טז וַיִּסְעוּ מִבֵּית אֵל, וַיְהִי-עוֹד כִּבְרַת-הָאָרֶץ לָבוֹא אֶפְרָתָה; וַתֵּלֶד רָחֵל, וַתְּקַשׁ בְּלִדְתָּהּ.
יז וַיְהִי בְהַקְשֹׁתָהּ, בְּלִדְתָּהּ; וַתֹּאמֶר לָהּ הַמְיַלֶּדֶת אַל-תִּירְאִי, כִּי-גַם-זֶה לָךְ בֵּן.
יח וַיְהִי בְּצֵאת נַפְשָׁהּ, כִּי מֵתָה, וַתִּקְרָא שְׁמוֹ, בֶּן-אוֹנִי; וְאָבִיו, קָרָא-לוֹ בִנְיָמִין.
יט וַתָּמָת, רָחֵל; וַתִּקָּבֵר בְּדֶרֶךְ אֶפְרָתָה, הִוא בֵּית לָחֶם.
16 They set out from Beth-el; but when they were still some distance short of Ephrath, Rachel was in childbirth and she had hard labor.
17 When her labor was at its hardest, the midwife said to her, "Have no fear, for it is another boy for you."
18 But as she breathed her last - for she was dying - she named him Ben-oni; but his father called him Benjamin.
19 Thus Rachel died. She was buried on the road to Ephrath--now Beth-lehem. [JPS translation]
Suggested Discussion Questions:
1. How do we understand the midwife's comment? How was this reassurance to Rachel?
2. What can we do to prevent maternal deaths today?
Time Period: Biblical (early ancestors to 165 BCE)