Journey’s end

The Jacob Cycle - Part 14

In the conclusion of the Jacob Cycle, God commands Jacob to return to Bethel, signaling a return to the Promised Land and leading to a renewed covenant relationship with Yahweh. Jacob’s household purges foreign gods, reaffirming loyalty to Yahweh through worship and purification, while the burials of idols, Deborah, Rachel, and Isaac represent the final reversals of Jacob’s deceptions. God’s appearance at Bethel reiterates promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, bridging divine faithfulness despite human failures. Reuben challenges Jacob’s authority after the death of Rachel, foreshadowing future tensions. Nevertheless, the Bible shows that God’s redemptive plan unfolds not through human merit but by His sovereign choice, culminating in the promised Messiah.

Return to Bethel

Going up

1 God said to Jacob, “Arise, go up to Bethel and dwell (stay) there. Make an altar there to the God who appeared to you when you fled from your brother Esau.”

–Genesis 35:1 (ESV) [emphasis added]

43 “Now therefore, my son, obey my voice. Arise, flee to Laban my brother in Haran 44 and stay with him a while, until your brother’s fury turns away—”

–Genesis 27:43-44 (ESV) [emphasis added]

When Rachel commanded Jacob to flee to Haran, she told him to “arise,” “flee,” and “stay.” At the end of the Jacob story, God commands Jacob to “arise,” “go up,” and “stay.” Jacob’s flight from the land is being reversed.1

“Go up” (‘aleh,) has the same root word (‘lh) as “ascending” (‘olim) in Genesis 28:12 where Jacob had the vision of angels ascending the stairway between earth and heaven.

12 And he dreamed, and behold, there was a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven. And behold, the angels of God were ascending [‘olim] and descending on it!

–Genesis 28:12 (ESV) [emphasis added]

‘aleh is connected to pilgrimage elsewhere in the Bible (for example, 1 Samuel 1:3 and Jeremiah 31:6.)2 He’s returning to the land, to the house of God, beth-el, and the gate of heaven. God commands him to build an altar, which reminds us of Jacob’s promise to worship God at the end of the Bethel scene in Genesis 28:21-22. Building an altar is a reaffirmation of his loyalty to Yahweh.3

Foreign gods

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 yourselves and change your garments. 3 Then let us arise and go up to Bethel, so that I may make there an altar to the God who answers me in the day of my distress and has been with me wherever I have gone.” 4 So they gave to Jacob all the foreign gods that they had, and the rings that were in their ears. Jacob hid them under the terebinth tree that was near Shechem.

–Genesis 35:2-4 (ESV)

It’s likely that the foreign gods were acquired along with the people and possessions taken from the Hivites (see Genesis 34:29). Worship of other gods is incompatible with loyalty to Yahweh (Exodus 20:3,) so idols had to be purged from the community. Purification rituals found later in the Bible are often connected to preparing oneself for encountering God. Changing clothes represents putting off an old way of life and taking up a new one.

After Jacob confesses that it was God who has protected him throughout, the people turn over their idols and earrings. The earrings might have had images or symbols of gods on them.4 The association with earrings and idolatry is reinforced in Exodus 32:2-3, which is the next time the word “ring” (nezem) appears in the Bible. There, the people give Aaron their earrings so that he can make the golden calf.5

4 So they gave to Jacob all the foreign gods [elohe] that they had, and the rings [neamim] that were in their ears.

–Genesis 35:4a (ESV)

3 So all the people took off the rings [nizme, “their rings”] of gold that were in their ears and brought them to Aaron. 4 … And they said, “These are your gods [elohe], O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!”

–Exodus 32:3, 4b (ESV)

Surprisingly, Jacob doesn’t destroy them. He instead hides them under the terebinth tree at Shechem. Abraham set up an altar to Yahweh at this tree when he first entered the land in Genesis 12:6-7. It was probably originally a site of worship to a god or gods of Canaan. Abraham building an altar there would have been an act of spiritual warfare claiming the superiority of Yahweh. Jacob hiding idols by burying them under the tree could be just as good as destroying them as a sacred site would likely not be disturbed.

The hiding of the idols also recalls the Rebekah’s theft of her father’s household Gods, which was parallel to Jacob deceiving his father in the theft of the blessing (Genesis 27:35, Genesis 31:19-20).6 This establishes a pattern in the episode where burials are linked to previous deceptions, making death the ultimate consequence of those deceptions as the Jacob story comes to an end.7 Here, foreign gods die, including Laban’s household gods. Rachel sitting them during her period (Genesis 31:34-35) made them ritually unclean and could be seen as them being miscarried and hidden under the ground.8 This kind of link is made in Job, where, after losing his possessions, children, and health, Job laments the day he was born, saying “Why was I not as a hidden stillborn child?” (Job 3:16).

However, “hiding” lacks the sense of finality that “burying” does, and contrasts with the burials of Deborah (Rebekah’s nurse), Rachel, and Isaac later in the episode. Perhaps, Israel’s future idolatry is being foreshadowed. Although members of the chosen line die, its allegiance to foreign gods is only hidden under the surface, not put to death.

Bethel reaffirmed

5 And 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. 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, 7 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.

–Genesis 35:5-7 (ESV)

In Genesis 34:30, it was hinted that Jacob’s passive response to the Dinah/Shechem situation stemmed from fear of the Hivites. His fear is proven unfounded. God prevents the Hivites from any vengeful pursuit.8 This is the second and last time the word “terror” (hittath, root htt) appears in Genesis, the first time being when God said to Noah that the “dread/terror” (hit, root htt) of humans would be on the animals after the flood. (Genesis 9:2.) Immediately after, God included animals as permitted food for humans. However, this communicated a wider gulf between the Eden ideal and the state of the cosmos.9 Furthermore, God condemned killing other humans.

6 “Whoever sheds the blood of man,
    by man shall his blood be shed,
  for God made man in his own image.”

–Genesis 9:6 (ESV)

By connecting God’s statement about the terror of humans coming on animals after the flood and the terror of God coming on the cities that might have pursued Jacob after his sons’ “flood” of vengeance, the narrator imports the prohibition of humans killing other humans into the Jacob story. Simeon and Levi’s actions therefore receive more direct judgment.

We’re reminded that the place formerly called Luz had been transformed into Bethel, “House of God,” by God’s appearance there. He built an altar, fulfilling his promise to God, and updates the name to El-Bethel “The God of Bethel,” establishing the continuity that it’s been the same god that’s been with Jacob his entire journey10. Throughout all of Jacob’s (and his sons’) scheming, God has worked through his chosen people in spite of them creating situations that threaten his rescue plan.

The death of Deborah

8 And Deborah, Rebekah’s nurse, died, and she was buried under an oak below Bethel. So he called its name Allon-bacuth.

–Genesis 35:8 (ESV)

The second burial scene is another surprise. The death of Deborah, Rebekah’s nurse is recorded. It’s linked to the hiding of the idols under a terebinth tree.

Jacob hid them under the terebinth [takhat ha ’elah]

–Genesis 35:4

And she was buried under the oak [takhat ha ’allon]

–Genesis 35:8

As the hiding of the idols was linked to Rachel and Jacob’s deceptions of their fathers, the burial of Deborah is linked to Rebekah’s orchestration of Jacob masquerading as Esau so that he could steal the blessing from Isaac.11 Responding to Jacob’s concern that if he were discovered, he’d be cursed instead of blessed, Rebekah responded, “Let your curse be on me…” (Genesis 27:13). The final fulfillment of that curse seems to be realized here. Not only did Rebekah never see Jacob again after he was sent to Haran, although she hoped he’d return after being there “a few days” (Genesis 27:43,) she disappeared from the story. Her nurse’s death is recorded, but not hers. Furthermore, Deborah’s death is tied to Sarah’s in Genesis 23:2. There, Abraham wept (bekoth, root bkt) for Sarah after she died. Here, Jacob names the tree Deborah is buried under ’allon bakuth (root bkt), “oak of weeping.” The lack of a burial scene for Rebekah is highlighted. Genesis doesn’t reveal that was buried with Isaac until Jacob’s death (Genesis 49:31).

Other than serve as the final reversal of Rebekah’s involvement in the theft of the blessing, Deborah’s death could also underscore the purification of the nascent Israel as it returns to Bethel. The things of people of Haran are passing away.12

God appears to Jacob

9 God appeared to Jacob again, when he came from Paddan-aram, and blessed him. 10 And God said to him, “Your name is Jacob; no longer shall your name be called Jacob, but Israel shall be your name.” So he called his name Israel. 11 And God said to him, “I am God Almighty: be fruitful and multiply. A nation and a company of nations shall come from you, and kings shall come from your own body. 12 The land that I gave to Abraham and Isaac I will give to you, and I will give the land to your offspring after you.” 13 Then God went up from him in the place where he had spoken with him. 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. 15 So Jacob called the name of the place where God had spoken with him Bethel.

–Genesis 35:9-15 (ESV)

God appears to Jacob again at Bethel and reaffirms and reemphasizes his blessing and promises. God’s words to Jacob are a combination of promises to Abraham, Isaac’s prayer before Jacob left for Haran, and the original promises to Jacob at Bethel, showing that since God called Abraham’s family out of Haran, he has been faithful and trustworthy.13 Even though Jacob has impeded God’s plan by trying to force it to happen, God has worked through and overcome the impediments.

God renames Jacob “Israel” again, this time in the presence of his family and in the context of the blessing of the chosen seed of the woman. Rather than a solo wrestling match, the scene is one of communal worship. He anoints a pillar of stone, a reminder of the stairway he saw at Bethel and stones that served as witnesses to God breaking through to help Jacob resolve threats, with wine and oil, symbols of fruit, evoking Eden with its fruit trees.14 Another possible meaning of “Israel,” “God/El rules,” could be activated here, pairing the rule of God with the rule of the kings promised to come from Jacob’s line, perhaps pointing to the divine human that would come to lead humanity back to Eden.15

The death of Rachel and birth of Benjamin

16 Then they journeyed from Bethel. When they were still some distance from Ephrath, Rachel went into labor, and she had hard labor. 17 And when her labor was at its hardest, the midwife said to her, “Do not fear, for you have another son.” 18 And as her soul was departing (for she was dying), she called his name Ben-oni; but his father called him Benjamin. 19 So Rachel died, and she was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem), 20 and Jacob set up a pillar over her tomb. It is the pillar of Rachel’s tomb, which is there to this day.

–Genesis 35:16-20 (ESV)

Jacob moves on from Bethel following the footsteps of Abraham as he first surveyed the land and paving the way for Joshua’s conquest of Canaan. The same path taken by all three. Abraham and Jacob accomplish an ideal, symbolic conquest before Joshua executes one by way of war.16

The death of Rachel recalls her demanding children from Jacob, exclaiming she would die if she didn’t get what she wanted (Genesis 30:1), and Jacob declaring that whoever Laban found with his household gods would be put to death (Genesis 31:32). Here, she tragically gets what she wanted and loses her life for it. Furthermore, Jacob, who stole the blessing, survives, while Rachel, who stole the household gods, dies.17

Rachel’s pregnancy contrasts with Rebekah’s in Genesis 25:22. Both pregnancies were difficult, but where Rebekah called on Yahweh, Rachel expresses sorrow by calling her son Ben-Oni, “son of sorrow”. Jacob, having another son from his favorite wife, instead names him Benjamin, “son of my right hand”. The right-hand side was considered the favored or lucky side.18 Jacob continues following the pattern of having favorites.

Rachel’s tomb becomes a famous landmark referenced later in the Bible (1 Samuel 10:2)19. The purpose of its reference here could be to highlight that Jacob’s favored wife isn’t buried with him in the tomb of the chosen line. That privilege is reserved for Leah, the unfavored wife (Genesis 49:31), whose son, Judah, would father the kingly, messianic line.

Reuben’s challenge

21 Israel journeyed on and pitched his tent beyond the tower of Eder. 21 While Israel lived in that land, Reuben went and lay with Bilhah his father’s concubine. And Israel heard of it.

–Genesis 35:21-22a (ESV)

Migdal Eder means “herd tower” and was likely a place to protect flocks from raiders.20 It’s south of Ephrath, showing that Jacob is continuing his symbolic conquest of Canaan. Jacob’s new name is used, signaling, perhaps, a deeper dedication and loyalty to Yahweh.

Reuben, the firstborn of Jacob’s unloved wife Leah, sleeps with Bilhah to both prevent her from becoming the new favorite and as a challenge to Jacob’s authority. We saw the same with Ham in Genesis 9:22 (“saw the nakedness of his father” likely means that Ham slept with his mother21), and Absolom will sleep with David’s concubines as a challenge to his father’s authority in 2 Samuel 16:22.22 However, by grasping for authority, Reuben loses all hope for it. Judah is now implicitly set up to carry on the line of the chosen seed of the woman. Reuben, Simeon, and Levi have all disqualified themselves, like Esau did.

Nevertheless, Jacob hasn’t presented himself as an attractive alternative to Esau, and Judah, himself, will have his own failure following the pattern of Shechem. Shechem saw Dinah, the “daughter of Leah” and “took” her. Judah saw Shua, the “daughter of a certain Canaanite” and “took” her (Genesis 38:2.) This leads to a chain of events where Judah unknowingly sleeps with his deceased son’s wife and has twins by her. During the twins’ delivery, one sticks out his hand, and a crimson thread is tied on it to designate him as the firstborn (the root word translated “crimson” is shnh, which means to elevate or exalt.) However, he withdraws his hand, and brother, the latecomer, is born first. He’s named “Perez” after the word for “breach”, prts. prts is also the root word for “spread out,” used in the promise to Jacob at Bethel that his descendants would “spread abroad” to cover the earth (Genesis 28:14). From Perez’s line would come David and Jesus. The point is that all of God’s chosen, except for Jesus, disqualify themselves from their position at some point. It isn’t by their merit that God works through them, it’s by God’s choice, and it’s only by God becoming a human that a chosen one can live up to the calling of the position.

The list of Jacob’s sons

Now the sons of Jacob were twelve.
 23 The sons of Leah:
     Reuben (Jacob’s firstborn),
     Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun.
 24 The sons of Rachel:
     Joseph and Benjamin.
 25 The sons of Bilhah, Rachel’s servant:
     Dan and Naphtali.
 26 The sons of Zilpah, Leah’s servant:
     Gad and Asher.
These were the sons of Jacob who were born to him in Paddan-aram.

–Genesis 35:22b-26 (ESV)

Now that Benjamin is born, a full list of his sons can be given. They’re grouped by mother and set up in a chiasm to emphasize Jacob’s favoritism and the rifts in the family, setting up the Joseph story.23

The death of Isaac

27 And Jacob came to his father Isaac at Mamre, or Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron), where Abraham and Isaac had sojourned. 28 Now the days of Isaac were 180 years. 29 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.

–Genesis 35:27-29 (ESV)

Mamre is a significant place in the Bible. It’s associated with names meaning “fatness” and “cluster of grapes” (Genesis 14:13).24. Abraham settled there after he and Lot separated and built an alter to Yahweh (Genesis 13:18). God appeared to him and promised that Isaac would be born in a year (Genesis 18:1-10.) It’s Eden-space.

Isaac’s death links back to his desire to bless Esau because he believed his death was imminent (Genesis 27:2, Genesis 27:4). This led to the theft of the blessing, orchestrated by Rebekah and carried out by Jacob. Isaac survives the entirety of Jacob’s exile, not dying only after he returned. The tragedy of Isaac’s favoritism and Jacob’s deception is recalled as the Jacob story ends.25

Isaac’s burial echoes Abraham’s in Genesis 25:7-9. Isaac and Ishmael came together after being estranged to bury Abraham. Esau and Jacob’s reconciliation is reinforced as they bury Isaac together.

The story of Jacob ends with him making peace with his past, but having set up a situation that will lead to more conflict in the future.

Conclusion

What we’ve seen in Jacob’s story is that God desired to bless and protect the chosen seed of the woman so that all people of the world could be brought back to God and Eden and take part in that blessing. Grasping for that blessing was unnecessary and only delayed what God wanted to give freely. Nevertheless, God still worked through the difficult situations caused by human taking. His plan to rescue humanity cannot be stopped, not even by those he’s working to rescue.

It also reveals that allegiance to Yahweh doesn’t magically result in becoming perfect. Jacob was “baptized” in the Jabbok river after wrestling with God, but his old nature remained; we see it in the Joseph story. Nevertheless, the writer of Hebrews commends Jacob’s faith at the end of his life in Hebrews 11:21.

If we feel overwhelmed at our sin or lack of perfection, we can know that God can work through it and in spite of it and can change us. If we feel frustrated that things aren’t working out in our efforts for God’s kingdom, we can return to this story and ask “Am I grasping, or am I allowing myself to freely receive God’s blessing and let it flow from me?”

Bibliography

Bergsma, John Sietze and Hahn, Scott Walker. “Noah’s Nakedness and the Curse on Canaan (Genesis 9: 20-27),” Journal of Biblical Literature 124, no. 1 (2005): 25-40.

Cassuto, Umberto. A Commentary on the Book of Genesis: From Noah to Abraham. Translated by Israel Abrams. E-book ed. Varda Books, 2012.

Fokkelman, J.P. Narrative Art in Genesis. Eugene, Oregon: Wipf and Stock Publishers, 2004.

Mackie, Tim. “Session 26: Jacob Returns to Bethel.” The BibleProject Classroom: Jacob. Published 2021. https://bibleproject.com/classroom/jacob/notebook/teacher-notes.

Mackie, Tim. “Session 27: The Deaths of Rachel and Isaac.” The BibleProject Classroom: Jacob. Published 2021. https://bibleproject.com/classroom/jacob/notebook/teacher-notes.

Sarna, Nahum M. Genesis. The JPS Torah Commentary. Philadelphia: The Jewish Publication Society, 1989.

Wenham, Gordon John. Genesis 16-50, Volume 2. World Biblical Commentary. E-book ed. Zondervan Academic, 2017.

  1. Wenham, Genesis 16-50, 322. ↩

  2. Sarna, Genesis, 239. ↩

  3. Ibid. ↩

  4. Sarna, Genesis, 240. ↩

  5. Mackie, “Jacob Returns to Bethel,” see section “Death, Burial, and Leaving Mesopotamia Behind.” ↩

  6. Mackie, “The Deaths of Rachel and Isaac,” see section “The Many Burials.” ↩

  7. Ibid. ↩

  8. Fokkelman, Narrative Art, 233. ↩ ↩2

  9. Cassuto, Genesis: From Noah to Abraham, 305. ↩

  10. Wenham, Genesis 16-50, 324. ↩

  11. Mackie, “The Deaths of Rachel and Isaac,” see section “The Many Burials.” ↩

  12. Sarna, Genesis, 241. ↩

  13. Wenham, Genesis 16-50, 325. ↩

  14. Mackie, “Jacob Returns to Bethel,” see section “Yaaqov’s Name Changed, Again.” ↩

  15. Ibid. ↩

  16. Cassuto, Genesis: From Noah to Abraham, 305. ↩

  17. Mackie, “The Deaths of Rachel and Isaac,” see section “The Many Burials.” ↩

  18. Wenham, Genesis 16-50, 327. ↩

  19. Sarna, Genesis, 244. ↩

  20. Ibid, 245. ↩

  21. Bergsma and Hahn, “Noah’s Nakedness,” 34. ↩

  22. Wenham, Genesis 16-50, 327. ↩

  23. Sarna, Genesis, 245. ↩

  24. Ibid, 107. ↩

  25. Mackie, “The Deaths of Rachel and Isaac,” see section “The Many Burials.” ↩

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