May the mumbling commence!
How well do we deal with grief when it enters our
lives? Because, sooner or later, grief
will enter – ready or not. It was true
for Jacob; it’s true for us as well.
Read from Peterson’s The Message:
They left Bethel. They were still quite a ways from Ephrath
when Rachel went into labor – hard, hard labor. When her labor pains were at their worst,
the midwife said to her, “Don’t be afraid – you
have another boy.”
With her last breath, for she was now dying, she named him
Ben-oni (Son-of-My-Pain),
but his father named him Ben-jamin (Son-of-Good-Fortune).
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.”
Israel
kept on his way and set up camp at Migdal Eder. While
Israel was living in that region, Reuben went and slept with his father’s
concubine, Bilhah. And Israel heard of
what he did.
There
were
twelve sons of
Jacob.
The
sons
by Leah:
Reuben, Jacob’s firstborn, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun.
The
sons
by Rachel:
Joseph, Benjamin.
The
sons
by Bilhah, Rachel’s
maid:
Dan, Naphtali.
The
sons
by Zilpah, Leah’s
maid:
Gad,
Asher.
These
were
Jacob’s sons, born
to him in Paddan Aram.
Finally,
Jacob made it back
home to his father Isaac at Mamre in Kiriath Arba, present-day Hebron,
where Abraham and Isaac had lived. Isaac was now 180 years old. Isaac breathed
his last and died – an old man full of years.
He was buried
with his family by his
sons Esau and Jacob. (Genesis 35:16-29)
Now read the same passage from the NIV translation:
Then they moved on from Bethel. While they
were still some distance from Ephrath, Rachel began
to give birth and had great difficulty. And
as she was having great difficulty in childbirth, the midwife said to her, "Don't be afraid, for you have another
son." As
she breathed her last – for she was dying –
she named her son
Ben-Oni. But his father named him Benjamin.
So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that
is, Bethlehem). Over her tomb Jacob set up
a pillar, and to this day that pillar marks
Rachel's tomb.
Israel moved on again and
pitched his tent beyond Migdal
Eder. While
Israel was living in that region, Reuben went in
and slept with his father's concubine Bilhah, and
Israel heard of it.
Jacob had
twelve sons:
The sons of
Leah:
Reuben the firstborn of Jacob, Simeon,
Levi, Judah, Issachar and Zebulun.
The sons of
Rachel:
Joseph and Benjamin.
The sons of Rachel's maidservant
Bilhah:
Dan and Naphtali.
The sons of
Leah's maidservant
Zilpah:
Gad and Asher.
These were the sons of Jacob, who were born
to him in Paddan Aram.
Jacob came home to his father Isaac in Mamre, near Kiriath Arba (that is, Hebron), where Abraham and Isaac had
stayed. Isaac lived a hundred and eighty years. Then he breathed his last and died and was gathered to his people, old
and full of years.
And his sons Esau
and Jacob buried him. (Genesis
35:16-29)
Son of pain… that says it all. But Jacob names him son of good fortune
instead. As Jacob moves on from the
death of his beloved, he is finally referred to as Israel. It’s the first time that happens other than
God telling Jacob his name will be Israel.
Jacob’s beloved wife, Rachel, did not get “gathered to
her people”. She was buried alone in a
roadside grave. She did not join Sarah
and Abraham and Isaac and Rebekah.
Rachel was not God’s wife of the covenant promise. Jacob… Israel was beginning to realize that.
Sadness brought Israel closer to God and Esau
and Jacob closer together.
In our sadness, let’s find ways to bond with God and
with our brothers and sisters.
Enough mumbling for now…
Peace Out
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