35:16 They traveled on from Bethel, and when Ephrath was still some distance away, 3 Rachel went into labor 4 – and her labor was hard.
1 sn Called the name of the place. In view of the previous naming of Bethel in Gen 28:19, here Jacob was confirming or affirming the name through an official ritual marking the fulfillment of the vow. This place now did become Bethel, the house of God.
2 tn The name Bethel means “house of God” in Hebrew.
map For location see Map4-G4; Map5-C1; Map6-E3; Map7-D1; Map8-G3.
3 tn Heb “and there was still a stretch of the land to go to Ephrath.”
4 tn Normally the verb would be translated “she gave birth,” but because that obviously had not happened yet, it is better to translate the verb as ingressive, “began to give birth” (cf. NIV) or “went into labor.”