Genesis 35, Bethel

Jacob's sons have murdered the men of Shechem for the rape of their sister. It may be time for Jacob and his clan to move on.

Genesis 35:1-4, An altar at Bethel and removal of other gods

Then God said to Jacob, "Go up to Bethel and settle there, and build an altar there to God, who appeared to you when you were fleeing from your brother Esau." 

So Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, "Get rid of the foreign gods you have with you, and purify yourselves and change your clothes.  Then come, let us go up to Bethel, where I will build an altar to God, who answered me in the day of my distress and who has been with me wherever I have gone."

So they gave Jacob all the foreign gods they had and the rings in their ears, and Jacob buried them under the oak at Shechem.

Jacob returns to Bethel, where, in a dream, God had met him at the top of a ramp to heaven (Genesis 28:10-22.) As they journey there, Jacob insists that his family remove the "foreign gods" (idols), including the rings in their ears (presumably a talisman regarding those gods.) It is likely that some idols were picked up in the looting of Shechem but we note that even Rachel had stolen Laban's figurines. It was apparently common to have figurines of various gods in the ancient Near Eastern pagan culture. Archaeologists have even found earrings in the shapes of various gods (says Alter.)

Genesis 35:5-7, Terror

Then they set out, and the terror of God fell upon the towns all around them so that no one pursued them. Jacob and all the people with him came to Luz (that is, Bethel) in the land of Canaan. There he built an altar, and he called the place El Bethel, because it was there that God revealed himself to him when he was fleeing from his brother.

Fear and respect follow the tribe of Jacob. They are a scary clan and have a unique God.

"El Bethel" means "God of Bethel" and "Bethel" means "house of God" so "El Bethel" is a bit redundant.

Genesis 35:8, Deborah dies
Now Deborah, Rebekah's nurse, died and was buried under the oak below Bethel. So it was named Allon Bacuth.

A brief interlude records the death of Rebekah's nurse. We have no other information about Deborah.

According to the NIV footnotes, "Allon Bacuth" means "oak of weeping".

Genesis 35:9-13, Name change confirmed

After Jacob returned from Paddan Aram, God appeared to him again and blessed him. God said to him, "Your name is Jacob, but you will no longer be called Jacob; your name will be Israel." So he named him Israel.

And God said to him, "I am God Almighty; be fruitful and increase in number. A nation and a community of nations will come from you, and kings will come from your body. The land I gave to Abraham and Isaac I also give to you, and I will give this land to your descendants after you." Then God went up from him at the place where he had talked with him.

In verse 10, "Jacob" means "he grasps the heel" (figuratively, he deceives) and "Israel" means "he struggles with God." Presumably this appearance of YHWH is again at Bethel, on the return trip from Harran.

The English title "God Almighty" is rare in the Old Testament; in Hebrew it is "El-Shaddai." 

Genesis 35:14-15, A pillar at Bethel
Jacob set up a stone pillar at the place where God had talked with him, and he poured out a drink offering on it; he also poured oil on it. Jacob called the place where God had talked with him Bethel. Then they moved on from Bethel. 

The worship at Bethel is summarized. In the first trip through Bethel, Jacob set up a stone pillar and poured oil on it (28:18.)

Genesis 35:16-20, Rachel dies in childbirth
While they were still some distance from Ephrath, Rachel began to give birth and had great difficulty. And as she was having great difficulty in childbirth, the midwife said to her, "Don't be afraid, for you have another son." As she breathed her last--for she was dying--she named her son Ben-Oni. But his father named him Benjamin. So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem). Over her tomb Jacob set up a pillar, and to this day that pillar marks Rachel's tomb.

In naming Joseph in Genesis 30:24, Rachel intended to "add" sons, to have more than one. The midwife tells her that she is indeed getting a second son. But Rachel will not live to raise him. Rachel dies in childbirth, finally getting her wish after many many years of infertility.

The term "Ben-Oni" means "son of my trouble" but could also mean "son of vigor." The name "Benjamin" means "son of my right hand". Alter suggests that "Benjamin", if the last part of the name is the Hebrew yom, would mean "son of my old age". Elderly Jacob has a twelfth son and refuses to allow Rachel's sad naming to stick with the child.

Rachel is buried near Bethlehem of Ephrath. A great deal will happen in that small town, including a number of significant future childbirths!

Genesis 35:21-22a, Reuben sleeps with Bilhah

Israel moved on again and pitched his tent beyond Migdal Eder. While Israel was living in that region, Reuben went in and slept with his father's concubine Bilhah, and Israel heard of it. 

Apparently concubines have little say about sex (or rape)?  In the ancient Near Eastern culture, sleeping with women in the harem of the father is probably a statement about dominance, about being the alpha male. (Absalom does this when he revolts against his father, David, 2 Samuel 16:21–22.) Reuben, the firstborn, may be laying claim to clan leadership after Jacob's death. Neither Jacob nor the narrator comment on this. Jacob hears of this but is silent. He will remember however, and will comment on this in Genesis 49:3-4.

Reuben is the firstborn son of Jacob and so, in the ANE culture, is the one to inherit the birthright and mantle of Jacob. But this sin presumably removes this right. The ancient readers of this text may now recognize that the first three sons of Jacob: Reuben, Simeon and Levi (see Genesis 34), have now all done atrocious acts, acts that might nullify their right to the birthright. If so, that mantle would then fall to the fourth son, Judah, out of whom the Davidic dynasty arises. The author of Chronicles has, however, a different viewpoint; see 1 Chronicles 5:1-2, where the sons of Joseph receive that honor.

Genesis 35:22b-27, The twelve sons of Israel

Jacob had twelve sons: 

The sons of Leah: Reuben the firstborn of Jacob, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar and Zebulun.

The sons of Rachel: Joseph and Benjamin.

The sons of Rachel's maidservant Bilhah: Dan and Naphtali.

The sons of Leah's maidservant Zilpah: Gad and Asher. 

These were the sons of Jacob, who were born to him in Paddan Aram. Jacob came home to his father Isaac in Mamre, near Kiriath Arba (that is, Hebron), where Abraham and Isaac had stayed.

Here we have a summary of the sons of Israel, organized according to their mothers.

Genesis 35:28-29, Isaac dies
Isaac lived a hundred and eighty years. Then he breathed his last and died and was gathered to his people, old and full of years. And his sons Esau and Jacob buried him.

Isaac dies, leaving two sons, each with large tribes. This entire chapter is a collection of miscellaneous events in the life of Jacob/Israel.  This last event, the burial of Isaac, probably happened some time earlier. 

We wrap up much of the life of Jacob in this chapter as the rest of Genesis will focus on his twelve sons and Jacob will be relegated to a minor role. 

Some Hebrew vocabulary

Our Hebrew word for the day is elah,

אִלָה

a feminine noun meaning terebinth or oak. In verse 4, above, Jacob buries the idols under an oak at Shechem and then later, in verse 8, buries the body of Rebekah's nurse under "the oak below Bethel."

Some Random Thoughts

This birthright stuff is so strange. Although the concept of birthright is not mentioned in this chapter, some of the actions in this chapter will clearly have consequences to birthrights later.

The idols were buried under a tree and later the body of Rebekah's nurse was buried under another tree. But Rebekah's tomb was marked by a stone pillar, a more permanent marker that was still identifiable in the time of the author of Genesis.

First published Feb 10, 2023; updated Feb 10, 2026

Genesis 34, Rape

Jacob's family has settled outside the town of Shechem, named apparently, for the son of Hamor the Hivite. (Shechem was probably about 30 miles north of modern Jerusalem; see this Wikipedia page.)

Genesis 34:1-4, Rape of Dinah

Now Dinah, the daughter Leah had borne to Jacob, went out to visit the women of the land. When Shechem son of Hamor the Hivite, the ruler of that area, saw her, he took her and violated her. His heart was drawn to Dinah daughter of Jacob, and he loved the girl and spoke tenderly to her. And Shechem said to his father Hamor, "Get me this girl as my wife."

Dinah is raped by the son of the local ruler. Shechem is obsessed with Dinah and wants her as his wife, and rashly hurries and takes her by force. (The Hebrew leaves no question that this is rape.)

Genesis 34:5-7, Jacob and his sons hear of the rape

When Jacob heard that his daughter Dinah had been defiled, his sons were in the fields with his livestock; so he kept quiet about it until they came home. Then Shechem's father Hamor went out to talk with Jacob.

Now Jacob's sons had come in from the fields as soon as they heard what had happened. They were filled with grief and fury, because Shechem had done a disgraceful thing in Israel by lying with Jacob's daughter--a thing that should not be done.

Jacob hears of the rape. (From Dinah?) He is quiet about it until his sons come home.  They are furious and make plans to retaliate. But the rapist is the king's son.... It is likely that Jacob's silence angers his sons. They make plans for vengeance and do not tell their father.

Much of the time the author of Genesis does not comment on the historical events. The Genesis text usually gives no instructions on morality; it merely reports on the history. But here is an exception. Our narrator stresses that what Shechem has done was disgraceful ("in Israel"), as if to partially justify the horror of what follows. The phrase "in Israel" appears to look forward to a time when Israel is a nation, not just a small family band.

Note: It is possible that Jacob has other daughters.

Genesis 34:8-12, Hamor and Shechem ask for Dinah

But Hamor said to them, "My son Shechem has his heart set on your daughter. Please give her to him as his wife. Intermarry with us; give us your daughters and take our daughters for yourselves. You can settle among us; the land is open to you. Live in it, trade in it, and acquire property in it."

Then Shechem said to Dinah's father and brothers, "Let me find favor in your eyes, and I will give you whatever you ask. Make the price for the bride and the gift I am to bring as great as you like, and I'll pay whatever you ask me. Only give me the girl as my wife."

Hamor, the king, proposes marriage and an alliance. He is interested not in just a wife for his son but in a beneficial economic alliance with this wealthy family.  

In the ANE culture, the marriage should have been negotiated by the fathers, with a bride price being paid by the father of the groom. But the rape means that the woman has lost value and so the bride price should skyrocket. Shechem and his father are willing to pay "any price" for Dinah.

Genesis 34:13-17, Jacob's sons plan revenge
Because their sister Dinah had been defiled, Jacob's sons replied deceitfully as they spoke to Shechem and his father Hamor. They said to them, "We can't do such a thing; we can't give our sister to a man who is not circumcised. That would be a disgrace to us.

We will give our consent to you on one condition only: that you become like us by circumcising all your males. Then we will give you our daughters and take your daughters for ourselves. We'll settle among you and become one people with you. But if you will not agree to be circumcised, we'll take our sister and go."

According to the NIV footnotes, several places where the word "sister" appears, the Hebrew word is really the word for "daughter".  Clearly "sister" is implied.

Genesis 34:18-24, The men of the community are circumcised.
Their proposal seemed good to Hamor and his son Shechem. The young man, who was the most honored of all his father's household, lost no time in doing what they said, because he was delighted with Jacob's daughter.

So Hamor and his son Shechem went to the gate of their city to speak to their fellow townsmen. "These men are friendly toward us," they said. "Let them live in our land and trade in it; the land has plenty of room for them. We can marry their daughters and they can marry ours. But the men will consent to live with us as one people only on the condition that our males be circumcised, as they themselves are. Won't their livestock, their property and all their other animals become ours? So let us give our consent to them, and they will settle among us." All the men who went out of the city gate agreed with Hamor and his son Shechem, and every male in the city was circumcised.

This is a painful process for an adult male! The brothers are relying on that fact.

Hamor and Shechem appear to have considerable power and influence and are looking to ally their power with that of Jacob and his clan.

How big is the "city"? It is big enough to have a city gate. But one gets the impression that Hamor and his clan will be greatly aided by Jacob, his twelve sons and servants.  Many decades later, with the addition of grandchildren, Jacob's tribe will have grown to seventy (Genesis 46:27) so one might suspect that adding in servants, Jacob's clan at this time numbers less than thirty.

Genesis 34:25-29, Massacre and robbery

Three days later, while all of them were still in pain, two of Jacob's sons, Simeon and Levi, Dinah's brothers, took their swords and attacked the unsuspecting city, killing every male. They put Hamor and his son Shechem to the sword and took Dinah from Shechem's house and left.

The sons of Jacob came upon the dead bodies and looted the city where their sister had been defiled. They seized their flocks and herds and donkeys and everything else of theirs in the city and out in the fields. They carried off all their wealth and all their women and children, taking as plunder everything in the houses.

The rape of Dinah is followed by an act of extreme violence, with dozens murdered. Surely innocents die. 

I find it difficult to believe that just two sons, Simeon and Levi, are capable of massacring a city of hundreds. Other sons are involved in carrying off the wealth and so there may have been both sons and servants involved at the end of the massacre. It is also possible that there is typical ANE hyperbole here -- many men, especially those loyal to Hamor, are put to death and the death toll could be in the dozens, but it is unlikely to be the entire city. (We will see example of this hyperbole in some later accounts.)

Genesis 34:30-31, Jacob complains

Then Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, "You have brought trouble on me by making me a stench to the Canaanites and Perizzites, the people living in this land. We are few in number, and if they join forces against me and attack me, I and my household will be destroyed."

But they replied, "Should he have treated our sister like a prostitute?"

Jacob is upset by the massacre but the sons have a quick response, "They abused our sister."

The massacre will force a move. Jacob mentions both Canaanites and Perizzites; the Perizzites will be a tribe that Israel must deal with during the time of the judges.

Some Hebrew vocabulary

Our Hebrew word for the day is anah 

עָנָה

meaning to abase, to force, to afflict. In verse 2 above, describing the sex between Shechem and Dinah, the word is the root of vayaneha (וַיְעַנֶּֽהָ), meaning "with her, by force." In other words, the sex was forceful, possibly violent; it was rape. The Hebrew word has the same meaning in Judges 20:5 and 2 Samuel 13:12-14. That word can be used in situations that are not sexual; in Genesis 16:6 the NIV says that Sarah "mistreated" Hagar. In Exodus 1:11 the word is translated "oppress".  In both cases one might wonder if the word implies violence.

Some Random Thoughts

There are at least two places in Genesis where either an editor or a late author inserts a historical comment. Above, in verse 7, the author points out that "this disgraceful thing" should not be done in Israel. In Genesis 36:31, the author identifies the Edomites as living "before there was a king in Israel." In both cases the author or a later editor sees a history of Israel as a nation, looking back from a time centuries later.

First published Feb 9, 2023; updated Feb 9, 2026

Children of Abraham

A number of people groups trace their lineage to Abraham.  The Jews are descendants of Abraham through Isaac and then Jacob (Israel.)  In Islam, Abraham's son Ishmael (through Hagar) is considered a prophet and the founder of the Arabian people and ancestor of Mohammed.  According to Genesis 17:20, Ishmael, had twelve sons, fathers of twelve tribes.  Similarly, Jacob, Isaac's son, had twelve sons, fathers of twelve tribes.  All of these groups, including the numerous people groups of the Arabian region, trace their lineage to Abraham and trace their monotheism (whether, Christian, Jew or Muslim) to Abraham's covenant with the One God. 

A significant message throughout the book of Genesis is that there is One God and that that God chose Abraham to bless, through his descendants, all people groups.  The descendants of Abraham, as they journey to and fro from the land of Canaan, are reminded to give up the pagan culture of many gods and worship the One God who created the universe.  In its simplest form, worship of the God of Abraham meant opposition to worship of tribal gods, of Baals or idols, of gods identified with "created things" such as the trees, sun, moon and stars.

We are probably 120 to 150 generations from Abraham.  Given the millions of ancestors we each have (even after considerable duplication of ancestors) it is likely that most of us have at least one ancestral line back to Abraham.  But even if not... Abraham is a major forefather, historically and religiously.

Christians, even when not biologically linked to Abraham, view him as the "father" of faith; Abraham's dependence on God and the righteousness granted him by God, based on his faith, is a model for Christians of trust in Messiah Yeshua (Jesus) to be their one sacrifice for sin and rebellion. (See Romans 4:3, Galatians 3:29 and Matthew 8:11 as examples of this.)

Some resources on Abraham and his descendants

1. Wikipedia's page on Abraham.
2. The Encyclopedia Britannica's entry on Abraham.
3. The New World Encyclopedia's entry on Abraham.
4. Wikipedia has a useful page on Abraham's family tree.
5. Christianity Today has an article on Abraham's sojourn.

First published Feb 5, 2023; updated Feb 8, 2026

Genesis 33, Reconciliation with Esau

The deceitful Jacob meets his brother after twenty years. Jacob is worried about violence and robbery, knowing that he has deceived his brother and stolen the birthright.

Genesis 33:1-4, Two brothers meet

Jacob looked up and there was Esau, coming with his four hundred men; so he divided the children among Leah, Rachel and the two maidservants. He put the maidservants and their children in front, Leah and her children next, and Rachel and Joseph in the rear. He himself went on ahead and bowed down to the ground seven times as he approached his brother.

But Esau ran to meet Jacob and embraced him; he threw his arms around his neck and kissed him. And they wept.

Jacob, concerned about violence, puts his favorites, Rachel and her son, at the end of the line. But just as Jacob has grown up and matured, so has Esau. The two men hug and cry together. We don't know what they said during this embrace but one can guess.

Genesis 33:5-11, Hugs and weeping

Then Esau looked up and saw the women and children. "Who are these with you?" he asked. 

Jacob answered, "They are the children God has graciously given your servant." Then the maidservants and their children approached and bowed down. Next, Leah and her children came and bowed down. Last of all came Joseph and Rachel, and they too bowed down.

Esau asked, "What do you mean by all these droves I met?" 

"To find favor in your eyes, my lord," he said.

But Esau said, "I already have plenty, my brother. Keep what you have for yourself."

"No, please!" said Jacob. "If I have found favor in your eyes, accept this gift from me. For to see your face is like seeing the face of God, now that you have received me favorably. Please accept the present that was brought to you, for God has been gracious to me and I have all I need." And because Jacob insisted, Esau accepted it.

Both men have grown up and grown wealthy, with wives, children, and possessions. Esau does not need possessions, but he does need respect, and Jacob is giving it. Similarly, Jacob asks for grace. And receives it. (Jacob seems to be trying to give back to Esau the blessings and riches of the birthright.)

This is not the first time we have seen a certain custom in gift-giving. The dialogue seems to go like this,         "Here take this." 

     "No, I have no need!"  

     "But I insist!" 

     "Well, OK, then."

Genesis 33:12-15, Still worried

Then Esau said, "Let us be on our way; I'll accompany you."

But Jacob said to him, "My lord knows that the children are tender and that I must care for the ewes and cows that are nursing their young. If they are driven hard just one day, all the animals will die. So let my lord go on ahead of his servant, while I move along slowly at the pace of the droves before me and that of the children, until I come to my lord in Seir."

Esau said, "Then let me leave some of my men with you." 

"But why do that?" Jacob asked. "Just let me find favor in the eyes of my lord."

Jacob is still a little worried about Esau's intentions. Years of deceit and doubt will not be erased in one day!

Genesis 33:16-20, Succoth

So that day Esau started on his way back to Seir.

Jacob, however, went to Succoth, where he built a place for himself and made shelters for his livestock. That is why the place is called Succoth. After Jacob came from Paddan Aram, he arrived safely at the city of Shechem in Canaan and camped within sight of the city. For a hundred pieces of silver, he bought from the sons of Hamor, the father of Shechem, the plot of ground where he pitched his tent. There he set up an altar and called it El Elohe Israel.

Succoth means "shelters".   "El Elohe Israel" translates roughly as "God, the God of Israel."

The Hebrew for the amount of money translated here as "a hundred pieces of silver" is really "a hundred qesitah  The qesitah is a piece of money, most likely silver. Alter argues that this period predates coins and so the silver would have just been in various weights. 

Alter also suggests that the fact that Jacob purchased land is a statement of permanence -- Jacob plans to stay here. But sadly, shortly, the sojourner Jacob, and his family, will have to move on.

Some Hebrew vocabulary

Our Hebrew word for the day is sukkah 

סֻכָּה

a feminine noun meaning cottage, tent, tabernacle, booth, shelter. When Jacob made shelters for his livestock, he named the place Shelters (Succoth.) Later, after forty years of living in tents, the wandering Israelites would celebrate a festival called Sukkot, the Feast of Booths or the Feast of Tabernacles. (See Leviticus 23:34.)

Some Random Thoughts

The Genesis story of Abraham and his descendants includes a number of events in which some type of claim is made to the land, along with a vow to stay in the land or return to the land. Abraham and his sons build altars and maintain wells. Abraham buys land to bury his wife (Genesis 23:17-20) and there in the Cave of Machpelah he too is buried. Isaac and Jacob also dig wells and purchase land. In this chapter we see Jacob purchasing land and setting up an altar. Repeatedly the patriarchs are promised the land of Canaan and repeatedly they attempt to settle in it or return to it. That land is hundreds of miles southwest of Aram/Syria and yet in their desire for permanence, the descendants of Jacob will be called wandering Arameans (see Deuteronomy 26:5.) There was both a desire for stability in their story and a life status as immigrants and refugees.

The tension between a desire for permanence and the wandering bedouin experience runs throughout the Old Testament books.

 

First published Feb 8, 2023; updated Feb 7, 2026

Genesis 32, Jacob Wrestles

When Jacob left the home of his father Isaac, he was fleeing his brother Esau, headed to Laban's home, seeking a bride.  On the road, at night, he had a dream in which God stood at the top of a long ramp and repeated the promises made previously to Abraham and Isaac. Later Jacob, fleeing Laban, headed back to Canaan and toward Seir. (Mount Seir, traditionally the home of the Edomites, is in southwest Jordan, east and south of Jerusalem. See this Wikipedia page.)  Jacob is retracing a path he took twenty years before.

Genesis 32:1-5, Two camps

Jacob also went on his way, and the angels of God met him. When Jacob saw them, he said, "This is the camp of God!" So he named that place Mahanaim.

Jacob sent messengers ahead of him to his brother Esau in the land of Seir, the country of Edom. He instructed them: "This is what you are to say to my master Esau: `Your servant Jacob says, I have been staying with Laban and have remained there till now. I have cattle and donkeys, sheep and goats, menservants and maidservants. Now I am sending this message to my lord, that I may find favor in your eyes.'"

We are briefly alerted that Jacob met angels. Then the story moves on to the upcoming conflict with Esau.

The name "Mahanaim" means "two camps".  "Two camps" will have several meanings in this story.

Genesis 32:6-8, Four hundred men
When the messengers returned to Jacob, they said, "We went to your brother Esau, and now he is coming to meet you, and four hundred men are with him." In great fear and distress Jacob divided the people who were with him into two groups, and the flocks and herds and camels as well. He thought, "If Esau comes and attacks one group, the group that is left may escape."

The Hebrew word machaneh (מַחֲנֶה) means "camp". The NIV translates that word as "group" here but it is essentially the same word as Mahanaim, above. So the concept of "two camps" (Mahanaim) continues.  

Jacob expects violence from Esau. The old feud, caused long ago by Jacob's deceit, still festers. When one is a deceiver, this is always a concern.

Genesis 32:9-12, But You promised!

Then Jacob prayed, "O God of my father Abraham, God of my father Isaac, O LORD, who said to me, `Go back to your country and your relatives, and I will make you prosper,' I am unworthy of all the kindness and faithfulness you have shown your servant. I had only my staff when I crossed this Jordan, but now I have become two groups.

"Save me, I pray, from the hand of my brother Esau, for I am afraid he will come and attack me, and also the mothers with their children. But you have said, `I will surely make you prosper and will make your descendants like the sand of the sea, which cannot be counted.'"

Jacob reminds God of His covenant promise.

Throughout the book of Genesis, there is a certain honest selfishness in the way humans deal with God. I find this refreshing.

Genesis 32:13-20, A train of gifts for Esau

He spent the night there, and from what he had with him he selected a gift for his brother Esau: two hundred female goats and twenty male goats, two hundred ewes and twenty rams, thirty female camels with their young, forty cows and ten bulls, and twenty female donkeys and ten male donkeys. He put them in the care of his servants, each herd by itself, and said to his servants, "Go ahead of me, and keep some space between the herds." 

He instructed the one in the lead: "When my brother Esau meets you and asks, `To whom do you belong, and where are you going, and who owns all these animals in front of you?' then you are to say, `They belong to your servant Jacob. They are a gift sent to my lord Esau, and he is coming behind us.'"

He also instructed the second, the third and all the others who followed the herds: "You are to say the same thing to Esau when you meet him. And be sure to say, `Your servant Jacob is coming behind us.'" For he thought, "I will pacify him with these gifts I am sending on ahead; later, when I see him, perhaps he will receive me."

Jacob prepares a large train of gifts for Esau, to soften him up.  Each is to arrive, one after the other, hoping to persist in getting Esau's attention and eventual goodwill.

Genesis 32:21-23, Jacob separates from his possessions

So Jacob's gifts went on ahead of him, but he himself spent the night in the camp. That night Jacob got up and took his two wives, his two maidservants and his eleven sons and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. After he had sent them across the stream, he sent over all his possessions.

Jacob finally sends his family and possessions across the Jabbok. He is now alone. The tension of this coming meeting has reached its height.

Genesis 32:24-29, Jacob finally wrestles with God

So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak. When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob's hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man.

Then the man said, "Let me go, for it is daybreak." 

But Jacob replied, "I will not let you go unless you bless me."

The man asked him, "What is your name?" 

"Jacob," he answered.

Then the man said, "Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with men and have overcome." 

Jacob said, "Please tell me your name." 

But he replied, "Why do you ask my name?" Then he blessed him there.

What a strange story. A determined Jacob wrestles with a stranger, a stranger who names him Israel, "one who struggles with God." It would seem, of course, that the stranger (angel?) had more power than demonstrated in this wrestling contest. That supernatural being will not give Jacob his own name, but blesses him.

We will see, throughout the Torah, that God often honors people who "wrestle". He gently chastises Sarah when she doubts His promise of a son; YHWH argues with Moses repeatedly in Exodus. YHWH, although a very scary God, intervenes personally in lives and seems to take pleasure in the conversation.

Genesis 32:30-32, Jacob limps

So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, "It is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared."

The sun rose above him as he passed Peniel, and he was limping because of his hip. Therefore to this day the Israelites do not eat the tendon attached to the socket of the hip, because the socket of Jacob's hip was touched near the tendon.

The Hebrew word panim (פָנִים) means "face" or "before". Combine that word with the general word "el" for "god" and one has Peniel, the "face of God." Crooked and deceitful Jacob has come face-to-face with God and now has been made literally crooked; he must walk with a limp.  The deceiver has faced numerous reckonings and must grow and mature. (Wrestling with God, whether physically or metaphorically, presumably forces this maturity on one.)

The last verse offers a tribal instruction for remembering this event.

Some Hebrew vocabulary

The Hebrew name Machanayim 

מַחֲניִם

means "two camps." Like most languages, Hebrew has singular and plural forms for its nouns but -- somewhat special to Semitic languages -- it also has a dual ending, which usually means "exactly two." That ending often appears in nouns where there are naturally pairs, such as two eyes, two legs, etc.. But in this chapter, the singular machaneh mentioned in the paragraph after verse 8, above, is dualized to give the place where Jacob meets the angels. The Hebrew dual is an interesting concept; see this article for more.

Some Random Thoughts

Jacob leads a stressful life, borne out of his natural tendency for deception. Occasionally one meets a person who seems to rely on deception. In my professional life I knew one woman who could not trust what others said because (I think) she believed that everyone lied. She certainly was dishonest; she seemed to always be on the make, and because of that, she seemed to believe everyone else was also.  I have also met several rather poisonous people that I would call "gaslighters." They could say one thing in one place and the complete opposite a moment later, and ever deny any deceit. I identified one of these individuals (an assistant pastor!) by eventually taking copious notes and collaborating with a colleague that saw what I saw. This individual did a lot of damage -- but along the way was fired from the pastorate, fired from a teaching job (for preying on high school girls) and divorced by his wife. I don't know if he was ever truly aware of his deceit; there is a certain mental condition, I think, in which one lies even to oneself.

The great deceiver Jacob pays a price, but over time is confronted and (slowly) changed. It is not easy to wrestle with God!

First published Feb 7, 2023; updated Feb 6, 2026

Genesis 31, Leaving Laban

Jacob has lived with Laban for twenty years. He now has a family of four wives/concubines and at least a dozen children. He is quite wealthy, with a large flock and many servants. But he is far north of the land promised to his father and grandfather.  It is time to go south.

Genesis 31:1-9, Time to leave

Jacob heard that Laban's sons were saying, "Jacob has taken everything our father owned and has gained all this wealth from what belonged to our father." And Jacob noticed that Laban's attitude toward him was not what it had been.

Then the LORD said to Jacob, "Go back to the land of your fathers and to your relatives, and I will be with you." 

So Jacob sent word to Rachel and Leah to come out to the fields where his flocks were. He said to them, "I see that your father's attitude toward me is not what it was before, but the God of my father has been with me. You know that I've worked for your father with all my strength, yet your father has cheated me by changing my wages ten times. However, God has not allowed him to harm me.

If he said, `The speckled ones will be your wages,' then all the flocks gave birth to speckled young; and if he said, `The streaked ones will be your wages,' then all the flocks bore streaked young. So God has taken away your father's livestock and has given them to me.

Jacob will return to the land of his father and brother. He is motivated partly by growing distrust from Laban's sons... and then told by YHWH it is time to leave.

Jacob sees the speckled or streaked newborns as evidence of God's support for him. He explains how this happened....

Genesis 31:10-13, Blessed by God
"In breeding season I once had a dream in which I looked up and saw that the male goats mating with the flock were streaked, speckled or spotted. The angel of God said to me in the dream, `Jacob.' I answered, `Here I am.'  And he said, `Look up and see that all the male goats mating with the flock are streaked, speckled or spotted, for I have seen all that Laban has been doing to you.

I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed a pillar and where you made a vow to me. Now leave this land at once and go back to your native land.'"

Jacob learns in a vision that God has deliberately intervened in his prosperity. This is the same God that he had worshiped earlier at Bethel (Genesis 28:10-22) on the way north, twenty years before.

Genesis 31:14-16,  Jacob's wives express their support

Then Rachel and Leah replied, "Do we still have any share in the inheritance of our father's estate? Does he not regard us as foreigners? Not only has he sold us, but he has used up what was paid for us. Surely all the wealth that God took away from our father belongs to us and our children. So do whatever God has told you."

Jacob's wives agree with Jacob, against their father. Walton suggests that Laban may have assimilated, in his dealings, the dowries that would have gone with his daughters and so his daughters don't see any wealth coming to them, unless it comes from their husband, Jacob.

We will see later that in fact one of the daughters steals some valuables as she leaves.

Genesis 31:17-21, Jacob runs
Then Jacob put his children and his wives on camels, and he drove all his livestock ahead of him, along with all the goods he had accumulated in Paddan Aram, to go to his father Isaac in the land of Canaan.

When Laban had gone to shear his sheep, Rachel stole her father's household gods. Moreover, Jacob deceived Laban the Aramean by not telling him he was running away. So he fled with all he had, and crossing the River, he headed for the hill country of Gilead.

Despite God's blessing, Jacob feels the need to continue his deceptions, and to run from Laban.  Meanwhile, Laban's daughter Rachel, daughter of a deceiver and married to another one, steals her father's "household gods." (These are presumably small figurines representing gods that Laban -- and Rachel? -- worship.)

To return to Canaan, Jacob must travel south and west, first crossing the Euphrates River. Throughout the Old Testament, "the River" often refers to the mighty Euphrates, which flows southeast out of Turkey into the Persian Gulf.

Genesis 31:22-24, Laban chases Jacob 

On the third day Laban was told that Jacob had fled. Taking his relatives with him, he pursued Jacob for seven days and caught up with him in the hill country of Gilead. Then God came to Laban the Aramean in a dream at night and said to him, "Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or bad."

Laban pursues Jacob and eventually catches him. But God gives instructions to Laban in a dream.

Genesis 31:25-29, Laban confronts Jacob

Jacob had pitched his tent in the hill country of Gilead when Laban overtook him, and Laban and his relatives camped there too.

Then Laban said to Jacob, "What have you done? You've deceived me, and you've carried off my daughters like captives in war. Why did you run off secretly and deceive me? Why didn't you tell me, so I could send you away with joy and singing to the music of tambourines and harps? You didn't even let me kiss my grandchildren and my daughters good-by. You have done a foolish thing.

"I have the power to harm you; but last night the God of your father said to me, `Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or bad.' "

Laban's complaints have some merit. But this is a deceiver talking to a deceiver. One doubts if Laban would have really held a going-away party for Jacob.

Genesis 31:30-35, Laban and Rachel's gods

Now you have gone off because you longed to return to your father's house. But why did you steal my gods?"

Jacob answered Laban, "I was afraid, because I thought you would take your daughters away from me by force. But if you find anyone who has your gods, he shall not live. In the presence of our relatives, see for yourself whether there is anything of yours here with me; and if so, take it." 

Now Jacob did not know that Rachel had stolen the gods. So Laban went into Jacob's tent and into Leah's tent and into the tent of the two maidservants, but he found nothing. After he came out of Leah's tent, he entered Rachel's tent. Now Rachel had taken the household gods and put them inside her camel's saddle and was sitting on them. Laban searched through everything in the tent but found nothing.

Rachel said to her father, "Don't be angry, my lord, that I cannot stand up in your presence; I'm having my period." So he searched but could not find the household gods.

Jacob has made rash claims about his family's integrity. Rachel defends her unwillingness to move by claiming that she is in her menstrual period and so cannot move. Alter points out that Israelites reading this story would have appreciated the indignity (to the gods) represented by Rachel perched on top of them.

The existence of these gods (small idols) is a mystery. Both Laban and Jacob make claims to having a personal god in YHWH, the God of Abraham, but the polytheistic culture is all around them. It is even conceivable that one or both of them view YHWH as their "favorite god" or the god of that region.

Genesis 31:36-42, Jacob's response

Jacob was angry and took Laban to task. "What is my crime?" he asked Laban. "What sin have I committed that you hunt me down? Now that you have searched through all my goods, what have you found that belongs to your household? Put it here in front of your relatives and mine, and let them judge between the two of us.

"I have been with you for twenty years now. Your sheep and goats have not miscarried, nor have I eaten rams from your flocks. I did not bring you animals torn by wild beasts; I bore the loss myself. And you demanded payment from me for whatever was stolen by day or night. This was my situation: The heat consumed me in the daytime and the cold at night, and sleep fled from my eyes.

It was like this for the twenty years I was in your household. I worked for you fourteen years for your two daughters and six years for your flocks, and you changed my wages ten times.  If the God of my father, the God of Abraham and the Fear of Isaac, had not been with me, you would surely have sent me away empty-handed. But God has seen my hardship and the toil of my hands, and last night he rebuked you."

Jacob confronts Laban and Laban's deception. Laban is in a very weak place, for Jacob is also correct here and God has given Laban a warning.  And -- this man, Jacob, is married to Laban's daughters and is father of his grandchildren!

Genesis 31:43-47, Reconciled

Laban answered Jacob, "The women are my daughters, the children are my children, and the flocks are my flocks. All you see is mine. Yet what can I do today about these daughters of mine, or about the children they have borne? Come now, let's make a covenant, you and I, and let it serve as a witness between us."

So Jacob took a stone and set it up as a pillar. He said to his relatives, "Gather some stones." So they took stones and piled them in a heap, and they ate there by the heap. Laban called it Jegar Sahadutha, and Jacob called it Galeed.

The two men are reconciled.  As was the culture of the day, one created a heap of stones as a memorial to mark the spot.  (Once again, Jacob associates actions with memorable stones.) According to the NIV, the Aramaic "Jegar Sahadutha" means "witness heap", as does the Hebrew "Galeed." 

Genesis 31:48-55, Don't mistreat my daughters!
Laban said, "This heap is a witness between you and me today." That is why it was called Galeed. It was also called Mizpah, because he said, "May the LORD keep watch between you and me when we are away from each other. If you mistreat my daughters or if you take any wives besides my daughters, even though no one is with us, remember that God is a witness between you and me."

Laban also said to Jacob, "Here is this heap, and here is this pillar I have set up between you and me. This heap is a witness, and this pillar is a witness, that I will not go past this heap to your side to harm you and that you will not go past this heap and pillar to my side to harm me. May the God of Abraham and the God of Nahor, the God of their father, judge between us." 

So Jacob took an oath in the name of the Fear of his father Isaac. He offered a sacrifice there in the hill country and invited his relatives to a meal. After they had eaten, they spent the night there. Early the next morning Laban kissed his grandchildren and his daughters and blessed them. Then he left and returned home.

The two men depart after making a treaty and separating their tribes by a boundary marker.  Among the instructions from Laban: "Don't mistreat my daughters" and "Don't marry anyone else!"

Laban calls on the God of the brothers Abraham and Nahor as his witness.  Laban is a grandson of Nahor; Jacob is a grandson of Abraham. Both Nahor and Abraham were sons of Terah (Genesis 11:26.)

The name Mizpah is a variant on the Hebrew mistpeh (מִצְפֶּה), which means "lookout" or "watchtower". That name, and the names of the "heaps" of stones that the two men construct, reveals a certain underlying caution or skepticism. Even the statement that Laban makes, 

"May the LORD keep watch between you and me when we are away from each other"

is not a blessing but a warning. Laban is saying "YHWH is watching you!! Treat my family fairly!"

Some Hebrew vocabulary

Our Hebrew word for the day is tson, a noun meaning "flock", or "small cattle."  

צאֹן

The word appears 274 times in the Old Testament since it was a standard sign of wealth.

Some Random Thoughts

Often the main characters of Genesis express their trust in YHWH. He is the God or Highest God of the gods.  It is not always clear if the individuals believe in other, secondary gods. For this reason, it is not surprising that Laban has some personal idols and that his youngest daughter takes them for herself. Both Laban and Jacob make claims to having a personal god in Yahweh, the God of Abraham, but the polytheistic culture is all around them.

First published Feb 6, 2023; updated Feb 5, 2026

Genesis 30, Jacob's Children

Leah has borne Jacob four sons and Rachel has no children. This is too much for Rachel.

Genesis 30:1-8, Dan and Naphtali
When Rachel saw that she was not bearing Jacob any children, she became jealous of her sister. So she said to Jacob, "Give me children, or I'll die!"

Jacob became angry with her and said, "Am I in the place of God, who has kept you from having children?"

Then she said, "Here is Bilhah, my maidservant. Sleep with her so that she can bear children for me and that through her I too can build a family." So she gave him her servant Bilhah as a wife. Jacob slept with her, and she became pregnant and bore him a son.

Then Rachel said, "God has vindicated me; he has listened to my plea and given me a son." Because of this she named him Dan.

 Rachel's servant Bilhah conceived again and bore Jacob a second son. Then Rachel said, "I have had a great struggle with my sister, and I have won." So she named him Naphtali.

This passage is so strange to us. To Western minds, the dueling over maidservants ("Sleep with mine!") is bizarre. But in the ancient Near East, a woman's role was to produce children and Rachel is threatened by her infertility. This is apparently a common issue in polygamous marriages -- the favorite wife is infertile while the second wife is not. (see I Samuel 1, with Hannah and Elkanah.)

According to the NIV footnotes; Dan means "he has vindicated"; Naphtali means "my struggle." Both names may reflect the fight between sisters Leah and Rachel.

Genesis 30:9-13, Zilpah bears Gad and Asher

When Leah saw that she had stopped having children, she took her maidservant Zilpah and gave her to Jacob as a wife. Leah's servant Zilpah bore Jacob a son. Then Leah said, "What good fortune!" So she named him Gad.

Leah's servant Zilpah bore Jacob a second son. Then Leah said, "How happy I am! The women will call me happy." So she named him Asher.

We don't know why Leah stopped having children. It is possible that she is just infertile for a time, or that Jacob stops sleeping with her.

According to the NIV footnotes, we are not sure if the Hebrew translated "What good fortune" could be translated "A troop is coming!" Gad can mean "good fortune" or "a troop". But Asher is a variant on osher (אֹשֶׁר), which means "happy." Notice how important was the naming of a child, almost always done by the mother.

Genesis 30:14-18, Issachar
During wheat harvest, Reuben went out into the fields and found some mandrake plants, which he brought to his mother Leah. Rachel said to Leah, "Please give me some of your son's mandrakes."

But she said to her, "Wasn't it enough that you took away my husband? Will you take my son's mandrakes too?" 

"Very well," Rachel said, "he can sleep with you tonight in return for your son's mandrakes."

So when Jacob came in from the fields that evening, Leah went out to meet him. "You must sleep with me," she said. "I have hired you with my son's mandrakes." 

So he slept with her that night. God listened to Leah, and she became pregnant and bore Jacob a fifth son. Then Leah said, "God has rewarded me for giving my maidservant to my husband." So she named him Issachar.

The two wives continue to duel over Jacob's stud services. That Leah negotiates with Rachel for a night with Jacob suggests that maybe Jacob had indeed quit sleeping with her.

As Alter and Walton point out, mandrakes were rumored to be an aphrodisiac. They show up in the romance of Song 7:12-13.

NIV footnotes: Issachar sounds like the Hebrew "for reward".

Genesis 30:19-21, Zebulun and Dinah

Leah conceived again and bore Jacob a sixth son. Then Leah said, "God has presented me with a precious gift. This time my husband will treat me with honor, because I have borne him six sons." So she named him Zebulun.

Some time later she gave birth to a daughter and named her Dinah.

Leah has now borne Jacob six healthy sons, an impressive feat in that culture and one that surely should have earned her honor. (NIV footnotes: Zebulun probably means "honor.")

The story adds, briefly, a mention of a daughter. No explanation for the name Dinah is given. The narrator probably sees this as unimportant as she will not be the father of a tribe but Dinah does play a role in an upcoming tragedy. It is not clear if Dinah is Jacob's only daughter. In Genesis 37:35 & 46:7, when discussing the family of Jacob, the noun "daughters" is in the plural, but that word could also refer to granddaughters.

Genesis 30:22-24, Joseph
Then God remembered Rachel; he listened to her and opened her womb. She became pregnant and gave birth to a son and said, "God has taken away my disgrace." She named him Joseph, and said, "May the LORD add to me another son."

Finally Rachel has the child she has been desiring. She now wants a "troop" like Leah has produced and so wants a second son. (NIV footnotes: Joseph means "may he add.") Sadly, delivering the second son will kill Rachel.

We will see later that the family rivalry between Rachel and Leah eventually progresses to a dangerous rivalry between Rachel's son, Joseph, and his brothers.

Genesis 30:25-30, Time to leave Laban
After Rachel gave birth to Joseph, Jacob said to Laban, "Send me on my way so I can go back to my own homeland. Give me my wives and children, for whom I have served you, and I will be on my way. You know how much work I've done for you."

But Laban said to him, "If I have found favor in your eyes, please stay. I have learned by divination that the LORD has blessed me because of you."

He added, "Name your wages, and I will pay them."

Jacob said to him, "You know how I have worked for you and how your livestock has fared under my care. The little you had before I came has increased greatly, and the LORD has blessed you wherever I have been. But now, when may I do something for my own household?"

Jacob has a large family (eleven sons, one daughter) and has worked for Laban for twenty years.

Jacob's request is reasonable.  After this it gets weird...

Genesis 30:31-36, Spotted and speckled goats

"What shall I give you?" he asked. 

"Don't give me anything," Jacob replied. "But if you will do this one thing for me, I will go on tending your flocks and watching over them: Let me go through all your flocks today and remove from them every speckled or spotted sheep, every dark-colored lamb and every spotted or speckled goat. They will be my wages. And my honesty will testify for me in the future, whenever you check on the wages you have paid me. Any goat in my possession that is not speckled or spotted, or any lamb that is not dark-colored, will be considered stolen."

"Agreed," said Laban. "Let it be as you have said." That same day he removed all the male goats that were streaked or spotted, and all the speckled or spotted female goats (all that had white on them) and all the dark-colored lambs, and he placed them in the care of his sons.

Then he put a three-day journey between himself and Jacob, while Jacob continued to tend the rest of Laban's flocks.

The flock is divided by color.  The dark, speckled goats are to be Jacob's. Laban, as sneaky as Jacob, immediately pulls aside the desired goats and separates them so that (in his mind) there is little chance of Jacob's flock having the desired traits.

There is probably wordplay here, says Walton. The Hebrew word translated "white" is laban (לָבָן.), which is also the name of Jacob's father-in-law. Laban has chosen the "laban" animals.

Genesis 30:37-43, Jacob has a plan for speckled sheep
Jacob, however, took fresh-cut branches from poplar, almond and plane trees and made white stripes on them by peeling the bark and exposing the white inner wood of the branches. Then he placed the peeled branches in all the watering troughs, so that they would be directly in front of the flocks when they came to drink. When the flocks were in heat and came to drink, they mated in front of the branches. And they bore young that were streaked or speckled or spotted.

Jacob set apart the young of the flock by themselves, but made the rest face the streaked and dark-colored animals that belonged to Laban. Thus he made separate flocks for himself and did not put them with Laban's animals.

Whenever the stronger females were in heat, Jacob would place the branches in the troughs in front of the animals so they would mate near the branches, but if the animals were weak, he would not place them there. So the weak animals went to Laban and the strong ones to Jacob.

In this way the man grew exceedingly prosperous and came to own large flocks, and maidservants and menservants, and camels and donkeys.

I don't understand Jacob's plan. It does not make sense genetically. But the writer describes a plan of Jacob's to make sure that the speckled goats (his) are healthy.  

Regardless of the reason, Jacob's goats are healthy and this will cause resentment between the two families, both led by men who believe in deceit and trickery.

Some of this passage is a summary -- during Jacob's twenty years with Laban, he has become quite wealthy.

The tension is building between Laban and Jacob. Both are greedy and dishonest ... and fairly wealthy.

Some Hebrew vocabulary

Our Hebrew word for the day is meod, meaning "very", "great", "exceedingly".

 מְאֹד

The word occurs early in the Hebrew of verse 43, doubled for emphasis, to express Jacob's wealth.

Some Random Thoughts

We continue to observe ANE culture. Nothing in this chapter is really a guide to animal genetics. But it is a guide to the ANE view of animal husbandry -- and the cultural definition of wealth.

First published Feb 4, 2023; updated Feb 4, 2026