1 God said to Jacob, ‘Move on, go to Bethel and settle there. Make an altar there for the God who appeared to you when you were fleeing from your brother Esau.’
2 Jacob said to his family and to all who were with him, ‘Get rid of the foreign gods you have with you; cleanse yourselves, and change your clothes.
3 We must move on and go to Bethel. There I shall make an altar for the God who heard me when I was in distress, and gave me his help on the journey I made.’
4 They gave Jacob all the foreign gods in their possession, and the earrings that they were wearing. Jacob buried them under the oak tree near Shechem.
5 They broke camp; a divine terror struck the towns round about, and no one pursued the sons of Jacob.
6 When Jacob arrived at Luz in Canaan — that is, Bethel-and all the people with him,
7 he built an altar there and named the place El-Bethel, since it was there that God had appeared to him when he was fleeing from his brother.
8 Deborah, who had been Rebekah’s nurse, died and was buried below Bethel, under the oak tree; so they named it the Oak of Tears.
9 God again appeared to Jacob on his return from Paddan-Aram, and blessed him.
10 God said to him, ‘Your name is Jacob, but from now on you will be called not Jacob but Israel.’ Thus he came by the name Israel.
11 God said to him, ‘I am El Shaddai. Be fruitful and multiply. A nation, indeed an assembly of nations, will descend from you, and kings will issue from your loins.
12 The country which I gave to Abraham and Isaac, I now give to you; and this country I shall give to your descendants after you.’
13 Then God went up from him.
14 Jacob raised a monument at the spot where he had spoken to him, a standing-stone, on which he made a libation and poured oil.
15 Jacob named the place Bethel where God had spoken to him.
16 They left Bethel, and while they were still some distance from Ephrath, Rachel went into labour, and her pains were severe.
17 When her labour was at its hardest, the midwife said to her, ‘Do not worry, this is going to be another boy.’
18 At the moment when she breathed her last, for she was dying, she named him Ben-Oni. His father, however, named him Benjamin.
19 So Rachel died and was buried on the road to Ephrath, now Bethlehem.
20 Jacob raised a monument on her grave, that same monument of Rachel’s Tomb which is there today.
21 Israel left and pitched his tent beyond Migdal-Eder.
22 While Israel was living in that district, Reuben went and slept with Bilhah his father’s concubine, and Israel found out. The sons of Jacob were now twelve.
23 The sons of Leah: Jacob’s eldest son Reuben, then Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar and Zebulun.
24 The sons of Rachel: Joseph and Benjamin.
25 The sons of Bilhah, Rachel’s slave-girl: Dan and Naphtali.
26 The sons of Zilpah, Leah’s slave-girl: Gad and Asher. These were the sons born to Jacob in Paddan-Aram.
27 Jacob came home to his father Isaac at Mamre, at Kiriath-Arba — now Hebron — where Abraham and Isaac had stayed.
28 Isaac was one hundred and eighty years old
29 when he breathed his last. He died and was gathered to his people, an old man who had enjoyed his full span of life. His sons Esau and Jacob buried him.
A Brief Overview of Genesis Chapter 35
In this chapter, God instructs Jacob to move to Bethel and build an altar to honor Him. Jacob tells his family to get rid of all foreign idols and purify themselves before they set out. After doing so, they journey to Bethel, where Jacob builds an altar and names the place El-Bethel, as it is where God had appeared to him when he was fleeing from Esau. During this time, Deborah, Rebekah’s nurse, passes away and is buried near Bethel.
God then reappears to Jacob, blessing him and officially renaming him Israel. God reiterates His promises to Jacob, confirming that nations and kings will come from his descendants, and He grants Jacob the land He had promised to Abraham and Isaac.
As Jacob continues his journey, Rachel goes into labor and tragically dies while giving birth to their second son. Before her death, she names the baby Ben-Oni, meaning “son of my sorrow,” but Jacob renames him Benjamin, meaning “son of the right hand.” Rachel is buried on the way to Ephrath, now Bethlehem, where Jacob raises a monument on her grave, still known as Rachel’s Tomb.
After this, Jacob (now Israel) pitches his tent beyond Migdal-Eder. Meanwhile, his eldest son Reuben dishonors him by sleeping with Bilhah, Jacob’s concubine, and Jacob learns of it.
The chapter also lists Jacob’s twelve sons, born to Leah, Rachel, Bilhah, and Zilpah. Finally, Jacob returns to his father Isaac at Hebron. Isaac lives to the age of 180 and dies peacefully. Esau and Jacob reunite once again to bury their father.
This chapter focuses on key transitions in Jacob’s life: his renewed covenant with God, the birth of his final son, the loss of his beloved wife Rachel, and the death of his father Isaac.