When Abraham our father entered to the promise land, his second stop was in the city of Bet El as written in Genesis 12:8-

“וַיַּעְתֵּק מִשָּׁם הָהָרָה, מִקֶּדֶם לְבֵית-אֵל–וַיֵּט אָהֳלֹה; בֵּית-אֵל מִיָּם, וְהָעַי מִקֶּדֶם, וַיִּבֶן-שָׁם מִזְבֵּחַ לַיהוָה, וַיִּקְרָא בְּשֵׁם יְהוָה”

“And he removed from thence unto the mountain on the east of Beth-El, and pitched his tent, having Beth-el on the west, and Ai on the east; and he builded there an altar unto the LORD, and called upon the name of the LORD”

The tenth, the altar and the calling in the name of The Lord gives this city a special status in the idea of the birth of Judaism or the birth of ant belief- this is the house of God. We need to remember that Beth-El was also the place that Abraham returned to when he came back from Egypt as we can read in Genesis 13:3-4

“וַיֵּלֶךְ, לְמַסָּעָיו, מִנֶּגֶב, וְעַד-בֵּית-אֵל–עַד-הַמָּקוֹם, אֲשֶׁר-הָיָה שָׁם אָהֳלֹה בַּתְּחִלָּה, בֵּין בֵּית-אֵל, וּבֵין הָעָי.  אֶל-מְקוֹם, הַמִּזְבֵּחַ, אֲשֶׁר-עָשָׂה שָׁם, בָּרִאשֹׁנָה; וַיִּקְרָא שָׁם אַבְרָם, בְּשֵׁם יְהוָה”

“And he went on his journeys from the South even to Beth-el, unto the place where his tent had been at the beginning, between Beth-el and Ai; unto the place of the altar, which he had made there at the first; and Abram called there on the name of the LORD”

Perhaps the name Beth-El relates also to its value in gematria- number 2- this is the second place, 2 times that Abraham called in the name of The Lord – what are you thinking?

Main phrases of the post + transcription + translation

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