A Long Awaited Family Reunion

Today, my dear readers, is the last day of Sukkot, and therefore a high holy day. I would've written on the first day of Sukkot, on Yom Kippur, and on Rosh HaShanah, but I was spending time with my friends and family on those days and didn't have time to post. I'll still be hanging out with my family today, but not friends (we had all had dinner together last night), so I have more time today.

Beresheet (Genesis) 35:1 "Then Elohim said to Jacob, 'Arise, go up to Bethel and dwell there; and make an altar there to Elohim, who appeared to you when you fled from the face of Esau your brother.'"

Anyone else remember Bethel? Here's a hint: Jacob slept there with a stone as his pillow on the night he ran away from home. He even changed it's name, it was originally Luz. That was where he dreamed of the angels going up and down a ladder to heaven. In case you're wondering, Bethel is a word composed of two other words (like our prefixes and suffixes in English). Beth means house in Hebrew, and El means God. So Bethel could be roughly translated to mean House of God.

Beresheet 35:2-4 "And Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, 'Put away the foreign gods that are among you, purify yourselves, and change your garments. Then let us arise and go up to Bethel; and I will make an altar there to Elohim, who answered me in the day of my distress and has been with me in the way which I have gone.' So they gave Jacob all the foreign gods which were in their hands, and the earrings which were in their ears; and Jacob hid them under the terebinth tree which was by Shechem."

One question: Why in the world would any of Jacob's camp even have idols at this point? I don't know. Let's hope he hid them where no one else can find them and does not intend to dig them back up. As far as their location, it would appear that they're just now leaving Shechem. Remember Shechem? The place that Simeon and Levi totally destroyed because of what happened to Dinah? You don't? Well read the post before this one (provided you're old enough to handle it) and come back when you're done.

Beresheet 35:5-7 "And they journeyed, and the terror of Elohim was upon the cities that were all around them, and they did not pursue the sons of Jacob. So Jacob came to Luz (that is, Bethel), which is in the land of Canaan, he and all the people who were with him. And he built an altar there and called the place El Bethel, because there Elohim appeared to him when he fled from the face of his brother."

It would appear that the citizens of Luz haven't caught on to the name-change yet.

Beresheet 35:8 "Now Deborah, Rebekah's nurse, died, and she was buried below Bethel under the terebinth tree. So the name of it was called Allon Bachuth."

Allon Bachuth literally means Terebinth of Weeping. Can you imagine? Jacob's sons and daughter have never met Rebekah, so Deborah must've been like a grandmother to them in her place. It is a very, very sad day when a grandma dies.

Beresheet 35:9-15 "Then Elohim appeared to Jacob again, when he came from Padan Aram, and blessed him. And Elohim said to him, 'Your name is Jacob; your name shall not be called Jacob anymore, but Israel should be your name.' So He called his name Israel. Also Elohim said to him: 'I am Elohim Almighty. Be fruitful and multiply; a nation and a company of nations shall proceed from you, and kings shall come from your body. The land which I gave Abraham and Isaac I give to you; and to your descendants after you I give this land.' Then Elohim went up from him in the place where he talked with him. So Jacob set up a pillar in the place where he talked with him, a pillar of stone; and he poured a drink offering on it, and he poured oil on it. And Jacob called the name of the place where Elohim spoke with him, Bethel.

Jacob's name was changed to Israel a couple of chapters ago. Maybe he hasn't caught on to the name-change yet either. Also, he needs to think of some more names for places. He and Yahuah are creating a personal relationship here. If he names every place where he's spoken to Yahuah "Bethel," then it will be very hard to give any directions in the area. It's a great name for a place, but it will get to be quite confusing if he's drawing a map.

Beresheet 35:16-20 "Then they journeyed from Bethel. And when there was but a little distance to go to Ephrath, Rachel labored in childbirth, and she had hard labor. Now it came to pass, when she was in hard labor, that the midwife said to her, 'Do not fear; you will have this son also.' And so it was, as her soul was departing (for she died), that she called his name Ben-Oni, but his father called him Benjamin. So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem). And Jacob set a pillar on her grave, which is the pillar of Rachel's grave to this day."

In case you're wondering why Jacob/Israel changed the child's name, Ben-Oni means "Son of my Sorrow," while Benjamin means "Son of my right hand." This is another very sad day. If you recall, Rachel was the one and only woman Jacob/Israel originally intended to marry. She was the only one he truly loved. Yes, he still has three wives, and he very well could've grown to love them too, but none of them are the one. On a separate note, when do you think "to this day" refers to? It could be the time it was written in Hebrew, it could be the time it was translated into the KJV back in the 1400s, it could be the time it was translated into the NKJV more recently, or it could be right now. If anyone cares to help me figure this one out, I'd be much obliged. According to Blue Letter Bible (online), they say it a total of 85 times in the entire NKJV Bible.

Beresheet 35:21-22a "Then Israel journeyed and pitched his tent beyond the tower of Eder. And it happened, when Israel dwelt in that land, that Reuben went and lay with Bilhah his father's concubine; and Israel heard about it."

Deborah and Rachel died, and Reuben slept with his... I don't know what to call her, so let's say she's an aunt. Is there no good news?

Beresheet 35:22b-26 "Now the sons of Jacob were twelve: the sons of Leah were Reuben, Jacob's firstborn, and Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun; the sons of Rachel were Joseph and Benjamin; the sons of Bilhah, Rachel's maidservant, were Dan and Naphtali; and the sons of Zilpah, Leah's maidservant, were Gad and Asher. These were the sons of Jacob who were born to him in Padan Aram."

Summing up, I think we already know this, but okay.

Beresheet 35:27-29 "Then Jacob came to his father Isaac at Mamre, or Kirjath Arba (that is, Hebron), where Abraham and Isaac had dwelt. Now the days of Isaac were one hundred and eighty years. So Isaac breathed his last and died, and was gathered to his people, being old and full of days. And his sons Esau and Jacob buried him.

Another sad day!! ='(

This is a depressing chapter! Nothing's going right! The chapter before wasn't pretty either. Let's hope things start to look up soon.

Music for the chapter: "After Today" and "Benjamin" by Sanctus Real.

-Kj