The Bible Recap - Day 024 (Genesis 35-37) - Year 7

Episode Date: January 24, 2025

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Hey Bible readers, I'm Tara Lee Cobble and I'm your host for the Bible Recap. Yesterday we left off with Jacob's sons Simeon and Levi slaughtering all the men of Shechem, the town they'd just moved to. They did this in order to avenge the rape of their sister Dinah. Today we see Jacob and his family preparing to move out of Shechem. Good call. As he packs up, Jacob makes it known to all of his family that from here on out, they're only going to worship Yahweh, and he buries all their gods.

As they pass through the nearby cities, God makes all the locals afraid of them. We don't know how he did it, but God actually creates terror in the hearts of those who oppose him in order to protect his people. This is the only place in the whole Bible where this Hebrew word for terror is used. Most of the time when we refer to the fear of God, it means something different than this word used here. Usually, it carries a connotation of reverence and awe. But here, this word only has the connotation of sheer terror. We'll talk more about the fear of God in a future episode, but I just wanted to plant that seed while we're here.

God calls Jacob to settle in Bethel. You may remember Bethel as the place where God appeared to Jacob in his famous ladder dream. Back then, in chapter 28, Jacob set up a pagan pillar on that spot. But he's a new man now with a new heart. So God sends him back and he replaces that pillar with an altar, just like the altar he set up in yesterday's reading after he wrestled with God. This whole scene is important because it shows us Jacob's change of heart and his increased understanding and faith. He's tearing down the old things that dishonor God, and he's putting up new things that honor God and point to him.

Then something happens that seems weird. God changes Jacob's name. It seems weird because we've already seen this. Is this just the same story repeated for emphasis because it's important? Possibly. It isn't uncommon in ancient storytelling to repeat things that are important. In fact, we saw this on day one with the creation of humans in Genesis 1 and 2. God didn't create them twice, He just told us about it twice.

Maybe you're also wondering why God keeps switching back and forth between the names Jacob and Israel, especially after He changes his name at least once. Well, a lot of people think that switching back and forth is a subtle way of indicating which direction Jacob's heart is focused on at the time. Jacob is the old man who looks to himself, but Israel is the new man who looks to God. There's an anonymous poem I love that illustrates this back and forth between being Jacob and being Israel. It's only four lines, and it goes like this.

Two natures beat within my breast. The one is foul, the one is blessed. The one I love, the one I hate, the one I feed will dominate. Sometimes scripture gives us a little bit of insight into which nature Jacob slash Israel is feeding just by his name. But to be fair, the name switching also could just be for the sake of clarity, since by the time Genesis is written down, the name Israel has come to represent far more than just Jacob.

While there at Bethel, God blesses Jacob and reiterates his covenant promise to this family of people, to be their God and to establish them in the land He gave them. And again, He points out that it's going to be about way more than just them. He says, a nation and a company of nations shall come from you. At some point, they continue on to Ephrath, and Rachel has a baby along the way. Did this surprise you guys? Do you remember all that back and forth between Rachel and Leah about children? I'm shocked that we didn't even get a hint that Rachel is pregnant.

And here she is giving birth to Benjamin, Jacob's 13th child. She dies in labor, and Jacob puts a pillar over her tomb. Now don't let that pillar alarm you. Not all pillars are bad. This particular pillar is more of a memorial or a marking stone than a pagan worship site. After all this, Jacob goes to visit his father Isaac, whom he hasn't seen since he tricked him decades ago.

And shortly after he visits him, Isaac dies. Jacob has lost his beloved wife and his dad in a short timeframe. The timing of God's blessing and promise to Jacob is perfectly suited to the time when God knows he's bringing Isaac's days on earth to a close. A time when God knows Jacob would need to be reminded of his nearness. Chapter 36 gives us a long line of Esau's descendants. This is the longest genealogy we've hit so far, but it's

still far from the longest. If you struggle with reading a list of names like this, we've got a short encouraging article for you in the show notes today. In genealogies, be sure to let your eyes fall on every word. Those names are there with intention. Genealogies have helped us link archaeology to scripture in places where secular historians have previously been dismissive. They establish timelines and bloodlines, and they occasionally give us some foreshadowing. There's even some in there for you today. In chapter 37, we meet Joseph again. And we're going to be in his story for about a week, so let's make sure we know who he

is first. Joseph was the first son of Rachel, Jacob's second but preferred wife. So Jacob's affection for him is several notches above that of his brothers. Joseph and his brothers didn't have a great relationship, which is nothing new for this family, but it's only made worse by Jacob's preferential treatment of him.

The most well-known instance of this is when Jacob makes Joseph a really fancy robe. And it's up for debate, but the actual Hebrew word used here probably describes a long robe with long sleeves, not a multicolored robe, and certainly not a technicolor dream coat. I'm sorry if that crushes you. Joseph has a dream that his brothers would worship him,

which is honestly the kind of thing you should keep to yourself. No one wants to hear anyone's dreams, and especially not that kind. But in a move that was either foolish or arrogant or possibly both, Joseph tells his brothers about that dream and they hate him even more for it. As a result of all this, Joseph's brothers conspire to kill him, but his oldest brother Reuben pipes up and saves his life.

Earlier in chapter 35, there are these two short sentences that tell us Reuben has slept with one of his father's concubines, which is basically his stepmother, and that his father finds out about it. Some people believe this is Reuben's attempt to win back his dad's favor, but others believe he just has mercy on Joseph. And that's where I land as well. I'll tell you why in a minute. Joseph's brothers sell him to the Ishmaelites, who are descendants of, guess who, Ishmael. These are semi-close blood relatives, remember, but they don't

worship Yahweh. This group is also called the Midianites, which is another line from Abraham. Since they're referred to as both the Ishmaelites and the Midianites, it's likely that there may have been some intermarriage or partnership between the two groups. They buy Joseph and take him south to Egypt and sell him into slavery to a man named Potiphar, who is pretty high up in the ranks of Pharaoh, the Egyptian king. Meanwhile, Joseph's brother sends his robe, covered in goat's blood, back to his father Jacob, who is inconsolable. This scene is a bit of a flashback to the time Jacob deceived his own father, Isaac,

using a stolen cloak and a slaughtered goat. What did you see about God in the midst of Jacob's trip to Bethel, Rachel's and Isaac's deaths, Esau's descendants, and Joseph's enslavement? Here's my Godshot. There were a lot of obvious things that I wanted to latch onto and share with you, but this phrase kept jumping off the page at me, so forgive me if it seems like I'm reaching here. In 3722, when Reuben is trying to convince the brothers not to put Joseph to death,

it says his hope is that he might restore him to his father. Reuben, the older brother, steps in on behalf of the one who has gotten himself into big trouble. He demands that they not shed his blood and ultimately saves his life, that he might restore him to his father. Does that remind you of anything? Jesus, our older brother, stepped in for us, and because of his intercession, our lives are spared that we might be restored to our Father. Today, Reuben showed me a picture of Jesus—an imperfect one for sure, but it's still a good reminder.

God the Son stepped in on my behalf to rescue me right in the place where I've been the cause of my own demise and I cannot save myself. He stepped in to restore me to my Father. And He's where the joy is. Even though we're just a few weeks into the new year, we know that some New Year's resolutions are becoming harder and harder to commit to, and maybe that includes keeping up with your daily Bible reading and recapping? If that's you, we have a solution that may be helpful for you. We offer the pre-cap, a daily reminder email, that we deliver to your inbox bright and early every morning,

ready for you when you wake up. The email is super brief. It includes links to that day's reading, show notes, and includes both options for recapping, audio and video. So if you like having a little daily nudge or if you just like having the details laid out for you, we're here to help. To sign up for the daily pre-cap emails, check out the home page of our website, TheBibleRecap.com, or click the link in the show notes.