1Then God said to Jacob, “Go up to Bethel and live there. Build an altar there to honor me. That’s where I appeared to you when you were running away from your brother Esau.”

2So Jacob spoke to his family and to everyone with him. He said, “Get rid of the statues of false gods you have with you. Make yourselves pure by washing and changing your clothes. 3Come, let’s go up to Bethel. There I’ll build an altar to honor God. He answered me when I was in trouble. He’s been with me everywhere I’ve gone.” 4So they gave Jacob all the statues of false gods they had. They also gave him their earrings. Jacob buried those things under the oak tree at Shechem. 5Then Jacob and everyone with him started out. The terror of God fell on the towns all around them. So no one chased them.

6Jacob and all the people with him came to Luz. Luz is also called Bethel. It’s in the land of Canaan. 7Jacob built an altar at Luz. He named the place El Bethel. There God made himself known to Jacob when he was running away from his brother.

8Rebekah’s attendant Deborah died. They buried her body under the oak tree outside Bethel. So it was called Allon Bakuth.

9After Jacob returned from Paddan Aram, God appeared to him again. And God blessed him. 10God said to him, “Your name is Jacob. But you will not be called Jacob anymore. Your name will be Israel.” So he named him Israel.

11God said to him, “I am the Mighty God. Have children so that there will be many of you. You will become the father of a nation and a community of nations. Your later family will include kings. 12I am giving you the land I gave to Abraham and Isaac. I will also give it to your children after you.” 13Then God left him at the place where he had talked with him.

14Jacob set up a sacred stone at the place where God had talked with him. He poured out a drink offering on it. He also poured olive oil on it. 15Jacob named the place Bethel. That’s where God had talked with him.

Rachel and Isaac Die

16They moved on from Bethel. Ephrath wasn’t very far away when Rachel began to have a baby. She was having a very hard time of it. 17The woman who helped her saw that she was having problems. So she said to Rachel, “Don’t be afraid. You have another son.” 18But Rachel was dying. As she took her last breath, she named her son Ben-Oni. But his father named him Benjamin.

19So Rachel died. She was buried beside the road to Ephrath. Ephrath was also called Bethlehem. 20Jacob set up a stone marker over her tomb. To this day, the stone marks the place where Rachel was buried.

21Israel moved on again. He set up his tent beyond Migdal Eder. 22While Israel was living in that area, Reuben went in and slept with Bilhah. She was the concubine of Reuben’s father. And Israel heard about it.

Here are the 12 sons Jacob had.

23Leah was the mother of

Reuben, Jacob’s oldest son.

Her other sons were Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar and Zebulun.

24The sons of Rachel were

Joseph and Benjamin.

25The sons of Rachel’s female servant Bilhah were

Dan and Naphtali.

26The sons of Leah’s female servant Zilpah were

Gad and Asher.

These were Jacob’s sons. They were born in Paddan Aram.

27Jacob came home to his father Isaac in Mamre. Mamre is near Kiriath Arba, where Abraham and Isaac had stayed. The place is also called Hebron. 28Isaac lived 180 years. 29Then he took his last breath and died. He was very old when he joined the members of his family who had already died. His sons Esau and Jacob buried him.

Holy Bible, New International Reader’s Version®, NIrV®

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Genesis 35

Return to Bethel

1God said to Jacob, “Get up! Go to Bethel and settle there. # Gn 28:19 Build an altar there to the God who appeared to you when you fled from your brother Esau.” # Gn 27:43

2So Jacob said to his family and all who were with him, “Get rid of the foreign gods that are among you. # Gn 31:19; Jos 24:23; 1Sm 7:3 Purify yourselves and change your clothes. # Ex 19:10 3We must get up and go to Bethel. I will build an altar there to the God who answered me in my day of distress. # 1Sm 7:9; 2Sm 24:25; Jb 12:4; Ps 20:1; 34:4 He has been with me everywhere I have gone.” # Gn 28:10-22

4Then they gave Jacob all their foreign gods and their earrings, and Jacob hid them under the oak near Shechem. 5When they set out, a terror from God came over the cities around them, and they did not pursue Jacob’s sons. # Ex 23:27 6So Jacob and all who were with him came to Luz (that is, Bethel # Gn 28:19; 48:3) in the land of Canaan. 7Jacob built an altar there and called the place God of Bethel # Or El-bethel because it was there that God had revealed Himself to him when he was fleeing from his brother.

8Deborah, the one who had nursed and raised Rebekah, # Lit Deborah, Rebekah’s wet nurse ; Gn 24:59 # Gn 24:59 died and was buried under the oak south of Bethel. So Jacob named it Oak of Weeping. # Or Allon-bacuth

9God appeared to Jacob again after he returned from Paddan-aram, and He blessed him. 10God said to him:

Your name is Jacob;

you will no longer be named Jacob,

but your name will be Israel. # Gn 17:5; 32:28

So He named him Israel. 11God also said to him:

I am God Almighty. # Gn 17:1; 28:3; Ex 6:3

Be fruitful and multiply. # Gn 9:1,7

A nation, indeed an assembly of nations,

will come from you, # Gn 48:4

and kings will descend from you. # Lit will come from your loins # Gn 17:6,16; 36:31

12I will give to you the land

that I gave to Abraham and Isaac. # Gn 12:7; 13:15; 26:3-4; 28:13; Ex 32:13

And I will give the land

to your future descendants.

13Then God withdrew # Lit went up # Gn 17:22; 18:33 from him at the place where He had spoken to him.

14Jacob set up a marker at the place where He had spoken to him — a stone marker. He poured a drink offering on it and anointed it with oil. # Gn 28:18-19; 31:45 15Jacob named the place where God had spoken with him Bethel.

Rachel’s Death

16They set out from Bethel. When they were still some distance from Ephrath, Rachel began to give birth, and her labor was difficult. 17During her difficult labor, the midwife said to her, “Don’t be afraid, for you have another son.” # Gn 30:24 18With her last breath — for she was dying — she named him Ben-oni, # = Son of My Sorrow but his father called him Benjamin. # = Son of the Right Hand 19So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem # Mc 5:2; Mt 2:18). 20Jacob set up a marker on her grave; it is the marker at Rachel’s grave to this day.

Israel’s Sons

21Israel set out again and pitched his tent beyond the Tower of Eder. # Or beyond Migdal-eder 22While Israel was living in that region, Reuben went in and slept with his father’s concubine Bilhah, and Israel heard about it. # Gn 49:3-4

Jacob had 12 sons: # 1Ch 2:1-2

23Leah’s sons were Reuben (Jacob’s firstborn),

Simeon, Levi, Judah,

Issachar, and Zebulun.

24Rachel’s sons 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 are the sons of Jacob, who were born to him in Paddan-aram.

Isaac’s Death

27Jacob came to his father Isaac at Mamre # Gn 13:18; 18:1; 23:19 in Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron # Jos 14:15), where Abraham and Isaac had stayed. 28Isaac lived 180 years. 29He took his last breath and died, and was gathered to his people, # Gn 25:8,17; 49:33; Nm 20:24,26; Dt 32:50 old and full of days. His sons Esau and Jacob buried him.

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Genesis 35

Genesis 35