Bible Strands
Genesis 35:15
Jacob called the place where God had spoken with him Bethel.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The narrator records Jacob naming a location immediately after God speaks to him and Jacob erects a stone pillar with a drink offering and oil.
The words — The verb וַ/יִּקְרָ֨א (va/i.yik.Ra') means "and he called," while שֵׁ֣ם (shem) translates literally as "name."
The thread — This naming event echoes Genesis 28:19, where Jacob first designated the site as Bethel, marking it as a recurring witness to divine communication.
Why it lands — The text records Jacob assigning a permanent name to a site of divine encounter, requiring the reader to recognize how physical markers anchor spiritual encounters.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And Jacob called the name of the place where God spake with him, Beth–el.
Cross-references
- Genesis 28:19 and he called that place Bethel, though previously the city had been named Luz.