Jakob vender tilbage til Betel
1Derpå sagde Gud til Jakob: „Nu skal du tage videre til Betel og slå lejr der. Du skal bygge et alter og tilbede mig der, for jeg er den Gud, som viste sig for dig, dengang du var på flugt fra din bror, Esau.”
2Med det samme gav Jakob besked til sin familie og hele sin husstand: „Tilintetgør alle jeres afgudsfigurer, vask jer grundigt og skift tøj. 3Vi tager til Betel, og der vil jeg rejse et alter for den Gud, som hørte min bøn, da jeg var i vanskeligheder—den Gud, som også var med mig på min lange rejse.” 4Så gav de Jakob alle deres afguder og øreringe, og han begravede det hele under det store egetræ udenfor byen Sikem.
5Derefter brød de op og begav sig på vej. Gud gjorde indbyggerne i alle de omkringliggende byer rædselsslagne, så de ikke forfulgte dem. 6Jakob og hans folk ankom nu til Luz, det senere Betel, i Kana’an. 7Der byggede Jakob et alter og kaldte det El-Betel,35,7 Det betyder: „Betels Gud” eller „Guds mægtige hus”. for det var der, Gud havde vist sig for ham, dengang han flygtede fra sin bror.
8Kort tid efter døde Rebekkas gamle barnepige, Debora, og hun blev begravet under egetræet i dalen neden for Betel. Siden den tid kaldte man træet „Grædeegen”.
9Gud havde nu vist sig for Jakob to gange, den anden gang, da han var på vej hjem fra Paddan-Aram. Dengang havde Gud velsignet ham 10og sagt: „Dit navn er godt nok Jakob. Men det skal du ikke længere kaldes. Du skal hedde Israel!” Det var altså dengang, Jakob fik navnet Israel.35,10 1.Mos. 32,28.
11Her i Betel viste Gud sig igen for Jakob og gentog sit tidligere løfte:35,11 1.Mos. 28,13-14. „Jeg er Gud den almægtige! Du skal få mange efterkommere og blive stamfar til et stort folk, ja mange folkeslag. Nogle af dine efterkommere vil blive konger. 12Det løfte om land, som jeg gav til Abraham og Isak, giver jeg også til dig og dine efterkommere.” 13Så steg Gud op fra det sted, hvor han havde talt til Jakob. 14Jakob havde rejst en mindesten på dette sted, hvor Gud nu igen havde vist sig for ham, og som et drikoffer til Gud hældte han vin ud over mindestenen og salvede den med olivenolie. 15Grunden til, at Jakob kaldte stedet Betel,35,15 Det betyder: „Guds hus”. var, at Gud havde mødt ham der og talt til ham.35,15 Kronologien i denne beretning er uklar, da hebraisk fortællestil ikke lægger vægt på kronologi, men ofte bruger gentagelser.
Jakob mister Rakel
16Jakob og hans familie forlod nu Betel og rejste videre mod Efrat, det senere Betlehem. På vejen dertil fik Rakel stærke fødselsveer. 17Under den meget vanskelige fødsel sagde jordemoderen: „Du skal ikke være bange, du har fået endnu en søn.” 18Rakel overlevede dog ikke fødslen, men lige inden hun døde, gav hun ham navnet Benoni.35,18 Det betyder: „sorgens søn”. Det navn ændrede Jakob til Benjamin.35,18 Det betyder: „højre hånds søn”, dvs. „yndlingssøn”.
19Da Rakel var død, blev hun begravet ved vejen til Betlehem, som dengang hed Efrat. 20Jakob rejste en mindesten på graven, og den står der den dag i dag.
21Så fortsatte Jakob sin rejse og slog lejr på den anden side af Migdal-Eder. 22Det var, mens de opholdt sig der, at Ruben gik i seng med sin fars slavehustru, Bilha, og Jakob fik det at vide.
Her følger navnene på Jakobs 12 sønner. 23Hans sønner med Lea var: Ruben (den førstefødte), Simeon, Levi, Juda, Issakar og Zebulon. 24Hans sønner med Rakel var: Josef og Benjamin. 25Hans sønner med Bilha, Rakels tjenestepige, var: Dan og Naftali. 26Hans sønner med Zilpa, Leas tjenestepige, var: Gad og Asher. Disse sønner fik han under sin landflygtighed i Paddan-Aram.
27Omsider nåede Jakob frem til sin far, Isak, i Mamre, tæt ved Kirjat-Arba, som nu hedder Hebron, hvor også Abraham havde boet. 28-29Isak døde kort tid efter i en alder af 180 år, meget gammel og mæt af dage. Hans sønner, Esau og Jakob, begravede ham.
Jacob Returns to Bethel
1Then God said to Jacob, “Go up to Bethel and settle there, and build an altar there to God, who appeared to you when you were fleeing from your brother Esau.”
2So Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, “Get rid of the foreign gods you have with you, and purify yourselves and change your clothes. 3Then come, let us go up to Bethel, where I will build an altar to God, who answered me in the day of my distress and who has been with me wherever I have gone.” 4So they gave Jacob all the foreign gods they had and the rings in their ears, and Jacob buried them under the oak at Shechem. 5Then they set out, and the terror of God fell on the towns all around them so that no one pursued them.
6Jacob and all the people with him came to Luz (that is, Bethel) in the land of Canaan. 7There he built an altar, and he called the place El Bethel,35:7 El Bethel means God of Bethel. because it was there that God revealed himself to him when he was fleeing from his brother.
8Now Deborah, Rebekah’s nurse, died and was buried under the oak outside Bethel. So it was named Allon Bakuth.35:8 Allon Bakuth means oak of weeping.
9After Jacob returned from Paddan Aram,35:9 That is, Northwest Mesopotamia; also in verse 26 God appeared to him again and blessed him. 10God said to him, “Your name is Jacob,35:10 Jacob means he grasps the heel, a Hebrew idiom for he deceives. but you will no longer be called Jacob; your name will be Israel.35:10 Israel probably means he struggles with God.” So he named him Israel.
11And God said to him, “I am God Almighty35:11 Hebrew El-Shaddai; be fruitful and increase in number. A nation and a community of nations will come from you, and kings will be among your descendants. 12The land I gave to Abraham and Isaac I also give to you, and I will give this land to your descendants after you.” 13Then God went up from him at the place where he had talked with him.
14Jacob set up a stone pillar at the place where God had talked with him, and he poured out a drink offering on it; he also poured oil on it. 15Jacob called the place where God had talked with him Bethel.35:15 Bethel means house of God.
The Deaths of Rachel and Isaac
16Then they moved on from Bethel. While they were still some distance from Ephrath, Rachel began to give birth and had great difficulty. 17And as she was having great difficulty in childbirth, the midwife said to her, “Don’t despair, for you have another son.” 18As she breathed her last—for she was dying—she named her son Ben-Oni.35:18 Ben-Oni means son of my trouble. But his father named him Benjamin.35:18 Benjamin means son of my right hand.
19So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem). 20Over her tomb Jacob set up a pillar, and to this day that pillar marks Rachel’s tomb.
21Israel moved on again and pitched his tent beyond Migdal Eder. 22While Israel was living in that region, Reuben went in and slept with his father’s concubine Bilhah, and Israel heard of it.
Jacob had twelve sons:
23The sons of Leah:
Reuben the firstborn of Jacob,
Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar and Zebulun.
24The sons of Rachel:
Joseph and Benjamin.
25The sons of Rachel’s servant Bilhah:
Dan and Naphtali.
26The sons of Leah’s servant Zilpah:
Gad and Asher.
These were the sons of Jacob, who were born to him in Paddan Aram.
27Jacob came home to his father Isaac in Mamre, near Kiriath Arba (that is, Hebron), where Abraham and Isaac had stayed. 28Isaac lived a hundred and eighty years. 29Then he breathed his last and died and was gathered to his people, old and full of years. And his sons Esau and Jacob buried him.
