Introduction: Jacob and his household had left the land of Laban and were heading back to his homeland. God Himself had told Jacob to do this (Gen. 31:3) and Jacob had obeyed.
While on the journey, Moses wrote “the angels of God met” Jacob at a place he called “Mahanaim (Hebrew for “two camps)”. Jacob then sent messengers to his brother Esau describing what Jacob was doing and why: to find grace in Esau’s sight. The messengers returned with a message Jacob probably either didn’t want to hear, or didn’t know what to do when he heard it—Esau was coming his way!
Several verses in chapter 32 explain what Jacob now did, sending a large amount of livestock in order to, as one might say, soften Esau’s heart. Jacob had cheated Esau of birthright and paternal blessing 20 or so years before but he had no way of knowing if Esau still held a grudge against him. Jacob sent everybody ahead but spent one more night alone.
Except, he wasn’t.
1 Jacob thought he was alone
Text: Genesis 32:22-24, KJV: 22 And he rose up that night, and took his two wives, and his two womenservants, and his eleven sons, and passed over the ford Jabbok. 23 And he took them, and sent them over the brook, and sent over that he had. 24 And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day.
In the first several verses of this chapter, Jacob had sent messengers to his brother, Esau, and then heard the messengers say Esau was coming that way. The last time these men, Esau and Jacob, had ever seen each other was not pleasant—Esau had even promised “I’ll kill Jacob” as soon as he got a chance (see Genesis 27 for the whole story). Jacob, at mother Rebekah’s urging, left for his uncle Laban’s territory “for a few days,” which extended for 20 years (Gen. 31:38)!
Now when Jacob knew Esau was coming, Jacob decided to send gifts of 550 various male and female animals (32:13-15)! Jacob’s idea was that Esau would see, and receive, this “present (32:20-21)” as a means to “appease” him. Note that there is no record of Jacob praying, fasting, asking his wives for their inputs, or even talking to the LORD for the right thing to do. He did all this, apparently, on his own initiative.
And then, Jacob took his wives, maid servants, and the children by night to cross over (“pass over”) the “ford Jabbok”. The Jabbok was one of several important rivers on the east side of Jordan, including the Arnon, Yarmuk, and Zered. Besides fresh water, these rivers were also borders between various countries (further discussion is beyond the scope of this message). The text says that Jacob and his family crossed over the ford, which could mean this took place when the water level was relatively low and posed little damage, even at night.
At this point, Jacob did something unusual. All of his household crossed the ford of the Jabbok, but he sent them over the “brook” or “wadi”, a dry stream bed during much of the year. In the American southwest, arroyos are more or less similar to these “brooks” of the Middle East. Again this implies that this part of the journey was during the time when water levels were relatively low and posed little danger to Jacob or his family, even at night.
By now Jacob had sent over his family, his livestock, and all that he had, across the Jabbok and beyond, if I read this passage correctly. They were safely across the river.
And Jacob thought he was safely alone.
But he was in for the surprise of his life.
He was wrestling—all night long—with someone (Someone) he didn’t know was there!
2 Jacob realized he wasn’t alone
Text, Genesis 32:25-29, KJV: 25 And when he saw that he prevailed not against him, he touched the hollow of his thigh; and the hollow of Jacob's thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with him. 26 And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me. 27 And he said unto him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob. 28 And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed. 29 And Jacob asked him, and said, Tell me, I pray thee, thy name. And he said, Wherefore is it that thou dost ask after my name? And he blessed him there.
This surprise Guest had wrestled with Jacob all night. For one thing, this shows Jacob was in pretty good shape, physically, for his age (some believe he was around 90 years of age by this time). Perhaps the years of tending Laban’s flocks and the other chores he had done helped Jacob develop some outer strength or other things.
For another thing, this shows also that the Guest was imposing some limits on Himself. Even Jacob came to realize he had seen God face to face (I personally believe this Guest was Jesus before He was born into a human body) and this Guest could have hurt Jacob physically. The only physical “harm” the Guest did to Jacob was to “touch the hollow of [Jacob’s] thigh” and put it out of joint. I’m not sure what really took place but it was enough to make Jacob limp.
But even that wasn’t enough to make Jacob quit! The wrestling match continued until “the breaking of the day” or probably sunrise. The Guest asked Jacob, “Let Me go, because day is breaking” but Jacob said, “I’ll never let You go unless You bless me!”
Was Jacob aware of something different or unique about his Opponent? And why did Jacob insist on receiving a blessing from this Guest? Jacob, back home, had stolen the paternal blessing (which, rightly, belonged to Esau) but had never asked Laban for any blessings (that I’m aware of). Now he’s demanding, “No blessing; no release.” And he meant it!
Now the Guest asks Jacob a seemingly simple question, “What is your name?” I’d like to know the tone or inflection in Jacob’s voice when he said, “Jacob.” I mean, he could have said it with a hint of snark, like “Jacob (and why did you ask?)” or, fatigued, like “Jacob (and could I catch my breath, please?),”or, like a “Huh?” moment—“Jacob (but why are you asking me this?)”. The one thing we know for sure is that Jacob meant “supplanter”, or, in a word, “cheater” as some commentators have observed! But the Guest is about to say something that changed Jacob’s life.
Forever.
The Guest then told Jacob, “No, you aren’t to be called Jacob anymore. Your new name is Israel! You’re a prince, and you have power with God and with men (that was probably news to Jacob!) and you have prevailed.” Nobody else, to the best of my knowledge, has ever wrestled with God, let alone for maybe several hours, and kept up such a fight that even the Guest spoke of this.
Jacob (excuse me, Israel—the man, not the nation) must have been amazed at this new revelation or however he received this news. Perhaps after a moment or two, Israel then asked the Guest the same question, “What is Your name?”
And the Guest’s reply must have left Jesus speechless: “Why do you ask My name?” This reply was used more than once. Suppose, for a moment, that this Guest was the Angel of the LORD. If that is so, then this Being or Guest, here, was the Same Person Who said much the same thing to Manoah (Judges 13:18). There may be other times when the Angel of the LORD spoke to people but were not recorded in the Bible. Who knows?
The final incident in this passage relates how the Guest not only questioned Jacob, “Why do you ask My name?” but also blessed Jacob. There is no mention of how the Guest blessed Jacob or any of the words the Guest might have used. There is also no mention of how or when the Guest disappeared after He blessed Jacob.
So once again, Jacob was alone.
But his journey wasn’t over. Not by a long shot.
3 And Jacob was alone again for a while
Text, Genesis 32:30-32, KJV: 30 And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved. 31 And as he passed over Penuel the sun rose upon him, and he halted upon his thigh. 32 Therefore the children of Israel eat not of the sinew which shrank, which is upon the hollow of the thigh, unto this day: because he touched the hollow of Jacob's thigh in the sinew that shrank.
The chapter closes with these verses, summarizing briefly what Jacob did after he finished wrestling with the Guest Who blessed him! The first thing Jacob did was to call this place “Peniel”, only here but “Penuel” in other Scriptures. Whether Peniel or Penuel, this meant “Face of God” and Jacob realized that he was one of only a few who ever saw God personally. Here are a few examples: Abraham had seen the LORD Himself back in Genesis 18, the entire nation of Israel saw God at Mount Sinai (Exodus 19) but it was almost too much for them to handle!
Moses made several trips up and down the mountain and spoke with God face to face, so to speak, even though God said, “You can’t see My face and live (Exodus 33:12-12)”. No contradiction: when the LORD appeared in human form, He hid the glory of Heaven but on the mountain, He hid or protected Moses from something Moses couldn’t have handled. In Heaven, one future day, we will see Jesus “as He is (1 John 3:2”). Isaiah saw the LORD “high and lifted up (Isaiah 6)” and Jeremiah saw the Hand of the LORD touch his lips (Jeremiah 1:9). The point is that God chose to visit Jacob personally, and that seems to be something Jacob never forgot.
But even though Jacob had the memory of seeing God in person, he also had a physical reminder. Again, I don’t know a whole lot about anatomy and physiology but Jacob was probably never able to walk normally, at least for a while, because of the damage to one of his legs. Verse 31 states Jacob “halted upon his thigh” which could mean he was limping along, perhaps walking slower than ever before. Many commentators observe that just as Paul had a “thorn in the flesh”, so did Jacob, but their reasons vary. No matter: God has the right to deal with His people as He sees fit. What He did to, and for, Jacob was unique but God had Jacob’s best interest at heart.
Conclusion: Jacob was deathly afraid of Esau and, without any guidance from the LORD, took matters into his own hands. He was trying to appease Esau with the various “droves” or waves of livestock, hoping these gifts or presents would soften Esau’s heart. Then he sent his family away, spent the night alone—he thought—but received the surprise of his life when he wrestled with an unknown Guest, Who turned out to be God Himself!
One has to admire Jacob’s strength, to be able to wrestle for hours (during the night, no less!) and his tenacity. He wasn’t going to let go until he got a blessing. And the Guest did so, giving him a blessing and a new name, too. From that time forward, Jacob was known not only as Jacob but as Israel. He returned, limping, to his family and to the next part of his earthly journey.
You and I do not need to wrestle with God, as Jacob did. He’ll always win, for one thing, and there’s no need to waste time struggling, especially when He has something to say.
The final take-away is that God had Jacob’s best interest at heart, and He has yours and mine at heart, too, No need to wrestle with God: all we need to do is obey Him.
Scripture quotations taken from the King James Version of the Bible (KJV).
