Jacob Returns to Bethel, and Death Comes to His House

35:1 Then God said to Jacob, “Go up at once to Bethel and live there. Make an altar there to God, who appeared to you when you fled from your brother Esau.” 35:2 So Jacob told his household and all who were with him, “Get rid of the foreign gods you have among you. Purify yourselves and change your clothes. 35:3 Let us go up at once to Bethel. Then I will make an altar there to God, who responded to me in my time of distress and has been with me wherever I went.” 35:4 So they gave Jacob all the foreign gods that were in their possession and the rings that were in their ears. Jacob buried them under the oak near Shechem 35:5 and they started on their journey. The surrounding cities were afraid of God, and they did not pursue the sons of Jacob. 35:6 Jacob and all those who were with him arrived at Luz (that is, Bethel) in the land of Canaan. 35:7 He built an altar there and named the place El Bethel because there God had revealed himself to him when he was fleeing from his brother. 35:8 (Deborah, Rebekah’s nurse, died and was buried under the oak below Bethel; thus it was named Oak of Weeping.) 35:9 God appeared to Jacob again after he returned from Paddan Aram and blessed him. 35:10 God said to him, “Your name is Jacob, but your name will no longer be called Jacob; Israel will be your name.” So God named him Israel. 35:11 Then God said to him, “I am the sovereign God. Be fruitful and multiply! A nation – even a company of nations – will descend from you; kings will be among your descendants! 35:12 The land I gave to Abraham and Isaac I will give to you. To your descendants I will also give this land.” 35:13 Then God went up from the place where he spoke with him. 35:14 So Jacob set up a sacred stone pillar in the place where God spoke with him. He poured out a drink offering on it, and then he poured oil on it. 35:15 Jacob named the place where God spoke with him Bethel. 35:16 They traveled on from Bethel, and when Ephrath was still some distance away, Rachel went into labor – and her labor was hard. 35:17 When her labor was at its hardest, the midwife said to her, “Don’t be afraid, for you are having another son.” 35:18 With her dying breath, she named him Ben-Oni. But his father called him Benjamin instead. 35:19 So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem). 35:20 Jacob set up a marker over her grave; it is the Marker of Rachel’s Grave to this day. 35:21 Then Israel traveled on and pitched his tent beyond Migdal Eder. 35:22 While Israel was living in that land, Reuben had sexual relations with Bilhah, his father’s concubine, and Israel heard about it. Jacob had twelve sons: 35:23 The sons of Leah were Reuben, Jacob’s firstborn, as well as Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun. 35:24 The sons of Rachel were Joseph and Benjamin. 35:25 The sons of Bilhah, Rachel’s servant, were Dan and Naphtali. 35:26 The sons of Zilpah, Leah’s servant, were Gad and Asher. These were the sons of Jacob who were born to him in Paddan Aram. 35:27 So Jacob came back to his father Isaac in Mamre, to Kiriath Arba (that is, Hebron), where Abraham and Isaac had stayed. 35:28 Isaac lived to be 180 years old. 35:29 Then Isaac breathed his last and joined his ancestors. He died an old man who had lived a full life. His sons Esau and Jacob buried him.

Scripture quoted by permission. Quotations designated (NET) are from the NET Bible®, copyright ©1996, 2019 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. All rights reserved.

God calls Jacob back to Bethel. Jacob tells his household to put away foreign gods, cleanse themselves, and worship the Lord again. There God confirms Jacob’s new name, Israel, and repeats the covenant promises of many descendants, kings, and the land. The chapter then tells of Rachel’s death, Reuben’s sin, the naming of Jacob’s twelve sons, and the death of Isaac.

Genesis 35 shows both grace and sorrow. God tells Jacob to go to Bethel and live there. Jacob obeys by telling his household to put away foreign gods, purify themselves, and change their clothes. He buries the idols under the oak near Shechem. This shows repentance and the Lord’s exclusive worship.

When Jacob reaches Bethel, he builds an altar. God appears to him again and blesses him. God confirms the name Israel and repeats the promises first given to Abraham and Isaac: fruitfulness, a nation, kings among his descendants, and the land. Jacob responds with worship and memorial, setting up a pillar and pouring out a drink offering and oil.

The rest of the chapter moves through loss and disorder. Rachel dies while giving birth to Benjamin. Jacob names the place of her burial. Later Reuben commits sexual sin with Bilhah, his father’s concubine. Then the chapter lists Jacob’s twelve sons, showing the family line is complete even though the house is fractured. The chapter ends with Jacob returning to Isaac and Isaac’s death, which closes this part of the patriarchal story.

• God called Jacob back to Bethel, the place where he had first met him while fleeing from Esau.
• Jacob commanded his household to remove foreign gods, purify themselves, and change clothes.
• Jacob buried the idols under the oak near Shechem.
• The surrounding cities feared God, so they did not pursue Jacob’s family.
• God appeared again, blessed Jacob, and confirmed the name Israel.
• God repeated the promises of fruitfulness, a company of nations, kings, and the land.
• Rachel died while giving birth to Benjamin.
• Reuben sinned by having sexual relations with Bilhah, his father’s concubine.
• Jacob had twelve sons.
• Isaac died at 180 years old, and Esau and Jacob buried him.

• Warning: foreign gods must be removed; idolatry is not fit for God’s people.
• Command: go up to Bethel and live there.
• Command: make an altar to the God who appeared to Jacob earlier.
• Command: purify yourselves and change your clothes.
• Promise: God will make Jacob fruitful and multiply his descendants.
• Promise: a nation, even a company of nations, will come from Jacob.
• Promise: kings will come from Jacob’s descendants.
• Promise: the land given to Abraham and Isaac will also be given to Jacob and his descendants.

God keeps his covenant promise by preserving Jacob, confirming his name as Israel, and continuing the promised line through his sons. Even through grief, sin, and death, God carries forward the family through which the nation, kingship, and land promises will unfold.

God’s people should remove idols and return to pure worship when the Lord calls them back. Family leaders should guide their households in repentance and obedience. The chapter also teaches that God’s promises rest on his grace, not on human worthiness, and that his purpose continues even through sorrow and failure.

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