Kejadian 35:17

35:17 When her labor was at its hardest, ¹  the midwife said to her, “Don’t be afraid, for you are having another son.” ² 

Kejadian 35:1

The Return to Bethel

35:1 Then God said to Jacob, “Go up at once ³  to Bethel ⁴  and live there. Make an altar there to God, who appeared to you when you fled from your brother Esau.” ⁵ 

1 Samuel 4:20

4:20 As she was dying, the women who were there with her said, “Don’t be afraid! You have given birth to a son!” But she did not reply or pay any attention. ⁶ 

[35:17]  ¹ tn The construction uses a Hiphil infinitive, which E. A. Speiser classifies as an elative Hiphil. The contrast is with the previous Piel: there “she had hard labor,” and here, “her labor was at its hardest.” Failure to see this, Speiser notes, has led to redundant translations and misunderstandings (Genesis [AB], 273).

[35:17]  ² sn Another son. The episode recalls and fulfills the prayer of Rachel at the birth of Joseph (Gen 30:24): “may he add” another son.

[35:1]  ³ tn Heb “arise, go up.” The first imperative gives the command a sense of urgency.

[35:1]  ⁴ map For location see Map4 G4; Map5 C1; Map6 E3; Map7 D1; Map8 G3.

[35:1]  ⁵ sn God is calling on Jacob to fulfill his vow he made when he fled from…Esau (see Gen 28:20-22).

[4:20]  ⁶ tn Heb “and she did not set her heart.”