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Text critical issues=none Clarity of original=clearImportance=normal (All still tentative.)
OET (OET-RV)Then Rebekah’s nurseDeborahdied and was buried under the oak tree below Beyt-el so he named the place ‘Allon Bakut’ (which means ‘oak of weeping’).
Key: khaki:verbs.
Note: Automatic aligning of the OET-RV to the LV is done by some temporary software, hence the OET-RV alignments are incomplete (and may occasionally be wrong).
BrTrAnd Deborrha, Rebecca's nurse, died, and was buried below Bæthel under the oak; and Jacob called its name, The Oak of Mourning.
ULTThen Deborah, the nurse of Rebekah, died and was buried below Bethel, under the oak tree. So he called its name Allon Bacuth.
USTWhile they were there, Deborah died. She was the servant that had helped raise Jacob’s mother Rebekah when she was young. Jacob buried her body at the base of an oak tree, in the valley near the town of Bethel. So he named the place Allon Bacuth, which means “oak tree of mourning.”
BSB § Now Deborah, Rebekah’s nurse, died and was buried under the oak [fn] below Bethel. So Jacob named it Allon-bachuth.[fn]
NET(Deborah, Rebekah’s nurse, died and was buried under the oak below Bethel; thus it was named Oak of Weeping.)
LSVAnd Deborah, Rebekah’s nurse, dies, and she is buried at the lower part of Bethel, under the oak, and he calls its name “Oak of Weeping.”
FBVDeborah, Rebekah's nurse, died and was buried under the oak near Bethel. So it was named “the oak of weeping.”
T4TDeborah, who had taken care of Isaac’s wife Rebekah when Rebekah was a small girl, was now very old. She died and was buried under an oak tree south of Bethel. So they named that place Allon-Bacuth, which means ‘oak of weeping’.
LEBAnd Deborah, the nurse of Rebekah, died. And she was buried below Bethel, under the oak. And its name was called Allon-Bacuth.[fn]
BBEAnd Deborah, the servant who had taken care of Rebekah from her birth, came to her end, and was put to rest near Beth-el, under the holy tree: and they gave it the name of Allon-bacuth.
JPSAnd Deborah Rebekah's nurse died, and she was buried below Beth-el under the oak; and the name of it was called Allon-bacuth.
ASVAnd Deborah Rebekah’s nurse died, and she was buried below Beth-el under the oak: and the name of it was called Allon-bacuth.
DRAAt the same time Debora 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.
YLTAnd Deborah, Rebekah's nurse, dieth, and she is buried at the lower part of Bethel, under the oak, and he calleth its name 'Oak of weeping.'
DrbyAnd Deborah, Rebecca's nurse, died; and she was buried beneath Bethel, under the oak; and the name of it was called Allon-bachuth.
RVAnd Deborah Rebekah’s nurse died, and she was buried below Beth-el under the oak: and the name of it was called Allon-bacuth.
WbstrBut Deborah, Rebekah's nurse, died, and she was buried beneath Beth-el, under an oak: and the name of it was called Allon-bachuth.
KJB-1769But Deborah Rebekah’s nurse died, and she was buried beneath Beth-el under an oak: and the name of it was called Allon-bachuth.[fn]
KJB-1611[fn]But Deborah Rebekahs nurse died, and she was buried beneath Bethel vnder an oke: and the name of it was called Allon Bachuth. (But Deborah Rebekahs nurse died, and she was buried beneath Bethel under an oak: and the name of it was called Allon Bachuth.)
BshpsBut Debora Rebeccas nurse died, and was buryed beneath Bethel vnder an oke: and the name of it was called, the oke of lamentation. (But Debora Rebeccas nurse died, and was buried beneath Bethel under an oak: and the name of it was called, the oak of lamentation.)
GnvaThen Deborah Rebekahs nourse dyed, and was buried beneath Beth-el vnder an oke: and he called the name of it Allon Bachuth. (Then Deborah Rebekahs nourse died, and was buried beneath Beth-el under an oak: and he called the name of it Allon Bachuth. )
CvdlThen dyed Debora Rebeccas norse, and was buried beneth Bethel vnder the Oke, and it was called the Oke of lamentacion. (Then died Debora Rebeccas norse, and was buried beneth Bethel under the Oak, and it was called the Oak of lamentacion.)
WyclDelbora, the nurische of Rebecca, diede in the same tyme, and sche was biried at the roote of Bethel, vndir an ook, and the name of the place was clepid The ook of wepyng. (Delbora, the nurische of Rebecca, diede in the same time, and she was buried at the root of Bethel, undir an oak, and the name of the place was called The oak of weeping.)
LuthDa starb Debora, der Rebekka Amme, und ward begraben unter Bethel, unter der Eiche; und ward, genannt die Klageiche. (So died Debora, the/of_the Rebekka Amme, and what/which buried under Bethel, under the/of_the Eiche; and ward, genannt the Klageiche.)
ClVgEodem tempore mortua est Debora nutrix Rebeccæ, et sepulta est ad radices Bethel subter quercum: vocatumque est nomen loci illius, Quercus fletus. (Eodem tempore mortua it_is Debora nutrix Rebeccæ, and sepulta it_is to radices Bethel subter quercum: vocatumque it_is nomen loci illius, Quercus fletus. )
35:1-29 This chapter highlights God’s promises, Jacob’s vow, and the transition to Jacob’s sons’ carrying on the covenant. Deborah, Rachel, and Isaac all died, marking the end of an era and of the account of Isaac’s family (25:19–35:29). • Idols were removed (35:1-4) and pure worship was established (35:6-7). During this transition, the faith had to be revitalized so that the covenant could be carried forward by Jacob’s sons.
Alternate translation: “and her body was buried by Jacob in the ground” or “They buried her body in the ground”
מִתַּ֥חַת לְבֵֽית אֵ֖ל
from=under of, אֵל
The town of Bethel was built on a hill, so the phrase below Bethel means that Deborah was buried near Bethel, in a valley or place that was lower in elevation than the town, and possibly to the south of it. Alternate translation: “in the valley below the town of Bethel,” or “at a place south of the town of Bethel,”
See how you translated a similar phrase (“under the terebinth/oak tree”) in verse 4. Many translations translate this phrase the same way in both places (“under an oak tree”), even though different Hebrew words are used for the type of tree. Also, for some languages it is more natural to put this phrase before the previous phrase and say, “at the base of an oak tree, below/near the town of Bethel.” Do what is best in your language. Alternate translation: “beside an oak tree” or “at the foot of an oak tree.”
וַיִּקְרָ֥א שְׁמ֖וֹ
and=he/it_called his/its=name
The Hebrew text is ambiguous here. It could mean: (1) that people in general called the tree or place Allon Bacuth; or (2) that Jacob was the one who named the place. See how you translated a similar clause in Gen 31:38. Alternate translation: “So he named the tree” or “That is why the place is known as”
If you include the meaning of this name in your translation text or in a footnote, make sure it fits with how you translated oak tree in the previous sentence.
As with many of the stories of the Bible, the events of Jacob’s life are often misunderstood by readers as disjointed pericopes arranged primarily for theological and cultural purposes. Because of this, readers often fail to see that these stories follow a clear geographical progression of the patriarch throughout the land of Canaan. This realistic and coherent geographical framework behind the stories gives strong support to the belief that these stories are authentic, historical accounts of the experiences of Jacob and his ancestors. The overall framework for virtually all of Jacob’s stories is very simple: Jacob is born and raised in southern Canaan but comes into conflict with his twin brother Esau, so he flees to Paddan-aram in Mesopotamia (Genesis 25-28; see “Jacob Goes to Paddan-Aram” map). There he builds a large family and great wealth (Genesis 29-30) and eventually returns to southern Canaan, likely retracing the exact steps he followed when he fled (Genesis 31-35; see also “Jacob Returns to Canaan” map). During this time, Esau moves to the hill country of Seir, likely just south of southern Canaan (“Edom and the Land of Seir” map), and establishes his own family there, giving rise to the nation of Edom (Genesis 36). Though the primary intent of Jacob’s return was no doubt to resettle in Canaan, comments made during his reunion with Esau near Peniel may reveal that he also intended to travel even further to Seir to visit his brother there (Genesis 33:12-14). After crossing from Mahanaim to Peniel in Gilead, Jacob reunites with Esau and settles in Succoth for a time and builds a house for himself and booths for his cattle. He eventually crosses the Jordan River and enters Canaan, stopping first at the ancient city of Shechem. There Jacob’s daughter Dinah is defiled by the son of the region’s leader, and her brothers take revenge by killing all the men of the city. Thus, Jacob is forced to leave, but first he calls upon all his household to purify themselves. He collects their idols and rings and buries them beneath a tree in Shechem. Upon reaching Bethel, Jacob builds an altar and calls it El-bethel. The nurse of Jacob’s mother Rebekah also dies at Bethel and is buried under an oak below the town, leading them to call the place Allon-bacuth (“oak of weeping”). Jacob and his family leave for Bethlehem, but very soon after they start the journey Rachel gives birth to Benjamin and then dies. Jacob buries her along the way, apparently near a place called Zelzah (or perhaps Elzah; see 1 Samuel 10 and “Saul Search for His Donkeys” map). Jacob continues on and camps beyond the tower of Eder, perhaps near Bethlehem, since that seems to have been his original destination. Finally Jacob reaches Mamre and Hebron. Soon after this Isaac dies, and Esau and Jacob bury him. The story of Jacob’s journey ends at Genesis 35, and we are not explicitly told if Jacob traveled even further to Seir. Genesis 36, however, catalogs the descendants of Esau, the Edomites, perhaps indicating that Jacob did indeed fulfill the intentions he stated in Genesis 33:12-14.
Though the patriarch Isaac moved from place to place several times within southern Canaan, compared to his father Abraham and his son Jacob, Isaac appears to have been a bit of a homebody. In fact, unless Isaac resettled in places not recorded in Scripture, the farthest extent he ever traveled appears to have been only about 90 miles (113 km). Yet, as the child of God’s promise to Abraham to build a great nation from his descendants, Isaac’s relatively simple life served as a critical bridge from Abraham to the beginnings of the twelve tribes of Israel, who were descended from Isaac’s son Jacob. It is likely that Isaac was born at Beersheba (see Genesis 21:1-24), and later Abraham offered him as a sacrifice on Mount Moriah (located at Jerusalem; see 2 Chronicles 3:1). Then Abraham, Isaac, and those with them returned to Beersheba (Genesis 22:1-19). When Isaac reached adulthood, his father sent a servant to bring back a bride for him from Aram-naharaim, far north of Canaan. When his bride, Rebekah, arrived, Isaac had just come from Beer-lahai-roi and settled in the Negev (Genesis 24:62). Later Isaac resettled with Rebekah in Beer-lahai-roi, and this may have been where their twins son Esau and Jacob were born. A famine forced Isaac to go to Gerar (Genesis 26:1-6) in “the land of the Philistines.” The distinct people group known as the Philistines in later books of the Bible did not arrive until the time of the Judges, so the term here must have referred to another people group living in this region, and this is supported by the fact that King Abimelech’s name is Semitic, not Aegean (the likely origin of the later Philistines). While Isaac was there, he repeated his father’s error (Genesis 20) by lying to the king that his wife was only his sister. Isaac also became increasingly prosperous at Gerar, so the Philistines told him to leave their region. Isaac moved away from the town of Gerar and settled further away in the valley of Gerar. There he dug a well, but the Philistines claimed it for themselves, so he called it Esek, meaning “argument.” So Isaac’s men dug another well and called it Sitnah (meaning “hostility”), but it led to more quarreling, so he dug yet another well and called it Rehoboth (meaning “open space”). The locations of these two later wells are not certain, but they may have been located near Ruheibeh as shown on this map. Then Isaac moved to Beersheba and built an altar. He also dug a well there, and King Abimelech of the Philistines came and exchanged oaths of peace with him. It was likely at Beersheba that Isaac blessed his sons Esau and Jacob, and both sons eventually left Canaan (see “Jacob Goes to Paddan-Aram” map). When Jacob later returned, he traveled to Mamre near Hebron and reunited with Isaac. Sometime after this Isaac died, and Jacob and Esau buried him there.
