XII. Theme: Back to Bethel 22-Aug-04 Genesis 35:1-29 Duguid Chapter 11 God fulfills His promises to Jacob and calls him (and us) to worship Him in the House of God. Key Verses: Gen. 35:10-12 10 And God said to him, Your name is Jacob; your name shall not be called Jacob anymore, but Israel shall be your name. So He called his name Israel. 11 Also God said to him: I am God Almighty. Be fruitful and multiply; a nation and a company of nations shall proceed from you, and kings shall come from your body. 12 The land which I gave Abraham and Isaac I give to you; and to your descendants after you I give this land. Review Last week we looked at Genesis 34 and the Dinah Affair. It s a difficult chapter, because no one in it comes out looking well at all. Dinah is where she is not supposed to be. Shechem commits a heinous crime against Dinah. Shechem s father Hamor tries to unite his people to Jacob s to gain material advantage. Jacob seems passive and unengaged. Jacob s sons plot and deceive, using the covenant ceremony of circumcision to hid their real intent. And on the third day, instead of bring life out of death, Simeon and Levi slaughter the incapacitated men of Shechem. Their other brothers follow behind and gather the spoils of war. Jacob is disturbed by their actions, but they justify themselves by focusing on Shechem s guilt and not their own. The sons of Jacob were right to be outraged and to despise the sin of Hamor. They were right to reject a marriage alliance with the Canaanites that would have resulted in compromise with the pagan world around them and a seeming shortcut into gaining land that only God could give them in His timing. But they sinned in their deception of the Shechemites, in their use of the covenant to cover their sin, and in the severity of their retribution. Even the later law of Moses demanded only payment of a bride price and a marriage, not the slaughter of an entire people in recompense. In judgment, Simeon and Levi are later cursed by Jacob in Genesis 49:5-7 and are scattered throughout Israel. However, God takes that judgment against the tribes of Simeon and Levi and turns it into a blessing: Simeon is allied with the kingly tribe, Judah; and Levi is called to be the priestly tribe and serve the Lord throughout Israel. While Simeon and Levi were not called to destroy the Canaanites, their later ancestors were. There are parallels between the events of Genesis 34 and later events in Numbers 25 and 31, when the Israelites first sin at Baal Peor and then avenge themselves against the Midianites. In a sense, the righteous actions of the priest Phinehas and the rest of Israel serve to reverse the sin of their ancestors, Levi and the other sons of Jacob. Ultimately, the chapter leaves us hanging with the unresolved question of how to deal with sin. Jacob seemed to want no part in judging the sin. Levi and Simeon destroyed the sinner. Duguid asks if there is another way, a middle ground in dealing with sin. He writes: Indeed there is! God s way is for a substitutionary sacrifice to be made. A sinless sacrifice, one without spot or blemish, must be put to death in the place of the sinner. Instead of the people dying for the sins of their prince, as happened at Shechem, the King of kings has died for the sins of His people. That is God s way of dealing with sin once and for all, yet at the same time still. Doc p. 104 DSB 9-Sep-05
saving the sinners. It is a method so complete that it can deal even with the sin of compromised and compromising Jacob and his family. It is a method so complete that it can deal with your sin and my sin too, no matter what you may have done. Introduction Today, we will be covering Genesis chapter 35. On the surface, this chapter appears as a loose collection of various stories towards the end of the life of Jacob. You ve heard of the movie Four Weddings and a Funeral? Well, this chapter could be titled Three Funerals, a Birth, and a Bunch of Other Stuff! Specifically, today we will be looking at the trip To Bethel (not the Trip to Bountiful), the Death of Deborah, what happened At Bethel, the Death of Rachel and the Birth of Benjamin, the Sin of Reuben, the Sons of Jacob, and the Death of Isaac. Despite the diversity of topics covered, there are twin themes running through Genesis 35 the themes of completion and correction (Ross). With respect to correction, we can see that there is remaining sin. Jacob still needs to finish his pilgrimage to Bethel. His household must be purified and sinful idols must be put away. The pain of death reminds us that sin still remains. And the sinful actions of Reuben will have consequence beyond his own generation. So, despite the progress, despite the maturation, despite the growth in grace, more work is needed, more correction is necessary. Thus it is in Jacob s life, and thus it is in our own lives. Sanctification by grace is a lifetime process. With respect to completion, Genesis 35 is tying up all of the loose ends in Jacob s life before passing the baton on to the next generation. Jacob is 120 years old at the end of Genesis 35 and lives to the age of 147. Although Jacob remains alive until the end of Genesis 49, after this chapter the focus passes to his sons and particularly Joseph. Thus, Genesis 35 completes the Jacob cycle that we began way back in Genesis 25. There are several parallels with the first and last entry in our Jacob Cycle. Genesis 25 began with God s oracle about the two nations struggling in the womb of Rebekah Israel and Edom. Here in Genesis 35 we see the fullest expression of God s blessing upon Israel (Jacob), confirming that the words spoken before Jacob s birth will continue to be fulfilled after Jacob s death. Even as Rebekah struggles in childbirth with the twins in Genesis 25, so here in Genesis 35 Rachel struggles with the birth of her second son, Benjamin. And balancing the emphasis on the bekorah birthright of Genesis 25 is the emphasis on the berakah blessing of Genesis 35. Structurally, Genesis 35 parallels the closing accounts in the Abraham and Joseph Cycles (Wenham). These similarities demonstrate the parallels between the patriarchs and serve to remind us that regardless of our opinion about Jacob as a supplanter and deceiver, that he was God s man and that God used him for good. Divine call to journey 22:1-2 35:1 46:2-3 Obedience 22:3-14 35:2-8 46:5-7 Divine promise reaffirmed 22:15-18 35:9-14 48:4 Journey 22:19 35:16 48:5 Birth of sons 22:20-24 35:17-18 48:5-6 Death and burial of wife 23:1-20 35:18-20 48:7 Son s marriage 24:1-67 35:21-22 [48:8ff.], 49:3-4 List of descendants 25:1-6 35:22-26 49:3-28 Death and burial 25:7-10 35:27-29 49:29-50:14. Doc p. 105 DSB 9-Sep-05
A. To Bethel (35:1-7) 1. Call (35:1) This is not the first time that Jacob has heard God s call. Back in Genesis 31 God had told Jacob, Return to the land of your fathers and to your family, and I will be with you (31:3). At that same time, God had reminded Jacob that I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed the pillar and where you made a vow to Me (31:13). Interestingly, that first call had told him to return to the Promised Land of Canaan, the land of his fathers, but the call was not specific to Bethel even though God had reminded him of his Bethel experience. But here in 35:1, the second call is specific: Arise, go up to Bethel and dwell there; and make an altar there to God, who appeared to you when you fled from the face of Esau your brother. There are several interesting things about this call. Let me take them in reverse order. First, God reminds Jacob about his prior experience at Bethel. But instead of focusing on what happened at Bethel (the vision, the promises, and the worship), God instead reminds Jacob of why he was there in the first place. He ended up at Bethel the first time because he was fleeing the wrath of his brother Esau. Jacob s first trip to Bethel was caused by his own sinful actions. But now, his return trip to Bethel is because God commands him to go there. Jacob has a much better reason now to go to Bethel. Secondly, notice that God commands Jacob to make an altar at Bethel. The first time at Bethel, Jacob made a stone pillar and anointed it. Now he is commanded to build an altar. Jacob had built an altar at Shechem, so this is not a new experience for him. Abraham his grandfather had traveled all over the land of Canaan building altars. In fact, Abraham had built an altar at Bethel about 180 years earlier (Gen. 12:8). The unusual thing about this altar is that it is the first time in Genesis that God has commanded someone to build an altar. Next, notice the command to dwell at Bethel. Jacob and family had been living in the Promised Land, in Shechem. But the way they lived at Shechem left a lot to be desired. Eveson puts it this way: Jacob had brought his family too close to the ungodly world. He pitched his tent towards the city (33:18). The last time that phrase appeared was in relation to Lot and Sodom. It did not do Lot any good and it brought trouble to Jacob and his family. Jacob was living in the land, but now he is commanded to dwell at Bethel. He is to move away from the sinful enticements of the world and live on holy ground at Bethel the house of God. Finally, notice the call is to go up to Bethel. Wenham points out: The verb go up in verse 1 is different from that used in earlier passages; it has overtones of pilgrimage. One went up to the feasts at Jerusalem (Ps. 24:3). So here Jacob is being reminded of his religious obligations. So, the bottom line is that this is a very important call. God tells Jacob it is time to complete unfinished work. He is commanded to leave his compromised position at Shechem and return to the house of God, to dwell there as a picture of permanent submission to God, and to worship God in obedience. This is the call that Jacob received, and it is the call that all those who are in Christ receive. We are called out of this world and into the household of God. 2. Purification (35:2-4) At this point, Psalm 24:3-6 has something important to tell us.. Doc p. 106 DSB 9-Sep-05
3 Who may ascend into the hill of the LORD? Or who may stand in His holy place? 4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart, Who has not lifted up his soul to an idol, Nor sworn deceitfully. 5 He shall receive blessing from the LORD, And righteousness from the God of his salvation. 6 This is Jacob, the generation of those who seek Him, Who seek your face. How does one ascend the hill of the Lord? How does one go up to Bethel? Only by having clean hands and a pure heart. So how does Jacob respond to the call? Jacob sets out to purify himself and his household. Certainly they needed purification after the events of Genesis 34! Jacob gives four commands. First they are to put away foreign gods. This is a bit of a shocker! Despite all that Jacob had gone through, despite all of the manifest blessings and blessed manifestations of God, Jacob s household still had idols. Perhaps these were merely the household gods that Rachel had stolen from Laban (31:19). But it is disturbing to see that they were still around. This is a reminder to us. What household idols do we still hang onto, even though we know better? Are they hindering us from ascending God s hill and living a life pleasing to Him? If so, it is time to bury them and move on into Christian maturity. Second, Jacob commands his family to purify yourselves. Not only did they have unclean gods, they were unclean themselves. They needed to be purified. Worshiping the holy God demands inward and outward purity (Eveson). It is not enough to bury the idols, we also have to forsake them. Do we worship God with a pure heart and with pure motives? If not, let us ask forgiveness and cleansing. As an outward symbol of inward purity, Jacob next commands his household to change your garments. In the scriptures, this action is often symbolic of cleansing and purification. For example, consider Zechariah 3:1-6: 1 Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the Angel of the LORD, and Satan standing at his right hand to oppose him. 2 And the LORD said to Satan, The LORD rebuke you, Satan! The LORD who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Is this not a brand plucked from the fire? 3 Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, and was standing before the Angel. 4 Then He answered and spoke to those who stood before Him, saying, Take away the filthy garments from him. And to him He said, See, I have removed your iniquity from you, and I will clothe you with rich robes. 5 And I said, Let them put a clean turban on his head. So they put a clean turban on his head, and they put the clothes on him. And the Angel of the LORD stood by. Just as Joshua the high priest is symbolically cleansed by exchanging his filthy garments for rich robes, in the same way Jacob and his family are indicating their new found purity by putting on fresh clothes. Once the family has buried the idols and cleansed themselves inwardly and outwardly, it is finally time for Jacob to announce: let us arise and go up. In order to obey Psalm 24:3, Jacob first has to obey Psalm 24:4. As an aside, it is interesting to note the parallel here with Numbers 31. Remember that the slaughter at Shechem in several ways paralleled and anticipated the Israelite s later defeat of the Midianites in Numbers 31. In Numbers 31, the people who had participated in the battle were seen to have been defiled and in need of purification (Num. 31:19-20). Thus, the need for purification here in Genesis 35 may be associated with the slaughter of Genesis 34.. Doc p. 107 DSB 9-Sep-05
Furthermore, in Numbers 31, an atonement offering of gold ornaments (including earrings) from the plunder was given to the Lord (Num. 31:50). This may explain why in Genesis 35, in addition to the foreign gods, that Jacob s family buried their earrings. They may well have been part of the booty won from the destruction of Shechem. So Jacob s family has to repent of their sin from Genesis 34 and forsake it before they can worship God in Genesis 35. Once they have done this, they can go up to the house of God. 3. Divine Terror (35:5) At the end of Genesis 34, Jacob was afraid that the destruction of Shechem would have disastrous consequences on his family. He was afraid that the Canaanites would rise up and destroy him. But here we see in Genesis 35:5 that the opposite is true. Instead of Jacob being afraid of the Canaanites, the Canaanites are afraid of Jacob! The terror of God was upon the cities that were all around them, and they did not pursue the sons of Jacob (35:5). Again, we see the hand of God in action, protecting Jacob every step of the way. At Bethel the first time, God had promised to keep Jacob and to bring him back safely. And God is continuing to uphold His end of the bargain. 4. Worship (35:6-7) So Jacob and family make the short pilgrimage and arrive safely at Bethel. The text reminds us in two different ways that this is not the first time that Jacob has come to this place. First, the text reminds us of the old pagan name Luz. This jogs our memory, because the first time Jacob arrived here, the text also highlighted the older name (Gen. 28:19). Secondly, the text is more explicit and reminds us that Jacob had been here before while fleeing from the face of His brother. This second reminder echoes God s call in verse 1. The first time Jacob stood at this spot, he was alone, penniless, frightened, fleeing the wrath of his brother Esau. God had spoke to Jacob and at that time and assured him of three things: 1) God s presence; 2) God s protection; and 3) God s promise. The fact that Jacob is standing again at Bethel is a powerful testimony that God has been gracious to him all these years and kept His word. God has always been with Jacob and never left him; God has protected Jacob every step of the way and kept him from harm; and God has fulfilled the promise to return Jacob to Bethel, which is in the land of Canaan. Furthermore, Jacob is not returning alone or penniless; he is surrounded by the wealth of family and material blessings that God has bestowed upon him. God has kept his Word. We also can see the maturation of Jacob. Boice points out: When God first appeared to Jacob at Bethel, he was very much impressed with the place. He said, Surely the LORD is in this place.... How awesome is this place! (Gen. 28:16-17, italics mine). He thought Bethel was a particularly holy spot. However, by Genesis 35, Jacob has grown a bit, and now, though he returns to the place, his emphasis is not upon the place but upon the God he met there. He called it El Bethel, that is, God of the house of God. His focus has shifted. His perception has been elevated. B. Death of Deborah (35:8) We now interrupt this broadcast to give you a news flash Deborah, Rebekah s nurse has just died and was buried in Bethel under the terebinth tree. Huh? Deborah who? This seems like an odd break in the story. It interrupts the scene of worship and completion at Bethel and introduces the death of someone we ve never heard of. All we know of Deborah is. Doc p. 108 DSB 9-Sep-05
that she is apparently the unnamed nurse who attends the young Rebekah leaving her home to marry a man she has never met before Isaac (24:59). It comes as some surprise that she is now attached to the household of Jacob. In addition to the strangeness of mentioning Deborah s death, there is one death notice that is conspicuous by its omission: that of Rebekah, Jacob s mother. After Rebekah offers to take the curse upon herself (27:13) and sends Jacob away to Haran to find a wife, she drops out of the story. Apparently, she died before Jacob ever returned to Canaan. Perhaps Jacob learned of his mother s death upon his first return to the land and offered her old, faithful nurse Deborah a place in his household, so he could be near someone who was close to his departed mother. In any event, the death of Deborah seems to serve as a surrogate notice for the death of Rebekah. It thus reminds us not only that sin is still with us, leading to physical death, but it also reminds us that specific sins of the past led to the sorrowful separation of mother and son. Sin has consequences, and death is a great reminder of that. C. At Bethel (35:9-15) We now return to our regularly scheduled program. While this program may look and sound like a rerun, it is not. God comes and repeats the promises. Jacob repeats the whole stone pillar and anointing thing. We even have a repeat naming of Jacob as Israel and of the place as Bethel. But rest assured, this is not a rerun; this is a covenant renewal. 1. Blessing (35:9-13) While Jacob is at Bethel, God appears to him one last time to renew His covenant. The name change of Jacob to Israel, first made at Peniel in 32:28 is again confirmed here. The oftrepeated promised blessings of descendants and land are again repeated here. Interestingly, God tells the old man Jacob, surrounded by his many sons, to be fruitful and multiply. God told Adam to be fruitful and multiply (1:22, 28). He told Noah as a new Adam to be fruitful and multiply (8:17; 9:1, 7). Abraham was to be exceedingly fruitful (17:6). Isaac was to be fruitful in the land (26:22). Isaac blessed Jacob that God might make him fruitful and multiply him (28:3); and now God Himself uses this same language again with Jacob. Jacob later remembers this command to be fruitful and multiply as he prepares to bless his sons on his death bed (48:4). All of this fruitful and multiply language serves to remind us that God s people are a new creation. As God s church, the true Israel, we are also called to be fruitful and multiply filling the earth with His people. Despite all of the familiar elements here in this covenant renewal, there is one new blessing that Jacob receives. He is not only to be the father of nations, but the father of kings. He will have a royal lineage. This promise had been made previously to Abraham (17:6, 16), but this is the first time Jacob has been the given the promise to himself. Of course, the ultimate king from the line of Israel is the King of Kings, Lord of Lords, Master and Creator of Heaven and Earth the Lord Jesus Christ. So, God reaffirms the covenant with Jacob and gives him the strongest statement of the promises that he ever heard. After speaking with Jacob, God went up from him in the place where He talked with him (35:13). Boice points out: This was probably a personal appearance of God. It is the last such appearance in Genesis. After this, Joseph is close to the Lord and lives a very godly life, but when God speaks to Joseph, he speaks to him through dreams, not personally. So this is a transition period. It means that the patriarchal age is ending. It is significant that, at this point, God does not give fresh revelation but simply a reminder of things said to the patriarchs many. Doc p. 109 DSB 9-Sep-05
times. In old age you do not need new truth about God. You need to be reminded of the things in Scripture. 2. Worship (35:14-15) How does Jacob respond to God s promises? In worship. He repeats his worship from his first experience at Bethel. He builds another stone pillar and anoints it with a drink offering and with oil. And he reaffirms that this place truly is Bethel the house of God. We should respond to the Word of God in the same way by worshiping Him in Bethel the house of God the place where God s people meet. This is really the climax to the Jacob Cycle. Jacob has come home to Bethel. He has met with God. God has blessed him and Jacob responds in worship. This is where Jacob belongs. The rest of the chapter is anticlimactic. There is death and life and sin. And so, although we would like to stay with Jacob at Bethel, let us hurry on to finish up the journey with him in the rest of Genesis 35. D. Death of Rachel/Birth of Benjamin (35:16-20) Duguid points out that Jacob had repented of his sins and returned to God. He was back in the center of obedience to God s Word again. However, that did not mean that he was thereby exempt from the pains and sorrows of life. As Jacob arrived at the holy place, he buried his mother s faithful nurse, Deborah (35:8). As he left it, he buried his beloved wife, Rachel (35:19). The journey to and from the house of God, Bethel, was thus bracketed by two gravestones. Death, the result of the curse on Adam and Eve s sin, is our constant companion in Genesis. Rachel died in childbirth, giving birth to her second son. Her earlier words to Jacob, Give me sons, or I ll die (30:11), could stand as a fitting epitaph for her. On her deathbed, Rachel named the son that killed her Ben-Omi ( Son of Sorrow ). Despite Jacob s grief at losing his beloved wife, he renames the boy Benjamin ( Son of the Right Hand ). The right hand was the favored side (cp. Ps. 110:1), and Jacob undoubtedly saw special significance in the only son of his to be born in the Promised Land. Eveson points out that it is interesting that the passage associates Rachel with Bethlehem, the birthplace of David and David s greater son. Rachel was later idealized as the mother of Israel weeping for her exiled children and is used by Matthew to show that hope comes through Jesus the Messiah (Jer. 31:15; Matt. 2:17-18). E. Sin of Reuben (35:21-22a) In 35:21-22 we have the curious sin of Reuben. This is not a simple crime of passion. There is more to it than that. At the very least, his act with Bilhah may have been designed to pollute Rachel s maid and prevent her from being promoted to number one favorite wife ahead of his own mother, Leah. But even more likely, his action was an overt attempt at usurping the authority of his father and taking over the headship of the household. This is exactly what happened many years later when Absalom revolted against his father David and slept with his father s concubines (2 Sam. 16:21-23). Later on, this type of incest is specifically condemned (Lev. 18:8) and is deserving of God s curse (Dt. 27:20) and the death penalty (Lev. 20:11). So what is Jacob s reaction to this outrage, to this attack upon his authority? The text is strangely silent: and Israel heard about it (35:22). Jacob s non-reaction here is similar to his non-reaction regarding the rape of Dinah (34:5). Wenham ponders: Is Jacob as indifferent to Bilhah s abuse as he was to Dinah s,. Doc p. 110 DSB 9-Sep-05
despite her being his dearest Rachel s maid? Or does he care but is now incapable of exercising authority over his oldest son? Whatever the answer, we are left with the impression that despite the Bethel experience, that sin remains in the household of faith. Because of his actions here in Genesis 35, Reuben is later disqualified for being heir to the Seed of Promise (49:3-4). The second and third sons Simeon and Levi were disqualified for their behavior in Genesis 34 (49:5-7). Thus, the fourth son of Leah Judah becomes the heir of the spiritual birthright and it is through his tribe that that the descent of Jesus Christ, the Messiah, is traced (49:8-12, esp. 10). F. Sons of Jacob (35:22b-26) Now comes the time to tidy up all the last details. We ve already been introduced to all of Jacob s sons. But like a family portrait gathers everyone together, here we have the first listing of the twelve sons of Jacob. Ross points out that in the midst of the reports of sin and death in this chapter, the presence of this list of the sons of Jacob becomes irrefutable evidence that God s blessings continued in spite of sin and death. We remember that this is not the first group of twelve sons in Scripture. Abraham s brother Nahor had twelve sons (22:20-24). Ishmael, the son of Abraham, was the father of twelve princes (17:20; 25:16). But those groups of twelve serve to remind us that God deliberately intervened to produce the twelve sons of Israel. The barrenness of Sarah, of Rebekah, and of Rachel remind us that God s people do not grow by human strength but through the supernatural intervention of God. These twelve sons would become the foundation of the Old Testament people of God, just as the twelve apostles would later become the foundation of the New Testament church the Israel of God (cp. Rev. 21:12, 14). G. Death of Isaac (35:27-29) At last we close the book on Isaac. He lived to be 180 years old, oldest of the patriarchs. He was reunited with his son Jacob before his death, and undoubtedly was comforted by Jacob s presence and the knowledge that the feud with Esau was ended. Esau reunites with Jacob to bury their father, further evidence of the reconciliation between the two. We are reminded of Isaac and Ishmael joining together to bury their father, Abraham (25:7-9). Although not explicitly stated here, Isaac is buried in the family burial plot at Machpelah along with Abraham and Sarah, and his wife Rebekah. Later Jacob and his wife Leah were buried at the same spot (49:29-32). The language gathered to his people, being old and full of days indicates that Isaac s death was a time of thanksgiving and remembrance, rather than a time of mourning. Isaac had lived a full, complete life. Conclusion That closes the book on the Jacob Cycle. Isaac and Rebekah are dead. Rachel is dead and so is her nurse Deborah. Jacob is still alive, but the story now passes on to the next generation. Jacob still appears, but the main character will now become Joseph. Ross comments: The unifying principle of the chapter is the completion of the blessing of God and the compliance with the will of God through purified worship. At a time when Deborah, Rachel, and Isaac all passed off the scene and Reuben, through sin, relinquished his right to inherit, God called for vows to be kept, idols to be removed, and worship to be purified. God continually calls each generation of believers to rekindle their faith. Duguid adds: With Jacob s return to Bethel and to full obedience, the spotlight naturally moves on to the next. Doc p. 111 DSB 9-Sep-05
generation. Will they learn the same lessons their father learned? Israel s obedience is never more secure than the obedience of the current generation. So it is also in the church. Amen. Close in Prayer. Next week: Lesson 13 Two Nations Gen. 36:1-37:1 (no Duguid chapter). Doc p. 112 DSB 9-Sep-05