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The NET Bible®

Genesis 35:19

So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem).

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Bethlehem;   Ephratah;   Jacob;   Rachel;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Bethlehem;   Ephrath;   Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Benjamin;   Bethlehem;   Jacob;   Pentateuch;   Rachel;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Bethlehem;   Ephratah;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Benjamin;   Bethlehem;   Chilion;   Ephratah;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Bethlehem;   Burial;   Diseases;   Eder;   Ephratah;   Genesis;   Jacob;   Tribes of Israel, the;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Bethlehem;   Rachel;   Tribes of Israel;   Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament - Raca;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Bethlehem ;   Ephratah , Ephrath ;   The Hawker's Poor Man's Concordance And Dictionary - Benjamin;   Bethlehem;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Canaan (2);   Ephratah;   Rachel;   Smith Bible Dictionary - Beth'lehem;   Eph'ratah,;   Ra'chel;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Bethlehem;   Burial;   Eder (1);   Genealogy;   Jacob (1);   Palestine;   Rachel;   Kitto Biblical Cyclopedia - Burial and sepulchers;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Benjamin;   Beth-Lehem-Judah;   Ephrath;   Rachel;   Soṭah;  

Parallel Translations

Geneva Bible (1587)
Thus died Rahel, and was buried in the way to Ephrath, which is Beth-lehem.
George Lamsa Translation
And Rachel died, and was buried on the way to Ephrath, which is Beth-lehem.
Hebrew Names Version
Rachel died, and was buried in the way to Efrat (the same is Beit-Lechem).
Easy-to-Read Version
Rachel was buried on the road to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem).
English Standard Version
So Rachel died, and she was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem),
American Standard Version
And Rachel died, and was buried in the way to Ephrath (the same is Beth-lehem).
Bible in Basic English
So Rachel came to her end and was put to rest on the road to Ephrath (which is Beth-lehem).
Contemporary English Version
Rachel was buried beside the road to Ephrath, which is also called Bethlehem.
Complete Jewish Bible
So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Efrat (that is, Beit-Lechem).
Darby Translation
And Rachel died, and was buried on the way to Ephrath, which [is] Bethlehem.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
And Rachel died, and was buried in the way to Ephrath--the same is Beth-lehem.
King James Version (1611)
And Rachel died, and was buried in the way to Ephrath, which is Bethlehem.
Amplified Bible
So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem).
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
So Rachel died, and was buried in the way of the course of Ephratha, this is Bethleem.
English Revised Version
And Rachel died, and was buried in the way to Ephrath (the same is Beth-lehem).
Berean Standard Bible
So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem).
Lexham English Bible
And Rachel died and she was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem).
Literal Translation
And Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath, it is Bethlehem.
New Century Version
Rachel was buried on the road to Ephrath, a district of Bethlehem,
New King James Version
So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem).
New Living Translation
So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem).
New Life Bible
So Rachel died, and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem).
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
So Rachel died, - and was buried on the way to Ephrath, the same, is Bethlehem.
Douay-Rheims Bible
So Rachel died, and was buried in the highway that leadeth to Ephrata, this is Bethlehem.
Revised Standard Version
So Rachel died, and she was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem),
Good News Translation
When Rachel died, she was buried beside the road to Ephrath, now known as Bethlehem.
King James Version
And Rachel died, and was buried in the way to Ephrath, which is Bethlehem.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Therfor Rachel diede, and was biriede in the weie that ledith to Effrata, this is Bethleem.
Young's Literal Translation
and Rachel dieth, and is buried in the way to Ephratha, which [is] Bethlehem,
World English Bible
Rachel died, and was buried in the way to Ephrath (the same is Beth-lehem).
Update Bible Version
And Rachel died, and was buried in the way to Ephrath (the same is Beth-lehem).
Webster's Bible Translation
And Rachel died, and was buried in the way to Ephrath, which [is] Beth-lehem.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
And thus died Rachel, and was buried in the way to Ephrath, whiche is Bethlehem.
Christian Standard Bible®
So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem).
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
So Rachel died, & was buried in the waye towarde Ephrath, which now is called Bethlehe.
THE MESSAGE
Rachel died and was buried on the road to Ephrath, that is, Bethlehem. Jacob set up a pillar to mark her grave. It is still there today, "Rachel's Grave Stone."
New American Standard Bible
So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem).
New Revised Standard
So Rachel died, and she was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem),
New American Standard Bible (1995)
So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem).
Legacy Standard Bible
So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem).

Contextual Overview

16 They traveled on from Bethel, and when Ephrath was still some distance away, Rachel went into labor—and her labor was hard. 17 When her labor was at its hardest, the midwife said to her, "Don't be afraid, for you are having another son." 18 With her dying breath, she named him Ben Oni. But his father called him Benjamin instead. 19 So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem). 20 Jacob set up a marker over her grave; it is the Marker of Rachel's Grave to this day.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Rachel died: Genesis 48:7

Ephrath: Joshua 19:15, Ruth 1:2, Ruth 4:11, Micah 5:2, Micah 6:2, Matthew 2:1, Matthew 2:6, Matthew 2:18

Reciprocal: Genesis 29:17 - Rachel Judges 17:7 - General Judges 19:1 - a concubine 1 Samuel 10:2 - Rachel's 1 Samuel 17:12 - Ephrathite 1 Chronicles 2:51 - Bethlehem 2 Chronicles 11:6 - Bethlehem Matthew 2:5 - General Luke 2:4 - unto Acts 7:16 - the sepulchre

Cross-References

Genesis 35:16
They traveled on from Bethel, and when Ephrath was still some distance away, Rachel went into labor—and her labor was hard.
Genesis 35:18
With her dying breath, she named him Ben Oni. But his father called him Benjamin instead.
Genesis 48:7
But as for me, when I was returning from Paddan, Rachel died—to my sorrow—in the land of Canaan. It happened along the way, some distance from Ephrath. So I buried her there on the way to Ephrath" (that is, Bethlehem).
Joshua 19:15
Their territory included Kattah, Nahalal, Shimron, Idalah, and Bethlehem; in all they had twelve cities and their towns.
Ruth 1:2
(Now the man's name was Elimelech, his wife was Naomi, and his two sons were Mahlon and Kilion. They were of the clan of Ephrath from Bethlehem in Judah.) They entered the region of Moab and settled there.
Ruth 4:11
All the people who were at the gate and the elders replied, "We are witnesses. May the Lord make the woman who is entering your home like Rachel and Leah, both of whom built up the house of Israel! May you prosper in Ephrathah and become famous in Bethlehem.
Micah 6:2
Hear the Lord 's accusation, you mountains, you enduring foundations of the earth! For the Lord has a case against his people; he has a dispute with Israel!
Matthew 2:1
After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, in the time of King Herod, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem
Matthew 2:6
‘ And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are in no way least among the rulers of Judah, for out of you will come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel .'"

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And Rachel died, and was buried in the way to Ephrath, which [is] Bethlehem. Hence called Bethlehem Ephratah, Micah 5:2; with great pertinency is Rachel represented as if risen from her grave, and weeping for her children, when the children of Bethlehem, and thereabout, were slain by Herod, she being buried so near that place, Matthew 2:16; at what age she died is not said. Polyhistor, out of Demetrius d, reports, that she died after Jacob had lived with her twenty three years.

d Apnd Euseb. Praepar. Evangel. l. 9. c. 21. p. 424.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

- The Death of Isaac

8. דברה deborâh, Deborah, “bee.” בּכוּת אלּון 'alôn-bākût, Allon-bakuth, “oak of weeping.”

16. כברה kı̂brâh, “length stretch.” A certain but unknown distance, a stadium or furlong (Josephus) a hippodrome (Septuagint) which was somewhat longer, a mile (Kimchi). אפרת 'ephrâth, Ephrath, “fruitful or ashy.”

18. בן־אוני ben-'ônı̂y, Ben-oni, “son of my pain.” בנימין bı̂nyāmı̂yn, Binjamin, “son of the right hand.”

19. לחם בית bēyt-lechem, Beth-lechem, “house of bread.”

21. עדר ěder, ‘Eder, “flock, fold.”

This chapter contains the return of Jacob to his father’s house, and then appends the death of Isaac.

Genesis 35:1-8

Jacob returns to Bethel. “And God said unto Jacob.” He receives the direction from God. He had now been six years lingering in Sukkoth and Sleekem. There may have been some contact between him and his father’s house during this interval. The presence of Deborah, Rebekah’s nurse, in his family, is a plain intimation of this. But Jacob seems to have turned aside to Shekem, either to visit the spot where Abraham first erected an altar to the Lord, or to seek pasture for his numerous flocks. “Arise, go up to Bethel, and dwell there.” In his perplexity and terror the Lord comes to his aid. He reminds him of his former appearance to him at that place, and directs him to erect an altar there. This was Abraham’s second resting-place in the land. He who had there appeared to Jacob as the Yahweh, the God of Abraham and Isaac, is now described as (house of El), the Mighty One, probably in allusion to Bethel (house of El), which contains this name, and was at that time applied by Jacob himself to the place. “His house;” his wives and children. “All that were with him;” his men-servants and maid-servants.

The strange gods, belonging to the stranger or the strange land. These include the teraphim, which Rachel had secreted, and the rings which were worn as amulets or charms. Be clean; cleanse the body, in token of the cleaning of your souls. Change your garments; put on your best attire, befitting the holy occasion. The God, in contradistinction to the strange gods already mentioned. Hid them; buried them. “The oak which was by Shekem.” This may have been the oak of Moreh, under which Abraham pitched his tent Genesis 12:6. The terror of God; a dread awakened in their breast by some indication of the divine presence being with Jacob. The patriarch seems to have retained possession of the land he had purchased and gained by conquest, in this place. His flocks are found there very shortly after this time Genesis 37:12, he alludes to it, and disposes of it in his interview with Joseph and his sons Genesis 48:22, and his well is there to this day.

“Luz, which is in the land of Kenaan.” This seems at first sight to intimate that there was a Luz elsewhere, and to have been added by the revising prophet to determine the place here intended. Luz means an almond tree, and may have designated many a place. But the reader of Genesis could have needed no such intimation, as Jacob is clearly in the land of Kenaan, going from Shekem to Hebron. It seems rather to call attention again Genesis 33:18 to the fact that Jacob has returned from Padan-aram to the land of promise. The name Luz still recurs, as the almond tree may still be flourishing. “And he built there an altar, and called the place El-beth-el.” Thus has Jacob obeyed the command of God, and begun the payment of the vow he made twenty-six years before at this place Genesis 38:20-22. “There God revealed himself unto him.” The verb here נגלוּ nı̂glû is plural in the Masoretic Hebrew, and so it was in the copy of Onkelos. The Samaritan Pentateuch and the Septuagint have the singular. The reading is therefore, various. The original was probably singular, and may have been so even with its present letters. If not, this is one of the few instances in which Elohim is construed grammatically with a plural verb. Deborah dies in the family in which she began life. She is buried under “the well-known oak” at Bethel. Jacob drops a natural tear of sorrow over the grave of this faithful servant, and hence, the oak is called the oak of weeping. It is probable that Rebekah was already dead, since otherwise we should not expect to find Deborah transferred to Jacob’s household. She may not have lived to see her favorite son on his return.

Genesis 35:9-15

God appears to Jacob again at Bethel, and renews the promise made to him there Genesis 28:13-14. Again. The writer here refers to the former meeting of God with Jacob at Bethel, and thereby proves himself cognizant of the fact, and of the record already made of it. “When he went out of Padan-aram.” This corroborates the explanation of the clause, Genesis 35:6, “which is in the land of Kenaan.” Bethel was the last point in this land that was noticed in his flight from Esau. His arrival at the same point indicates that he has now returned from Padan-aram to the land of Kenaan. “He called his name Israel.” At Bethel he renews the change of name, to indicate that the meetings here were of equal moment in Jacob’s spiritual life with that at Penuel. It implies also that this life had been declining in the interval between Penuel and Bethel, and had now been revived by the call of God to go to Bethel, and by the interview.

The renewal of the naming aptly expresses this renewal of spiritual life. “I am God Almighty.” So he proclaimed himself before to Abraham Genesis 17:1. “Be fruitful, and multiply.” Abraham and Isaac had each only one son of promise. But now the time of increase is come. Jacob has been blessed with eleven sons, and at least one daughter. And now he receives the long-promised blessing, “be fruitful and multiply.” From this time forth the multiplication of Israel is rapid. In twenty-six years after this time he goes down into Egypt with seventy souls, besides the wives of his married descendants, and two hundred and ten years after that Israel goes out of Egypt numbering about one million eight hundred thousand. “A nation and a congregation of nations,” such as were then known in the world, had at the last date come of him, and “kings” were to follow in due time. The land, as well as the seed, is again promised.

Jacob now, according to his wont, perpetuates the scene of divine manifestation with a monumental stone. “God went up;” as he went up from Abraham Genesis 17:22 after a similar conferencc with him. He had now spoken to Jacob face to face, as he communed with Abraham. “A pillar” in the place where he talked with him, a consecrated monument of this second interview, not in a dream as before, but in a waking vision. On this he pours a drink-offering of wine, and then anoints it with oil. Here, for the first time, we meet with the libation. It is possible there was such an offering when Melkizedec brought forth bread and wine, though it is not recorded. The drink-offering is the complement of the meat-offering, and both are accompaniments of the sacrifice which is offered on the altar. They are in themselves expressive of gratitude and devotion. Wine and oil are used to denote the quickening and sanctifying power of the Spirit of God. “Bethel.” We are now familiar with the repetition of the naming of persons and places. This place was already called Bethel by Jacob himself; it is most likely that Abraham applied this name to it: and for aught we know, some servant of the true God, under the Noachic covenant, may have originated the name.

Genesis 17:16-22.

On the journey, Rachel dies at the birth of her second son. “A stretch.” It was probably a few furlongs. “Fear not.” The cause for encouragement was that the child was born, and that it was a son. Rachel’s desire and hope expressed at the birth of Joseph were therefore, fulfilled Genesis 30:24. “When her soul was departing.” This phrase expresses not annihilation, but merely change of place. It presupposes the perpetual existence of the soul. “Ben-oni,” son of my pain, is the natural expression of the departing Rachel. “Benjamin.” The right hand is the seat of power. The son of the right hand is therefore, the child of power. He gave power to his father, as he was his twelfth son, and so completed the number of the holy family. “Ephrath and Beth-lehem” are names the origin of which is not recorded. “The pillar of Rachel’s grave.” Jacob loves the monumental stone. “Unto this day.” This might have been written ten or twenty years after the event, and therefore, before Jacob left Kenaan (see on Genesis 19:37). The grave of Rachel was well known in the time of Samuel 1 Samuel 10:2, and the Kubbet Rahil, dome or tomb of Rachel, stands perhaps on the identical spot, about an English mile north of Bethlehem.

Genesis 35:21-22

Eder - The tower of the flock was probably a watch-tower where shepherds guarded their flocks by night. It was a mile (Jerome) or more south of Bethlehem. Here Reuben was guilty of the shameful deed which came to the knowledge of his father, and occasions the allusion in Genesis 49:4. He was by this act degraded from his position in the holy family. The division of the open parashah in the text here is more in accordance with the sense than that of the verse.

Genesis 35:22-29

Jacob’s return and his father’s death. The family of Jacob is now enumerated, because it has been completed by the birth of Benjamin. “In Padan-aram.” This applies to all of them but Benjamin; an exception which the reader of the context can make for himself. Jacob at length arrives with his whole establishment at Hebron, the third notable station occupied by Abraham in the land Genesis 13:1. Here also his father sojourns. The life of Isaac is now closed. Joseph must have been, at the time of Jacob’s return, in his thirteenth year, and therefore, his father in his hundred and fourth. Isaac was consequently in his hundred and sixty-third year. He survived the return of Jacob to Hebron about seventeen years, and the sale of Joseph his grandson about thirteen. “Esau and Jacob his sons buried him.” Hence, we learn that Esau and Jacob continued to be on brotherly terms from the day of their meeting at the ford of Jabbok.

This chapter closes the ninth of the pieces or documents marked off by the phrase “these are the generations.” Its opening event was the birth of Isaac Genesis 25:19, which took place in the hundreth year of Abraham, and therefore, seventy-five years before his death recorded in the seventh document. As the seventh purports to be the generations of Terah Genesis 11:27 and relates to Abraham who was his offspring, so the present document, containing the generations of Isaac, refers chiefly to the sons of Isaac, and especially to Jacob, as the heir of promise. Isaac as a son learned obedience to his father in that great typical event of his life, in which he was laid on the altar, and figuratively sacrificed in the ram which was his substitute. This was the great significant passage in his life, after which he retires into comparative tranquillity.


 
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