He stood in the middle of their tent—not the largest guest tent, either, since Ishmael had that—and raised his arms toward heaven and began to speak to God. Rebekah loved to hear Isaac pray, because he did not speak in a public voice meant to be heard by others, and there were no fine phrases. Rather he prayed as if he were talking to a dear friend or loving father, his voice full of love and trust as he poured out his heart in simple language.

He asked the Lord to forgive him for not praying before. “I don’t know why I didn’t, but it’s an evil spirit that counsels a man not to pray, and I’m glad you inspired Father to wake me up to my error.” He explained how much he and Rebekah longed for a child. One of the things he said touched her especially. “Rebekah is the greatest blessing a man could have in his life. She has brought me nothing but happiness, and gives the same gift to all the people around her.” Rebekah was pretty sure this wasn’t actually true, but she was glad her husband thought so.

“She deserves to have this reproach taken away from her,” Isaac went on. “Fill her arms with sons, Father. Whether her husband is worthy or not, she is worthy.”

He went on, talking through all his feelings, all his hopes and dreams for his sons, along with all of Rebekah’s yearnings that she had shared with him over the years—and some that she had not. As he talked, tears came to her eyes and finally streamed down her cheeks, for she could tell that his words were not coming only from him, but God was in them; God was teaching her husband the words he should say to God in prayer.

Isaac, too, wept in the midst of his entreaties.

But when he was done with the prayer and sank to his knees and bowed his head, as worn out as she had ever seen him, even after a day’s work, she realized there was one thing he had not said. In all his reasoning with the Lord, he had never mentioned Abraham’s desire to have Isaac’s heir born while he was still alive to see it.

Well, that’s right, thought Rebekah. Let Abraham put that in his own prayers and see what the Lord wants to do about it.

The silence lingered for a while. Then Isaac sighed and buried his face in his hands. “Those were hard words to say,” he said.

“I’m glad you said them,” she answered.

“And do you know why they were so hard?” asked Isaac.

“No.”

“Because Father told me to say them.”

“Not those exact words.”