A Woman of Determination

In the Genesis story from the Ancestor Period, Abraham sends his trusted servant Eliezer back to his own tribe to find a wife for Sarah and Abraham's son, Isaac. Eliezer returns with Rebekah, a woman who would forever change the course of a nation. After their long journey, Rebekah halts her camel and asks Eliezer the identity of a man walking in the field ahead. On finding out it is Isaac, she jumps down from the camel and begins to run across the field to greet him. Isaac takes her to his late mother, Sarah's tent and Rebekah turns out to be more than a replacement for Sarah. Years later, she will determine the future leader of the yet-to-be nation of Israel by successfully scheming to make sure her favorite son Jacob, disguised as his slightly older twin brother Esau, receives the irrevocable Patriarchal Blessing from his aging father Isaac. She then arranges for Jacob to journey back to her tribe where he will marry and later become the founding father of the 12 Tribes of Israel. Rebekah was a mother who recognized her sons' gifts and never hesitated to act on her instincts. (Image from the PowerPoint presentation, From Eden to Esau.)