Genesis 35–36

Return to Bethel

35God said to Jacob, “Get up! Go to Bethel and settle there. ^dBuild an altar there to the God who appeared to you when you fled from your brother Esau.” ^e

²So Jacob said to his family and all who were with him, “Get rid of the foreign gods that are among you. ^fPurify yourselves and change your clothes. ^g3We must get up and go to Bethel. I will build an altar there to the God who answered me in my day of distress. ^hHe has been with me everywhere I have gone.” ⁱ

⁴Then they gave Jacob all their foreign gods and their earrings, and Jacob hid them under the oak near Shechem. ⁵When they set out, a terror from God came over the cities around them, and they did not pursue Jacob’s sons. ^j6So Jacob and all who were with him came to Luz (that is, Bethel ^k) in the land of Canaan. ⁷Jacob built an altar there and called the place God of Bethel ^lbecause it was there that God had revealed Himself to him when he was fleeing from his brother.

⁸Deborah, the one who had nursed and raised Rebekah, ^mndied and was buried under the oak south of Bethel. So Jacob named it Oak of Weeping. ^o

⁹God appeared to Jacob again after he returned from Paddan-aram, and He blessed him. ¹⁰God said to him:

Your name is Jacob;

you will no longer be named Jacob,

but your name will be Israel. ^p

So He named him Israel. ¹¹God also said to him:

I am God Almighty. ^q

Be fruitful and multiply. ^r

A nation, indeed an assembly of nations,

will come from you, ^s

and kings will descend from you. ^tu

¹²I will give to you the land

that I gave to Abraham and Isaac. ^v

And I will give the land

to your future descendants.

¹³Then God withdrew ^wxfrom him at the place where He had spoken to him.

¹⁴Jacob set up a marker at the place where He had spoken to him—a stone marker. He poured a drink offering on it and anointed it with oil. ^y15Jacob named the place where God had spoken with him Bethel.

Rachel’s Death

¹⁶They set out from Bethel. When they were still some distance from Ephrath, Rachel began to give birth, and her labor was difficult. ¹⁷During her difficult labor, the midwife said to her, “Don’t be afraid, for you have another son.” ^z18With her last breath—for she was dying—she named him Ben-oni, ^abut his father called him Benjamin. ^b19So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem ^c). ²⁰Jacob set up a marker on her grave; it is the marker at Rachel’s grave to this day.

Israel’s Sons

²¹Israel set out again and pitched his tent beyond the Tower of Eder. ^d22While Israel was living in that region, Reuben went in and slept with his father’s concubine Bilhah, and Israel heard about it. ^e

Jacob had 12 sons: ^f

²³Leah’s sons were Reuben (Jacob’s firstborn),

Simeon, Levi, Judah,

Issachar, and Zebulun.

²⁴Rachel’s sons were

Joseph and Benjamin.

²⁵The sons of Rachel’s slave Bilhah

were Dan and Naphtali.

²⁶The sons of Leah’s slave Zilpah

were Gad and Asher.

These are the sons of Jacob, who were born to him in Paddan-aram.

Isaac’s Death

²⁷Jacob came to his father Isaac at Mamre ^gin Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron ^h), where Abraham and Isaac had stayed. ²⁸Isaac lived 180 years. ²⁹He took his last breath and died, and was gathered to his people, ⁱold and full of days. His sons Esau and Jacob buried him.

Esau’s Family

36These are the family records ^jof Esau (that is, Edom ^k). ²Esau took his wives from the Canaanite women: Adah daughter of Elon the Hittite, ^lOholibamah daughter of Anah and granddaughter ^mof Zibeon the Hivite, ³and Basemath daughter of Ishmael and sister of Nebaioth. ⁿ⁴Adah bore Eliphaz to Esau, Basemath bore Reuel, ⁵and Oholibamah bore Jeush, Jalam, and Korah. These were Esau’s sons, who were born to him in the land of Canaan.

⁶Esau took his wives, sons, daughters, and all the people of his household, as well as his herds, all his livestock, and all the property he had acquired in Canaan; he went to a land away from his brother Jacob. ⁷For their possessions were too many for them to live together, ^oand because of their herds, the land where they stayed could not support them. ^p8So Esau (that is, Edom) lived in the mountains of Seir. ^q

⁹These are the family records of Esau, father of the Edomites in the mountains of Seir.

¹⁰These are the names of Esau’s sons: ^r

Eliphaz son of Esau’s wife Adah,

and Reuel son of Esau’s wife Basemath.

¹¹The sons of Eliphaz were

Teman, Omar, Zepho, Gatam, and Kenaz.

¹²Timna, a concubine of Esau’s son Eliphaz,

bore Amalek to Eliphaz.

These were the sons of Esau’s wife Adah.

¹³These are Reuel’s sons:

Nahath, Zerah, Shammah, and Mizzah.

These were the sons of Esau’s wife Basemath.

¹⁴These are the sons of Esau’s wife Oholibamah

daughter of Anah and granddaughter ^sof Zibeon:

She bore Jeush, Jalam, and Korah to Edom.

¹⁵These are the chiefs of Esau’s sons:

the sons of Eliphaz, Esau’s firstborn:

Chiefs Teman, Omar, Zepho, Kenaz,

¹⁶Korah, ^tGatam, and Amalek.

These are the chiefs of Eliphaz

in the land of Edom.

These are the sons of Adah.

¹⁷These are the sons of Reuel, Esau’s son:

Chiefs Nahath, Zerah, Shammah, and Mizzah.

These are the chiefs of Reuel

in the land of Edom.

These are the sons of Esau’s wife Basemath.

¹⁸These are the sons of Esau’s wife Oholibamah:

Chiefs Jeush, Jalam, and Korah.

These are the chiefs of Esau’s wife Oholibamah

daughter of Anah.

¹⁹These are the sons of Esau (that is, Edom),

and these are their chiefs.

Seir’s Family

²⁰These are the sons of Seir the Horite, ^u

the inhabitants of the land:

Lotan, Shobal, Zibeon, Anah,

²¹Dishon, Ezer, and Dishan.

These are the chiefs of the Horites,

the sons of Seir, in the land of Edom.

²²The sons of Lotan were Hori and Heman.

Timna was Lotan’s sister.

²³These are Shobal’s sons:

Alvan, Manahath, Ebal, Shepho, and Onam.

²⁴These are Zibeon’s sons: Aiah and Anah.

This was the Anah who found the hot springs ^vin the wilderness

while he was pasturing the donkeys of his father Zibeon.

²⁵These are the children of Anah:

Dishon and Oholibamah daughter of Anah.

²⁶These are Dishon’s sons:

Hemdan, Eshban, Ithran, and Cheran.

²⁷These are Ezer’s sons:

Bilhan, Zaavan, and Akan.

²⁸These are Dishan’s sons: Uz and Aran.

²⁹These are the chiefs of the Horites:

Chiefs Lotan, Shobal, Zibeon, Anah,

³⁰Dishon, Ezer, and Dishan.

These are the chiefs of the Horites,

according to their divisions, in the land of Seir.

Rulers of Edom

³¹These are the kings who ruled in the land of Edom ^w

before any king ruled over the Israelites:

³²Bela son of Beor ruled in Edom;

the name of his city was Dinhabah.

³³When Bela died, Jobab son of Zerah from Bozrah became king in his place.

³⁴When Jobab died, Husham from the land of the Temanites became king in his place.

³⁵When Husham died, Hadad son of Bedad became king in his place.

He defeated Midian in the field of Moab;

the name of his city was Avith.

³⁶When Hadad died, Samlah from Masrekah became king in his place.

³⁷When Samlah died, Shaul from Rehoboth on the Euphrates River became king in his place.

³⁸When Shaul died, Baal-hanan son of Achbor became king in his place.

³⁹When Baal-hanan son of Achbor died, Hadar ^xbecame king in his place.

His city was Pau, and his wife’s name was Mehetabel

daughter of Matred daughter of Me-zahab.

⁴⁰These are the names of Esau’s chiefs,

according to their families and their localities,

by their names:

Chiefs Timna, Alvah, Jetheth,

⁴¹Oholibamah, Elah, Pinon,

⁴²Kenaz, Teman, Mibzar,

⁴³Magdiel, and Iram.

These are Edom’s chiefs,

according to their settlements in the land they possessed.

Esau ^ywas father of the Edomites.