Rashi on TanakhGenesis 35

Arise, go up. Because you lingered on your journey, you have been punished and this [trouble] of your daughter has come to you.

The foreign. Which you possess from the spoils of Shechem.

Purify yourselves. From idol worship.

And change your garments. Lest you have in your possession a garment used in idol worship.

The oak [tree]. It is a kind of non-fruit bearing tree.

Near (lit. with) Shechem. [Meaning:] near Shechem.

The terror. [Meaning:] the fear of.

Eil Beis Eil. [Meaning:] God is in Beis Eil. His Divine Presence is revealed in Beis Eil. Sometimes a word will be missing the prefix בי"ת as in “Behold he is [in the] house of Mochir ben Amiel,” meaning: in the house of Mochir. [or] בֵּית אָבִיךְ —the house of your father, the same as בְּבֵית אָבִיךְ —in the house of your father.

Elohim was revealed to him. In many cases nouns denoting Divine Power and mastery take the plural form, as in, “Yoseif’s master” [or] “If his master is with him,” and it does not say בְּעָלוֹ [the singular form]. Similarly אֱלָהוּת which is a term denoting Judge or Authority is [sometimes] mentioned in the plural form. However, of all the other Divine Names you will find none in the plural form.

Devorah died. What was Devorah doing in the House of Yaakov? But, because Rivkah had told Yaakov, “I will send for you and take you from there,” she, therefore, sent Devorah to him to Padan Aram [to tell him] to depart from there and she died on the [return] journey. I learned this from the words of R. Moshe Hadarshan.

Below Beis Eil. The city is situated on a mountain and she was buried at the foot of the mountain.

Under Allon. [Onkelos translates it:] בְּשִׁפּוּלֵי מֵישְׁרָא —on the lower plain, for there was a plain high on the slope of the mountain. and her burial was beneath [the plain] The plain of Beis Eil was called Allon. An Aggadaic explanation is that there he received tidings of another mourning—he was told that his mother had died—Allon in Greek means another. It is for the following reason that the date of her death was kept secret so that people not curse the womb from which Eisov was born. Scripture, too, does not reveal it.

Again. A second time at this place—once at his departure and once upon his return.

And He blessed him. The blessing given to mourners.

No longer will your name be Yaakov. Which is a term denoting a person who comes in ambush and deceit, but, rather [יִשְׂרָאֵל —Yisrael,] a term denoting a prince and a leader.

I am Almighty Shaddai. For I have the power to bless because the blessings are Mine.

Be fruitful and increase. [This blessing was necessary] because Binyamin had not yet been born, though she had already conceived him.

A nation. [Referring to] Binyamin.

Nations. [This refers to] Menasheh and Ephraim who are destined to come from Yoseif and be counted as [separate] tribes.

And kings. [Referring to] Shaul and Ish boshes who were from the tribe of Binyamin who had not yet been born. (This was the verse that Avner interpreted when he made Ish boshes king. The Tribes of Israel also interpreted it thus and reconciled with Binyamin, for it is written: “None of us may give his daughter to Binyamin as a wife.” They then retracted and said, “If he were not meant to be counted among the Tribes, God would not have said to Yaakov, ‘And kings will come out of your loins.’”

A nation and a community of nations. For his descendants are destined to become nations the same number as the nations [of the world]—seventy. So, too, the entire Sanhedrin was made up of seventy. An alternate explanation [of גוֹי וּקְהַל גוֹיִם]: His descendants are destined to offer sacrifices when provisional altars were prohibited as do the Gentiles. [This occurred] in the days of Eliyahu. (From an old version of Rashi.)

At the place where He had spoken to him. I do not know what this teaches us.

A stretch of land. Menachem explains [כִּבְרַת] from the word כַּבִיר —“much” [meaning:] a great distance. An Aggadaic explanation is [that כִּבְרַת means:] at the time that the earth is porous and is riddled with holes like a sieve [כְּבָרָה], [i.e.,] because plowing is prevalent—the winter has passed and the hot weather has not yet arrived. However, this is not the plain meaning of the verse, for concerning Na’aman we find: “He departed from him כִּבְרַת אָרֶץ .” I say that it refers to a measure of land—a distance of about a parsah or more. Just as you say צִמְדֵּי כֶרֶם —acres of vineyards, or חֶלְקַת הַשָּׂדֶה —section of the field, so, too, when expressing distance traveled the measure used is כִּבְרַת אָרֶץ.

For this one will also be. In addition to Yoseif. Our Sages, however, explain it that with each of Yaakov’s sons a twin-sister was born, and with Benjamin an additional twin-sister was born.

Ben Oni. [Meaning:] son of my anguish.

Binyomin. It seems to me that since only he was born in the Land of Canaan which is south to one coming from Aram Naharayim, as it is said: “In the South in the Land of Canaan” [or] “Traveling steadily southward.” Binyomin. [He is therefore called בִּנְיָמִין,] a contraction of בֶּן יְמִין, from: “North and יְמִין You have created them.” It is for this reason that it is written full.

Yaakov was settled in that land. Prior to his coming to Chevron to Yitzchok, all these [events] happened to him.

Lay near. Because he [Reuven] disturbed his [Yaakov’s] sleeping arrangement Scripture considers it as if he had been with her. But, why did he disturb and profane [Yaakov’s] couch-bed? Because when Rachel died Yaakov took his bed, which was always located in Rachel’s tent and not in the other tents, and placed it in Bilhah’s tent. Reuven, then came, and protested his mother’s humiliation. He said, “If my mother’s sister was my mother’s co-wife, [does that mean that] the handmaiden of my mother’s sister shall [also] be my mother’s co-wife? For this reason he disturbed [the sleeping arrangement].

The sons of Yaakov were twelve. [Scripture now] begins the previous narrative. With the birth of Binyamin the “bed” [the destined number of offspring] was complete and they were now fit to be enumerated and it goes on to enumerate them. Our Sages explain: This comes to teach us that they were all equal and all righteous, for Reuven is not considered to have sinned.

Yaakov’s firstborn. Even when relating his iniquity he is called the firstborn.

Yaakov’s firstborn. The firstborn in regard to inheritance; the firstborn in regard to Divine Service; the firstborn in regard to enumeration. The right of the firstborn was given to Yoseif only in regard to tribes—that he became two tribes.

Mamrei. The name of the plain.

Kiryas Arba. The name of the city. [Therefore,] Mamrei Kiryas HaArba [means] to the plain of Kiryas Arba. Should you ask, it should have been written: Mamrei HaKiryas Arba? [I would answer:] this is the way of Scripture in all cases where there is a double-word name, as in this case, or as in בֵּית לֶחֶם, אֲבִי עֶזֶר, [or] בֵּית אֵל, when the placing of the definite article ה"א is required it is placed at the beginning of the second word: [e.g.,] בֵּית הַלַחְמִי, [or] בְּעָפְרַת אֲבִי הָעֶזְרִי, [or] “Did build Chiel בֵּית הָאֱלִי.

Yitzchok expired. Scripture is not [necessarily] in chronological order: the sale of Yoseif preceded Yitzchok’s death, by twelve years. [We can calculate this thus.] When Yaakov was born Yitzchok was sixty years old as it is said: “And Yitzchok was sixty years old, etc.” and Yitzchok died when Yaakov was 120. If you deduct 60 from 180 years there is 120 left. Yoseif was sold at the age of 17, and that year was Yaakov’s 108th year. How is this so? He was 63 when he was blessed. He then hid for fourteen years at the House of Eiver which totals seventy-seven. He then worked fourteen years for a wife. at the end of the 14 years Yoseif was born as is written: “When Rachel bore Yoseif, etc.” making a total of ninety-one plus seventeen years [of Yoseif’s life] prior to when he was sold making a total of 108. (This can also be derived from Scripture, thus: From the time Yoseif was sold until Yaakov came to Egypt twenty-two years [elapsed] as it is said: “Yoseif was thirty years old, etc.” plus the seven years of plenty and the two years of hunger making it 22. And it is written, “The years of my temporary residency are 130 years,” making Yaakov 108 at his [Yoseif’s] sale.)