response
in the effect, but the less sensitive heart will only perceive a deafening
silence. Therefore, those who
impatiently wait for an unambiguous and obvious display of Divine involvement in
the world wait in vain, for God's ways are much more subtle, but no less
concrete.
Additional Aspects of Eliezer's 'Prayer'
Considering the matter of Eliezer's supplication further, we must raise other
questions. Recall that Avraham his
master specifically sent Eliezer on a mission to go back to his 'land and
birthplace' in order to find a wife for Yitzchak.
This Eliezer conscientiously does, returning to Aram Naharaim from whence
Avraham had gone forth to Canaan some sixty years earlier. Recall also that Avraham's family is
still to be found in Aram Naharaim, and that Avraham must have been in at least
nominal contact with them, for at the end of last week's parasha he and Sarah
had been informed of Milka and Nachor's offspring. In other words, by returning to Aram
Naharaim, Eliezer knows that he is going to the place of Nachor, Avraham's
brother.
When
Yaakov makes the same trek eastwards to Aram in flight from his brother Esav, he
too stops at an outlying well attended by the locals, in this case shepherds of
the area. Aware that he is not far
from his destination, he inquires of them if they are perhaps familiar with his
uncle Lavan, son of Betuel and grandson of Nachor:
"Yaakov
said to them: 'My brothers, where are you from?' They said: 'From Charan.' He said to them: 'Do you know Lavan
descendent of Nachor,?' and they said 'We do...'" (Bereishit 29:4-5).
All of
this makes Eliezer's conduct almost inexplicable.
Why does he wait at the town's outskirts praying for some sort of Divine
augury, when he can plainly approach Avraham's family and quickly ascertain
whether there are any eligible and willing local damsels interested in marrying
Yitzchak? One would have expected
that the first question he would ask of those drawing water at the well is:
'Where is the house of Nachor, brother of Avraham?' In fact, Eliezer himself makes it
clear that he understood that his master's oath was to be applied first and
foremost to his own kin, for when Eliezer recounts to his hosts his master's
words, he interprets 'land and birthplace' as 'father's house and family'
(compare Bereishit 24:4-7 to Bereishit 24:38-40).
In other words, Eliezer understands that his mission in returning to Aram
is to specifically approach Avraham's family with the hopes of securing from
among them a match for Yitzchak. Why
then does Eliezer forego the obvious approach, and instead stand at the well to
offer prayers for Divine participation?
A Test of Kindness
All of
the above make it clear that Eliezer has another objective in mind in
orchestrating his trial at the well, and it has much to do with the theme of
ensuring spiritual continuity that we first recognized as being so central to
this parasha. Let us consider
Eliezer's test carefully, for although it is seemingly mundane and completely
typical for the context, it is quite telling nonetheless.
"Oh God,
Lord of my master Avraham, chance before me this day, and act favorably towards
my master Avraham. Behold, I am
standing at the water spring as the daughters of the city dwellers go out to
draw water. If I say to one of the
young women: 'please tilt your jug of water so that I may drink' and she
replies: 'Drink, and I will also water your camels,' then she will be the one
whom you have designated for your servant Yitzchak, and then I shall know that
you have acted favorably towards my master" (Bereishit 24:12-14).
Eliezer's
sign thus revolves around thirst, weariness, and water. To ask someone for a cool and
refreshing drink within the context of the circumstances here described, is to
betray one's fatigue of travel and one's immediate need for hydration. Eliezer's words can therefore be
understood as a request for a show of concern and compassion, and thus relate
more to human kindness, and less to Divine providence. "I will ask for some water. If the maiden accedes to my entreaty
by offering water not only to me, but to the camels as well, then I shall know
that she is the one for Yitzchak."
Recall that he is a stranger in Charan, obviously out of place at the well and
vulnerable to the whims of its denizens.
Why should any of the local inhabitants go out of their way for his sake? Recall also that he has arrived with
ten camels. We do not know how long
it has been since his last rest stop, but we do know that camels are voracious
drinkers. The Arabian camel can
survive for many days without food or water by converting the fat in its
telltale hump into energy, losing up to a third of its body weight between
meals. When it does drink, however,
it can consume as much as fifteen gallons (65 liters) in less than ten minutes! The prospect of watering ten thirsty
camels is therefore not one to be taken lightly, particularly when the text
makes it clear that approaching the watering well involved a descent.
In other
words, when Eliezer directs his prayer to God, he is not simply asking for some
sort of inexplicable and mysterious intervention on God's part. In actuality, what he prays to find
is a kind and considerate soul who will demonstrate that she is capable of acts
of compassion, caring and concern. "If I say to one of the young women: 'please
tilt your jug of water so that I may drink' and she replies: 'Drink, and I will
also water your camels,' then she will be the one whom you have designated for
your servant Yitzchak" for a woman so inclined would make the most appropriate
mate for the son of Avraham and Sarah, and would be most suited to perpetuating
their legacy of justice and righteousness.
Echoes of Avraham and Sarah
A careful
reading of the text in the original Hebrew emphasizes the connection between
Eliezer's prayer, Rivka's exemplary conduct, and Avraham's finest character
traits. When Eliezer prays to God,
he asks of Him to show 'favor' to Avraham his master. In the Hebrew, 'favor' appears as
'chesed,' a unique Hebrew word laden with connotations of mercy, compassion,
kindness and love. "Oh God, Lord of my master Avraham, chance before me this
day, and act favorably (vASeH CHESED) towards my master Avraham," "and then I
shall know that you have acted favorably (ASitaH CHESED) towards my master." In other words, Eliezer understands
that God's response will be a function of 'chesed,' the very quality that is so
intrinsically associated in post-Biblical traditional sources with Avraham his
master.
When
Rivka responds to Eliezer's request, the text underscores the alacrity with
which she carries out her kindness: "She said to him: 'Drink, sir' and HURRIED
(vateMaHeR) to lower her jug upon her arm to give him water. She finished giving him water and
then said: 'I will also draw water for your camels, until they have finished
drinking.' QUICKLY (vateMaHeR), she
emptied her jug into the trough and RAN (vataRaZ) back again to the well to
draw, until she had drawn water for all of his camels..." (Bereishit 24:18-20). This dense usage of verbs associated
with haste and speed immediately calls to mind another passage, one that also
describes an act of kindness to tired travelers: "...Avraham lifted up his eyes
and beheld three men standing before him.
He RAN (vayaRaZ) to greet them... Avraham HURRIED (vayeMaHeR) to the tent
where Sarah was... he RAN (RaZ) to the flock and selected a good calf..."
(Bereishit 18:2-7).
In other
words, the text is drawing a deliberate parallel between Avraham's act of
concern for the weary nomads and Rivka's deed of kindness towards the outsider
Eliezer who has traveled from afar.
In both cases, the protagonists act with selflessness and benevolence, foregoing
their own interests for the sake of strangers.
As Rashi (11th century, France) succinctly sums up the thrust
of Eliezer's prayer:
"(the
woman who will accede to Eliezer's request will show herself to be) suited for
Yitzchak, for by doing acts of loving-kindness (CHASADIM) she demonstrates that
she belongs in Avraham's household..." (commentary to Bereishit 24:14).
Conclusion
To sum
up, Eliezer's prayer may in fact be an invitation for Divine involvement, but it
is also a plea for human magnanimity.
His prayers are answered not by the sudden appearance of some
otherworldly apparition, but by a very tangible demonstration of goodness and
caring. Significantly, God's
involvement in human affairs is therefore highlighted by Rivka's conscious deed
of altruism. The deaths of Sarah and
Avraham are thus mitigated by the union of Rivka to Yitzchak, for through their
deliberate modeling of their forebears' conduct, the latter two show themselves
to be worthy successors to the mission of justice, righteousness, and kindness
that Avraham and Sarah introduced to the world.
Shabbat Shalom