Genesis 35 - Jacob's Transformation and Return to Bethel - The Mysteries of God's Word

Explore the profound transformation of a patriarch in Genesis 35 with us on Mysteries of God's Word. Discover how Jacob's return to Bethel marks a pivotal change in his journey as he purifies his household of foreign gods. This act of devotion sets the stage for his new identity as Israel, as Jacob formally commits to God by building an altar and naming the place El Bethel. We'll unpack the significance of God's protection over Jacob and his family, drawing intriguing parallels to his grandfather Abram's earlier travels. Witness how these ancient stories continue to resonate with themes of faith, commitment, and divine intervention.

Journey further into Genesis 35 as we piece together the intricate tapestry of Jacob's family dynamics and God's unwavering blessings. Delve into the emotional depth of Deborah's death, God's reaffirmation of Jacob's new name, and the heart-wrenching birth of Benjamin alongside Rachel's passing. Reuben's misstep adds complexity to the narrative, reminding us of the interplay between personal actions and consequenses. We'll also reflect on the reunion of Jacob and Esau at their father Isaac's burial. Join us for a captivating discussion that bridges the ancient and the timeless, providing insights into the enduring significance of these biblical tales.

Chapters

• 0:00 Return to Bethel
• 4:54 Jacob's Family and God's Blessings
• 14:35 Isaac's Burial and Jacob's Return

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:14

Blessings to you and thank you for joining me for the Mysteries of God's Word. Today we're in Genesis, chapter 35, where God is bringing Jacob back to Bethel, beginning in verse 1,. We read God said to Jacob Arise, go up to Bethel and dwell there. Make an altar there to the God who appeared to you when you fled from your brother Esau. Immediately here in verse 1, we see God speaking to Jacob. Verse 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 yourself and change your garments. Then let us arise and go up to Bethel so that I may make there an altar to God, who answers me in the day of my distress and has been with me wherever I have gone. So they gave Jacob all the foreign gods that they had, the rings that were in their ears, and Jacob hid them under the terebinth tree that was near Shechem. Back in Genesis, 28, 20 through 22, jacob had promised that if God would bring him back to Bethel, that the Lord would be his God, and now Jacob desires to fulfill that promise and be faithful to the Lord. Jacob begins to purify his entire household by removing any idols of worship, any figurines, amulets or cultic charms, including earrings that were objects of worship. He then has everyone wash and change their clothes to symbolize their change of life and their purification from the old ways. Jacob takes all of these objects of worship and buries them under a tree as an act of publicly abandoning the old way of having multiple gods and declaring that the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac is also now the God of Jacob and he alone is worthy of our praise.

Speaker 1: 2:46

Picking up in verse 5, as they journeyed, a terror from God fell upon the cities that were around them so that they did not pursue the sons of Jacob. So that they did not pursue the sons of Jacob, god supernaturally placed a fear on all of the nations as Jacob and his sons passed through them. If you remember, in chapter 34, levi and Simeon had vengeance on the city of Shechem and Jacob was afraid that the cities of Canaan would gather and attack him. But instead the Lord protects Jacob, making these cities afraid of him, so that the cities of Canaan will not pursue him. Verse 6, and Jacob came to Luz, that is, bethel, which is in the land of Canaan, he and all the people who were with him and there he built an altar and called the place El Bethel because there God had revealed himself to him when he fled from his brother. Here, in verses 6 and 7, we see that Jacob now comes back to Bethel. This is the place where God originally promised to always be with him and to bring him back to this land. Jacob now builds the altar that God had commanded him to do. He follows in the footsteps of his grandfather Abram, steps of his grandfather Abram. Jacob formally recommits his way and worships the Lord through a burnt offering. It was just east of here that Abram first built an altar to the Lord when he entered the promised land back in Genesis 12.8. And Jacob calls this place El Bethel. El Bethel meaning the God of the house of God. This name is referring to the location where Jacob is building this altar, the place where God appeared to him when he had fled from his brother.

Speaker 1: 4:55

And in verse 8, we read and Deborah. And in verse 8 we read this notation that Deborah died. Here is the only notation of Deborah other than back in Genesis 24-59, back when Rebecca was on her journey to Canaan to marry Isaac. At this point Deborah must have been quite elderly and there's no indication that she was sent with Jacob initially on his journey to Paddan Aram. It's possible that Deborah had been sent by Rebekah later to Paddan Aram to keep her promise of alerting Jacob when his brother's wrath had subsided. However, the mention of Deborah's death here seems to be somewhat of a mystery, but it does mark the passing of this older generation.

Speaker 1: 5:58

Verse 9, god appeared to Jacob again when he came from Paddan Aram and blessed him. And God said to him your name is Jacob. You shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel shall be your name. So he called his name Israel. Here, in verses 9 and 10, we see the second, possibly even third, manifestation in which God physically appears to Jacob on his journey back from Padon Aram. The first was when God wrestled with Jacob prior to meeting Esau in Genesis 32, 26-30. Genesis 32, 26 through 30. And then we just read in Genesis 35, 1, that God talked with Jacob, although we were not told that God appeared to Jacob there. And now we read God again appears to Jacob and he blesses him. God tells Jacob Israel again reaffirms that Jacob's name will now be Israel. This further confirms that it was God indeed who wrestled with Jacob and changed his name near the Jebok River. God says be fruitful and multiply Again, reaffirming parts of the Abrahamic covenant with Israel and encouraging him to prosper in this land. In this land, because it's through him and his physical offspring that God will bring forth a nation and kings to prepare the way for God's eternal promises of a Messiah, and through the Messiah, god will make a way for many nations to be gathered into Israel through faith, many nations to be gathered into Israel through faith Verse 13,.

Speaker 1: 8:15

Then God went up from him in the place where he had spoken with him. What an amazing statement that God did this with Abram back in Genesis 17.22. Both Abram and Jacob saw God foreshadow the ascension of Jesus Christ during the days of the patriarchs Verse 14. And Jacob set up a pillar in the place where he had spoken with him, a pillar of stone. He poured out a drink offering on it and poured oil on it. Jacob sets up a second pillar in this place, a second marker, after seeing the Lord 20 years later. After seeing the Lord 20 years later. This time, however, jacob is transformed in his worship towards the Lord and he worships the Lord, god alone. This pillar was very similar to the last it has rocks and he pours oil over it, with one exception this time, a drink offering is also poured over it. Later references to drink offerings suggest that wine was poured over Verse 15,. So Jacob called the name of the place where God had spoken with him Bethel. Jacob again confirms the name of this city as Bethel, just as he did 20 years ago in Genesis 28, 19.

Speaker 1: 9:52

Picking up in verse 16, then they journeyed from Bethel and when they were still some distance from Ephrath, rachel went into labor and she had hard labor. And when her labor was at its hardest, the midwife said to her Do not fear, for you have another son. And as her soul was departing for she was dying, she called his name Benoah, but his father called him Benjamin. Name Benoah, but his father called him Benjamin. So Rachel died and she was buried on the way to Ephrath, that is, bethlehem, and Jacob set up a pillar over her tomb. It is the pillar of Rachel's tomb, which is there to this day. Israel journeyed and pitched his tent beyond the tower of Eder.

Speaker 1: 10:46

In these five verses we see that Jacob left Bethel and we're not told why he left Bethel, but it would seem that he was headed towards Hebron, where his father, isaac was. And on the journey Rachel went into labor and this is the first mention of Rachel being pregnant with Benjamin. So it's a little bit of a surprise in the narrative to find out that she's going into labor and her labor is hard. It's so difficult that she's going to die from having this son and as her soul was departing, she called his name Benoist. In the Old Testament the soul is not normally recognized as something separate from the body, with an existence all its own, as in Greek thought, but rather it's what gives life to the body, the breath of life. But this phrasing here in Genesis 35, 18, expresses a change in location of the soul. It presupposes the continued existence of the soul as her soul is departing. The name Benoi that Rachel named her son means son of my sorrow and she names him that to reflect the circumstances as she's suffering. But Jacob calls him Benjamin, which means son of my right hand, giving Benjamin a place of honor and removing any shame. Jacob marks Rachel's tomb with a pillar and then continues his journey beyond the Tower of Eder.

Speaker 1: 12:40

The Tower of Eder is believed to be a watchtower for shepherds near Bethlehem, picking up in verse 22, while Israel lived in that land, reuben went to lay with Bilhah, his father's concubine, and Israel heard of it. Here we learn of Reuben's actions to lay with his father's concubine. Now, this may have initially been an act of lust on Reuben's part, but it was also an act of usurping his father's authority. As the firstborn. Reuben may have believed he was proving his manhood or trying to gain authority over his brothers by sleeping with his father's concubine, but it had the opposite effect on his life. But it had the opposite effect on his life. While Jacob is slow to anger and doesn't do anything initially, here, when Jacob blesses his sons near his death, jacob removes Reuben's right as the firstborn and while Reuben was trying to prove himself, he in fact loses his firstborn rights and his preeminence in the family. Now the sons of Jacob were twelve the sons of Leah, reuben, jacob's firstborn, simeon, levi, judah, issachar and Zebulun, the sons of Rachel.

Speaker 1: 14:36

All it's not chronological, it's listed by the mother. Second of all, the notation that these are the sons of Jacob born in Padon Aram is a general notation. We had just read that Benjamin was born in the land of Canaan. Read that Benjamin was born in the land of Canaan, picking up in verse 27. And Jacob came to his father, isaac, at Memre or Kirith Arba, that is, hebron where Abraham and Isaac had sojourned.

Speaker 1: 15:08

Now, the days of Isaac were 180 years and Isaac breathed his last and he died and was gathered to his people, old and full of days, and his sons, esau and Jacob, buried him. So here we learn that Jacob came to Hebron where Isaac was. Hebron, again, was a town south-southwest of Jerusalem, about 20 miles, and Isaac had lived a full life of 180 years, which makes Jacob and Esau 120 years old at this time. Another interesting notation is that Joseph, isaac's grandson, was currently in prison in Egypt for one more year before coming into the Pharaoh's service when Isaac died. And we learn here that at the funeral and burial of their father, isaac, both Esau and Jacob came back together to bury him. And in Genesis 49, 29 through 33, we learn that Isaac was buried in that cave of Mephila along with Abraham, sarah and Rebekah. Thank you for joining me and God bless you this week.