Genesis 35
35
Jacob Returns to Bethel
1Then God said to Jacob, “Arise, go up to Bethel, dwell there, and there make an altar to God, who appeared to you when you fled from the face of Esau your brother.”
2#Ge 18:19; 31:19So Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, “Put away the foreign gods that are among you. Purify yourselves and change your clothes. 3#Ge 31:3; 31:42Let us arise and go up to Bethel, and there I will make an altar to God, who answered me in the day of my distress and has been with me wherever I have gone.” 4#Jos 24:25–26; Jdg 9:6So they gave Jacob all the foreign gods which were in their possession and all their earrings which were in their ears, and Jacob hid them under the oak which was near Shechem. 5#Ex 23:27As they traveled, the terror of God was on the cities that were around them, and they did not pursue the sons of Jacob.
6#Ge 28:19So Jacob came to Luz (that is, Bethel), which is in the land of Canaan, he and all the people who were with him. 7#Ge 28:13; 35:1There he built an altar and called the place El Bethel, because God had appeared to him there when he fled from his brother.
8#Ge 24:59Now Deborah, Rebekah’s nurse, died and was buried beneath Bethel under the oak. So it was called Allon Bakuth.
9#Ge 12:7; 18:1God appeared to Jacob again when he came out of Paddan Aram and blessed him. 10#Ge 17:5; 17:15God said to him, “Your name is Jacob. Your name shall not be called Jacob any more, but Israel shall be your name.” So He called his name Israel.
11#Ge 17:1; 17:16; Ex 6:3God said to him, “I am God Almighty. Be fruitful and multiply. A nation and a company of nations will come from you, and kings shall come forth from you. 12#Ge 12:7; 28:13The land that I gave Abraham and Isaac, I will give to you, and to your descendants after you I will give the land.” 13#Ge 17:22; 18:33Then God went up from him in the place where He had spoken with him.
14#Ge 28:18–19Jacob set up a pillar in the place where He had spoken with him, a pillar of stone, and he poured out a drink offering on it, and he poured oil on it too. 15#Ge 28:19So Jacob called the name of the place where God had spoken with him Bethel.
The Deaths of Rachel and Isaac
1Ch 2:1–2
16#Mic 5:2; Ge 48:7They journeyed from Bethel, and when they were still some distance from Ephrath, Rachel went into labor, and she had a difficult labor. 17#Ge 30:24When she was in hard labor, the midwife said to her, “Do not fear. You will have this son also.” 18As her soul was departing (for she died), she called his name Ben-Oni, but his father called him Benjamin.
19#Mic 5:2; Ge 48:7; Ru 1:2Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath, which is Bethlehem. 20#1Sa 10:2Jacob set a pillar on her grave. It is the pillar of Rachel’s grave to this day.
21#Mic 4:8Israel journeyed and pitched his tent beyond the tower of Eder. 22#1Ch 5:1; Lev 18:8When Israel lived in that land, Reuben went and lay with Bilhah, his father’s concubine, and Israel heard about it.
Now the sons of Jacob were twelve:
23#Ge 29:32–35; 30:18–20The sons of Leah were
Reuben, Jacob’s firstborn,
and Simeon and Levi and Judah and Issachar and Zebulun.
24#Ge 30:22–24The sons of Rachel were
Joseph and Benjamin.
25And the sons of Bilhah, Rachel’s maidservant, were
Dan and Naphtali.
26And the sons of Zilpah, Leah’s maidservant, were
Gad and Asher.
These are the sons of Jacob, which were born to him in Paddan Aram.
27#Ge 13:18; 18:1Jacob came back to Isaac his father in Mamre of Kiriath Arba (which is Hebron), where Abraham and Isaac had sojourned. 28#Ge 25:7Now the days of Isaac were one hundred and eighty years. 29#Ge 15:15; 49:33And Isaac breathed his last and died and was gathered to his people, being old and full of days, and his sons Esau and Jacob buried him.
Military Bible Association
Genesis 35
35
God Blesses Jacob at Bethel
1 # Gen 28.11–17 God said to Jacob, “Go to Bethel at once, and live there. Build an altar there to me, the God who appeared to you when you were running away from your brother Esau.”
2So Jacob said to his family and to all who were with him, “Get rid of the foreign gods that you have; purify yourselves and put on clean clothes. 3We are going to leave here and go to Bethel, where I will build an altar to the God who helped me in the time of my trouble and who has been with me everywhere I have gone.” 4So they gave Jacob all the foreign gods that they had and also the earrings that they were wearing. He buried them beneath the oak tree near Shechem.
5When Jacob and his sons started to leave, great fear fell on the people of the nearby towns, and they did not pursue them. 6Jacob came with all his people to Luz, which is now known as Bethel, in the land of Canaan. 7He built an altar there and named the place after the God of Bethel, because God had revealed himself to him there when he was running away from his brother. 8Rebecca's nurse Deborah died and was buried beneath the oak south of Bethel. So it was named “Oak of Weeping”.
9When Jacob returned from Mesopotamia, God appeared to him again and blessed him. 10#Gen 32.28God said to him, “Your name is Jacob, but from now on it will be Israel.” So God named him Israel. 11#Gen 17.4–8And God said to him, “I am Almighty God. Have many children. Nations will be descended from you, and you will be the ancestor of kings. 12I will give you the land which I gave to Abraham and to Isaac, and I will also give it to your descendants after you.” 13Then God left him. 14#Gen 28.18–19There, where God had spoken to him, Jacob set up a memorial stone and consecrated it by pouring wine and olive oil on it. 15He named the place Bethel.
The Death of Rachel
16Jacob and his family left Bethel, and when they were still some distance from Ephrath, the time came for Rachel to have her baby, and she was having difficult labour. 17When her labour pains were at their worst, the midwife said to her, “Don't be afraid, Rachel; it's another boy.” 18But she was dying, and as she breathed her last, she named her son Benoni,#35.18 Benoni: This name in Hebrew means “son of my sorrow”. but his father named him Benjamin.#35.18 Benjamin: This name in Hebrew means “son who will be fortunate”.
19When Rachel died, she was buried beside the road to Ephrath, now known as Bethlehem. 20Jacob set up a memorial stone there, and it still marks Rachel's grave to this day. 21Jacob moved on and set up his camp on the other side of the tower of Eder.
The Sons of Jacob
(1 Chr 2.1–2)
22 # Gen 49.4 While Jacob was living in that land, Reuben had sexual intercourse with Bilhah, one of his father's concubines; Jacob heard about it and was furious.#35.22 One ancient translation and was furious; Hebrew does not have these words.
Jacob had twelve sons. 23The sons of Leah were Reuben (Jacob's eldest son), Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun. 24The sons of Rachel were Joseph and Benjamin. 25The sons of Rachel's slave Bilhah were Dan and Naphtali. 26The sons of Leah's slave Zilpah were Gad and Asher. These sons were born in Mesopotamia.
The Death of Isaac
27 # Gen 13.18 Jacob went to his father Isaac at Mamre, near Hebron, where Abraham and Isaac had lived. 28Isaac lived to be 180 years old 29and died at a ripe old age; and his sons Esau and Jacob buried him.
Good News Bible. Scripture taken from the Good News Bible (r) (Today's English Version Second Edition, UK/British Edition). Copyright © 1992 British & Foreign Bible Society. Used by permission.