Why did Jacob build an altar in Genesis 35:7? Canonical Text “Jacob built an altar there and called the place El-bethel, because it was there that God had revealed Himself to him when he was fleeing from his brother.” (Genesis 35:7) Narrative Setting Jacob has just led his household from Shechem to Bethel following God’s direct command to “go up to Bethel and settle there” (35:1). Along the way, the terror of God falls on the surrounding cities so that no one pursues them (35:5). Arriving safely, Jacob immediately erects an altar. Purpose 1 – Covenant Renewal after Divine Command Altars throughout Genesis function as covenantal markers (cf. 12:7; 26:25; 33:20). At Bethel God had promised Jacob protection, offspring, and the land (28:13–15). Two decades later, every pledge has begun fulfillment—wives, sons, wealth, and rescue from Esau. Building the altar publicly re-ratifies Jacob’s acceptance of the terms: Yahweh alone will be his God (28:21). The act signals obedience to the explicit imperative God has just issued (35:1) and parallels Israel’s later altar-based covenant ratification at Sinai (Exodus 24:4). Purpose 2 – Memorializing a Specific Theophany “God … revealed Himself to him.” The Hebrew niglû (“was revealed”) recalls the ladder-vision (28:10-22). In patriarchal times a theophany characteristically generated a physical memorial so that future generations could identify the precise site (cf. 13:18; 26:24–25). By naming the place El-bethel (“God of Bethel”), Jacob anchors the memory of the encounter in geography and vocabulary. Purpose 3 – Thanksgiving for Deliverance Jacob’s flight from Laban and dread of Esau had ended without bloodshed (32–33). The altar provides a venue for peace offerings (zebah shĕlamîm) signifying gratitude (Leviticus 7:11-15). Genesis emphasizes “the God who answered me in my distress and has been with me wherever I have gone” (35:3). The altar is thus a tangible thank-you note. Purpose 4 – Purging Idolatry and Re-centering Worship Immediately prior, Jacob buries foreign idols under the oak near Shechem (35:4). An altar at Bethel formalizes the shift from syncretism to exclusive Yahweh-worship, prefiguring Joshua’s covenant renewal at Shechem (Joshua 24:23–27). The sequence—discard idols, purify garments, build altar—illustrates repentance, cleansing, and worship. Purpose 5 – Corporate Instruction for Household and Nations With multiple wives, servants, and eleven adult sons present, Jacob’s altar becomes a didactic tool: every new generation witnesses the patriarch’s public allegiance. Later, Israelite altars will be inscribed with the law (Deuteronomy 27:2-8). Likewise, this altar conveys doctrinal content physically. Archaeological Parallels • Unhewn-stone four-horned altars at Tel Arad (Stratum XII, c. 14th century BC) and Beersheba (dismantled eighth-century altar re-assembled in the Israel Museum) match Exodus 20:25’s command regarding uncut stones and provide material parallels to patriarchal practice. • Anthropologists note “standing-stone shrines” at Ebla and Mari; tablets ARM 2 37, 8–12 mention personal altars dedicated to a family deity, corroborating Genesis’ portrayal of private altars long before Solomon’s Temple. • Egyptian execration texts (19th–18th century BC) list Canaanite towns such as “Luz/Bethel,” attesting to the site’s existence during Jacob’s lifetime (Ussher dating c. 1910–1770 BC). Typological and Christological Trajectory Altars anticipate ultimate sacrifice. Hebrews 13:10 speaks of a superior altar fulfilled in Christ. Jacob’s altar, built because God preserved him from death, foreshadows the cross where God Himself provides final rescue. The memorial name El-bethel anticipates Immanuel, “God with us.” Summary Jacob built the altar at Bethel to obey God’s command, renew the covenant, thank Yahweh for deliverance, eradicate idolatry, instruct his household, and anchor a historical theophany. Archaeology confirms the plausibility of such private altars in second-millennium Canaan, manuscript evidence upholds the text’s accuracy, and the episode fits seamlessly into Scripture’s unified redemptive arc culminating in Christ. |
    |