And he erected there an altar
To offer sacrifice upon to God, by way of thanksgiving, for the
many mercies he had received since he went out of the land of
Canaan, whither he was now returned; and especially for his
safety in journeying hither from Padanaram, and for deliverance
from Laban and Esau, and for all other favours that he and his
had been partakers of. And this he also erected for the sake of
religious worship, to be continued in his family; he intending to
reside here for some time, as appears by the purchase he had
made, and as it is certain he did: and called it
Elelohe-Israel:
God, the God of Israel; that is, he called the altar the altar of
God, who is the God of Israel, who had been his God, his
preserver and protector; and had lately given him the name of
Israel, and had made good what answered to it, and was designed
by it, that as he had had power with God, and prevailed, so he
should with man; and as a memorial of all these favours and
mercies, he erected this altar, and devoted it to God and his
service, and called it by this name: or "he called upon God, the
God of Israel", as the Septuagint and Vulgate Latin versions; he
prayed unto him at the time he offered sacrifice on the altar,
and gave him praise for all the great and good things he had done
for him. Jacob must have stayed at Succoth, and at this place,
many years, especially at the latter; since, when he came into
those parts, Dinah was a child of little more than six years of
age, and Simeon and Levi were very young, not above eleven or
twelve years of age; and yet, before he left Shechem, Dinah was
marriageable, and Simeon and Levi were grown strong and able
bodied men, and did a most strange exploit in slaying all the
males in Shechem, as recorded in the next chapter.