Cornelius a Lapide
Table of Contents
Synopsis of the Chapter
Jacob purges his family of idols, builds an altar to God, and is again called Israel by God. Second, in verse 16, Rachel dies in giving birth to Benoni, whom the father names Benjamin. Third, in verse 27, Isaac dies.
Vulgate Text: Genesis 35:1-29
1. Meanwhile God spoke to Jacob: Arise, and go up to Bethel, and dwell there, and make an altar to God, who appeared to you when you were fleeing from Esau your brother. 2. And Jacob, having called together his whole household, said: Cast away the foreign gods that are among you, and purify yourselves, and change your garments. 3. Arise, and let us go up to Bethel, that we may make there an altar to God, who heard me in the day of my tribulation, and was the companion of my journey. 4. So they gave him all the foreign gods which they had, and the earrings which were in their ears; and he buried them under the terebinth that is behind the city of Shechem. 5. And when they had set out, the terror of God fell upon all the cities round about, and they dared not pursue those who were departing. 6. So Jacob came to Luz, which is in the land of Canaan, surnamed Bethel: he and all the people with him. 7. And he built there an altar, and called the name of that place, the House of God: for there God appeared to him when he fled from his brother. 8. At the same time Deborah, the nurse of Rebecca, died, and was buried at the foot of Bethel under an oak: and the name of that place was called, the Oak of Weeping. 9. And God appeared again to Jacob after he returned from Mesopotamia of Syria, and blessed him, 10. saying: You shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel shall be your name. And He called him Israel, 11. and said to him: I am God Almighty, increase and multiply: nations and peoples of nations shall be from you, kings shall come forth from your loins. 12. And the land which I gave to Abraham and Isaac, I will give to you and to your seed after you. 13. And He departed from him. 14. But he set up a monument of stone in the place where God had spoken to him: pouring drink offerings upon it, and pouring out oil: 15. and calling the name of that place, Bethel. 16. And going out from there, he came in the springtime to the land that leads to Ephratah: in which when Rachel was in labor, 17. because of the difficulty of her delivery she began to be in danger. And the midwife said to her: Do not fear, for you shall have this son also. 18. And as her soul was departing for pain, and death was now at hand, she called the name of her son Benoni, that is, the son of my sorrow; but his father called him Benjamin, that is, the son of the right hand. 19. So Rachel died, and was buried on the way that leads to Ephratah, this is Bethlehem. 20. And Jacob erected a monument over her tomb: This is the monument of Rachel's tomb, even to this present day. 21. Departing from there, he pitched his tent beyond the Tower of the Flock. 22. And when he dwelt in that region, Reuben went and slept with Bilhah, his father's concubine: which was by no means hidden from him. And the sons of Jacob were twelve. 23. The sons of Leah: the firstborn Reuben, and Simeon, and Levi, and Judah, and Issachar, and Zebulun. 24. The sons of Rachel: Joseph and Benjamin. 25. The sons of Bilhah, Rachel's handmaid: Dan and Naphtali. 26. The sons of Zilpah, Leah's handmaid: Gad and Asher. These are the sons of Jacob, who were born to him in Mesopotamia of Syria. 27. And he came also to Isaac his father in Mamre, the city of Arbee: this is Hebron, in which Abraham and Isaac sojourned. 28. And the days of Isaac were a hundred and eighty years. 29. And being consumed with age he died, and was gathered to his people, being old and full of days: and Esau and Jacob his sons buried him.
Verse 1: Meanwhile
1. MEANWHILE. -- While the sorrowful and anxious Jacob fears and awaits an attack by the Canaanites on account of the slaughter of the Shechemites, God soon takes away this fear from him, and consoles and strengthens him. So says St. Chrysostom.
Verse 1: And Make an Altar
AND MAKE AN ALTAR -- from the stone which you anointed and set up as a pillar, chapter 28, verse 18.
Verse 2: Put Away the Foreign Gods
2. PUT AWAY THE FOREIGN GODS. -- Properly speaking, there are no foreign gods: for only the God of the faithful is truly God; yet they are called foreign gods, that is, other than the true God; or rather, as the Hebrew has it, elohe nechar, that is, gods of foreigners, which foreigners worship, namely the idolatrous and pagan Gentiles. From this it is clear that there were idols and idolaters in Jacob's family. And what wonder? For he had dwelt in the house of the idolater Laban for 20 years, and from there had taken away wives and servants, whence Rachel fleeing had stolen the idols of her father, chapter 31, verse 19; perhaps also from the recent spoils of the Shechemites, Jacob's servants had carried off their idols, as Procopius holds. Now for nine years since his departure from Haran, Jacob had dwelt, or rather had sojourned, in Canaan, and had not had the leisure and opportunity to purge his family of idols and idolatry: he now seizes upon this occasion from the fear of the Canaanites, by which all were stricken, on account of the slaughter committed in Shechem: for fear teaches people to acknowledge God and to flee to Him. Let rulers and preachers learn here from Jacob, in a public disaster, calamity, and fear, to seize the occasion through pious laws and exhortations to purge the state and the people of their vices, so that by this fear and calamity they may be delivered by God.
Verse 2: Be Clean, and Change Your Garments
BE CLEAN, AND CHANGE YOUR GARMENTS -- that is, your clothes. Put on sackcloth or haircloth as a sign of penance. Secondly and better, that is to say: Instead of common and dirty garments, put on clean and festive ones, so that by them you may profess the cleanliness and newness of your souls, and prepare and rouse yourselves for the coming sacrifice and feast, so that you may approach it in a clean and decent attire: as the faithful now do on Sundays and feast days. For this is what the Septuagint means by "be clean." This clean and new garment was therefore a symbol of penance, repentance, and religion, by which they declared that, having cast away idols, they wished to worship the one God, and to begin a new and pious life in the worship of the one God. So in Exodus 19:10, God commands the Hebrews, who were about to receive the law on Sinai at Pentecost, to change their ordinary garment for a clean and festive one.
Tropological Sense: Parents and the Education of Children
For the moral sense, see Rupert and St. Chrysostom, homily 59, where he teaches by the example of Jacob that parents ought rather to labor to educate their children piously, than to heap up riches for them. For "why," he says, "do you gather these burdens of thorns for yourself, and do you not perceive that you are leaving your children material for wickedness? Do you not know that the Lord has greater care for your child? Or do you not know that youth is of itself inclined to ruin, and when it has also received an abundance of riches, it rushes all the more toward evil? Just as fire, when it finds fuel, rises with stronger flames, so also when the material of money falls upon a young person, it kindles such a furnace that incontinence and intemperance cause the entire soul of the youth to burn."
Verse 4: He Buried Them
HE BURIED THEM. -- Having first broken or melted them, as Moses did, Exodus 32:20, and Hezekiah, 4 Kings 18:4. Jacob could have converted the material, namely gold, silver, and bronze, to another use, even a sacred one (though Abulensis denies this); but he was unwilling, lest any trace of idolatry should remain, and so that he might instill in his household a horror of them, and all might learn to abominate idols as things accursed.
Verse 4: Under the Terebinth
Under the terebinth. -- The Hebrew word ela signifies both oak and terebinth. Andreas Masius on Joshua, last chapter, verse 26, thinks this was the ela, that is, the oak or terebinth of Moreh, that is, the illustrious one, under which Abraham first erected an altar to God, Genesis 12:6, and near which Abimelech was consecrated king, Judges chapter 9:6; and therefore under it, as sacred from the time of their fathers and ancestors, Jacob buried the idols of his household. This ela of Shechem was therefore preserved for many years by the religion of their fathers, and even consecrated. For Joshua also ratified a covenant between God and the people near it, Joshua, last chapter, verse 26.
Verse 5: The Terror of God Fell upon All
5. The terror of God fell upon all. -- God sent this sacred, and as it were, panic terror upon the Canaanites, lest they should dare to attack Jacob as he departed from Shechem, seemingly in flight, and to avenge the slaughter of the Shechemites. See, says St. Chrysostom, what the fear of Isaac and Jacob merits, by which he himself feared God, namely that in return God makes him terrible to all. "For when God is well-disposed toward us, all terrors are removed from our midst. For just as He gave confidence to the just man, so He gave fear to them," so that though they were many and banded together, they did not dare to attack the few and weak. Pious men often experience the same divine protection on their journeys, when they encounter robbers or brigands.
Verse 3: He Was the Companion of My Journey
3. He was the companion of my journey -- and guide and companion of the way: a guide on the way to Haran, and a guide back on the return to Canaan.
Verse 4: Earrings
4. EARRINGS -- with which idols, after the fashion of humans, were adorned in their ears. Whence secondly, Augustine calls them phylacteries of the gods. St. Chrysostom teaches the same, homily 35 on Genesis, as do Lyranus and both Glosses. Somewhat differently, Gaspar Sanchez on Isaiah chapter 44, number 20, thinks that these earrings were hung not on the ears of the idols, but on those of the servants, but that they had engraved upon them images or signs of the idols which they had formerly worshipped, and that therefore they were buried together with the idols by Jacob. For thus the Gentiles wore images of their gods on rings, bracelets, gems, or plates hanging from the neck, whence Pythagoras later forbade this, as did Clement of Alexandria, Book III of the Pedagogue, chapter 11. So Hosea chapter 2 says: "Let her put away her adulteries from the midst of her breasts," because between the breasts and upon the heart she wore a plate or pendant on which her adulteries, that is, idols, were engraved. Conversely, the bridegroom commands the bride, Song of Songs 8: "Set me as a seal upon your heart, as a seal upon your arm," namely so that the bride may mark her heart and arm with the image of her bridegroom, engraved of course on the tablet of the heart, or on the bracelets of the arms. Hence pious Jews carried the law of God and the insignia of their profession on rings, pendants, and necklaces, according to Proverbs 7: "Bind them upon your fingers, write them on the tablets of your heart."
Verse 6: All the People
6. All the people -- that is, his large and populous family.
Verse 7: He Called the Name of That Place, the House of God
7. HE CALLED THE NAME OF THAT PLACE, THE HOUSE OF GOD. -- This place had previously been named Bethel by Jacob, chapter 28, verse 29; here therefore he repeats and confirms the name he had given to the place, and at the same time applies it to the altar recently built by him there. He therefore named the altar, and inscribed upon it a Hebrew name, as it were a title: El Bethel, that is, the mighty God of Bethel; this means an altar dedicated to the God of Bethel, or to God who dwells in Bethel as in His own house, and who appeared to him there as most mighty, and by His strength fortified him against Esau, the Shechemites, and all enemies and terrors. See what was said on chapter 28, verse 19.
Verse 8: Deborah
8. Deborah. -- This was the nurse of Rebecca, Jacob's mother, who came with her from Haran into Canaan to Isaac. The Hebrews relate that this Deborah was sent back by Rebecca to Haran to recall Jacob from there, and that she died on the journey while returning with Jacob, as is stated here.
Verse 8: At the Foot of Bethel
AT THE FOOT OF BETHEL. -- Bethel therefore was situated on a mountain.
Verse 8: The Oak of Weeping
The Oak of Weeping -- because Jacob with his household there mourned the death of Deborah.
Verse 9: And God Appeared Again to Jacob
9. AND GOD APPEARED AGAIN TO JACOB. -- Shortly before He had appeared to him, commanding him to go to Bethel; now when he arrived at Bethel, there He appears to him again. So the Septuagint. "This is the third apparition," says Hugo Cardinalis, "in which the Lord appeared to Jacob. For first He appeared to him fleeing from Esau, leaning upon the ladder. Secondly, to him returning from Mesopotamia in the wrestling. Thirdly, here at Bethel. In this is signified the threefold apparition of Christ. For He appears to those sleeping in contemplation; He appears also to those struggling in tribulation; He appears finally to those living in eternal benediction. Of the first, St. Bernard says: Christ wishes to be seen, not to see; like a valiant commander, He wishes the face of His devoted soldier to be raised to His wounds: the soldier will not feel his own wounds while he gazes upon the wounds of Christ. This is to see Christ leaning upon the ladder, whence the Apostle says, Hebrews chapter 12: Looking unto the author of faith, and the finisher, Jesus, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame. Of the second, the same St. Bernard says: The Beloved bore with you; you too bear with the Beloved. Your sins did not conquer Him; let not His scourges conquer you either, and you will obtain the blessing. Of the third it is said, 1 Corinthians 13: We see now through a glass darkly, but then face to face; and Psalm 16: I shall be satisfied when Your glory shall appear."
Verse 9: And He Blessed Him
And He blessed him -- by calling him Israel, bestowing upon him new promises, new courage, new strength, and new gifts of grace.
Verse 10: You Shall No Longer Be Called Jacob, but Israel
10. YOU SHALL NO LONGER BE CALLED JACOB, BUT ISRAEL. -- You will ask, why is the name Israel given to Jacob again here? Cajetan answers that the name Israel is repeated here with a different meaning, on account of a new benefit here promised to Jacob, namely that his descendants would be Israel, that is, princes with God, as Aquila, Symmachus, and Theodotion translate it, meaning they would have and retain their kingdom and empire as long as they themselves remained Israel, that is, as long as God ruled over them; as if to say: You shall be called "Israel," that is, God shall rule: for I promise you and your descendants that, as long as they allow Me to rule in their hearts through true faith, religion, and piety, so long will they be Israel, that is, princes with God, because from God they will obtain their dominion, principality, and kingdom; but when they cast off from themselves the rule of God, and refuse to be subject to God, then they will likewise lose their earthly principality and kingdom as well.
But from the very words it is clear that the name Israel is given to Jacob here not in a different sense, but in the same sense in which it was given to him in chapter 32, verse 28, and so interpreters commonly teach; and although some think that there the name was only promised, but here it was actually given to Jacob: yet it is more true that it was given there, but here it is repeated and confirmed on account of a new reason and cause.
I say therefore, just as in chapter 32 Jacob was anxious on account of Esau, so here, anxious on account of the Shechemites and Canaanites, lest they avenge the slaughter of their people and attack him, he is strengthened by God so that he need not fear, and he becomes and is called Israel, that is, ruling over Esau, the Shechemites, and all his enemies through God and by God. Again he is called Israel, as being the future lord of all the land, namely Canaan, and the father of nations and kings, as is clear from verses 11 and 12; and according to this, the earlier exposition of Cajetan can be admitted. "Hence what He says: You shall no longer be called Jacob, the meaning is, as if to say: Henceforth you will not merely be Jacob, that is, the supplanter of Esau, but Israel, that is, ruling over all through God and by God, so that you should rather be called Israel than Jacob."
In the same way, on account of this new second vision and apparition of God, Jacob gives the same name to the place a second time, and calls it Bethel, that is, the House of God. Whence "Abulensis believes that he obtained those two names, Jacob and Israel, wrestler and seer of God, from his fortitude and victories: for like another Hercules he struggled with very many labors -- with his brother's threats, with Laban's ingratitude; again with fear of his brother, with the angel all night, with the seditions of his children at Shechem, with the killing of Joseph inflicted, as he thought, by a most wicked beast, with the bitterness of famine, with grief over Benjamin being taken for provisions, to omit other things. Truly Jacob, truly a wrestler; but nonetheless truly Israel, truly one who sees God: for seven times he saw God or an angel. First, when He appeared to him on the ladder, Genesis 28. Second, in Mesopotamia, when He showed him the breeding of the flocks, Genesis 30. Third, when God commanded him to depart from Mesopotamia, Genesis chapter 31. Fourth, when he saw the camps of angels prepared for his defense, Genesis 32. Fifth, when under the appearance of a man he experienced the wrestler. Sixth, when after the slaughter of the Shechemites God commanded him to go to Bethel, and there to sacrifice, Genesis 35. Seventh, when He again gave him the name Israel, Genesis 35. Moreover, visions of this kind were joined with special favors of grace, by which God admirably tempered the bitterness mixed in with his labors: and so it came about that the same man was at once Jacob and Israel, as if he were a kind of balance between struggles and visions of God," says Fernandus, Vision 2.
Tropological Sense: Jacob and Israel
Thirdly, St. Thomas, Lyranus, and Abulensis say: Jacob is here called Israel because God here elevated Jacob, so that he who up to this point had been Jacob, that is, the supplanter, and had led an active and struggling life, fighting against enemies and vices, should now lead a contemplative life, and be Israel, that is, one who sees God, or one who reigns with God, or one who is strong with God, so that nothing could draw him away from God and the contemplation of God, and from this he would become unconquerable, and the conqueror of all visible and invisible enemies. This sense is true and pious, but tropological.
Anagogical Sense: St. Augustine
Fourthly, St. Augustine, Question 114: Jacob, he says, that is, the supplanter, signifies the struggles and labors of the present life; but Israel, that is, one who sees God, signifies the reward of future blessedness and the vision of God. But this too is likewise symbolic and anagogical.
Verse 11: I Am God Almighty
11. I am God Almighty -- who can perform what I promise, and do perform it: in Hebrew it is Shaddai, about which I spoke in chapter 17, verse 1; as if to say: To you, O Jacob, I present Myself as Shaddai, that is, bearing a breast, so that from it you may draw increase and multiplication: increase therefore, and multiply. God here repeats the promises which we heard in chapters 28, 31, and 32, lest on account of the slaughter of the Shechemites perpetrated by his sons, Jacob should think that God had revoked them, especially three promises about which there could be doubt. For first, it weighed upon Jacob that he and his household were few, and yet he had so many adversaries; against this he hears: "Increase and multiply: nations and peoples of nations shall be from you." Secondly, it weighed upon him that his sons had made him hateful to the neighboring peoples; against this he is told: "Kings shall come forth from your loins" -- you shall therefore not be hated or despised. Thirdly, he feared that the neighboring peoples, having gathered together, might drive him from the land; against this he hears: "This land I will give to you." Truly therefore Jacob could say: "According to the multitude of my sorrows, Your consolations have gladdened my soul." See then that all things are made subject to the just, so that they in turn may be subject to God.
Verse 11: Nations and Peoples of Nations Shall Be from You
NATIONS AND PEOPLES OF NATIONS SHALL BE FROM YOU. -- For the twelve tribes to be propagated from you will so increase that they will be equal to many nations and peoples.
Verse 12: To You and to Your Seed
12. TO YOU AND TO YOUR SEED. -- The "and" is exegetical, meaning "that is"; for God did not give Canaan to Jacob himself, but to his seed, that is, to his descendants, under Joshua.
Verse 14: He Set Up a Monument
14. HE SET UP A MONUMENT -- which would serve at once as a monument, that is, a memorial of this apparition and divine promise, and at the same time as an altar; whence upon it Jacob sacrifices and pours drink offerings, that is, he pours out in honor of God libations, namely several measures of wine.
Verse 14: Pouring Out Oil
POURING OUT OIL -- for the consecration of the altar. See what was said on chapter 28, verse 18.
Verse 16: In the Springtime
16. In the springtime. -- The Hebrew has kibrat, which R. Menachem takes by metathesis to be the same as ke rah, that is, "as it were a great distance," meaning: When a great and long journey remained to Ephratah. Secondly, R. Solomon holds that kibrat is a name of measure, signifying a mile or a league, meaning: When a league remained to Ephratah. Thirdly, our translator most aptly derives kibrat from bara, that is, to nourish or to bring forth grain (for from this bar means spelt or grain), with the servile kaph, which signifies "according to" or "near," meaning: Near the time when the earth brings forth and produces food and crops, which St. Jerome sometimes calls the time of greening, sometimes springtime, sometimes the chosen time, deriving kibrat not from bara, but from bur, which means to choose.
Verse 16: The Season of Rachel's Death
Moses notes that it was springtime at Rachel's death, to indicate that because of the warmer spring air, it was not possible for Jacob to carry Rachel's body to Hebron, lest it decay, to be buried there in the tomb of Abraham and Sarah.
Verse 16: Rachel's Age at Death
The Hebrews relate that Rachel died at the age of 36; but since Rachel was of marriageable age when Jacob first came to her at the well in Haran, and Jacob remained in Haran for 20 years, and after his return from Haran, he lived with her in Canaan for about ten years up to this point: from this it is clear that Rachel was nearly fifty years old at her death.
Verse 18: Benjamin
18. Benjamin. -- Rachel dying called her son Benoni, that is, the son of sorrow; but the father Jacob called him Benjamin, and this after the death of the mother, to show that he bore her death with equanimity, and to rouse this son and his brothers to the same, by this hope and name, that he would be Benjamin, that is, the son of the right hand, meaning fortunate and strong, even though he was born in his father's old age: for the right hand is a symbol of strength and good fortune. So the Hebrews call a woman or man "of the right hand" or "of virtue" one who is vigorous, keen, and strong.
Verse 18: Children Born at Their Mother's Death
It was the opinion of the ancients that children who came into the light after their mother had been killed would be fortunate, and such was Scipio Africanus, and Julius Caesar, the first of the Caesars, whom they say was named Caesar from the cutting open of his mother's womb (though others derive it from his thick hair, and others from elsewhere): and such was also Benjamin.
Verse 18: The Strength of Benjamin's Descendants
How strong the descendants of Benjamin were is clear from the war which they alone waged against all the other tribes, Judges 20:46.
Verse 18: Benjamin Most Dear to His Father
Secondly, he was called Benjamin, that is, son of the right hand, because he was most dear to his father: for parents especially love the youngest children, whom they begot last and in their old age, and they place them upon their knees or at their right hand.
Verse 18: The Age of Benjamin
Benjamin was born in the 107th year of Jacob; he was therefore younger than Joseph by sixteen years: for Joseph was born in the 91st year of Jacob, and consequently in the same year that Benjamin was born, Joseph was sold, namely in the 16th year of his age, about which more at verse 28.
Verse 18: Allegorical Sense: Benjamin and Christ
Allegorically, Rachel is the Synagogue, Benjamin is Christ and the Apostles, and especially St. Paul, who was descended from Benjamin, says Cyril: for when he became a Christian and an Apostle, his mother the Synagogue envied and grieved over him; but the heavenly Father made him Benjamin, so that he might most powerfully subdue all enemies to himself, and that dying he might sit at His right hand in heaven. So says Rupert.
Verse 19: The Way to Ephratah, This Is Bethlehem
19. THE WAY THAT LEADS (from the capital Jerusalem) TO EPHRATAH, THIS IS BETHLEHEM. -- This city was first called Ephratah, from Ephrath the wife of Caleb, 1 Chronicles 2:24, whom the Hebrews think was Miriam the sister of Moses, but wrongly. This city was later called Bethlehem, that is, the house of bread, from the fertility that was there, after the famine that occurred in the time of Elimelech, as is found in the book of Ruth, says Lyranus. Similarly, Ephratah in Hebrew signifies fertile, fruitful, from the root para, that is, it bore fruit; for this is a fertile place.
Verse 19: St. Jerome and St. Paula in Bethlehem
Just as Rachel bore Benjamin, so the Blessed Virgin bore Christ in Bethlehem, because Christ is the bread and the delight of men and angels. Christ, I say, as her Benoni, that is, the man of sorrows, she bore in the utmost lowliness and poverty; whom therefore the heavenly Father made His Benjamin. So says St. Jerome, who for this reason moved with St. Paula to Bethlehem. Hear him in the Epitaph of St. Paula: "Paula used to swear that in Bethlehem she could see with the eyes of faith the infant wrapped in swaddling clothes, the Lord crying in the manger, the Magi adoring, the star shining above, the virgin mother, the diligent foster-father, the shepherds coming by night, and with tears mingled with joy she would say: Hail, Bethlehem, house of bread, in which was born that bread which came down from heaven. Hail, Ephratah, most fertile region, whose fruitfulness is God. Behold, we have heard of it in Ephratah, we have found it in the fields of the wood; this is my resting place, because it is the Lord's homeland: here I will dwell, because the Savior has chosen it."
Verse 20: And Jacob Erected a Monument
20. AND JACOB ERECTED A MONUMENT. -- Brocard relates that this monument, or memorial of Rachel, was a most elegant pyramid, at whose base twelve very large stones were arranged, according to the number of the twelve sons of Israel. See here the most ancient custom of erecting monuments and epitaphs in memory of the deceased near their tombs, among which the first that we find in Scripture is this one of Rachel. So Simon Maccabaeus erected a magnificent monument over the tomb of his father and brothers, 1 Maccabees 13:30. St. Jerome writes that he used to pray at the mausoleum of King David, in his epistle to Marcella; about which St. Peter also says: "And his tomb is among us," Acts 2:29.
Verse 21: Beyond the Tower of the Flock
21. BEYOND THE TOWER OF THE FLOCK. -- The Hebrews think this place was Jerusalem and Zion, or the site of the Temple, from the fact that Jerusalem is called the tower of the flock by Micah, chapter 4, verse 8. But Micah calls it so by a trope, enigmatically and parabolically: for the tower of Eder, that is, of the flock, is only a thousand paces from Bethlehem; whereas Jerusalem is six thousand paces from Bethlehem. The tower of the flock, therefore, is a place most rich in pastures, where accordingly there was an abundance of flocks, situated between Hebron and Bethlehem, where Jacob also fed his flock. So says St. Jerome in the Epitaph of St. Paula, Eucherius, and Rupert. Whence St. Jerome, Tostatus, Adrichomius and others think that near this tower the angel appeared to the shepherds who were keeping watch over their flock, and announced to them the birth of Christ. Hence St. Helena, mother of Constantine the Great, built a notable church near this tower, under the name of the Holy Angels.
Verse 22: Reuben Slept with Bilhah
22. Reuben slept with Bilhah. -- On account of this, the father Jacob stripped Reuben of his birthright, and cursed him on his deathbed, Genesis 49:4. And Jacob henceforth abandoned Bilhah, and no longer approached her, as having been defiled by this incest: just as David abstained from the concubines whom Absalom had violated, 2 Kings 16:22. This was the sixth cross and affliction of Jacob: for the fifth had been the death of Rachel, verse 19.
Verse 26: Who Were Born to Him in Mesopotamia
26. WHO WERE BORN TO HIM IN MESOPOTAMIA. -- That is, eleven were born in Haran, but one, Benjamin, is excepted: for he was born in Canaan, near Bethlehem. So St. Augustine, Question 117. Therefore less correctly St. Cyril, Chrysostom, and Procopius conclude from this passage that Benjamin was conceived in Haran but born in Canaan: for Benjamin was born ten years after Jacob's departure from Haran and his settlement in Canaan. Moses here lists the descendants of Israel as the chosen seed, in order to contrast them with the descendants of Esau as the rejected, whom he lists in the following chapter.
Verse 27: The City of Arbee
27. THE CITY OF ARBEE -- in Kiriath-arba, or Hebron. As he had dwelt there, so likewise Isaac died and was buried there. Tropologically, St. Ambrose writes to Irenaeus, On the Sacrifice of Egypt: "Let us follow the ways of St. Jacob, that we may arrive at those sufferings, at those encounters; let us arrive at patience" (he alludes to Jacob's mother Rebecca, whose name he interprets as patience), "the mother of the faithful, and at the father Isaac, that is, one capable of joy, overflowing with gladness; for where there is patience, there is gladness," as if to say: Just as Rebecca and Isaac are joined together, so patience and joy, so that joy, like a faithful husband, never abandons patience, as it were his wife.
Chronology of Jacob's Life
Third, Jacob survived his father Isaac by 27 years: for Isaac died when Jacob was in the 120th year of his life. But Jacob died in the 147th year of his life. Observe in passing here the climacteric years of Jacob's life, namely 77 of his exile in Haran, 84 of his marriages with Rachel and Leah, 91 of the birth of Joseph, and 147 of his death. For all these years are septenaries, that is, seventh years, which physicians assert bring great change to a person, as they brought to Jacob here.
Jacob, fleeing Esau, went to Mesopotamia in the 77th year of his age. He remained there 20 years; then he returned to Canaan in the 97th year of his age. There he sojourned for ten years, and that apart from his father Isaac, because both were wealthy and had an abundance of flocks, for which the pastures of one and the same place would not have sufficed; nevertheless Jacob visited his father from time to time, both in person and through servants, messengers, and letters. After 10 years, namely in the 107th year of Jacob's age, in which year Rachel died and Benjamin was born, Jacob came to Hebron, to his father Isaac who was now failing from old age, intending to remain with him permanently: he remained with his father 13 years, after which Isaac died at the age of 180, which was the 120th year of Jacob and the 26th of Joseph.
The Hysteron Proteron of Isaac's Death
Again, in the same year in which Rachel died, the same year in which Benjamin was born, which was the 107th of Jacob, Joseph at the age of 16 was sold by his brothers and taken away to Egypt. Therefore when Isaac was dying, in the 180th year of his age, Joseph in Egypt was in his 13th year of servitude, the 29th of his age, which was the 527th year from the flood, and 2228 from the creation of the world. This is therefore a hysteron proteron: for the death of Isaac is placed here before what chronologically should have been placed after the sale of Joseph, near the end of chapter 40 of Genesis. So say Abulensis, Pererius, and others.
Verse 28: The Days of Isaac Were Completed
Verse 28. AND THE DAYS OF ISAAC WERE COMPLETED, ONE HUNDRED AND EIGHTY YEARS.
Verse 29: Worn Out with Age
Verse 29. And worn out with age, as the natural heat failed and the radical moisture dried up, which nourishes and preserves the natural heat, just as the flame of a lamp is fed by oil. He was gathered to his people, that is, to the fathers in Limbo. See what was said at chapter 25, verse 8. Isaac lived 180 years; we live 60 or 70. People complain that life is short, because all live for others, few for themselves: the reason is that they live as if they will live forever. Let them at least consider that saying of Seneca: The time of life either is, or was, or will be; what we are doing is brief; what we are about to do is uncertain; what we have done is certain. Why then, from this small and fleeting passage of time, do we not give ourselves with our whole soul to those things which are immense, which are eternal? What place awaits your soul after life, what lot expects you, where after death will nature, or rather God, place you?