Genesis 24:25

Genesis 24:25, in plain English

Rebekah quickly adds that her family has plenty of straw and feed for the camels, and a place where the servant and his men can sleep—she's answering his practical needs before he even has to ask again.

Why it's here

Notice how responsive and helpful Rebekah is. She's not just answering his questions; she's anticipating what he needs and offering it generously. Her hospitality is genuine and abundant. This tells you something real about her character—she's the kind of person who takes initiative and thinks about others' needs.

Who's speaking

Rebekah

Where it sits in the story

Her kindness and forethought are part of why she's the right match for Isaac. God doesn't just match people on paper; He matches them in character. You're seeing someone who will be a good wife and mother to nations.

The scholarly reading

Rebekah offers abundant hospitality, assuring the servant that her family has adequate straw, feed, and lodging.

Language and setting

Rebekah's response to the lodging inquiry demonstrates both her generosity and her family's resource capacity. She mentions three provisions in order: straw (תֶּבֶן—teben, dried grain stalks), feed (מִסְפּוֹא—mispoa, cattle fodder), and quarters (וּמָקוֹם לָלוּן—'and a place to lodge'). The specificity and order of these provisions reveal practical housekeeping knowledge—she addresses first the animals' needs (essential for the servant's journey), then human accommodation. Her confidence in offering these gifts without needing to consult her father or household suggests both her decision-making authority and her family's genuine wealth.

Voice

Rebekah, continuing her response to the servant

Significance

Rebekah's self-sufficient hospitality mirrors Abraham's own radical hospitality in Genesis 18, where he immediately provides food and rest to three strangers. Her willingness to extend elaborate hospitality without waiting for parental approval foreshadows her later decisive choice to leave her family (24:58), establishing her as a woman of independent virtue and agency—qualities essential to her role as the matriarch who will bear Jacob and Esau.

23“Whose daughter are you?” he asked. “Please tell me, is there room in your father’s house for us to spend the night?”

24She replied, “I am the daughter of Bethuel, the son that Milcah bore to Nahor.”

25Then she added, “We have plenty of straw and feed, as well as a place for you to spend the night.”

26Then the man bowed down and worshiped the LORD,

27saying, “Blessed be the LORD, the God of my master Abraham, who has not withheld His kindness and faithfulness from my master. As for me, the LORD has led me on the journey to the house of my master’s relatives.”

Read all of Genesis 24 — A servant, a prayer, a woman at a well. One of the Bible's most beautiful stories of providence unfolds in the smallest details.