- This chapter starts with another set of lines from Scott himself, from a poem called "The Jew." The poem describes the Jewish people's great knowledge and learning, particularly in medicine.
- Our story backtracks quite a bit, to the end of the tournament at Ashby.
- Rebecca convinces her father to bring the injured Ivanhoe to their temporary home south of Ashby.
- Isaac knows that Rebecca is a skilled healer, but he worries what will happen if the Christians see a group of Jews carrying Ivanhoe away.
- Indeed, it's while Rebecca is rescuing Ivanhoe that Bois-Guilbert first sees her, with the consequences that we see in Chapter 24.
- As soon as Rebecca gets Ivanhoe to her house, she starts to treat his injuries.
- He regains consciousness that evening.
- Ivanhoe is totally confused about where he is, but he is very attracted to the beautiful woman tending his wounds.
- Rebecca introduces herself as the daughter of Isaac of York.
- As soon as Ivanhoe realizes that Rebecca is a Jew, he grows distant with her.
- Rebecca understands that Ivanhoe has the prejudices of his people (which is much more generous than we would be in the face of his horrible anti-Semitism).
- Rebecca explains that her medicine will heal him more quickly than a Christian doctor's.
- With Rebecca's help, Ivanhoe will be able to fight again in eight days.
- Ivanhoe asks for news of everyone at the tournament.
- Rebecca tells him what she has heard: Prince John plans to go to York to claim King Richard's crown.
- Cedric and Athelstane have left Prince's John's banquet in a fury.
- Rowena did not go to dinner with Prince John. She is on her way home from Ashby to Rotherwood.
- And as for Gurth...
- Ivanhoe guesses rightly correctly Rebecca is the one who gave Gurth a hundred coins for Ivanhoe's armor and horse, after Ivanhoe tried to repay Isaac.
- Rebecca tells Ivanhoe not to worry about the money.
- She adds that Gurth has been arrested by Cedric for running away. Cedric will certainly pardon Gurth, though, and if Cedric doesn't, Gurth's friend Wamba will help him escape.
- Ivanhoe is miserable at all of this bad news, but Rebecca tells him to be calm.
- Ivanhoe can travel with Rebecca and Isaac when they return to York the following day.
- That way, when he's better, he'll be in York to help prevent Prince John from stealing King Richard's throne.
- Ivanhoe agrees.
- Rebecca sedates Ivanhoe and places him in a horse-litter (a wooden frame carried between two horses) for the trip to York.
- Isaac continues to worry that Ivanhoe's presence will slow them down and make them more vulnerable to robbery, so Isaac hires six guards to help escort them. This doesn't work out so well because, as we saw in Chapter 19, these guards all desert Isaac when he needs them.
- It's in this sorry state that Cedric and Athelstane find Isaac and Rebecca as they travel back to Rotherwood.
- And when De Bracy ambushes the Saxons, he is completely surprised to find Ivanhoe, unconscious, in the horse-litter.
- De Bracy's code of honor prevents him from injuring Ivanhoe while he's too weak to defend himself.
- De Bracy also cannot betray Ivanhoe to Front-de-Boeuf in his current condition, so he claims that Ivanhoe is a wounded comrade of his.
- Front-de-Boeuf orders Ulrica to look after the wounded man, but Ulrica happily lets Rebecca take on Ivanhoe's care.