Genesis 35
New Catholic Bible
Chapter 35
Jacob Returns to Bethel.[a] 1 God said to Jacob, “Rise up, go to Bethel, and live there. Build an altar to the God who appeared to you when you fled from Esau, your brother, in that place.”
2 Jacob said to his family and to those who were with him, “Throw away the foreign gods that you have with you. Purify yourselves and change your clothes. 3 Let us arise and go to Bethel where I will build an altar to the God who delivered me at the time of my distress and who has been with me along the way that I have traveled.” 4 They gave Jacob all the foreign gods in their possession and the earrings they had in their ears. Jacob left them under the oak near Shechem. 5 They then journeyed on, and a great terror came upon the people who lived in that area, so they did not pursue the sons of Jacob.
6 Jacob and all the people who were with him arrived in Luz, that is, Bethel, which is in the land of Canaan. 7 Here he built an altar and called the place El-Bethel, because God had revealed himself there, when he had fled from his brother.
8 Deborah, the nurse of Rebekah, died there, and she was buried below Bethel, beneath an oak. This is why that place is called the Weeping Oak.
9 God appeared another time to Jacob, when he returned from Paddan-aram, and he blessed him. 10 God said to him,
“Your name is Jacob.
You shall no longer be called Jacob,
but Israel shall be your name.”
Thus, he was called Israel.
11 God said to him,
“I am God Almighty.
Be fruitful and become numerous.
People and assemblies of people shall come from you.
Kings shall come forth from your loins.
12 The country that I have given to Abraham and Isaac
I will give to you;
and to your descendants after you
I will give this land.”
13 Then God departed from him, in the place where he had spoken to him.
14 Jacob erected a pillar where God had spoken to him, a stone pillar upon which he poured a libation of oil. 15 Jacob called the place where God had spoken to him Bethel.
16 Jacob Endures Painful Times.[b] They then departed from Bethel. They were a short distance outside of Ephrath when Rachel went into labor and she suffered great distress. 17 When her pains were most severe, the midwife said to her, “Do not fear, for it is another son!” 18 With her last breath, for she was dying, she called him Ben-oni,[c] the son of my sorrow, but his father called him Benjamin.
19 Rachel died and was buried on the road to Ephrath, that is, Bethlehem. 20 Jacob erected a pillar on the tomb. That monument to Rachel can be seen to this day.
21 Israel moved on and pitched his tent on the other side of Migdal-eder. 22 While Israel lived in that country, Reuben slept with Bilhah, the concubine of his father, and Israel came to know about it.
The Twelve Sons of Jacob.[d] Jacob had twelve sons.
23 The sons of Leah:
Reuben, Jacob’s firstborn,
Simeon, Levi, Judah,
Issachar and Zebulun.
24 The sons of Rachel:
Joseph and Benjamin.
25 The sons of Bilhah, the slave of Rachel:
Dan and Naphtali.
26 The sons of Zilpah, the slave of Leah:
Gad and Asher.
These were the sons of Jacob who were born in Paddan-aram.
27 Death of Isaac.[e] Jacob came to his father Isaac at Mamre, at Kiriath-arba, that is Hebron, where Abraham and Isaac had sojourned. 28 Isaac lived for one hundred and eighty years. 29 Isaac then breathed his last. He died and was reunited with his people at a ripe old age. His sons Esau and Jacob buried him.
Footnotes
- Genesis 35:1 The Patriarch seems to be fleeing a threat of reprisal by the Shechemites (v. 5). Possibly he is also making a pilgrimage to his origins. In any case, this return to Bethel takes on a religious meaning: it is there that the Lord revealed himself to Jacob and there that he renewed his promises. The Patriarch and his family cleanse themselves and give up their pagan practices to affirm their faith in the one God to whom they wish to render homage; the Lord brooks no rivals in human hearts. This constitutes a first stable establishment of the People of God in the Holy Land.
- Genesis 35:16 Rachel, Jacob’s preferred wife, dies while giving birth to a son; later, he learns that his eldest son Reuben has committed a grave outrage against him. Thus, Jacob continues to expiate his sin.
- Genesis 35:18 Ben-oni means “Son of my sorrow.” Jacob changes it to Benjamin, “Son of the right hand,” that is, of good omen. This time, the popular etymology agrees with the scientific. But originally the name “son of the right hand” seems to have been inspired by geography: the right hand is the south, because the Semites oriented themselves by looking eastward to where the sun rises; therefore “Benjamin” means “son of the south.”
- Genesis 35:22 Jacob’s twelve sons represent all the chosen people born of Abraham now established in the Holy Land. This list will be found frequently in the Bible.
- Genesis 35:27 The aged and taciturn Isaac seemed close to death when he blessed Jacob to the detriment of Esau (ch. 27). Here the Priestly tradition reports his death later and seems to know nothing about the rivalry between the two brothers.
Genesis 35
New King James Version
Jacob’s Return to Bethel
35 Then God said to Jacob, “Arise, go up to (A)Bethel and dwell there; and make an altar there to God, (B)who appeared to you (C)when you fled from the face of Esau your brother.”
2 And Jacob said to his (D)household and to all who were with him, “Put away (E)the foreign gods that are among you, (F)purify yourselves, and change your garments. 3 Then let us arise and go up to Bethel; and I will make an altar there to God, (G)who answered me in the day of my distress (H)and has been with me in the way which I have gone.” 4 So they gave Jacob all the foreign [a]gods which were in their hands, and the (I)earrings which were in their ears; and Jacob hid them under (J)the terebinth tree which was by Shechem.
5 And they journeyed, and (K)the terror of God was upon the cities that were all around them, and they did not pursue the sons of Jacob. 6 So Jacob came to (L)Luz (that is, Bethel), which is in the land of Canaan, he and all the people who were with him. 7 And he (M)built an altar there and called the place [b]El Bethel, because (N)there God appeared to him when he fled from the face of his brother.
8 Now (O)Deborah, Rebekah’s nurse, died, and she was buried below Bethel under the terebinth tree. So the name of it was called [c]Allon Bachuth.
9 Then (P)God appeared to Jacob again, when he came from Padan Aram, and (Q)blessed him. 10 And God said to him, “Your name is Jacob; (R)your name shall not be called Jacob anymore, (S)but Israel shall be your name.” So He called his name Israel. 11 Also God said to him: (T)“I am God Almighty. (U)Be fruitful and multiply; (V)a nation and a company of nations shall proceed from you, and kings shall come from your body. 12 The (W)land which I gave Abraham and Isaac I give to you; and to your descendants after you I give this land.” 13 Then God (X)went[d] up from him in the place where He talked with him. 14 So Jacob (Y)set up a pillar in the place where He talked with him, a pillar of stone; and he poured a drink offering on it, and he poured oil on it. 15 And Jacob called the name of the place where God spoke with him, (Z)Bethel.
Death of Rachel
16 Then they journeyed from Bethel. And when there was but a little distance to go to Ephrath, Rachel labored in childbirth, and she had hard labor. 17 Now it came to pass, when she was in hard labor, that the midwife said to her, “Do not fear; (AA)you will have this son also.” 18 And so it was, as her soul was departing (for she died), that she called his name [e]Ben-Oni; but his father called him [f]Benjamin. 19 So (AB)Rachel died and was buried on the way to (AC)Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem). 20 And Jacob set a pillar on her grave, which is the pillar of Rachel’s grave (AD)to this day.
21 Then Israel journeyed and pitched his tent beyond (AE)the tower of Eder. 22 And it happened, when Israel dwelt in that land, that Reuben went and (AF)lay with Bilhah his father’s concubine; and Israel heard about it.
Jacob’s Twelve Sons
Now the sons of Jacob were twelve: 23 the sons of Leah were (AG)Reuben, Jacob’s firstborn, and Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun; 24 the sons of Rachel were Joseph and Benjamin; 25 the sons of Bilhah, Rachel’s maidservant, were Dan and Naphtali; 26 and the sons of Zilpah, Leah’s maidservant, were Gad and Asher. These were the sons of Jacob who were born to him in Padan Aram.
Death of Isaac
27 Then Jacob came to his father Isaac at (AH)Mamre, or (AI)Kirjath Arba[g] (that is, Hebron), where Abraham and Isaac had dwelt. 28 Now the days of Isaac were one hundred and eighty years. 29 So Isaac breathed his last and died, and (AJ)was [h]gathered to his people, being old and full of days. And (AK)his sons Esau and Jacob buried him.
Footnotes
- Genesis 35:4 idols
- Genesis 35:7 Lit. God of the House of God
- Genesis 35:8 Lit. Terebinth of Weeping
- Genesis 35:13 departed
- Genesis 35:18 Lit. Son of My Sorrow
- Genesis 35:18 Lit. Son of the Right Hand
- Genesis 35:27 Lit. Town or City of Arba
- Genesis 35:29 Joined his ancestors
1 Mosebok 35
Swedish New Living Bible (Nya Levande Bibeln)
Rakel och Isak dör
35 Flytta nu till Betel och bosätt dig där, sa Gud till Jakob. Bygg där ett altare för att tillbe den Gud som visade sig för dig när du flydde från din bror Esau.
2 Då bad Jakob hela sin familj att förstöra avgudarna som de hade fört med sig och att tvätta sig och ta på sig rena kläder.
3 Vi ska nämligen gå till Betel, sa han till dem. Där tänker jag bygga ett altare åt Gud, som besvarade mina böner när jag var i nöd och som var med mig på min resa.
4 Då gav de Jakob alla sina avgudar och sina örhängen, och han gömde dem under eken nära Sikem.
5 Sedan började de sin vandring igen. Ingen anföll dem, för över alla de städer som de gick igenom vilade en förskräckelse från Gud.
6 Slutligen kom de fram till Lus, som också kallas Betel, i Kanaan.
7 Där reste Jakob ett altare som han kallade Guds altare, efter den Gud som mött honom där. Det var ju i Betel som Gud hade visat sig för honom när han flydde från Esau.
8 Strax därefter dog Rebeckas gamla barnsköterska Debora och begravdes under eken i dalen nedanför Betel, och ända sedan dess har den kallats Gråteken.
9 När Jakob kommit fram till Betel på sin resa från Paddan-Aram, visade sig Gud för honom igen och välsignade honom.
10 Och Gud sa till honom: Du ska inte längre kallas Jakob (bedragaren) utan Israel (en som kämpar med Gud och vinner seger).
11 Jag är den Allsmäktige Guden, och jag ska se till att du blir fruktsam och förökar dig och blir ett stort folk, ja, många folk. Många kungar kommer att finnas bland dina ättlingar,
12 och jag ska ge dig det land som jag gav till Abraham och Isak. Ja, jag ska ge det till dig och dina ättlingar.
13-14 Efteråt reste Jakob en sten på platsen där Gud hade visat sig för honom. Han hällde vin över den som ett offer till Gud och smorde sedan stenen med olivolja.
15 Jakob kallade platsen Betel (Guds hus), eftersom Gud hade talat till honom där.
16 När han lämnade Betel reste han och hans familj mot Efrat (Betlehem). Medan de fortfarande hade lång väg kvar att gå började Rakels värkar.
17 Efter en mycket svår förlossning utropade slutligen barnmorskan: Vad underbart! Det blev en pojke till!
18 Men Rakel dog, och i sin sista suck kallade hon honom Benoni (min sorgs son), men hans far kallade honom i stället Benjamin (min högra hands son, lyckosonen).
19 Rakel dog alltså och begravdes nära vägen till Efrat (som också kallas Betlehem).
20 Jakob reste en minnessten vid hennes grav, och den står där än i dag.
21 Sedan reste Israel vidare och slog läger bortom Herdetornet.
22 Det var medan han var där som Ruben låg med Bilha, sin fars bihustru, och någon berättade detta för Israel.Detta är namnen på Jakobs tolv söner:
23 Leas söner: Ruben, den förstfödde, Simeon, Levi, Juda, Isaskar och Sebulon.
24 Rakels söner: Josef och Benjamin.
25 Rakels tjänsteflicka Bilhas söner: Dan och Naftali.
26 Leas tjänsteflicka Silpas söner: Gad och Aser. Alla barnen föddes i Paddan-Aram.
27 Slutligen kom Jakob fram till sin far Isak vid Mamre i Kirjat-Arba (som nu kallas Hebron), där Abraham också hade bott.
28-29 Isak dog strax efteråt, vid en mogen ålder av 180 år. Hans söner Esau och Jakob begravde honom.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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