雅各遷往伯特利

35 上帝對雅各說:「你到伯特利去住,你要在那裡為上帝築一座壇,祂在你逃避你哥哥以掃時曾向你顯現。」 於是,雅各吩咐家人和所有的隨從:「你們要除掉你們當中的外族神像,沐浴更衣,潔淨自己。 我們要上伯特利去,在那裡為上帝築一座壇,祂在我遭遇患難時聽了我的禱告,一路都與我同在。」 他們把所有外族的神像和自己的耳環都交給雅各,雅各把這些東西埋在示劍的橡樹下。

他們就出發了,上帝使恐懼籠罩周圍的城邑,沒有人敢追趕他們。 雅各和所有的隨從來到迦南的路斯,也就是伯特利。 他在那裡建造了一座壇,稱那地方為伊勒·伯特利[a],因為在他逃避哥哥的時候,上帝曾在那裡向他顯現。 後來利百加的奶媽底波拉死了,葬在伯特利山谷下面的橡樹下,那棵樹叫亞倫·巴古[b]

雅各從巴旦·亞蘭回來後,上帝又向他顯現,賜福給他。 10 上帝對他說:「你叫雅各,但從今以後不要再叫雅各了,你要改名叫以色列。」這樣雅各改名為以色列。 11 上帝又說:「我是全能的上帝,你要生養眾多,一國,甚至多國必從你而出,許多君王必出自你的子孫。 12 我要把賜給亞伯拉罕和以撒的土地賜給你和你的後代。」 13 上帝說完就離開雅各升上天去。 14 雅各在上帝跟他說話的地方立了一根石柱,又在柱子上奠酒、澆油, 15 稱那地方為伯特利。

拉結和以撒去世

16 他們從伯特利繼續前行,離以法他還有一段路時,拉結難產。 17 在難產的痛苦中,接生婆對她說:「不要害怕,你又添了一個兒子!」 18 拉結臨死前給兒子取名叫便·俄尼[c],雅各卻叫他便雅憫[d] 19 拉結死後就葬在通往以法他的路旁,以法他即伯利恆。 20 雅各在她的墳上立了石碑,至今還在。 21 以色列繼續前行,在以得塔附近搭起了帳篷。 22 以色列在那裡居住時,呂便和父親的妾辟拉通姦,以色列也知道這件事。

雅各有十二個兒子。 23 利亞生了雅各的長子呂便、西緬、利未、猶大、以薩迦和西布倫。 24 拉結生了約瑟和便雅憫。 25 拉結的婢女辟拉生了但和拿弗他利。 26 利亞的婢女悉帕生了迦得和亞設。他們都是雅各的兒子,是在巴旦·亞蘭出生的。

27 雅各來到他父親以撒住的幔利,即基列·亞巴,也就是亞伯拉罕和以撒寄居的地方。基列·亞巴就是希伯崙。 28 以撒共活了一百八十歲, 29 年紀老邁,壽終正寢。他的兒子以掃和雅各把他安葬了。

Footnotes

  1. 35·7 伊勒·伯特利」意思是「伯特利的上帝」。
  2. 35·8 亞倫·巴古」意思是「哭泣的橡樹」。
  3. 35·18 便·俄尼」意思是「我在苦難中生的兒子」。
  4. 35·18 便雅憫」意思是「右手之子」,「右手」希伯來文有幸運或力量的意思。

35 In the meantime the Lord spake to Jacob, (and said), Rise thou (up), and go up to Bethel, and dwell there; and make thou (there) an altar to the Lord, that appeared to thee when thou fleddest Esau, thy brother (who appeared to thee when thou fleddest from thy brother Esau).

Soothly Jacob said, when all his house was called together, Cast ye away alien gods, that be in the midst of you, and be ye cleansed, and change ye your clothes; (And Jacob said, when all his household, or all his family, was called together, Throw ye away the foreign gods, that be in the midst of you, and purify yourselves, and change ye your clothes;)

rise ye, and go we up into Bethel, that we make there an altar to the Lord, which heard me in the day of my tribulation, and was fellow of my way. (rise ye, and go we up to Bethel, to make there an altar to the Lord, who answered me on the day of my trouble, and who gave me fellowship on the way.)

Therefore they gave to Jacob all the alien gods which they had, and [the] earrings, that were in their ears; and Jacob delved them under a terebinth tree, which is behind the city of Shechem. (And so they gave Jacob all the foreign gods which they had, and the earrings that they were wearing; and Jacob buried them under the terebinth tree, which is behind the city of Shechem.)

And when they went (forth), dread assailed all men by compass of the city, and they were not hardy to pursue them going away. (And when they went forth, the fear of God assailed all the men of the cities about, and they were not hardy to pursue after them.)

Therefore Jacob came to Luz, which is in the land of Canaan, by the sire-name Bethel, he and all his people with him. (And so Jacob came to Luz, that is, Bethel, in the land of Canaan, he and all the people who were with him.)

And he builded there an altar to the Lord, and called the name of that place The house of God, for God appeared there to him, when he fled his brother. (And he built there an altar to the Lord, and called the name of that place El-bethel, for God appeared to him there, when he fled from his brother.)

Deborah, the nurse of Rebecca, died in the same time, and she was buried at the root[s] of Bethel, under an oak, and the name of the place was called The Oak of Weeping. (And Deborah, Rebecca’s nurse, died at that time, and she was buried south of Bethel, under an oak tree, and that place was called Allonbachuth.)

Forsooth God appeared again to Jacob, after that he turned again from Mesopotamia of Syria, and came into Bethel, and blessed him, (And God appeared again to Jacob, after that he had returned from Paddan-aram, and he blessed him,)

10 and (he) said, Thou shalt no more be called Jacob, but Israel shall be thy name. And (so) God called him Israel,

11 and said to him, I am God Almighty (and he said to him, I am Almighty God); increase thou, and be thou multiplied, (yea,) folks and peoples of nations shall be of thee, (and) kings shall go out of thy loins;

12 and I shall give to thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land which I gave to Abraham and Isaac.

13 And (then) God departed from him.

14 Forsooth Jacob raised (up) a title, or a memorial, of stones, in the place wherein God spake to him, and he sacrificed thereon flowing sacrifices, and shedded out oil, (And Jacob raised up a stone pillar, in the place where God spoke to him, and he offered a sacrifice of wine on it, and poured oil on it,)

15 and he called the name of that place Bethel.

16 Soothly Jacob went out from thence, and he came in the beginning of summer to the land that leadeth to Ephratah; in which land when Rachel travailed in child bearing, (And Jacob went out from there, and at the beginning of summer he came to the way that leadeth to Ephrath; in which land when Rachel struggled, or laboured, to survive while giving birth,)

17 she began to be in peril for the hardness of (the) childbearing; and the midwife said to her, Do not thou dread, for thou shalt have also this son (and the midwife said to her, Do not thou fear, for thou shalt also have this son/for this is another son for you).

18 Forsooth while the soul passed from her for sorrow, and death nighed then, she called the name of her son Benoni, that is, the son of my sorrow; forsooth his father called him Benjamin, that is, the son of the right side. (But as her soul passed away from her, and death neared, she named her son Benoni, that is, The son of my sorrow; but his father called him Benjamin, that is, The son of my right hand.)

19 Therefore Rachel died, and was buried in the way that leadeth to Ephratah, that is Bethlehem. (And so Rachel died, and was buried on the way that leadeth to Ephrath, which is Bethlehem.)

20 And Jacob builded a memorial upon the sepulchre of her; this is the memorial of the burial of Rachel unto this present day. (And Jacob put up a sacred pillar on her sepulchre; this is the same pillar that is on Rachel’s grave unto this present day.)

21 Jacob went from thence, and setted a tabernacle over the tower of the flock. (And then Jacob went from there, and pitched his tent beyond the tower of Eder/beyond Migdaleder.)

22 And while he dwelled in that country, Reuben went, and slept with Bilhah, the secondary wife of his father, which thing was not hid from him (which was told to Jacob). Forsooth the sons of Jacob were twelve;

23 the sons of Leah were, the first begotten Reuben (Leah’s sons were Reuben, the first-born), and Simeon, and Levi, and Judah, and Issachar, and Zebulun;

24 the sons of Rachel were Joseph, and Benjamin;

25 the sons of Bilhah, the handmaid of Rachel (Rachel’s slave-girl), were Dan, and Naphtali;

26 and the sons of Zilpah, [the] handmaid of Leah, were Gad, and Asher. These were the sons of Jacob, that were born to him in Mesopotamia of Syria. (and the sons of Zilpah, Leah’s slave-girl, were Gad, and Asher. These were Jacob’s sons, who were born to him in Paddan-aram.)

27 Also Jacob came to Isaac, his father, into Mamre, (by) the city of Arbah, this is Hebron, in which Mamre Abraham and Isaac was a pilgrim. (And Jacob came to his father Isaac at Mamre, which is near to Kiriatharba, which is now called Hebron, in which Mamre Abraham and Isaac were foreigners.)

28 And the days of Isaac were filled an hundred and fourscore of years; (And so the days of Isaac filled a hundred and eighty years;)

29 and he was wasted in age, and died, and he was put to his people, and was eld, and full of days; and Esau and Jacob his sons buried him. (and then he was destroyed by age, and died, and he joined his ancestors, being old, and full of days; and his sons Esau and Jacob buried him.)