(E, J, P.) 1 8 (E). Jacob at Bethel. 9 15 (14 J) (P). The appearance of God to Jacob. His name changed to Israel. 16 22 a. Birth of Benjamin, death of Rachel (J). 22B 29. The names of Jacob's sons and the death of Isaac (P).... [ Continue Reading ]
_go up to Beth-el_ From Shechem to Bethel is an ascent of 1000 feet. Bethel is 2890 feet above the sea. LXX εἰς τὸν τόπον Βαιθήλ = "unto the place Bethel," cf. Genesis 12:6-8; Genesis 13:4; Genesis 28:11. _an altar_ Jacob is commanded to worship at Bethel in fulfilment of his vow, Genesis 28:22.... [ Continue Reading ]
_strange gods_ The images of the gods of foreigners, i.e. of another family, tribe, or nation. Rachel had carried away, from Haran, the household gods of her father's family. Cf. Genesis 31:19; Genesis 31:30; Genesis 31:32-35. The presence of the gods of the foreigner was displeasing in the sight of... [ Continue Reading ]
_who answered me_ Jacob here refers to his flight from Esau (chap. 28), not, as some have supposed, to his flight from Laban (chap. 31). _in the day of my distress_ Cf. Psalms 20:1, "The Lord answer thee in the day of trouble; the name of the God of Jacob set thee up on high." _was with me_ Cf. Ge... [ Continue Reading ]
_in their hand_ i.e. in their possession. _the rings … ears_ The rings mentioned were probably not simple earrings as in Genesis 24:22, but rings worn as charms, and amulets, having symbols of heathen deities. Cf. Hosea 2:13. _the oak_ R.V. marg. _terebinth_. It is noteworthy that Joshua, under the... [ Continue Reading ]
_a great terror_ Heb. _a terror of God_. The inhabitants were under the influence of a mysterious dread or panic, inspired by God. Cf. Exodus 15:16; Exodus 23:27; Deuteronomy 2:25; Jos 2:9; 2 Chronicles 14:14. _did not pursue_ These words which imply that "the sons of Jacob" had by their violence g... [ Continue Reading ]
_Luz_ See Genesis 28:19; Genesis 48:3.... [ Continue Reading ]
_the place_ See notes on Genesis 12:6; Genesis 28:11. _El-beth-el_ That is, _the God of Beth-el_. Here, as in Genesis 33:20, the altar receives the name of the deity. _was revealed_ Referring to Genesis 28:12-13. In the Heb. "was revealed" is in the plural: see note on Genesis 20:13, cf. Joshua 24:... [ Continue Reading ]
_Deborah_ The mention of Deborah, Rebekah's nurse, is surprising. She is mentioned, though not by name, in Genesis 24:59. Probably her name was well known in other Israelite traditions which have not survived. If we relied on the chronology of P, we should have to call attention to the fact that, ac... [ Continue Reading ]
_when he came … Paddan-aram_ As in Genesis 33:18, P ignores the whole J and E narrative since the departure from Haran; which country appears in P as Paddan-aram.... [ Continue Reading ]
_Israel shall be thy name_ This change of name has been mentioned by J in Genesis 32:28. For the change, cf. Genesis 17:5; Genesis 17:15, where Abraham and Sarah receive a change of name associated with a special promise.... [ Continue Reading ]
_God Almighty_ Heb. _El Shaddai_. See note on Genesis 17:1. The phrases in this verse, "God Almighty," "be fruitful and multiply," "company of nations," are characteristic of P's style. _a nation_, &c. Cf. the promises in Genesis 17:5-6; Genesis 17:16. Here the mention of "kings" renews the promise... [ Continue Reading ]
_And God went up_ An expression descriptive of the manifestation in some external form, in which God appeared to Jacob. Cf. Genesis 18:33, "And the Lord went his way.... [ Continue Reading ]
_And Jacob_, &c. This verse, probably from J, contains a parallel account to that of E in Genesis 28:18. Jacob erects a pillar, or upright stone (_maṣṣêbah_): and this he consecrates with a libation of oil and a drink offering. Whether this is the account of another pillar at Bethel, or is a paralle... [ Continue Reading ]
_some way_ The word in the Heb. denotes a measure of distance. What it was, however, cannot be determined. It is found in Genesis 48:7 and 2 Kings 5:19. LXX renders as a proper name _Chabratha_. _to Ephrath_ The name of a place otherwise unknown, in Benjamite territory, south of Bethel: not Bethleh... [ Continue Reading ]
(J). Birth of Benjamin and Death of Rachel "The meaning of the statement that Rachel died when Benjamin was born is that the formation of the new tribe Benjamin broke up the old tribe Rachel" (Bennett). But it would be a mistake to attempt to distinguish too closely the personal and tribal elements... [ Continue Reading ]
_another son_ Lit. "for this also is a son for thee." Perhaps the reference is to Rachel's prayer (Genesis 30:24), "the Lord add to me another son," when Joseph was born.... [ Continue Reading ]
_her soul_ The _nephesh_, or "soul," the vital principle: cf. 1 Kings 17:21, "let this child's soul come unto him again." _Ben-oni_ i.e. _the son of my sorrow_. Rachel, as she dies, names her son; but the father cannot acquiesce in a name of such sad memories. _Benjamin_ i.e. _the son of the right... [ Continue Reading ]
_Ephrath_(_the same is Beth-lehem_)] The words, "the same is Beth-lehem," create a difficulty; they occur also in Genesis 48:7, and seem to be confirmed by Ruth 4:11; Micah 5:2, "Bethlehem Ephrathah," where the reference is to Bethlehem, S. of Jerusalem. But (1) judging from the present passage we s... [ Continue Reading ]
_Israel_ Observe the employment of the new name as an alternative for Jacob, with especial frequency in the J narrative. _the tower of Eder_ i.e. "the tower of the flock." It is uncertain whether "Eder" is a proper name or not. For a similar uncertainty, cf. Genesis 33:18. The place is evidently si... [ Continue Reading ]
(P). Jacob's Sons, and the Death of Isaac 22 b. _the sons of Jacob_ The names of Jacob's sons are enumerated after the mention of Benjamin's birth. But the enumeration is that of P, which assumes that all the sons of Jacob, including Benjamin, were born to him in Paddan-aram (Genesis 35:26), in dir... [ Continue Reading ]
_Isaac_ The mention of Isaac, after so long an interval, is surprising. But the P narrative carefully records the death and age of each patriarch. According to J, Isaac was living at Beer-sheba, when Jacob left his home (Genesis 28:10). According to P, Isaac died 80 years later at Mamre in close pro... [ Continue Reading ]
_the days of Isaac_ Isaac is here credited with a longer life by 5 years than Abraham. Cf. Genesis 25:7. Comparing this verse with Genesis 25:20; Genesis 26:34, Jacob, according to P, was 120 years old at his father's death; he had left his father at the age of 40; and had resided in Canaan for near... [ Continue Reading ]
_gave up the ghost_, &c. Cf. the same phrase in Genesis 25:8; Genesis 49:33. _Esau and Jacob_ According to P, Esau and Jacob meet at the burial of Isaac, just as Ishmael and Isaac met to bury Abraham, Genesis 25:9. The Book of Jubilees (chs. 37, 38) relates that, after Isaac's death, Esau was stir... [ Continue Reading ]