But Jacob journeyed to Succoth: both Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation translate the common Hebrew connective as But to contrast Jacob’s destination with that of his brother. It may also contrast what Jacob actually did with what he told Esau he would do; this may be brought out by saying “But Jacob did not go to Seir; he went instead to another place, Succoth.” In fact Succoth is probably to the north of where the two brothers met, on the north side of the Jabbok River; and this means that Jacob actually turned and went in the opposite direction from Esau. See a Bible atlas. Many modern translations do not mark a sharp contrast between Jacob’s and Esau’s destinations. For example, Anchor Bible says “and Jacob journeyed to….” Revised English Bible has changed New English Bible “but Jacob…” to “while Jacob….” Translators should decide whether a contrast word or expression is required here on the basis of what is natural in their own languages.

Succoth means “huts.” See Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation footnotes. Its exact location is uncertain. According to Josh 13.27 it was in the territory of Gad on the east side of the Jordan. In most atlases it is shown just to the north of the Jabbok River and to the north and west of Peniel.

The text speaks of Jacob going to Succoth, but “Jacob” represents himself and all those with him. If in translation “Jacob” means that Jacob went alone, it will be better to say, for example, “Jacob and those with him.” The same is true of Esau in verse 16.

Built himself a house, and made booths for his cattle: in all of Jacob’s travels he has pitched his tent and camped. Therefore built … a house does not seem to fit the context of his style of living. We note also that in verses 18 and 19 he camps and pitches his tent in Shechem. It may be that a contrast is intended: a house for himself and his family in contrast to booths for his cattle. However, built himself a house may indicate Jacob’s intention to stop traveling from place to place and to settle in this place for a period of years. And building shelters for the livestock would make much better sense if Jacob was settling than if he was planning to move on in a short time.

Jacob and his family had spent some years in Canaan by the time the events reported in chapter 34 took place. This time was divided between Succoth and Shechem, and more time could have been spent at either place; but everything in the story would fit well if most of the time was spent at Succoth, and built … a house may be a pointer to that. Translators should use words or expressions for built … a house that indicate a permanent structure for living in over an extended period.

There are several translation problems in the first part of this verse:
(1) In some languages the use of a reflexive element such as (for) himself means he built it for his own use, excluding that of his wives and children. This is hardly the intention of the narrator. In many languages this problem can be avoided by not saying “[for] himself” in the translation; people will naturally think that the house is for Jacob and his family.
(2) Similarly in some languages “he built” or “Jacob built” will be taken to mean that Jacob did all the work while his servants did nothing. Accordingly it may be more suitable to say something like “Jacob had his men build” or “Jacob ordered his men to build.”
(3) A further problem may be that in many languages there is only one verb to express the two verbs built and made. If a contrast is intended here, it may be possible to express this in another way; for example, “For his people he put up living places, and for his animals he put up shelters.”

The booths, which were “huts” or “shelters” for the animals, were probably shade coverings constructed from upright poles and laid over with branches to provide shade for the young animals. In this context cattle does not refer to cows and bulls only but to all kinds of livestock. See 13.2.

Therefore the name of the place is called Succoth: “that is the reason people call the place Succoth.” The Hebrew keeps the focus on Jacob as the principal actor and so has “he called.” Most English versions translate as a passive. We may express the thought as an active construction; for example, “That is why Jacob named the place Succoth.”

Translators who wish to explain the name of Succoth in the text rather than in a footnote may use Bible en français courant as a model. That translation says “That is the reason one calls [or, they call] this place Succoth, which means ‘The huts.’ ”

Quoted with permission from Reyburn, William D. and Fry, Euan McG. A Handbook on Genesis. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1997. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .