Genesis 8:20

8:20 Noah built an altar to the Lord. He then took some of every kind of clean animal and clean bird and offered burnt offerings on the altar. 1 

Genesis 13:18

13:18 So Abram moved his tents and went to live 2  by the oaks 3  of Mamre in Hebron, and he built an altar to the Lord there.

Genesis 26:25

26:25 Then Isaac built an altar there and worshiped 4  the Lord. He pitched his tent there, and his servants dug a well. 5 

Genesis 33:17

33:17 But 6  Jacob traveled to Succoth 7  where he built himself a house and made shelters for his livestock. That is why the place was called 8  Succoth. 9 

Genesis 35:7

35:7 He built an altar there and named the place El Bethel 10  because there God had revealed himself 11  to him when he was fleeing from his brother.

1 sn Offered burnt offerings on the altar. F. D. Maurice includes a chapter on the sacrifice of Noah in The Doctrine of Sacrifice. The whole burnt offering, according to Leviticus 1, represented the worshiper’s complete surrender and dedication to the Lord. After the flood Noah could see that God was not only a God of wrath, but a God of redemption and restoration. The one who escaped the catastrophe could best express his gratitude and submission through sacrificial worship, acknowledging God as the sovereign of the universe.

2 tn Heb “he came and lived.”

3 tn Or “terebinths.”

4 tn Heb “called in the name of.” The expression refers to worshiping the Lord through prayer and sacrifice (see Gen 4:26; 12:8; 13:4; 21:33). See G. J. Wenham, Genesis (WBC), 1:116.

5 tn Heb “and they dug there, the servants of Isaac, a well.”

6 tn The disjunctive clause contrasts Jacob’s action with Esau’s.

7 sn But Jacob traveled to Succoth. There are several reasons why Jacob chose not to go to Mt. Seir after Esau. First, as he said, his herds and children probably could not keep up with the warriors. Second, he probably did not fully trust his brother. The current friendliness could change, and he could lose everything. And third, God did tell him to return to his land, not Seir. But Jacob is still not able to deal truthfully, probably because of fear of Esau.

8 tn Heb “why he called.” One could understand “Jacob” as the subject of the verb, but it is more likely that the subject is indefinite, in which case the verb is better translated as passive.

9 sn The name Succoth means “shelters,” an appropriate name in light of the shelters Jacob built there for his livestock.

10 sn The name El-Bethel means “God of Bethel.”

11 tn Heb “revealed themselves.” The verb נִגְלוּ (niglu), translated “revealed himself,” is plural, even though one expects the singular form with the plural of majesty. Perhaps אֱלֹהִים (’elohim) is here a numerical plural, referring both to God and the angelic beings that appeared to Jacob. See the note on the word “know” in Gen 3:5.