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1God said to Jacob, “Arise, go up to Bethel, and live there. Make there an altar to God, who appeared to you when you fled from the face of Esau your brother.”

2Then Jacob said to his household, and to all who were with him, “Put away the foreign gods that are among you, purify yourselves, and change your garments. 3Let’s arise, and go up to Bethel. I will make there an altar to God, who answered me in the day of my distress, and was with me on the way which I went.”

4They gave to Jacob all the foreign gods which were in their hands, and the rings which were in their ears; and Jacob hid them under the oak which was by Shechem. 5They traveled, and a terror of God was on the cities that were around them, and they didn’t pursue the sons of Jacob. 6So Jacob came to Luz (that is, Bethel), which is in the land of Canaan, he and all the people who were with him. 7He built an altar there, and called the place El Beth El; because there God was revealed to him, when he fled from the face of his brother. 8Deborah, Rebekah’s nurse, died, and she was buried below Bethel under the oak; and its name was called Allon Bacuth.

9God appeared to Jacob again, when he came from Paddan Aram, and blessed him. 10God said to him, “Your name is Jacob. Your name shall not be Jacob any more, but your name will be Israel.” He named him Israel. 11God said to him, “I am God Almighty. Be fruitful and multiply. A nation and a company of nations will be from you, and kings will come out of your body. 12The land which I gave to Abraham and Isaac, I will give it to you, and to your offspring after you I will give the land.”

13God went up from him in the place where he spoke with him. 14Jacob set up a pillar in the place where he spoke with him, a pillar of stone. He poured out a drink offering on it, and poured oil on it. 15Jacob called the name of the place where God spoke with him “Bethel”.

16They traveled from Bethel. There was still some distance to come to Ephrath, and Rachel travailed. She had hard labor. 17When she was in hard labor, the midwife said to her, “Don’t be afraid, for now you will have another son.”

18As her soul was departing (for she died), she named him Benoni, but his father named him Benjamin. 19Rachel died, and was buried on the way to Ephrath (also called Bethlehem). 20Jacob set up a pillar on her grave. The same is the Pillar of Rachel’s grave to this day. 21Israel traveled, and spread his tent beyond the tower of Eder. 22While Israel lived in that land, Reuben went and lay with Bilhah, his father’s concubine, and Israel heard of it.

Now the sons of Jacob were twelve. 23The sons of Leah: Reuben (Jacob’s firstborn), Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun. 24The sons of Rachel: Joseph and Benjamin. 25The sons of Bilhah (Rachel’s servant): Dan and Naphtali. 26The sons of Zilpah (Leah’s servant): Gad and Asher. These are the sons of Jacob, who were born to him in Paddan Aram. 27Jacob came to Isaac his father, to Mamre, to Kiriath Arba (which is Hebron), where Abraham and Isaac lived as foreigners.

28The days of Isaac were one hundred eighty years. 29Isaac gave up the spirit and died, and was gathered to his people, old and full of days. Esau and Jacob, his sons, buried him.

Person

Solomon

Also called Jedidiah
Lived
1035 BC – 975 BC (approximate)
Born
Jerusalem
Died
Jerusalem
Father David
Mother Bathsheba
Spouse Naamah
Biography | R. Mark Musser

King David's son, Solomon, was born of Bathsheba (2 Sam 5:14). Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all of Israel for 40 years circa 971-931 B.C.  Solomon was graciously blessed by God to become the wisest man ever to live. (1 Kings 3:1-15; Eccl 2:9) Being the kingly son of David, Solomon also received the benefits of the Davidic Covenant. (1 Chr 17:1-27; Ps 89) He and his kingdom of peace (1 Kings 4:20-25) thus became a Messianic type of God's coming eschatological kingdom prophesied throughout the Old Testament (Isa 2:1-4; 11:1-10) - the very kingdom offered by Jesus to the nation of Israel in the New Testament. (Mark 1:14-15; Luke 1:29-33) Solomon also built the first Jerusalem Temple that remained until the time of the Babylonian invasion when King Nebuchadnezzar destroyed it in 586 B.C. (1-2 Kings) Solomon became a prolific author of Scripture who wrote much of the book of Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon, Psalms 72, and Psalms 127. According to Jewish tradition, the final version of the book of Job may also have been put together by Solomon and/or during the time of his administration. Solomon's reign was internationally renowned at the time for being a most glorious kingdom so that Israel became a Messianic light to the nations. (1 Kings 10; 2 Chr 9:22) Late in life, however, Solomon contradicted his own wisdom by disobeying the Lord. In disobedience to the Torah, Solomon multiplied horses, wives, and gold for himself. (Deut 17:14-20; 2 Chr 9:13-28) Worst of all, he imported idolatry into Israel through his international marriage alliances. (1 Kings 11:1-8) His secular kingdom pursuits also dulled his earlier spirituality. (Eccl 2:1-7) Because of Solomon's disobedience, God divided the great unity achieved by King David, but waited until after his death to do so (1 Kings 11-12). After Solomon's death, Israel will be divided between the north and south, between what was called the northern kingdom of Israel/Ephraim and the southern kingdom of Judah.

Person & place data: Theographic Bible Metadata by Robert Rouse (Viz.Bible), CC BY-SA 4.0.