Genesis 35
ECFGenesis 35:1
Augustine of Hippo: APPEARANCES OF GOD TO JACOB. — God said to Jacob, Arise and go up to the place of Bethel and live there and make an altar there to the God who appeared to you when you fled from the presence of your brother Esau . Why does he not say: and make there an altar for me, that I have appeared to you, but it is God who says: Make there an altar to the God who appeared to you ? Did the Son appear there, and God the Father said this? Or is it attributed to some special type of expression? [ — QUESTIONS ON GENESIS, Q. 109 (tr. J. Litteral, draft)
Genesis 35:2
Cyril of Alexandria: After he was called by God, Jacob ascends to Bethel, that is, to the house of God (this is how the name Bethel is interpreted), offers sacrifices to God and is declared chief and master of the holy rites. He teaches his successors and descendants how they must enter the house of God. He orders the foreign gods to be rejected like dung and filth and to change the garments. It is fitting for us to do likewise when we are called before God, or enter the divine temple, especially in the time of the holy baptism. We, as if we drive away the foreign gods and part from such error, must assert, “I refuse you, Satan, and all your pomp and all your worship.” We also must change completely our garment by stripping off “the old self that is corrupt through deceitful lusts” and by clothing ourselves with “the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge according to image of its Creator.” The women who were with Jacob took off their earrings. And in fact women by entering the house of God without wearing any carnal ornament and with loose hair remove from their head any accusation of pride. That is why, I believe, those women took off the precious stones they wore in their ears. — GLAPHYRA ON GENESIS, 5.4
Augustine of Hippo: AMULETS OF IDOLS. — Jacob, when he went up to Bethel, where he was commanded to build an altar, says to those in his house and to all those who went with him, Remove the strange gods that are with you from the midst of you , and so forth." Then he said, And they gave to Jacob the strange gods, which were in their hands, and the earrings, which were in their ears . We can ask why they also gave the earrings, which if they were objects of adornment, had no relation to idolatry. The reason has to be that they were amulets of strange gods, because Scripture testifies that Rebekah received earrings from Abraham’s servant (Cf. Gen. 24:22-30), which would not have happened had they not been allowed to wear earrings for personal adornment. Therefore, those earrings that were given with the idols, as was said, were amulets of idols. [ — QUESTIONS ON GENESIS, Q. 110 (tr. J. Litteral, draft)
Genesis 35:5
Augustine of Hippo: HOW GOD ACTS ON THE MINDS OF MEN. — And the fear of God was upon the cities round about them, and they did not pursue after the sons of Israel . Let us begin by noting how God acts in the minds of men. For whom to attribute the fear of God spread over these cities, if not to the one who showed himself faithful to his promises to Jacob and his children? [ — QUESTIONS ON GENESIS, Q. 111 (tr. J. Litteral, draft)
Genesis 35:6
Jerome: (Chapter 35, Verse 6.) And Jacob came to Luz in the land of Canaan, which is Bethel. Here it is clearly confirmed that Bethel is not Ulammaus, as stated above, but Luz, that is, the almond tree mentioned before. — Hebrew Questions on Genesis
Augustine of Hippo: CHANGE OF NAMES. — Jacob came to Luz, which is in the land of Canaan, which is Bethel . Let us recall that three names of this city have already appeared: Ulammaus, a name which it had before Jacob reached Mesopotamia, passing by earlier; Bethel, a name which Jacob himself gave it, which means “house of God”; And Luz, just mentioned right now. This is not surprising, as it happens in many other passages, both in terms of cities and rivers, and in any place on earth, because it happens in many countries, and for different reasons, that rivers, other objects, and men themselves, add to their names, or take new ones. [ — QUESTIONS ON GENESIS, Q. 112 (tr. J. Litteral, draft)
Genesis 35:7
Jerome: (Verse 7.) And Jacob came to his father Isaac in Mamre, the city of Arba, which is Hebron. Arba was formerly a great city with fields surrounding it, while Hebron itself is situated on a mountain. This city is also called Mamre, as it has been called since ancient times by Abraham’s friend. — Hebrew Questions on Genesis
Genesis 35:8
Jerome: (Verse 8) And Deborah, the nurse of Rebekah, died and was buried near Bethel. If the nurse of Rebekah named Deborah is dead, as the Septuagint interpreters also translated here, and the Hebrew word is Meneketh: we cannot know why they put ‘substantiam’ there, ’nutricem’ here. — Hebrew Questions on Genesis
Genesis 35:10
Jerome: (Verse 10) And God said to him, Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel shall be your name: and he called his name Israel. For a long time, his name was not given to him by an angel, but it was predicted that it would be given by God. Therefore, what is promised to happen there is taught to be fulfilled here. — Hebrew Questions on Genesis
Augustine of Hippo: ON THE NAME OF ISRAEL GIVEN TO JACOB. — God appeared again to Jacob in Luz and said to him: Your name shall not be called Jacob, but Israel shall be your name . It is for the second time that God addresses these words to Jacob, blessing him, and thus confirms it. It is striking that those who once received a name are no longer called as they were called, but are given a new name, without ever calling them again their first name. From now on they are called by the new name. Instead, Jacob was called Jacob all his life and after he died, even though God had said to him, Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel shall be your name (Gen. 32:28). Thus it is perfectly understood that this name belongs to that promise by which God will be seen as not seen before by the patriarchs. There the old name will no longer exist. Nothing will remain, not even in the old reality itself, and the vision of God will be the supreme reward. [ — QUESTIONS ON GENESIS, Q. 113 (tr. J. Litteral, draft)
Genesis 35:11
Augustine of Hippo: WHAT DOES IT MEAN: FOR NATIONS AND GATHERINGS OF NATIONS? — Among the promises made to Jacob is the following: for nations and gatherings of nations shall be of you . Are “nations” according to the flesh, and “gatherings of nations” according to faith, or both by the faith of the Gentiles, if the nations cannot be called a single nation of Israel according to the flesh? [ — QUESTIONS ON GENESIS, Q. 114 (tr. J. Litteral, draft)
Genesis 35:13
Augustine of Hippo: DID JACOB IMITATE IDOLATERS BY ERECTING MONUMENTS? — And God went up from him from the place where he spoke with him. And Jacob set up a pillar in the place where God spoke with him, a pillar of stone; and offered a sacrifice upon it, and poured oil upon it. And Jacob called the name of the place in which God spoke with him, Bethel . Did this happen again in the same place where it had happened before? Or is it mentioned again? Whatever it was, Jacob offered a sacrifice, but not on the stone. He did not act, then, as idolaters do, who erect altars in front of the stone and offer a sacrifice as if they were gods. [ — QUESTIONS ON GENESIS, Q. 115 (tr. J. Litteral, draft)
Genesis 35:14
Cyril of Alexandria: When we ascend to Bethel, that is, to the house of God, we will know the stone, I mean, the elected stone, which was made into a cornerstone, that is, Christ. We will see the one who is anointed by the Father in joy and exultation for all the creatures that live under the sky. As I said, the Son is anointed by God the Father: “Joy of us all, universal exultation” according to the words of the psalmist. And you see how this is prefigured in the words that were just said to us: “And Jacob set up a stone and poured oil upon it.” That action is a symbol of the mystery of Christ, through whom and with whom be glory to God the Father and the Holy Spirit, world without end. Amen. — GLAPHYRA ON GENESIS, 5.5
Genesis 35:16
Jerome: (Verse 16.) And it came to pass, while he was approaching Chabratha in the land of Canaan, to come to Ephratha, Rachel gave birth to the Hebrew word () Chabratha, in the following, where Jacob speaks to Joseph: But when I came from Mesopotamia in Syria, your mother Rachel died in the land of Canaan, on the way to Hippodrome, to come to Ephrata (Gen. 48): I do not know what they wanted, the Septuagint interpreters translated Hippodrome: and immediately there, where it is said in Hebrew: And they buried her on the way to Ephrata, this is Bethlehem (Gen. 35:19), again the Septuagint put Hippodrome instead of Ephrata: since surely if Chabratha is Hippodrome, Ephrata cannot be Hippodrome. But Aquila translated it this way: And it came to pass καθ᾽ ὁδον τῆς γῆς, that is, in the journey of the earth, when he entered into Ephratah. But it is better if it is translated, in the chosen time of the earth, when he entered into Ephratha. Moreover, it signifies the springtime, when all things burst into flower, and the chosen time of the year: or when those passing by along the way pluck and choose from the nearby fields whatever comes to hand, enticed by various flowers. Indeed, Ephrata and Bethlehem are two names for the same city, with similar meanings. For they both translate to ‘fruitful’ and ‘house of bread’, respectively. This is because of the bread that is said to have come down from heaven (John 6). — Hebrew Questions on Genesis
Genesis 35:18
Jerome: (Verse 18.) And it came to pass, when her soul departed, for she died, that he called her name, ‘The Son of my Sorrow’; but his father called his name Benjamin. In Hebrew, the similarity of the name is echoed; for the son of my sorrow, which the dying mother gave him as a name, is called Benoni (). However, the son of the right hand, that is, of strength, which Jacob changed, is called Benjamin. Hence, those who think Benjamin () is interpreted as ‘Son of Days’ are mistaken. For when the right hand is called Jamin (), and it ends in the letter n: the days are indeed called Jamim (), but they end in the letter m. — Hebrew Questions on Genesis
Genesis 35:21
Jerome: (Verse 21.) And Israel advanced and pitched his tent beyond the tower of Eder. The Hebrews believe that this place is where the temple was later built, and the tower of Eder signifies the tower of the flock, that is, the congregation and assembly. This is also testified to by the prophet Micah, saying: And you, O cloudy tower of the flock, daughter of Zion (Micah 4:8), and so on. At that time, Jacob set up his tents across the place where the temple was later built. But if we follow the order of the way, there is a place near Bethlehem where the shepherds were, where even the King of the Angels sang at the birth of the Lord, or where Jacob fed his flock, giving the place its name, or what is more true, a certain prophecy was already then indicating the future mystery. — Hebrew Questions on Genesis
Genesis 35:26
Augustine of Hippo: WAS BENJAMIN BORN IN MESOPOTAMIA? — When the twelve sons who were born to Israel are mentioned, it is said: These are the sons of Israel, who were born to him in Mesopotamia . Now Benjamin was born long afterwards, when Bethel had already passed and they were approaching Bethlehem. Some interpreters strive unnecessarily to decide this question, saying that one should not read: nati sunt , as most Latin copies do, but facti sunt , according to the Greek text εγενοντο, pretending to understand also Benjamin would not have been born in Mesopotamia, but there he had come, since he was already begotten in the womb of his mother, for it is thought that Rachel had come out of there pregnant. In this way, although it was read, they were born to him, it could be said that he was already born in the womb, since he had already been conceived. As an example, what was said to Joseph about the Virgin Mary is indicated, “For what has been born in her is of the Holy Spirit (Mt. 1:20).” But there is another reason that prevents this solution of the problem. For if Benjamin had been conceived there, the sons of Jacob, who had come out of that place and grown up, could scarcely be twelve years old. For Jacob spent twenty years there. Of these twenty, the first seven years without being married, hoping to marry serving Laban. Assuming that the year he was married was born a child, the oldest could be about twelve, when they left. Therefore, if Benjamin had already been conceived, all that journey had to take place within ten months, and all that was written about Jacob in the journey. It follows that their children, such small children, would have carried out such a large slaughter on the occasion of their sister Dina, would have killed a large number of men and thus have taken possession of the city. Two of them, Simeon and Levi, who with sword in hand, were the first to reach these men, and killed them, were age eleven and the other ten years. Their mother would have had without interruption, a child every year. But it is unbelievable that children of this age could have done all this, when Dina herself was barely six years old. Therefore, we must find another solution to this problem so that we correctly understand what was said about the twelve children mentioned. These are the sons of Jacob, who came to him in Mesopotamia of Syria. Because among all those children, who were so many, there was one who was not born there, but who had reason to be born in that place, since his mother had married there with his father. But this solution of the problem must be confirmed by some example of another similar expression. There is no easier solution to this question than recourse to a synecdoche (A figure of speech that uses the name of a part of something to represent the whole). Thus, when in one part is greater or more important, it is usually also designated by its name that which does not belong to the name itself. For example, the case of Judas, who no longer belonged to the twelve apostles, because he had already died when the Lord rose from the dead (Cf. 1 Cor. 15:5), and yet the Apostle keeps in his letter the number of twelve when he says that the Lord Appeared to the twelve. The Greek codices have this word with an article, so that no twelve persons can be understood, but those known by that number. I think that this same type of expression belongs to what the Lord said, “Have I not chosen you, the twelve? And one of you is a devil.” And he says so that it does not appear that he too belongs to the elect. It is not easy to speak of the elect with reference to evil, except when the bad ones are chosen by other bad ones. But if we thought that Judas was also chosen so that through his betrayal the Lord’s passion would be realized, that is, if we thought his wickedness was chosen for something, since God uses good even of bad things, let us pay attention to these other words, I do not mean all of you; I know who I chose (Jn. 6:70). Here he declares that only the good belong to the elect. And so, that which the Lord said, “I chose you twelve,” he said it through a synecdoche, so that under the name of the greater part and better understood also what does not belong to the name itself. This way of expressing itself is in this same book when Emmor goes to speak with Jacob in favor of his son Shechem to obtain that he married Dina, the daughter of Jacob. And the sons of Jacob, which were absent, came, and Emmor said unto them all, My son Shechem is fond of your daughter; Give her then for a wife (Gen. 34:8).” As the person of the father was the most important, in saying, by synecdoche, your daughter, also understands under that name the brothers, of whom Dina was not a daughter. To this same type also belongs the expression: Go to the sheep and bring me from there two kids. For they grazed the sheep and the goats at the same time. And since the sheep are more important, under that name it also included goats. Now as the eleven number of the sons of Jacob, who were born to him in Mesopotamia, was the most important, when he mentioned the Scripture to them, he also understood Benjamin, who was not born there. And he said, These are the sons of Jacob, who came to him in Mesopotamia of Syria . [ — QUESTIONS ON GENESIS, Q. 116 (tr. J. Litteral, draft)