Page:The Holy Bible faithfvlly translated into English ovt of the authentical Latin, diligently conferred with the Hebrew, Greek, & other Editions in diuers languages.pdf/94

wil not come with me? ⁴⁰Our Lord, saith he, in whose sight I walke, wil send his angel with thee, & wil direct thy way: and thou shalt take a wife for my sonne of myne owne kinred, and of my fathers house. ⁴¹Thou shalt be innocent from my curse, when thou shalt come to my kinne, and they wil not giue her thee. ⁴²I came therfore to day to the wel of water, and said: O Lord God of my Lord Abraham, if thou hast directed my way, wherin I now walke, ⁴³behold I stand besides the wel of water, and the virgin, that shal come forth to draw water, when she shal heare me say: Giue me a litle water to drinke of thy tankard; ⁴⁴and she shal say to me: Drinke both thou and for thy camels I wil draw also: that is the woman, which our Lord hath prepared for my Masters sonne. ⁴⁵And whilest I pondered these things secretly with my selfe, Rebecca appeared comming with a tankard, which she caried vpon her shoulder: & she went downe to the fountaine, & drew water. And I said to her: Giue me a litle to drinke. ⁴⁶Who speedily let downe the tankard from her shoulder, and said to me: Drinke both thou, and to thy camels I wil giue drinke. I dranke, and she watered the cammels. ⁴⁷And I asked her, and said: Whose daughter art thou? Who answered: I am the daughter of Bathuel, the sonne of Nachor, whom Melcha bare him. I hung therfore earelettes to adorne her face, and I put bracelets vpon her hands. ⁴⁸And prostrate I adored our Lord, blessing the Lord God of my Lord Abraham, who hath brought me the straight way to take the daughter of my Lords brother for his sonne. ⁴⁹Wherfore if you doe according to mercie and truth with my Lord, shew me: but if it please you otherwise, that also tel me, that I may goe to the right hand or to the left. ⁵⁰And Laban and Bathuel answered: From our Lord the word hath proceeded: we can not speake any other thing with thee besides his pleasure. ⁵¹Behold Rebecca is before thee, take her and goe thy waies, & let her be the wife of thy Lords sonne, as our Lord hath spoken. ⁵²Which when Abrahams seruant heard, falling downe he adored our Lord to the ground. ⁵³And taking forth vessel of siluer, and gold, and garments, gaue them to Rebecca for a present. To her brothers also, and to her mother he offered guifts. ⁵⁴A banket was made, and eating and drinking together they lodged there. And in the morning, the seruant arose, and said: Dismisse me, that I may goe to my Lord. ⁵⁵And her brother, and mother answered: Let the maide tarie at the least tenne days with vs, & after she shal depart. ⁵⁶Stay me not, said he, because our Lord hath directed my way: dismisse me that I may goe on to my Lord. ⁵⁷And they said: Let vs cal the maid, and ^[1] aske her wil. ⁵⁸And being called, when she was come, they asked: Wilt thou goe with this man? Who said: I wil goe. ⁵⁹They dismissed her therfore, and her nurce, and Abrahams seruant, and his companie, ⁶⁰wishing prosperitie to their sister, and saying: Thou art our sister, encrease thou into thousand thousands, and thy seed possesse the gates of their enemies. ⁶¹Therfore Rebecca and her maids being set vpon

1. As children ought not to marry without their parents good liking, so the parties owne consent is most necessarie. S. Amb. Epist. 43.