Genesis 35:4

4 So they gave Jacob all the foreign gods they had and the rings in their ears, and Jacob buried them under the oak at Shechem.

Genesis 35:4 in Other Translations

King James Version (KJV)
4 And they gave unto Jacob all the strange gods which were in their hand, and all their earrings which were in their ears; and Jacob hid them under the oak which was by Shechem.
English Standard Version (ESV)
4 So they gave to Jacob all the foreign gods that they had, and the rings that were in their ears. Jacob hid them under the terebinth tree that was near Shechem.
New Living Translation (NLT)
4 So they gave Jacob all their pagan idols and earrings, and he buried them under the great tree near Shechem.
The Message Bible (MSG)
4 They turned over to Jacob all the alien gods they'd been holding on to, along with their lucky-charm earrings. Jacob buried them under the oak tree in Shechem.
American Standard Version (ASV)
4 And they gave unto Jacob all the foreign gods which were in their hand, and the rings which were in their ears; and Jacob hid them under the oak which was by Shechem.
GOD'S WORD Translation (GW)
4 So they gave Jacob all the foreign gods that they had in their possession as well as the earrings that they had on. Jacob buried these things under the oak tree near Shechem.
Holman Christian Standard Bible (CSB)
4 Then they gave Jacob all their foreign gods and their earrings, and Jacob hid them under the oak near Shechem.
New International Reader's Version (NIRV)
4 So they gave Jacob all of the strange gods they had. They also gave him their earrings. Jacob buried them under the oak tree at Shechem.

Genesis 35:4 Meaning and Commentary

Genesis 35:4

They gave unto Jacob all the strange gods which [were] in
their hands
Whether in the hands of his servants or of the captives taken at Shechem, or in the hands of his sons, who had them along with the spoil they took there; so the Targum of Jonathan,

``they delivered, into the hand of Jacob all the idols of the people which were in their hands, which they had took of the idols of Shechem:''

and [all their] earrings which [were] in their ears;
not the earrings that women wore in common, such as Abraham's servant gave to Rebekah, and which Jacob's wives might wear, for such were not unlawful; but either which were worn in the ears of the strange gods or idols; for such used, it seems, according to some writers, to be decorated and ornamented after that manner; or rather in the ears of the idolaters themselves, worn by them in a superstitious way, having the images of these idols on them: so the Targum of Jonathan,

``and the earrings which were in the ears of the inhabitants of the city of Shechem, in which were formed the likeness of their idols:''

and Jacob hid them under the oak which [was] by Shechem;
that is, the idols, which, after he had broke to pieces, perhaps, he dug a hole under an oak, and there buried them, that they might be no more made use of in an idolatrous way; and he chose to put them under an oak, because it is a tree which often stands many years before it is cut down, and besides was used for religious purposes, and had in great veneration, and therefore seldom felled. Those idols seem not to be made of anything valuable, perhaps of wood or stone, for had they been of gold or silver, Jacob would doubtless have melted them, and converted them to other uses, and not have buried them under ground. The Jews F20 say, that the idol Jacob hid under the oak was in the form of a dove, which the Samaritans after some time found, and set it on the top of Mount Gerizim. Some take this oak to be the same with that mentioned in ( Joshua 24:26 ) ; but of that there can be no certainty, since Jacob, as it is highly probable, laid these images alone, and never intended any should know anything of them where they were.


FOOTNOTES:

F20 Shalshalet Hakabala, fol. 3. 2.

Genesis 35:4 In-Context

2 So Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, “Get rid of the foreign gods you have with you, and purify yourselves and change your clothes.
3 Then come, let us go up to Bethel, where I will build an altar to God, who answered me in the day of my distress and who has been with me wherever I have gone.”
4 So they gave Jacob all the foreign gods they had and the rings in their ears, and Jacob buried them under the oak at Shechem.
5 Then they set out, and the terror of God fell on the towns all around them so that no one pursued them.
6 Jacob and all the people with him came to Luz (that is, Bethel) in the land of Canaan.

Cross References 3

  • 1. S Genesis 24:22; Exodus 32:3; Exodus 35:22; Judges 8:24; Proverbs 25:12
  • 2. ver 8
  • 3. S Genesis 12:6; Joshua 24:25-26
Scripture quoted by permission.  Quotations designated (NIV) are from THE HOLY BIBLE: NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®.  NIV®.  Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica.  All rights reserved worldwide.