And Jacob called the name of the place where God spake with him, Bethel.
What does Genesis 35:15 mean?
The comfort the saints have in holy ordinances, is not so much from Beth-el, the house of God, as from El-beth-el, the God of the house. The ordinances are empty things, if we do not meet with God in them.
Key themes
Read with
Keep this verse inside Genesis 35:14-15 and alongside a few nearby related passages.
Commentary on Genesis 35:15
And Jacob called the name of the place where God spake with him, Bethel. He confirmed the name he had before given it, when he went to Mesopotamia, and now upon his return renews and establishes it; or he gave this name more especially to that particular spot where God conversed with him, and on which he erected a pillar, and consecrated it to religious worship, and so made it God's house, as he promised he would, Genesis 28:22 , both building an altar for sacrifice, and setting up a pillar, which was beginning an house for God.
Key words
- Jacob
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And Jacob called the name of the place where God spake with him, Bethel.
- called
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And Jacob called the name of the place where God spake with him, Bethel.
- place
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And Jacob called the name of the place where God spake with him, Bethel.
Context in Genesis 35
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Genesis 35 belongs to the middle movement of the book, especially the section often described as the family line through Isaac and Jacob. Genesis opens the whole Bible with creation, fall, flood, Babel, and the long patriarchal story that carries the reader from Eden to Egypt. Read this chapter with the wider themes of creation, fall, and covenant in view so the individual verses keep their proper weight.
Related topics
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A collection of passages on hope under pressure, future inheritance, resurrection expectation, and confidence in God’s final faithfulness.
Glossary
- Bethel Place
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House of God. (1. ) A place in Central Palestine, about 10 miles north of Jerusalem, at the head of the pass of Michmash and Ai. It was originally the royal Canaanite city of Luz ( Gen. 28:19 ). Modern identification: Beitin.