Jacob returns Esau’s blessing (draft)

The Jacob Cycle - Part 12

Structure

This part can be divided into five scenes.

  1. Jacob retreats across the Jabbok
  2. Jacob wrestles with God
  3. Jacob and Esau reconcile
  4. Jacob and Esau part
  5. Jacob returns to the land

It’s parallel to Jacob stealing Isaac’s blessing from Esau. There, he deceived his blind father by masquerading as Esau. Here, we will fight an unknown assailant in the dark and be blessed by him, afterward returning the blessing he stole to Esau.

Jacob retreats across the Jabbok

22 The same night he arose and took his two wives, his two female servants, and his eleven children, and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. 23 He took them and sent them across the stream, and everything else that he had. 24 And Jacob was left alone.

–Genesis 32:22–24 (ESV)

Jacob helps his family and the rest of his possession across the river Jabbok, a tributary of the Jordan River.1 The Jordan serves a significant symbolic function as the eastern border of the promised land.2 When Joshua led the people into Canaan from the east, the water of the Jordan stopped flowing after the feet of the priests carrying the ark touched it, allowing Israel to cross on dry ground (Joshua 3:14-17.) Strangely, Jacob crosses at night and then apparently goes back across, away from the land, so that he’s alone.3. That Jacob “got up” suggests that he was trying to sleep but couldn’t.4 Having used his camps to protect him instead of relying on God’s camp and the promise that Yahweh would “keep” him, he restlessly adds more distance between himself and Esau. This time, he uses even his family as a shield.

Jacob wrestles God

24 And a man wrestled with him until the breaking of the day. 25 When the man saw that he did not prevail against Jacob, he touched his hip socket, and Jacob’s hip was put out of joint as he wrestled with him. 26 Then he said, “Let me go, for the day has broken.” But Jacob said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” 27 And he said to him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Jacob.” 28 Then he said, “Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with God and with men, and have prevailed.” 29 Then Jacob asked him, “Please tell me your name.” But he said, “Why is it that you ask my name?” And there he blessed him. 30 So Jacob called the name of the place Peniel, saying, “For I have seen God face to face, and yet my life has been delivered.” 31 The sun rose upon him as he passed Penuel, limping because of his hip. 32 Therefore to this day the people of Israel do not eat the sinew of the thigh that is on the hip socket, because he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip on the sinew of the thigh.

–Genesis 32:24b–32 (ESV)

A man is suddenly wrestling Jacob on the banks of the Jabbok. There’s a play on words between “Jabbok” (yabboq,) “Jacob” (ya‘aqov,) and “wrestled” (ye‘aveq.) In Genesis 27:36, Esau said “Is he not rightly named ya‘aqov, for ya‘qeve [he has cheated] me these two times.” referring to the sale of the birthright and the theft of the blessing. Jacob “Jacob-ed” Esau. That was linked back to Isaac “Isaac-ing” (laughing with) Rebekah in Genesis 26:8 Isaac deceiving Abimelek into believing Rebekah was his sister was shown to be unnecessary, because the narrator notes that they had been in Gerar “a long time” without trouble before the deception was discovered. So, too, Jacob “Jacob-ing” Esau was unnecessary. God would have blessed Jacob without the masquerade. Here, the man is “Jacob-ing” Jacob on the banks of Jacob.5 All the scheming and grasping Jacob has done, living up to his name, converges on this moment.

The man and Jacob wrestle all night until the break of day. The sunrise is a reversal of the blindness that has pervaded the Jacob Cycle so far. Jacob tricked his “dim-eyed” father. He was in turn tricked by Laban with his “weak-eyed” daughter at night. He wasn’t able to see that Yahweh was with him as he left the land at a “place,” at night when the sun had set. What Jacob has been unable to see is going to be revealed.

The man isn’t able to “prevail” against Jacob. This is the middle, the fourth, of seven occurrences of the word “prevail” (yakal.) The three instances that came before are in the following table.

The shepherds of Haran couldn’t “prevail” against the large stone until they all gathered Genesis 29:8
Rachel believed she “prevailed” against Leah after the birth of Naphtali Genesis 30:8
Rachel couldn’t “prevail” to rise from where she hid Laban’s household gods because she was menstruating Genesis 31:35

All of these represent battles that Jacob brought on himself. If he hadn’t stolen the blessing, he wouldn’t have had to flee Canaan to Haran where he encountered the large stone. If he hadn’t shown favoritism towards Rachel (or even married her after Leah,) the rivalry between the sisters would, at least, likely been less pronounced. And if he hadn’t tricked Laban by fleeing while Laban was sheering his sheep, Rachel might not have felt compelled to steal Laban’s household gods. The true battle is about to be revealed.

Being unable to “prevail” against Jacob, the man touches his “hip socket.” Literally, he touches the “hollow of his thigh.” This likely should be understood as the groin.6 To subdue Jacob, his assailant strikes the place that enables Jacob to have children, a primary element of the promise to the chosen line.

The man, held by Jacob, wants to go before the sun fully rises. This could indicate a desire to hide his true identity. Jacob, having just been wounded with a touch, must suspect the supernatural nature of the man and asks to be blessed by him, or perhaps have a suspicion about who he is. Jacob is forced to confess his nature when he says his name: confess his nature: heel grasper, cheat.7 The man then renames him.

In Genesis, naming exerts authority over who or what is named.8 Adam named the animals in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 2:19). After he subjugated the kingdom of Judah, Pharaoh Neko replaced the kingship with Eliakim, Josiah’s son, and renamed him Jehoiakim (2 Kings 23:31-34). Here, God claims authority over Jacob by naming him Israel.

Literally, Israel means “God fights,” but this episode plays on the name with the phrase “You have striven with God and with men, and have prevailed,” connecting it with fight Jacob’s story so far. When Jacob is given the response “Why do you want to know?” after asking for the man’s name, it’s almost as if the man says “Why do you ask? Don’t you know?”

Who is the man? In the immediate context, with all the tension around Jacob’s fear of Esau, Esau seems the one most likely to attack him in the night. However, Jacob doesn’t name the place peniesaw, “Face of Esau,” he names it peniel. “Face of God,” saying he saw the face of God and lived. Jacob believes he just wrestled with a physical manifestation of God! The rest of the Bible confirms this.

In Genesis 48:15-16 Genesis 48:15-16 when Jacob is blessing Joseph’s children, “God” and “angel” are set in parallel. Hosea similarly connects the God Jacob met with at Bethel with the angel that he strove with.

3 In the womb he took his brother by the heel,
     and in his manhood he strove with God.
4 He strove with the angel and prevailed;
     he wept and sought his favor.
   He met God at Bethel,
     and there God spoke with us—

–Hosea 12:3-4 (ESV)

Jacob’s fight isn’t and hasn’t truly been with Esau or anyone else. He’s been struggling against God with all his grasping, deception, and trickery. God could have easily destroyed Jacob at any point, but he worked through the difficult situations caused by Jacob’s schemes to protect the chosen seed of the woman. God could have easily beaten Jacob in a wrestling match, but he allows a stalemate to reshape Jacob into who he needs to be. Realizing this, Jacob understands the true source of blessing, and finally receives it as God intended all along: freely, as a gift.

This also fits into the motif of the suffering servant. God’s chosen all point to the ultimate chosen one: Jesus. Jacob is wounded, but he survives his encounter. Jesus is wounded on our behalf, but doesn’t survive. He, the perfect chosen one, died on behalf of humanity so that we have a way back to Eden.

Whatever part was injured, a corresponding part of animals is said to not be eaten by Israel to commemoration of Jacob’s injury. This points to food purity laws which will serve to show Israel as a people set apart and claimed by God. Jacob has been made fully into the chosen child of promise.

Jacob and Esau reconcile

1 And Jacob lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, Esau was coming, and four hundred men with him. So he divided the children among Leah and Rachel and the two female servants. 2 And he put the servants with their children in front, then Leah with her children, and Rachel and Joseph last of all. 3 He himself went on before them, bowing himself to the ground seven times, until he came near to his brother. 4 But Esau ran to meet him and embraced him and fell on his neck and kissed him, and they wept. 5 And when Esau lifted up his eyes and saw the women and children, he said, “Who are these with you?” Jacob said, “The children whom God has graciously given your servant.” 6 Then the servants drew near, they and their children, and bowed down. 7 Leah likewise and her children drew near and bowed down. And last Joseph and Rachel drew near, and they bowed down. 8 Esau said, “What do you mean by all this company that I met?” Jacob answered, “To find favor in the sight of my lord.” 9 But Esau said, “I have enough, my brother; keep what you have for yourself.” 10 Jacob said, “No, please, if I have found favor in your sight, then accept my present from my hand. For I have seen your face, which is like seeing the face of God, and you have accepted me. 11 Please accept my blessing that is brought to you, because God has dealt graciously with me, and because I have enough.” Thus he urged him, and he took it.

–Genesis 33:1–11 (ESV)

Jacob sees Esau approaching. Jacob’s actions change after his encounter with God, the true source of blessing. He places himself in front, instead of the back, as the first line of defense.9 However, even though his allegiance is now to Yahweh, he isn’t fully transformed. He divides his family so that his favorites are farthest away from potential danger.

Esau is happy to see Jacob, and they quickly reconcile. The threat of the “flood” was unfounded. Jacob’s construction of his own “ark” was unnecessary. It’s again shown that God had the situation handled. Jacob brings up “God” three times, reinforcing his new understanding of the source of blessing. He says that seeing Esau’s face is like seeing the face of God, recalling the emphasis on Esau’s face and that it was the face of God he really needed to be concerned with.

By bowing seven times to Esau, Jacob expresses subservience to him, and he convinces Esau to receive his present, but he reframes it as “blessing.” Now that he has received the free blessing from God, he knows that he didn’t need to steal Esau’s blessing, so he returns it. Isaac’s blessing is given back to Esau.

   “See, the smell of my son
    is as the smell of a field that the LORD has blessed!
27 May God give you of the dew of heaven
     and of the fatness of the earth
     and plenty of grain and wine.
28 Let peoples serve you,
     and nations bow down to you.
   Be lord over your brothers,
     and may your mother’s sons bow down to you.
   Cursed be everyone who curses you,
     and blessed be everyone who blesses you!”

–Genesis 27:27b-29 (ESV)

Jacob reverses the theft by bowing down to Esau and sharing what he gained in Haran.

Jacob and Esau part

12 Then Esau said, “Let us journey on our way, and I will go ahead of you.” 13 But Jacob said to him, “My lord knows that the children are frail, and that the nursing flocks and herds are a care to me. If they are driven hard for one day, all the flocks will die. 14 Let my lord pass on ahead of his servant, and I will lead on slowly, at the pace of the livestock that are ahead of me and at the pace of the children, until I come to my lord in Seir.” 15 So Esau said, “Let me leave with you some of the people who are with me.” But he said, “What need is there? Let me find favor in the sight of my lord.” 16 So Esau returned that day on his way to Seir. 17 But Jacob journeyed to Succoth, and built himself a house and made booths for his livestock. Therefore the name of the place is called Succoth.

–Genesis 33:12–17 (ESV)

Esau wants Jacob to return with him to Seir, but Jacob doesn’t fully trust him and falls back to his deceitful ways to distance himself from Esau. Before entering Canaan, he settles in Succoth for a time. Succoth means “shelters,” emphasizing that God has fulfilled his promise to bring him safely back from Haran.

Jacob returns to the land

18 And Jacob came safely to the city of Shechem, which is in the land of Canaan, on his way from Paddan-aram, and he camped before the city. 19 And from the sons of Hamor, Shechem’s father, he bought for a hundred pieces of money the piece of land on which he had pitched his tent. 20 There he erected an altar and called it El-Elohe-Israel.

–Genesis 33:18–20 (ESV)

Jacob finally returns to the land. Like Abraham when he first entered the land, he goes to Shechem and purchases land, therefore settling there. Also, like Abraham he builds and altar. In Genesis, altars are built when God’s chosen is brought back into the land. It signifies that Yahweh is recognized as rescuer and that allegiance is given to him. Also, the word “altar,” mizbeoh, sounds, like “pillar,” matsevah, connecting this scene with the promise that God made to Jacob at Bethel that he would bring Jacob back to the land. Yahweh fulfilled his promise, and now Jacob will worship him. El-elohe-yisrael means El, God of Israel, his new name.10

Bibliography

Cassuto, Umberto. A Commentary on the Book of Genesis: From Adam to Noah. Translated by Israel Abrams. E-book ed. Varda Books, 2005.

Fokkelman, J.P. Narrative Art in Genesis. Eugene, Oregon: Wipf and Stock Publishers, 2004.

Sarna, Nahum M. Genesis. The JPS Torah Commentary. Philadelphia: The Jewish Publication Society, 1989.

Walton, John H. Genesis. The NIV Application Commentary. E-book ed. Zondervan, 2014.

Wenham, Gordon John. Genesis 16-50, Volume 2. World Biblical Commentary. E-book ed. Zondervan Academic, 2017.

Esther J. Hamori, “Echoes of Gilgamesh in the Jacob Story,” Journal of Biblical Literature 130, no.4: 625-642.

Jason S. DeRouchie, “The Blessing-Commission, the Promised Offspring, and the Toledot Structure of Genesis,” Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society 56, no. 2

  1. Wenham, Genesis 16-50, 292. ↩

  2. Sarna, Genesis, 403. ↩

  3. Wenham, Genesis 16-50, 290. ↩

  4. Fokkelman, Narrative Art, 221. ↩

  5. Wenham, Genesis 16-50, 295. ↩

  6. Walton (Genesis, 607) writes, “The last element in the narrative to deal with is Jacob’s yarek (hip/thigh). The ‘hollow’ of his yarek is ‘touched/struck’ and as a result is ‘wrenched’ (NIV) or, more likely, ‘torn’ or even ‘ruptured.’ Consequently he limps. Yarek is the same word translated ‘thigh’ in Genesis 24:2, 9. In that context there is no mention of the ‘hollow’ of the thigh; instead, Abraham’s servant places his hand ‘under’ the thigh. Yarek usually refers to flesh or muscle rather than the pelvic bone. That which the Israelites do not eat (32:32) would also be meat (tendons/sinew, see Job 10:11; Ezek. 37:6; and Akkadian) rather than bone. This suggests the possibility that yarek refers to the groin area.” ↩

  7. Wenham, Genesis 16-50, 296. ↩

  8. Cassuto, Genesis: from Adam to Noah, 130. ↩

  9. Wenham, Genesis 16-50, 298. ↩

  10. Sarna, Genesis, 232. ↩

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