Genesis 24:52

Summary

The verse reports that when Abraham's servant heard the words spoken by Laban and Rebekah's household (their consent to the marriage), he immediately prostrated himself on the ground before Yehovah. It marks the narrative turning point where the servant's mission receives confirmation.

Key words

• va-yehi ("and it was", H1961) — narrative vav + qal verb, the standard formula opening a new narrative unit, signaling a temporal sequence ("and then it happened that...").
• ka'asher ("just as", H0834D) — relative particle combined with the preposition ka ("just", H9004), forming a temporal-comparative clause: "just as / when."
• shama' ("he heard", H8085G) — qal perfect, denoting a completed action prior to the main verb that follows; establishes that hearing precedes the bowing.
• 'eved 'Avraham ("servant of Abraham", H5650 + H0085) — construct chain identifying the subject as belonging to Abraham, not an independent agent.
• yishtachu ("he bowed down", H7812) — hishtaphel narrative form, the verb specifically used for prostration/worship gesture, paired with va narrative vav to continue the sequence of actions.

What the text says

The verse is built on a two-part temporal structure introduced by va-yehi ka'asher ("and it was, just as..."), a common Hebrew narrative device that frames a subordinate temporal clause before resuming the main storyline. The subordinate clause—shama' 'eved 'Avraham 'et-divrei-hem ("the servant of Abraham heard their words")—uses the qal perfect shama' to mark an action already completed at the moment the main clause begins. The direct object marker 'et (H0853) precedes divrei-hem ("their words", H1697G + H9028), a construct noun with a third-person plural suffix referring back to the words spoken by Laban and the household in the preceding verses.

The main clause resumes with the narrative vav on yishtachu ("and he bowed down"), a hishtaphel form specifically denoting the physical act of prostration. This is followed by artza ("to the ground", H0776H) with the directional he suffix (H9011) indicating motion or orientation toward the ground, and the phrase closes with la-YHWH ("to Yehovah", H9005 + H3068G), identifying the one before whom the servant prostrates himself. The syntax places the servant's identity (construct "servant of Abraham") before his action, keeping the narrative focus on his subordinate status relative to Abraham even as he performs an act of prostration toward Yehovah.

Differences between versions

The LXX renders divrei-hem ("their words") as τῶν ῥημάτων τούτων ("these words"), shifting the pronominal reference from "their" (third-person plural possessive) to a demonstrative "these," slightly changing the deictic anchor. The Vulgate's audisset ("had heard") and procidens adoravit ("falling down, he worshiped") combine the bowing and prostration into two participial/verbal actions where the Hebrew uses a single verb yishtachu. Some modern translations (e.g., SBLIBRE with "para adorar") add an explicit purpose ("to worship") not lexically present in the Hebrew verb form itself, which denotes the physical gesture without a separate purpose clause.