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In Genesis 35:2-3

2 So Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, “Remove the foreign gods which are among you, and purify yourselves and change your garments; 3 and let’s arise and go up to Bethel, and I will make an altar there to God, who answered me on the day of my distress and has been with me wherever I have gone.”

I'm particularly interested in the part where it's mentioned he "said to his household". Is this passage speaking of the objects Rachel stole from Laban?

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There are two matters here.

1. The Household

A lord of a large family household like Jacob would have an entourage of possibly more than 1000 people. It would consist of many more than Jacob's immediate family members such as shepherds, servants, cooks, nurses and all their family members and children. Recall that in Gen 14:14 Abraham raised a small army of 318 men from his own household. It is highly likely that Jacob's extended household had many gods that they kept in their possession and worshiped privately.

2. Rachel's gods

The incident with Rachel stealing Laban's household gods (Gen 31:34) perfectly illustrates the above point - many people had their own favorite god(s).

Therefore, I am sure that when Jacob decided to serve the LORD wholeheartedly as recorded in Gen 35:2, 3, he was keen for his whole house to do so including his wives.

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