4584. Verses 16-20 And they travelled on from Bethel, and there was still a stretch of land to go to Ephrath; and Rachel gave birth, and suffered severely ¹ in giving birth. And it happened in her suffering severely, ¹ in giving birth, that the midwife said to her, Do not be afraid, for this also is a son for you. And it happened as her soul was departing, when she was about to die, that she called his name Ben-oni; and his father called him Benjamin. And Rachel died, and was buried on the way to Ephrath, that is, Bethlehem. And Jacob set up a pillar over her grave; this is the pillar of Rachel's grave even to this day.

'They travelled on from Bethel, and there was still a stretch of land to go to Ephrath' means the spiritual of the celestial at this point - 'Joseph' being the celestial of the spiritual. 'And Rachel gave birth, and suffered severely in giving birth' means the temptations endured by interior truth. 'And it happened in her suffering severely, in giving birth' means following temptations. 'That the midwife said to her, Do not be afraid' means perception received from the natural. 'For this also is a son for you' means spiritual truth. 'And it happened as her soul was departing, when she was about to die' means a state of temptations. 'That she called his name Ben-oni' means the nature of that state. 'And his father called him Benjamin' means the nature of the spiritual of the celestial. 'And Rachel died, and was buried on the way to Ephrath' means the end of the initial affection for interior truth. 'That is, Bethlehem' means a new spiritual of the celestial raised up in place of it. 'And Jacob set up a pillar over her grave' means the holiness of the spiritual truth that was to be raised up again there. 'This is the pillar of Rachel's grave even to this day' means the state of holiness lasting perpetually.

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