In the aftermath of the rash action of Jacob's sons against the men of Shechem (Genesis 34) God tells Jacob to move to Bethel. Jacob follows God's command and he tells his family to renew their commitments to God and back up their commitments with real actions. He said,
Put away the foreign gods that are among you, and purify yourselves, and change your clothes. (Genesis 35:2)
The point is that Jacob' family should follow the future First Commandment: You shall have no other gods before me (Exodus 20:3-6).
False gods are not the only thing God's people should put away; but it starts there (see Colossians 3:5). The actions Jacob tells his family to do have parallels in Christianity. When believers come to Christ, they put away their former sinful ways of life.
Ephesians 4:22-32
You were taught to put away your former way of life, your old self, corrupt and deluded by its lusts, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to clothe yourselves with the new self, created according to the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness. Rules for the New Life So then, putting away falsehood, let all of us speak the truth to our neighbors, for we are members of one another. Be angry but do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and do not make room for the devil. Thieves must give up stealing; rather let them labor and work honestly with their own hands, so as to have something to share with the needy. Let no evil talk come out of your mouths, but only what is useful for building up, as there is need, so that your words may give grace to those who hear. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with which you were marked with a seal for the day of redemption. Put away from you all bitterness and wrath and anger and wrangling and slander, together with all malice, and be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you.
Colossians 3:8
But now you must get rid of all such things—anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive language from your mouth.
Jacob said, "purify yourselves." The Christian cleansing is baptism (Acts 22:16). It is faith expressed in obedience and it is God's condition for salvation (Acts 16:30-31; 1Peter 3:21). Plus, it is not something the believer actually does but the believer submits to it and somebody else does it.
Jacob also tells his family to change their clothes. Christians perform a similar change of clothes.
Ephesians 4:24 (highlighted above)
Ephesians 6:13-17 (Take up the whole armor of God)
1 Peter 5:5
In the same way, you who are younger must accept the authority of the elders. And all of you must clothe yourselves with humility in your dealings with one another, for “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”
I am especially intrigued that Jacob's people also gave up the rings that were in their ears. What is the deal with ear rings (c.f., Exodus 33:4-6). Maybe removing them expresses grief. Terence Fretheim notes that ear rings are potential resources for making idols* (Exodus 32:2-4; Judges 8:24-27). I think Fretheim is on the right track. And like Jacob's people, Christians should not only put away their sin but we should do all we can to also put away sin triggers. I can give effort to avoid situations that motivate sin. I can also find an accountability partner who is invited to frequently ask me if I have engaged in the sin to which I am personally vulnerable.
Putting away the old self is a choice each believer makes and does and it is an motivated by her/his faith.
* Terence Fretheim, "Genesis," NIB, Abingdon, OliveTree e-resource.
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