ben present; birie thou thi deed bodi.
12 Abraham worschipide bifor the Lord, and bifor the puple of the lond,
13 and he spak to Efron, while his puple stood aboute, Y biseche, that thou here me; Y schal yyue money for the feeld, resseyue thou it, and so Y schal birie my deed bodi in the feeld.
14 And Efron answerde, My lord,
15 here thou me, the lond which thou axist is worth foure hundrid siclis of siluer, that is the prijs bitwixe me and thee, but hou myche is this? birie thou thi deed bodi.
16 And whanne Abraham hadde herd this, he noumbride the monei which Efron axide, while the sones of Heth herden, foure hundrid siclis of siluer, and of preuyd comyn monei.
17 And the feeld that was sumtyme of Efron, in which feeld was a double denne, biholdinge to Mambre, as wel thilke feeld as the denne and alle the trees therof, in alle termes therof bi cumpas, was confermed to Abraham in to possessioun,
18 while the sones of Heth seiyen and alle men that entriden bi the yate of that citee.
19 And so Abraham biriede Sare, his wijf, in the double denne of the feeld, that bihelde to Mambre; this is Ebron in the lond of Chanaan.
20 And the feeld, and the denne that was therynne, was confermyd of the sones of Heth to Abraham, in to possessioun of sepulcre.
Chapter 24
1 Forsothe Abraham was eld, and of many daies, and the Lord hadde blessid hym in alle thingis.
2 And he seide to the eldere seruaunt of his hows, that was souereyn on alle thingis that he hadde, Put thou thin hond vndur myn hipe,
3 that Y coniure thee bi the Lord God of heuene and of erthe, that thou take not a wijf to my sone of the douytris of Chanaan, among whiche Y dwelle;
4 but that thou go to my lond and kynrede, and therof take a wijf to my sone Ysaac.
5 The seruaunt aunswerde, If the womman nyle come with me in to this lond, whether Y owe lede ayen thi sone to the place, fro which thou yedist out?
6 Abraham seide, Be war, lest ony tyme thou lede ayen thidur my sone;
7 the Lord of heuene that took me fro the hows of my fadir, and fro the lond of my birthe, which spak to me, and swoor, and seide, Y schal yyue this lond to thi seed, he schal sende his aungel bifore thee, and thou schalt take fro thennus a wijf to my sone; forsothe if the womman nyle sue thee,
8 thou schalt not be holdun bi the ooth; netheles lede not ayen my sone thidur.
9 Therfore the seruaunt puttide his hond vndur the hipe of Abraham, his lord, and swoor to him on this word.
10 And he took ten camels of the floc of his lord, and yede forth, and bar with him of alle the goodis of his lord; and he yede forth, and cam to Mesopotanye, to the citee of Nachor.
11 And whanne he hadde maad the camels to reste with out the citee, bisidis the pit of watir, in the euentid, in that tyme in which wymmen ben wont to go out to drawe watir,
12 he seide, Lord God of my lord Abraham, Y biseche, meete with me to dai, and do mersi with my lord Abraham.
13 Lo! Y stonde nyy the welle of watir, and the douytris of enhabiters of this citee schulen go out to drawe watir;
14 therfor the damysel to which Y schal seie, Bowe doun thi watir pot that Y drynke, and schal answere, Drynke thou, but also Y schal yyue drynke to thi camels, thilke it is which thou hast maad redi to thi seruaunt Ysaac; and bi this Y schal vndirstonde that thou hast do mersi with my lord Abraham.
15 And he hadde not yit fillid the wordis with ynne hym silf, and lo! Rebecca, the douytir of Batuel, sone of Melcha, wijf of Nachor, brothir of Abraham, yede out, hauynge a watir pot in hir schuldre;
16 a damysel ful comeli, and faireste virgyn, and vnknowun of man. Sotheli sche cam doun to the welle, and fillide the watir pot, and turnide ayen.
17 And the seruaunt mette hir, and seide, Yyue thou to me a litil of the watir of thi pot to drynke.
18 Which answerde, Drynke thou, my lord. And anoon sche dide doun the watir pot on hir schuldre, and yaf drynk to hym.
19 And whanne he hadde drunke, sche addide, But also Y schal drawe watir to thi camelis, til alle drynken.
20 And sche helde out the watir pot in trouyis, and ran ayen to the pit, to drawe watir, and sche yaf watir drawun to alle the camels.
21 Sotheli he bihelde hir priueli, and wolde wite whether the Lord hadde sped his wei, ethir nay.
22 Therfor after that the camels drunken, the man brouyte forth goldun eere ryngis, weiynge twei siclis, and as many bies of the arm, in the weiyte of ten siclis.
23 And he seide to hir, Whos douyter art thou? schewe thou to me, is ony place in the hows of thi fadir to dwelle?
24 Which answerde, Y am the douyter of Batuel, sone of Nachor, whom Melcha childide to him.
25 And sche addide, seiynge, Also ful myche of prouendre and of hey is at vs, and a large place to dwelle.
26 The man bowide hym silf,
27 and worschipide the Lord, and seide, Blessid be the Lord God of my lord Abraham, which God took not aweie his mersy and treuthe fro my lord, and ledde me bi riyt weie in to the hous of the brother of my lord.
28 And so the damesel ran, and telde in the hous of hir modir alle thingis whiche sche hadde herd.
29 Sotheli Rebecca hadde a brothir, Laban bi name, whiche yede out hastili to the man, where he was with out forth.
30 And whanne he hadde seyn the eere ryngis and byes of the arm in the hondis of his sister, and hadde herd alle the wordis of hir tellynge, the man spak to me these thingis, he cam to the man that stood bisidis the camels, and nyy the welle of watir,
31 and seide to him, Entre thou, the blessid of the Lord; whi stondist thou with outforth? I haue maad redi the hows, and a place to thi camels.
32 And he brouyte hym in to the ynne, and unsadlide the camels, and yaf prouendre, and hey, and watir to waische the feet of camels, and of men that camen with hym.
33 And breed was set forth in his siyt, which seide, Y schal not ete til Y speke my wordis. He answerde to the man, Speke thou.
34 And the man seide, Y am the seruaunt of Abraham,
35 and the Lord hath blessid my lord greetli, and he is maad greet; and God yaf to hym scheep, and oxun, siluer, and gold, seruauntis, and handmaides, camels, and assis.
36 And Sare, `the wijf of my lord, childide a sone to my lord in his eelde, and he yaf alle thingis that he hadde to that sone.
37 And my lord chargide me greetli, and seide, Thou schalt not take to my sone a wijf of the douytris of Canaan, in whos lond Y dwelle,
38 but thou schalt go to the hous of my fadir, and of myn kynrede thou schalt take a wijf to my sone.
39 Forsothe Y answerde to my lord, What if the womman nyle come with me?
40 He seide, The Lord in whose siyt Y go, schal sende his aungel with thee, and he schal dresse thi weie; and thou schalt take a wijf to my sone of my kynrede, and of my fadris hows.
41