She was young and beautiful, and had grown up in a small town. He
was wealthy, an only child, 40 years old, and worked his father's livestock
business. Their homes were separated by more than 400 miles, and their eyes had
never met before the day they became man and wife.
An old man, a long-time employee of the groom's father, acted as a matchmaker. On the day he arrived in the young woman's town, he walked up to her, asked her a few questions, talked to her relatives, and then knew that she was the one to marry his employer's son. This old man "popped the question" to her father and then made arrangements to take her back for the marriage--and she willingly went!
The bride and groom were Rebekah and Isaac. The Genesis 24 account of what led up to their marriage offers an unusual example of how God can lead two people together. Although it would probably be inappropriate to try to follow every detail of their example today, the fascinating account of Abraham's matchmaking activity presents several sound principles that can be applied to how we decide who to marry in our day and in our culture.
In this study, therefore, we will refer to the story of Isaac and Rebekah. In fact, before you read any further, it would be well for you to open your Bible and read Genesis 24, looking for principles that could be applied today.
In order to get a complete picture of how we are to know who to marry, we will look to other parts of the Bible as well, and we will organize our findings under the following headings: (1) Choose a Believer, (2) Trust God, (3) Consider Character, (4) Use Wisdom, (5) Think Ahead.
