On the eleventh of Cheshvan, while giving birth to her 2nd son, Binyamin, Rachel, the beloved wife of Ya\u2019akov, died, and was buried on the road to Bethlehem.<\/p>\n
The site of her burial in Bethlehem, south of Jerusalem, known to us by tradition, is covered by a stone edifice. Rachel\u2019s Tomb in Bethlehem, Israel For millennia, Jews have come to this site to pour forth their hearts in prayer, and to awaken her merit in any time of travail, for the community as well as for the individual.<\/p>\n
Our mother Rachel was not buried in the tile cave of Machpelah in Hevron together with the other Matriarchs and Patriarchs of our people. Instead, she was buried on the road to Jerusalem, exactly where she died, while coming back to Jerusalem from the House of Lavan with Ya\u2019akov.<\/p>\n
Why did our Father Ya\u2019akov bury Rachel on the road in Bethlehem?<\/p>\n
According to Rabbi Eliyahu Ki Tov\u2019s Book of Our Heritage, Ya\u2019akov saw prophetically that in the future, Jewish exiles would pass by on that road and she might seek mercy for them.<\/p>\n
When Nebuzaradan exiled the Jews from Israel, and they in fact passed her grave, Rachel emerged to weep and to ask for mercy in their behalf, (Yirmeyahu 3l): \u201cThus did the Lord say, a voice is heard on high, lamentation and hitter weeping, Rachel weeps for her children, she refuses to be consoled for her children, for they are not.\u201d And God in fact answers: \u201cThus did the Lord say, refrain your voice from weeping and your eyes from tears, for there is reward for your labor, said the Lord, and the children shall return to their boundary\u201d (Rashi Va\u2019yechi, and Midrashim quoted by Radak, Yirmeyahu 31).<\/p>\n
Another Midrash relates: When the Patriarchs and Matriarchs went to intercede with God over the image which Menasheh placed in the Temple, God was not reconciled. Rachel entered and said before Him: Lord of the universe! Whose mercy is greater? Yours? Or the mercy of a person of flesh and blood. Surely, Your mercy is greater. Have I not brought my rival (Leah) into my house? For all the work which Yaakov did for my father, was done by him, only for my sake. When I came to enter the chupah, my sister was brought in my place. And not only did I keep silent, but I even gave her my signs. You too \u2014 though Your children have brought Your enemy into Your House \u2013 be silent towards them! He said to her: You have defended them well, there is reward for your labor, for your righteousness in having given your signs to your sister (Rashi Yirmeyahu 31).<\/p>\n
From the time when the People of Israel went into their first exile until Yirmeyahu\u2019s prophecy of redemption (\u2018and the children shall return to their boundary\u2019), the grave of our mother Rachel has always been and will always remain a House of Prayer to Israel, for she is a mother to all Israel, and always awakens mercy in their behalf.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
On the eleventh of Cheshvan, while giving birth to her 2nd son, Binyamin, Rachel, the beloved wife of Ya\u2019akov, died, and was buried on the road to Bethlehem. The site of her burial in Bethlehem, south of Jerusalem, known to us by tradition, is covered by a stone edifice. Rachel\u2019s Tomb in Bethlehem, Israel For<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":730,"featured_media":3530,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_cloudinary_featured_overwrite":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3529","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-holidays"],"yoast_head":"\n