What Does Genesis 35:18 Mean?

And as her soul was departing (for she was dying), she called his name Ben-oni; but his father called him Benjamin. The contrast between Rachel's name and Jacob's name for the baby is the final dramatic act of Rachel's life. As her soul departs, Rachel calls the child "Ben-oni" (son of my sorrow, or son of my vigor). Jacob changes the name immediately to "Benjamin" (son of the right hand). The mother names from her dying experience; the father renames for the child's future.

"Ben-oni" carries a double meaning in Hebrew (on can mean sorrow/trouble or strength/vigor). Rachel in her dying breath gave a name that was either "son of my sorrow" or "son of my strength as it departs." Either meaning is heartbreaking. But Jacob declines the sorrow interpretation and renames the child "Benjamin," associated with the right hand and its connotations of honor, strength, and covenant favor. The right hand in the Hebrew Bible is the position of power (Psalm 110:1) and of blessing (Genesis 48:18).

The naming dispute at the deathbed is a window into the character of both parents. Rachel names from what she is experiencing in her last moments; Jacob names for what he hopes the child will become. The mother's grief and the father's hope compete for the right to define the child's identity. Jacob wins by surviving; Benjamin is known by his father's name through all subsequent history. But Rachel's Ben-oni is preserved in the text alongside Benjamin, ensuring that the dying mother's word is never entirely erased by the father's renaming.