Genesis 24:31

31 And Laban sayde: come in thou blessed of the LORde. Wherfore stondest thou without? I haue dressed the house and made rowme for the camels.

Genesis 24:31 Meaning and Commentary

Genesis 24:31

And he said, come in, thou blessed of the Lord
Both with temporal and spiritual blessings; he concluded he was blessed with the former by the presents he had made to his sister, and by the men that attended him, and the number of camels that were with him; and with the latter by his devotion, his worshipping of God, and thankfulness to him, which Rebekah had observed and related: some Jewish writers say {h}, he thought he was Abraham, and therefore gave him this title and this invitation to come into the house: wherefore standest thou without?
this he said either as reproving him that he did not follow his sister upon her invitation, or rather as pressing him to make no more delay: for I have prepared the house:
swept it clean, or ordered it to be so, as the word F9 signifies; had fitted and furnished it with everything convenient for him and those with him: Jonathan and Jarchi interpret it of purging the house from idols and strange worship, which he knew would be offensive to Abraham, or any that belonged to him; but the former sense is best: and room for the camels;
he had ordered the stable to be cleansed also, and everything provided there fit for the camels; so that some time elapsed between Rebekah's return home and Laban's coming to the well, though no doubt everything was done with as much dispatch as possible.


FOOTNOTES:

F8 Bereshit Rabba, sect. 60. fol. 52. 4. Targ. Jon. in loc.
F9 (ytygp) "repurgavi", Drusius; "verri", Schmidt.

Genesis 24:31 In-Context

29 And Rebecca had a brother called Laban.And Laban ranne out vnto the man to the well:
30 for as soone as he had sene the earynges and the bracelettes apon his sisters handes ad herde the wordes of Rebecca his sister saynge thus sayde the man vnto me than he went out vnto the man. And loo he stode yet with the camels by the well syde.
31 And Laban sayde: come in thou blessed of the LORde. Wherfore stondest thou without? I haue dressed the house and made rowme for the camels.
32 And than the ma came in to the house. And he vnbrydeld the camels: and brought litter and prauonder for the camels and water to weshe his fete and their fete that were with him
33 and there was meate sett before him to eate.But he sayde: I will not eate vntill I haue sayde myne earede: And he sayde saye on.
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