Gen 35:2 Jacob said to all his family and all those who were with him, "Get rid of the foreign gods among you, and purify yourselves and change your clothes.
Gen 35:3 Let's get up and go to work. Go to Teri, where I will build an altar to God, the one who answered my prayer in the day of my trouble and was with me on my way.
Gen 35:4 So they gave Jacob all the foreign gods in their hands and the earrings in their ears. Jacob hid under the oak tree in Shechem.
at Gen 35:5, they set out. God terrified all the people in the surrounding cities, so they stopped pursuing the sons of Jacob.
Gen 35:6 So Jacob and all the people with him came to Lu Si (that is, Beth-El) in the land of Canaan. Terry.
Gen 35:7 He built an altar there, and called the name of that place Il? Bo? Terry; Because God appeared to him there when he fled from his brother.
God instructed Jacob to go to Bethel; Bethel, the day of Jacob's disaster, said, If I come back in peace, the stone I set up as a pillar will also be the temple of God. (Gen 28: 22) God reminded him of the oath he had made when he fled from his brother. God looked after him and gave Jacob food, clothing and wealth. At this time, Jacob came back from his mother's uncle's house and lived in Shechem in the land of Canaan for seven or eight years. He bought land. He also built an altar in memory of the God who appeared to him at Jabbok Ferry. But he seems to have forgotten the wish he made to God in Bethel. People forget, but God doesn't. So God called Jacob to go to Bethel to fulfill his vow.
As time goes by, we often forget the grace of God and the oath we made when we were first called. God loves us, and he often reminds us of what we have forgotten by circumstances, difficulties and frustrations. When we make an oath to God, we'd better not delay. "It's better not to make a wish." (Ecclesiastes 5: 4-5)
God instructed Jacob to go to Bethel and where to stay, because God had promised him the place to lie down and give it to him and his descendants. Not only will he go himself, but he will also lead the whole family to go up and worship there. Bethel is the temple of God. When people go to the temple of God, they must not only have an external appearance, but also get rid of foreign idols, clean themselves, change their clothes, worship God cleanly, neatly and solemnly, and more importantly, get rid of invisible idols in their hearts and serve God with a clean heart.
Jacob, his family and all the people who were with him removed the foreign idols according to Jacob's command. And hand over the earrings and hide them under the oak tree in Shechem. We should also lead the whole family to worship in the temple of God in Bethel, which is our duty.
so they set out, and god terrified all the surrounding cities, so they stopped pursuing Jacob's sons. From the front, we can see that Dinah, the daughter of Jacob, was defiled by the prince of Shechem, and Jacob's sons killed all the males in Shechem with clever tricks. Jacob was afraid of their revenge and killed his whole family. God knows Jacob's weakness and fear best. Last time he was afraid of his brother Esau, God named him Israel, which made him strong and victorious. This time, God asked him to go to the temple of God in Bethel to get God's protection, and God served as his refuge, escape from the city, solid guarantee and dispel his fears. On the contrary, they put fear in the hearts of their enemies. Those who avenge the blood of Shechem are afraid to pursue Jacob's sons. They are bound by God's power, although this is a good opportunity to attack Jacob. If God does not allow it, who will dare to be our enemy?
Jacob and them came to Lu Si, which is Bethel in the land of Canaan, where they fulfilled their vows and built an altar, and named the place Elizabeth-the God of Bethel.
The scriptures here give us great encouragement and comfort.
the god of Bethel is omniscient, omnipresent and omnipotent. He knows our weakness and fear. No matter where we are, God is with us, high or low. He defeated the enemy forces in front of us, fought for us, and put fear in the enemy's heart. What are we afraid of? Who dares to be our enemy? This god is a holy god, completely different from idols. We should worship him with holy decorations. Let the God of Bethel be our strength. Let's live in the temple of God all our lives and admire his beauty.