24:2 oldest. Abraham assigned this important mission only to his most trusted manager, perhaps Eliezer of Damascus (15:2, 3).

Put your hand under my thigh. The loins were viewed as the source of vital and procreative power (Deut. 33:11; Job 40:16; Heb. 7:10). Such an oath was inviolable, even after the death of the one to whom it was sworn (47:29–31).