1. God said unto Jacob, Arise, &c.--This command was given
seasonably in point of time and tenderly in respect of language. The disgraceful
and perilous events that had recently taken place in the patriarch's family must
have produced in him a strong desire to remove without delay from the vicinity
of Shechem. Borne down by an overwhelming sense of the criminality of his two
sons--of the offense they had given to God and the dishonor they had brought on
the true faith; distracted, too, with anxiety about the probable consequences
which their outrage might bring upon himself and family, should the Canaanite
people combine to extirpate such a band of robbers and murderers; he must have
felt this call as affording a great relief to his afflicted feelings. At the
same time it conveyed a tender rebuke. go up to Beth-el--Beth-el was about thirty miles south of Shechem and was
an ascent from a low to a highland country. There, he would not only be released
from the painful associations of the latter place but be established on a spot
that would revive the most delightful and sublime recollections. The pleasure of
revisiting it, however, was not altogether unalloyed. make there an altar unto God, that appeared--It too frequently happens
that early impressions are effaced through lapse of time, that promises made in
seasons of distress, are forgotten; or, if remembered on the return of health
and prosperity, there is not the same alacrity and sense of obligation felt to
fulfil them. Jacob was lying under that charge. He had fallen into spiritual
indolence. It was now eight or ten years since his return to Canaan. He had
effected a comfortable settlement and had acknowledged the divine mercies, by
which that return and settlement had been signally distinguished (compare Genesis
33:19). But for some unrecorded reason, his early vow at Beth-el [Genesis
28:20-22], in a great crisis of his life, remained unperformed. The Lord
appeared now to remind him of his neglected duty, in terms, however, so mild, as
awakened less the memory of his fault, than of the kindness of his heavenly
Guardian; and how much Jacob felt the touching nature of the appeal to that
memorable scene at Beth-el, appears in the immediate preparations he made to arise
and go up thither (Psalms
66:13).
2. Then Jacob said unto his household . . . Put away the strange
gods that are among you--Hebrew, "gods of the stranger," of
foreign nations. Jacob had brought, in his service, a number of Mesopotamian
retainers, who were addicted to superstitious practices; and there is some
reason to fear that the same high testimony as to the religious superintendence
of his household could not have been borne of him as was done of Abraham (Genesis
18:19). He might have been too negligent hitherto in winking at these evils
in his servants; or, perhaps, it was not till his arrival in Canaan, that he had
learnt, for the first time, that one nearer and dearer to him was secretly
infected with the same corruption (Genesis
31:34). Be that as it may, he resolved on an immediate and thorough
reformation of his household; and in commanding them to put away the strange
gods, he added, be clean, and change your garments--as if some defilement, from contact
with idolatry, should still remain about them. In the law of Moses, many
ceremonial purifications were ordained and observed by persons who had
contracted certain defilements, and without the observance of which, they were
reckoned unclean and unfit to join in the social worship of God. These bodily
purifications were purely figurative; and as sacrifices were offered before the
law, so also were external purifications, as appears from the words of Jacob;
hence it would seem that types and symbols were used from the fall of man,
representing and teaching the two great doctrines of revealed truth--namely, the
atonement of Christ and the sanctification of our nature.
4. they gave unto Jacob all the strange gods . . . and earrings--Strange
gods, the "seraphim" (compare Genesis
31:30), as well, perhaps, as other idols acquired among the Shechemite
spoil--earrings of various forms, sizes, and materials, which are universally
worn in the East, and, then as now, connected with incantation and idolatry
(compare Hosea
2:13). The decided tone which Jacob now assumed was the probable cause of
the alacrity with which those favorite objects of superstition were surrendered. Jacob hid them under the oak--or terebinth--a towering tree, which, like
all others of the kind, was a striking object in the scenery of Palestine; and
beneath which, at Shechem, the patriarch had pitched his tent. He hid the images
and amulets, delivered to him by his Mesopotamian dependents, at the root of
this tree. The oak being deemed a consecrated tree, to bury them at its root was
to deposit them in a place where no bold hand would venture to disturb the
ground; and hence it was called from this circumstance--"the plain of
Meonenim"--that is, "the oak of enchantments" (Judges
9:37); and from the great stone which Joshua set up--"the oak of the
pillar" (Judges
9:6).
5. the terror of God was upon the cities--There was every reason to
apprehend that a storm of indignation would burst from all quarters upon Jacob's
family, and that the Canaanite tribes would have formed one united plan of
revenge. But a supernatural panic seized them; and thus, for the sake of the
"heir of the promise," the protecting shield of Providence was
specially held over his family.
6. So Jacob came to Luz . . . that is, Beth-el--It is
probable that this place was unoccupied ground when Jacob first went to it; and
that after that period [CALVIN], the Canaanites built a town, to which they gave
the name of Luz [Genesis
28:19], from the profusion of almond trees that grew around. The name of
Beth-el, which would, of course, be confined to Jacob and his family, did not
supersede the original one, till long after. It is now identified with the
modern Beitin and lies on the western slope of the mountain on which Abraham
built his altar (Genesis
12:8).
7. El-Beth-el--that is, "the God of Beth-el."
8. Deborah, Rebekah's nurse, died--This event seems to have taken
place before the solemnities were commenced. Deborah (Hebrew, a
"bee"), supposing her to have been fifty years on coming to Canaan,
had attained the great age of a hundred eighty. When she was removed from
Isaac's household to Jacob's, is unknown. But it probably was on his return from
Mesopotamia; and she would have been of invaluable service to his young family.
Old nurses, like her, were not only honored, but loved as mothers; and,
accordingly, her death was the occasion of great lamentation. She was buried
under the oak--hence called "the terebinth of tears" (compare 1 Kings
13:14). God was pleased to make a new appearance to him after the solemn
rites of devotion were over. By this manifestation of His presence, God
testified His acceptance of Jacob's sacrifice and renewed the promise of the
blessings guaranteed to Abraham and Isaac [Genesis
35:11,12]; and the patriarch observed the ceremony with which he had
formerly consecrated the place, comprising a sacramental cup, along with the oil
that he poured on the pillar, and reimposing the memorable name [Genesis
35:14]. The whole scene was in accordance with the character of the
patriarchal dispensation, in which the great truths of religion were exhibited
to the senses, and "the world's grey fathers" taught in a manner
suited to the weakness of an infantile condition.
13. God went up from him--The presence of God was indicated in some
visible form and His acceptance of the sacrifice shown by the miraculous descent
of fire from heaven, consuming it on the altar.
16. And they journeyed from Beth-el--There can be no doubt that much
enjoyment was experienced at Beth-el, and that in the religious observances
solemnized, as well as in the vivid recollections of the glorious vision seen
there, the affections of the patriarch were powerfully animated and that he left
the place a better and more devoted servant of God. When the solemnities were
over, Jacob, with his family, pursued a route directly southward, and they
reached Ephrath, when they were plunged into mourning by the death of Rachel,
who sank in childbirth, leaving a posthumous son [Genesis
35:18]. A very affecting death, considering how ardently the mind of Rachel
had been set on offspring (compare Genesis
30:1).
18. She called his name Ben-oni--The dying mother gave this name to
her child, significant of her circumstances; but Jacob changed his name into
Benjamin. This is thought by some to have been originally Benjamin, "a son
of days," that is, of old age. But with its present ending it means
"son of the right hand," that is, particularly dear and precious.
19. Ephrath, which is Beth-lehem--The one, the old name; the other,
the later name, signifying "house of bread."
20. and Jacob set a pillar on her grave . . . unto this day--The
spot still marked out as the grave of Rachel exactly agrees with the Scriptural
record, being about a mile from Beth-lehem. Anciently it was surmounted by a
pyramid of stones, but the present tomb is a Mohammedan erection.
26. Sons of Jacob . . . born to him in Padan-aram--It is a
common practice of the sacred historian to say of a company or body of men that
which, though true of the majority, may not be applicable to every individual.
(See Matthew
19:28, John
20:24, Hebrews
11:13). Here is an example, for Benjamin was born in Canaan [Genesis
35:16-18].
29. Isaac gave up the ghost--The death of this venerable patriarch is
here recorded by anticipation for it did not take place till fifteen years after
Joseph's disappearance. Feeble and blind though he was, he lived to a very
advanced age; and it is a pleasing evidence of the permanent reconciliation
between Esau and Jacob that they met at Mamre to perform the funeral rites of
their common father.
Genesis 35 Bible Commentary
Jamieson, Faussett, and Brown
Genesis 35:1-15. REMOVAL TO BETHEL.
1. God said unto Jacob, Arise, &c.--This command was given seasonably in point of time and tenderly in respect of language. The disgraceful and perilous events that had recently taken place in the patriarch's family must have produced in him a strong desire to remove without delay from the vicinity of Shechem. Borne down by an overwhelming sense of the criminality of his two sons--of the offense they had given to God and the dishonor they had brought on the true faith; distracted, too, with anxiety about the probable consequences which their outrage might bring upon himself and family, should the Canaanite people combine to extirpate such a band of robbers and murderers; he must have felt this call as affording a great relief to his afflicted feelings. At the same time it conveyed a tender rebuke.
go up to Beth-el--Beth-el was about thirty miles south of Shechem and was an ascent from a low to a highland country. There, he would not only be released from the painful associations of the latter place but be established on a spot that would revive the most delightful and sublime recollections. The pleasure of revisiting it, however, was not altogether unalloyed.
make there an altar unto God, that appeared--It too frequently happens that early impressions are effaced through lapse of time, that promises made in seasons of distress, are forgotten; or, if remembered on the return of health and prosperity, there is not the same alacrity and sense of obligation felt to fulfil them. Jacob was lying under that charge. He had fallen into spiritual indolence. It was now eight or ten years since his return to Canaan. He had effected a comfortable settlement and had acknowledged the divine mercies, by which that return and settlement had been signally distinguished (compare Genesis 33:19). But for some unrecorded reason, his early vow at Beth-el [Genesis 28:20-22], in a great crisis of his life, remained unperformed. The Lord appeared now to remind him of his neglected duty, in terms, however, so mild, as awakened less the memory of his fault, than of the kindness of his heavenly Guardian; and how much Jacob felt the touching nature of the appeal to that memorable scene at Beth-el, appears in the immediate preparations he made to arise and go up thither (Psalms 66:13).
2. Then Jacob said unto his household . . . Put away the strange gods that are among you--Hebrew, "gods of the stranger," of foreign nations. Jacob had brought, in his service, a number of Mesopotamian retainers, who were addicted to superstitious practices; and there is some reason to fear that the same high testimony as to the religious superintendence of his household could not have been borne of him as was done of Abraham (Genesis 18:19). He might have been too negligent hitherto in winking at these evils in his servants; or, perhaps, it was not till his arrival in Canaan, that he had learnt, for the first time, that one nearer and dearer to him was secretly infected with the same corruption (Genesis 31:34). Be that as it may, he resolved on an immediate and thorough reformation of his household; and in commanding them to put away the strange gods, he added,
be clean, and change your garments--as if some defilement, from contact with idolatry, should still remain about them. In the law of Moses, many ceremonial purifications were ordained and observed by persons who had contracted certain defilements, and without the observance of which, they were reckoned unclean and unfit to join in the social worship of God. These bodily purifications were purely figurative; and as sacrifices were offered before the law, so also were external purifications, as appears from the words of Jacob; hence it would seem that types and symbols were used from the fall of man, representing and teaching the two great doctrines of revealed truth--namely, the atonement of Christ and the sanctification of our nature.
4. they gave unto Jacob all the strange gods . . . and earrings--Strange gods, the "seraphim" (compare Genesis 31:30), as well, perhaps, as other idols acquired among the Shechemite spoil--earrings of various forms, sizes, and materials, which are universally worn in the East, and, then as now, connected with incantation and idolatry (compare Hosea 2:13). The decided tone which Jacob now assumed was the probable cause of the alacrity with which those favorite objects of superstition were surrendered.
Jacob hid them under the oak--or terebinth--a towering tree, which, like all others of the kind, was a striking object in the scenery of Palestine; and beneath which, at Shechem, the patriarch had pitched his tent. He hid the images and amulets, delivered to him by his Mesopotamian dependents, at the root of this tree. The oak being deemed a consecrated tree, to bury them at its root was to deposit them in a place where no bold hand would venture to disturb the ground; and hence it was called from this circumstance--"the plain of Meonenim"--that is, "the oak of enchantments" (Judges 9:37); and from the great stone which Joshua set up--"the oak of the pillar" (Judges 9:6).
5. the terror of God was upon the cities--There was every reason to apprehend that a storm of indignation would burst from all quarters upon Jacob's family, and that the Canaanite tribes would have formed one united plan of revenge. But a supernatural panic seized them; and thus, for the sake of the "heir of the promise," the protecting shield of Providence was specially held over his family.
6. So Jacob came to Luz . . . that is, Beth-el--It is probable that this place was unoccupied ground when Jacob first went to it; and that after that period [CALVIN], the Canaanites built a town, to which they gave the name of Luz [Genesis 28:19], from the profusion of almond trees that grew around. The name of Beth-el, which would, of course, be confined to Jacob and his family, did not supersede the original one, till long after. It is now identified with the modern Beitin and lies on the western slope of the mountain on which Abraham built his altar (Genesis 12:8).
7. El-Beth-el--that is, "the God of Beth-el."
8. Deborah, Rebekah's nurse, died--This event seems to have taken place before the solemnities were commenced. Deborah (Hebrew, a "bee"), supposing her to have been fifty years on coming to Canaan, had attained the great age of a hundred eighty. When she was removed from Isaac's household to Jacob's, is unknown. But it probably was on his return from Mesopotamia; and she would have been of invaluable service to his young family. Old nurses, like her, were not only honored, but loved as mothers; and, accordingly, her death was the occasion of great lamentation. She was buried under the oak--hence called "the terebinth of tears" (compare 1 Kings 13:14). God was pleased to make a new appearance to him after the solemn rites of devotion were over. By this manifestation of His presence, God testified His acceptance of Jacob's sacrifice and renewed the promise of the blessings guaranteed to Abraham and Isaac [Genesis 35:11,12]; and the patriarch observed the ceremony with which he had formerly consecrated the place, comprising a sacramental cup, along with the oil that he poured on the pillar, and reimposing the memorable name [Genesis 35:14]. The whole scene was in accordance with the character of the patriarchal dispensation, in which the great truths of religion were exhibited to the senses, and "the world's grey fathers" taught in a manner suited to the weakness of an infantile condition.
13. God went up from him--The presence of God was indicated in some visible form and His acceptance of the sacrifice shown by the miraculous descent of fire from heaven, consuming it on the altar.
Genesis 35:16-27. BIRTH OF BENJAMIN--DEATH OF RACHEL, &c.
16. And they journeyed from Beth-el--There can be no doubt that much enjoyment was experienced at Beth-el, and that in the religious observances solemnized, as well as in the vivid recollections of the glorious vision seen there, the affections of the patriarch were powerfully animated and that he left the place a better and more devoted servant of God. When the solemnities were over, Jacob, with his family, pursued a route directly southward, and they reached Ephrath, when they were plunged into mourning by the death of Rachel, who sank in childbirth, leaving a posthumous son [Genesis 35:18]. A very affecting death, considering how ardently the mind of Rachel had been set on offspring (compare Genesis 30:1).
18. She called his name Ben-oni--The dying mother gave this name to her child, significant of her circumstances; but Jacob changed his name into Benjamin. This is thought by some to have been originally Benjamin, "a son of days," that is, of old age. But with its present ending it means "son of the right hand," that is, particularly dear and precious.
19. Ephrath, which is Beth-lehem--The one, the old name; the other, the later name, signifying "house of bread."
20. and Jacob set a pillar on her grave . . . unto this day--The spot still marked out as the grave of Rachel exactly agrees with the Scriptural record, being about a mile from Beth-lehem. Anciently it was surmounted by a pyramid of stones, but the present tomb is a Mohammedan erection.
26. Sons of Jacob . . . born to him in Padan-aram--It is a common practice of the sacred historian to say of a company or body of men that which, though true of the majority, may not be applicable to every individual. (See Matthew 19:28, John 20:24, Hebrews 11:13). Here is an example, for Benjamin was born in Canaan [Genesis 35:16-18].
Genesis 35:28,29. DEATH OF ISAAC.
29. Isaac gave up the ghost--The death of this venerable patriarch is here recorded by anticipation for it did not take place till fifteen years after Joseph's disappearance. Feeble and blind though he was, he lived to a very advanced age; and it is a pleasing evidence of the permanent reconciliation between Esau and Jacob that they met at Mamre to perform the funeral rites of their common father.