Commentaire sur La Genèse 24:65

ותתכס AND [SHE] COVERED HERSELF — This has a passive meaning (she was covered); it is like (35:8) ותקבר “and she was buried”, and (1 Samuel 4:18) ותשבר “and [his neck] was broken”.

?מי האיש הלזה ההולך בשדה לקראתנו, this verse raises a number of questions. Did Rivkah enquire about the identity of every man that they encountered on this journey? Furthermore, why did the Torah have to write the words בשדה לקראתנו, “in the field toward us?” It appears that the verse is somewhat abbreviated. What Rivkah wanted to know was why the man approaching them had detoured from the regular path and was coming across the field in their direction.

ותתכס, for she was afraid to look more closely, similar to Moses being afraid to look more closely at the burning bush in Exodus 3,6.

ותאמר, she had asked Eliezer who the man was before she alighted from the camel. She did so only after having been informed that the man was her husband to be, Yitzchok. She had not enquired about every person that they met on the journey, but in the case of Yitzchok, the fact that he approached sideways had made her wonder if, by chance, this was Yitzchok or someone from his household. This is why she added the words: ההולך בשדה לקראתנו, she had observed that this man was busy in the field and only after he had seen them did he come walking in their direction.

As in ותקבר and ותשבר. These verbs refer to the object of the action, and are in the נפעל (passive) form. So too with ותתכס: it is reflexive, and she was the object of the action.

ותתכס. Nun erst verschleiert sie sich! Da geht wieder ein Stück "Orientalismus" verloren; und ist dies wieder ein Beleg, wie sehr wir gegen alles auf unserer Hut sein müssen, was uns so apodiktisch zuversichtlich auf diesem Gebiete doziert wird. — צעיף rad. צעף, wahrscheinlich verwandt mit שאף, in sich hineinziehen, ähnlich wie בלע: verschlucken und dem Anblick durch Zudecken entziehen.

הלזה, the additional letter ל in this word indicates that the person it refers to, though identifiable, is still a considerable distance away, in fact may not yet be positively identified beyond any doubt. We have the same construction in Genesis 37,19 where the brothers refer to the unexpected appearance of Joseph in the distance. When the person referred to as זה is close by, such as when Esther entertained the King and Haman, she pointed to Haman as המן הרע הזה, “this wicked Haman!” (Esther 7,6)