GENESIS 35
God said to Jacob, “Arise, go up to Bethel and dwell there. Make an altar there to the God who appeared to you when you fled from your brother Esau.” 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.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. 8 And Deborah, Rebekah’s nurse, died, and she was buried under an oak below Bethel. So he called its name Allon-bacuth. – Genesis 35:1-8
GENESIS 35 GOD CALLS JACOB BACK TO BETHEL
A poem inspired by these verses by ILMA
After the heinous slaying of the Canaanites by Simeon and Levi
God called Jacob and reminded him of his promise to him at Bethel
Jacob had forgotten that vow he made and went to Shechem
Now, the Lord wanted Jacob’s household to be cleansed again
Jacob was directed to get rid of all the idols in his own household
And he had to go to Bethel where he was originally asked to settle.
In Genesis 28, God showed himself to him in the land of Luz. Jacob promised that if God was going to look after all his needs and fulfill his covenant promise, he will follow whatever he is asked. He built an altar and called it Bethel. Years later, Jacob settled in Shechem and forgot his promise to be faithful to God. Notice that in Genesis 34, all bad things happened to Jacob and his family. Dinah’s defilement and the killing of the Canaanites. Could it be that God was reminding him that if he does things out of his own will, things won’t go well? If he kept his vow, these sinful things could have been avoided.
REFLECTION
- Why did God call Jacob back to Bethel? Why did he have to purge from idols?
