Genesis 35
Douay-Rheims 1899 American Edition
35 In the meantime God said to Jacob: Arise, and go up to Bethel, and dwell there, and make there an altar to God, who appeared to thee when thou didst flee from Esau thy brother.
2 And Jacob having called together all his household, said: Cast away the strange gods that are among you, and be cleansed and change your garments.
3 Arise, and let us go up to Bethel, that we may make there an altar to God: who heard me in the day of my affliction, and accompanied me in my journey.
4 So they gave him all the strange gods they had, and the earrings which were in their ears: and he buried them under the turpentine tree, that is behind the city of Sichem.
5 And when they were departed, the terror of God fell upon all the cities round about, and they durst not pursue after them as they went away.
6 And Jacob came to Luza, which is in the land of Chanaan, surnamed Bethel: he and all the people that were with him.
7 And he built there an altar, and called the name of that place, The house of God: for there God appeared to him when he fled from his brother.
8 At the same time Debora the nurse of Rebecca died, and was buried at the foot of Bethel under an oak: and the name of that place was called, The oak of weeping.
9 And God appeared again to Jacob, after he returned from Mesopotamia of Syria, and he blessed him,
10 Saying: Thou shalt not be called any more Jacob, but Israel shall be thy name. And he called him Israel.
11 And said to him: I am God Almighty, increase thou and be multiplied. Nations and peoples of nations shall be from thee, and kings shall come out of thy loins.
12 And the land which I gave to Abraham and Isaac, I will give to thee, and to thy seed after thee.
13 And he departed from him.
14 But he set up a monument of stone, in the place where God had spoken to him: pouring drink offerings upon it, and pouring oil thereon:
15 And calling the name of that place Bethel.
16 And going forth from thence, he came in the springtime to the land which leadeth to Ephrata: wherein when Rachel was in travail,
17 By reason of her hard labour she began to be in danger, and the midwife said to her: Fear not, for thou shalt have this son also.
18 And when her soul was departing for pain, and death was now at hand, she called the name of her son Benoni, that is, The son of my pain: but his father called him Benjamin, that is, The son of the right hand.
19 So Rachel died, and was buried in the highway that leadeth to Ephrata, this is Bethlehem.
20 And Jacob erected a pillar over her sepulchre: this is the pillar of Rachel's monument, to this day.
21 Departing thence, he pitched his tent beyond the Flock tower.
22 And when he dwelt in that country, Ruben went, and slept with Bala, the concubine of his father: which he was not ignorant of. Now the sons of Jacob were twelve.
23 The sons of Lia: Ruben the firstborn, and Simeon, and Levi, and Juda, and Issachar, and Zabulon.
24 The sons of Rachel: Joseph and Benjamin.
25 The sons of Bala, Rachel's handmaid: Dan and Nephtali.
26 The sons of Zelpha, Lia's handmaid: Gad and Aser: these are the sons of Jacob, that were born to him in Mesopotamia of Syria.
27 And he came to Isaac his father in Mambre, the city of Arbee, this is Hebron: wherein Abraham and Isaac sojourned.
28 And the days of Isaac were a hundred and eighty years.
29 And being spent with age he died, and was gathered to his people, being old and full of days: and his sons Esau and Jacob buried him.
Genesis 35
New Revised Standard Version, Anglicised
Jacob Returns to Bethel
35 God said to Jacob, ‘Arise, go up to Bethel, and settle there. Make an altar there to the God who appeared to you when you fled from your brother Esau.’ 2 So Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, ‘Put away the foreign gods that are among you, and purify yourselves, and change your clothes; 3 then come, let us go up to Bethel, that I may make an altar there to the God who answered me in the day of my distress and has been with me wherever I have gone.’ 4 So they gave to Jacob all the foreign gods that they had, and the rings that were in their ears; and Jacob hid them under the oak that was near Shechem.
5 As they journeyed, a terror from God fell upon the cities all around them, so that no one pursued them. 6 Jacob came to Luz (that is, Bethel), which is in the land of Canaan, he and all the people who were with him, 7 and there he built an altar and called the place El-bethel,[a] because it was there that God had revealed himself to him when he fled from his brother. 8 And Deborah, Rebekah’s nurse, died, and she was buried under an oak below Bethel. So it was called Allon-bacuth.[b]
9 God appeared to Jacob again when he came from Paddan-aram, and he blessed him. 10 God said to him, ‘Your name is Jacob; no longer shall you be called Jacob, but Israel shall be your name.’ So he was called Israel. 11 God said to him, ‘I am God Almighty:[c] be fruitful and multiply; a nation and a company of nations shall come from you, and kings shall spring from you. 12 The land that I gave to Abraham and Isaac I will give to you, and I will give the land to your offspring after you.’ 13 Then God went up from him at the place where he had spoken with him. 14 Jacob 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 poured oil on it. 15 So Jacob called the place where God had spoken with him Bethel.
The Birth of Benjamin and the Death of Rachel
16 Then they journeyed from Bethel; and when they were still some distance from Ephrath, Rachel was in childbirth, and she had a difficult labour. 17 When she was in her difficult labour, the midwife said to her, ‘Do not be afraid; for now you will have another son.’ 18 As her soul was departing (for she died), she named him Ben-oni;[d] but his father called him Benjamin.[e] 19 So Rachel died, and she was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem), 20 and Jacob set up a pillar at her grave; it is the pillar of Rachel’s tomb, which is there to this day. 21 Israel journeyed on, and pitched his tent beyond the tower of Eder.
22 While Israel lived in that land, Reuben went and lay with Bilhah his father’s concubine; and Israel heard of it.
Now the sons of Jacob were twelve. 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, Rachel’s maid: Dan and Naphtali. 26 The sons of Zilpah, Leah’s maid: Gad and Asher. These were the sons of Jacob who were born to him in Paddan-aram.
The Death of Isaac
27 Jacob came to his father Isaac at Mamre, or Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron), where Abraham and Isaac had resided as aliens. 28 Now the days of Isaac were one hundred and eighty years. 29 And Isaac breathed his last; he died and was gathered to his people, old and full of days; and his sons Esau and Jacob buried him.
Footnotes
- Genesis 35:7 That is God of Bethel
- Genesis 35:8 That is Oak of weeping
- Genesis 35:11 Traditional rendering of Heb El Shaddai
- Genesis 35:18 That is Son of my sorrow
- Genesis 35:18 That is Son of the right hand or Son of the South
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New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicised Edition, copyright © 1989, 1995 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.