when is jacob first mentioned in the bible jacob is mentioned for the first time in the bible in genesis 25. when rebecca jacob's mother was pregnant with him and his fraternal twin esau she asked god why her two babies were fighting in her womb god responded that the animosity between the two brothers foreshadowed the two nations that would emerge from them jacob would be the forefather of israel and esau of edom genesis 36 furthermore esau the elder twin would become jacob the younger twin servant genesis 25 23 genesis 25 this is the account of the family line of abraham's son isaac abraham became the father of isaac and isaac was 40 years old when he married rebecca daughter of bethuel the aramean from padan aram and sister of laban the aramean isaac prayed to the lord on behalf of his wife because she was childless the lord answered his prayer and his wife rebecca became pregnant the babies jostled each other within her and she said why is this happening to me so she went to inquire of the lord the lord said to her two nations are in your womb and two peoples from within you will be separated one people will be stronger than the other and the older will serve the younger when the time came for her to give birth there were twin boys in her womb the first to come out was red and his whole body was like a hairy garment so they named him esau after this his brother came out with his hand grasping esau's heel so he was named jacob isaac was 60 years old when rebecca gave birth to them the boys grew up and esau became a skillful hunter a man of the open country while jacob was content to stay at home among the tents isaac who had a taste for wild game loved esau but rebecca loved jacob once when jacob was cooking some stew esau came in from the open country famished he said to jacob quick let me have some of that red stew i'm famished that is why he was also called edom how is jacob's character depicted in the bible jacob was associated with trickery and deception from his birth until his wrestling match with god genesis 32 verses 24-29 jacob's most infamous deceptions were committed against his twin brother esau in exchange for his birthright as the firstborn son which was a double portion of his father isaac's inheritance jacob offered his famished brother a bowl of soup genesis 25 verses 29-34 once when jacob was cooking some stew esau came in from the open country famished he said to jacob quick let me have some of that red stew i'm famished that is why he was also called edom jacob replied first sell me your birthright look i'm about to die esau said what good is the birthright to me but jacob said swear to me first so he swore an oath to him selling his birthright to jacob then jacob gave esau some bread and some lentil stew he ate and drank and then got up and left so esau despised his birthright furthermore jacob deprives esau of their father's blessing which esau was entitled to receive genesis 27 verses 1-29 when isaac was old and his eyes were so weak that he could no longer see he called for esau his older son and said to him my son here i am he answered isaac said i am now an old man and don't know the day of my death now then get your equipment your quiver and bow and go out to the open country to hunt some wild game for me prepare me the kind of tasty food i like and bring it to me to eat so that i may give you my blessing before i die now rebecca was listening as isaac spoke to his son esau when esau left for the open country to hunt game and bring it back rebecca said to her son jacob look i overheard your father say to your brother esau bring me some game and prepare me some tasty food to eat so that i may give you my blessing in the presence of the lord before i die now my son listen carefully and do what i tell you to go ouch to the flock and bring me two choice young goats so i can prepare some tasty food for your father just the way he likes it then take it to your father to eat so that he may give you his blessing before he dies jacob said to rebecca his mother but my brother esau is a hairy man while i have smooth skin what if my father touches me i would appear to be tricking him and would bring down a curse on myself rather than a blessing his mother said to him my son let the curse fall on me just do what i say go and get them for me so he went and got them and brought them to his mother and she prepared some tasty food just the way his father liked it then rebecca took the best clothes of esau her older son which she had in the house and put them on her younger son jacob she also covered his hands and the smooth part of his neck with the goatskins then she handed to her son jacob the tasty food and the bread she had made he went to his father and said my father yes my son he answered who is it jacob said to his father i am esau your firstborn i have done as you told me please sit up and eat some of my game so that you may give me your blessing isaac asked his son how did you find it so quickly my son the lord your god gave me success he replied then isaac said to jacob come near so i can touch you my son to know whether you really are my son esau or not jacob went close to his father isaac who touched him and said the voice is the voice of jacob but the hands are the hands of esau he did not recognize him for his hands were hairy like those of his brother esau so he proceeded to bless him are you really my son esau he asked i am he replied then he said my son bring me some of your game to eat so that i may give you my blessing jacob brought it to him and he ate and he brought some wine and he drank then his father isaac said to him come here my son and kiss me so he went to him and kissed him when isaac caught the smell of his clothes he blessed him and said ah the smell of my son is like the smell of a field that the lord has blessed may god give you heaven's dew and earth's richness an abundance of grain and new wine may nations serve you and peoples bow down to you be lord over your brothers and may the sons of your mother bow down to you may those who curse you be cursed and those who bless you be blessed this resulted in esau wanting to slay his younger brother so jacob fled on his way to his mother's homeland he saw angels and a ladder to heaven when jacob arrives in haran he meets his match in the form of his uncle laban genesis 29 then jacob went on his way and came to the land of the people of the east near haran as he looked he saw a well in the field and three flocks of sheep lying there resting beside it because the flocks were watered from that well now the stone on the mouth of the well that covered and protected it was large and when all the flocks were gathered there the shepherds would roll the stone from the mouth of the well water the sheep and afterward replace the stone on the mouth of the well jacob said to them my brothers where are you from and they said we are from haran so he said to them do you know laban the grandson of nahor abraham's brother and they replied we know him and he asked them is it well with him and they said he is doing well look here comes his daughter rachel with the sheep jacob said look the sun is still high overhead it is a long time before the flocks need to be gathered in their folds for the night water the sheep and go and return them to their pasture but they said we cannot leave until all the flocks are gathered together and the shepherds rolled the stone from the mouth of the well then we will water the sheep while he was still speaking with them rachel came with her father's sheep for she was a shepherdess when jacob saw his cousin rachel the daughter of laban his mother's brother and laban's sheep he came up and rolled the stone away from the mouth of the well and watered the flock of laban his uncle then jacob kissed rachel in greeting and he raised his voice and wept jacob told rachel he was her father's relative rebecca's son and she ran and told her father when laban heard of the arrival of jacob his sister's son he ran to meet him and embraced and kissed him and brought him to his house then he told laban all these things when laban said to him you are my bone and my flesh and jacob stayed with him a month then laban said to jacob just because you are my relative should you work for me for nothing tell me what should your wages be now laban had two daughters the name of the older was leah and the name of the younger was rachel julia's eyes were weak but rachel was beautiful in form and appearance jacob loved rachel so he said i will serve you as a hired workman for seven years in return for the privilege of marrying rachel your younger daughter laban said it is better that i give her in marriage to you than give her to another man stay and work with me so jacob served laban for seven years for the right to marry rachel but they seemed like only a few days to him because of his love for her finally jacob said to laban give me my wife for my time of service is completed so that i may take her to me as my wife so laban gathered together all the men of the place and prepared a wedding feast with wine but in the evening he took leah his daughter and brought her to jacob and jacob went in to consummate the marriage with her laban also gave zilpah his maid to his daughter leah as a maid but in the morning when jacob awoke it was leah who is with him and he said to laban what is this that you have done to me did i not work for you for seven years for rachel why have you deceived and betrayed me like this but laban only said it is not the tradition here to give the younger daughter in marriage before the older finish the week of the wedding feast for leah then we will give you rachel also and in return you shall work for me for seven more years so jacob complied and fulfilled leah's week of celebration then laban gave him his daughter rachel as his second wife laban also gave bilhah his maid to his daughter rachel as a maid so jacob consummated his marriage and lived with rachel as his wife and he loved rachel more than leah and he served with laban for another seven years despite his feelings for laban's younger daughter rachel jacob is duped into marrying her older sister leah jacob on the other hand perseveres and is eventually able to marry the object of his affections jacob worked for laban for many years jacob was able to take much of laban's herd for himself thanks to god's protection and jacob's intelligence finally god tells jacob to return to his father's land the problem is that this means jacob will have to confront esau will his brother's rage remain unquenched after all these years knowing jacob's story means knowing that his life was full of ups and downs despite god's promise to jacob that through him would come not only a great nation but a whole company of nations he was a fearful and anxious man jacob was about to meet his brother esau who had vowed to kill him at a critical juncture in his life all of jacob's struggles and fears were about to come true jacob had fled laban enraged by his father-in-law's treatment only to be met by his enraged brother esau anxious for his life jacob devised a bribe and then sent a caravan of gifts across the river jaboc with his women and children in the hopes of appeasing his brother he was stripped of all his worldly possessions because he was physically exhausted alone in the desert wilderness and facing certain death in reality he had no control over his fate on the banks of the jabock river he fell into a deep sleep with his father-in-law behind him and esau ahead of him he was too exhausted to fight any longer but it wasn't until then that his true struggle began fleeing his family history had been difficult enough wrestling with god himself was an entirely different matter that night jacob was visited by an angelic stranger genesis 33 verse 22 that night jacob got up and took his two wives his two female servants and his 11 sons and crossed the forward of the jabbok after he had sent them across the stream he sent over all his possessions so jacob was left alone and a man wrestled with him till daybreak jacob had struggled his entire life even at the time of his birth he was at odds with esau later he clashed with laban yet just before meeting esau jacob went through the most difficult time of his life he who had once grasped his brother's heel now clung to the living god's bodily form when the man saw that he could not overpower him he touched the socket of jacob's hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man then the man said let me go for it is daybreak but jacob replied i will not let you go unless you bless me the man asked him what is your name jacob he answered then the man said your name will no longer be jacob but israel because you have struggled with god and with humans and have overcome jacob said please tell me your name but he replied why do you ask my name then he blessed him there so jacob called the place peniel saying it is because i saw god face to face and yet my life was spared the sun rose above him as he passed peniel and he was limping because of his hip therefore to this day the israelites do not eat the tendon attached to the socket of the hip because the socket of jacob's hip was touched near the tendon note that jacob is 79 years old at this point in the narrative as a result he is unlikely to pose a physical challenge to an angel though there is no reason to doubt that a physical contest takes place we must not mistake that for the main point when the text tells us that jacob's opponent cannot overcome him it is not suggesting that jacob is physically besting the man the ease with which he inflicts physical damage on jacob indicates that any inability must be in the spiritual arena not the physical one if the wrestler is unable to spiritually defeat jacob it is because jacob is unwilling to yield only when the man threatens to leave without offering assurances of god's assistance does jacob demonstrate his willingness to negotiate on the critical issues the turning point occurs when jacob informs the stranger that he will not release him unless such assurances are provided this i believe indicates jacob's willingness to submit to god's demands on him jacob's perseverance is now working in his favor he is willing to go to any length the blessing manifests itself in the form of a name change this is significant for jacob because his name has become synonymous with his character throughout the story a name change thus denotes a change in character changing someone's name was a way to exert authority over them jacob accepts the name change which is equivalent to accepting a change in character in this case the new name is intended to represent the transformation of one of jacob's traditional strengths his perseverance has brought him success in his interactions with people and it is now responsible for his success in his struggle with god not because god has surrendered but because jacob has conceded as is customary with god one must first lose in order to win it's possible that jacob's request for the wrestler's name is a last-ditch effort to maintain control but the wrestler refuses who exactly is this stranger throughout the episode the narrator refers to him as a man at the end of the episode as elohim the man injures jacob's hip but he refuses to let go until the man blesses him jacob realized he wasn't wrestling a man but god and he wouldn't let go until he blessed him the location of the wrestling match is named penul which means face of god in hebrew here are takeaways from jacob's wrestling match with god first we need forgiveness and it only comes by the mercy of god jacob was responsible for what he did to esau and he knew it jacob had relied on his own wits for success up until this point but now he didn't know what would happen his survival was contingent on his brother forgiving him for his wrongdoings although jacob had no control over his brother's heart there was one who did so jacob was left alone and a man wrestled with him till daybreak genesis 32 verse 24 it was time for jacob to realize that he couldn't rely on his own strength any longer he had no control over the forgiveness he needed to survive if we are to follow god we must first admit our flaws and weaknesses only god's mercy can forgive us and only god's grace can see us through to the other side of the night secondly god honors perseverance especially in our seeking of him when the man saw that he could not overpower him he touched the socket of jacob's hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man then the man said let me go for it is daybreak but jacob replied i will not let you go unless you bless me genesis 32 verses 25 and 26. jacob possessed two admirable characteristics one of them had a spiritual sensitivity this was seen when he fled from his brother and saw the latter to heaven and again when he obeyed the lord's voice telling him to return to his homeland his perseverance is exemplified by his pursuit of rachel and his patience in serving laban in order to win her hand in marriage in his struggle with the mysterious man jacob exemplifies both qualities he recognized that he was wrestling with god and he refused to give up until god blessed him what made this even more powerful were the moral ramifications jacob was facing he didn't deserve the blessing but he was willing to accept whatever judgment or consequence came with it the ramifications were not insignificant the wrestling match had rendered him immobile but jacob had his blessing third our identity is in christ and he said unto him what is thy name and he said jacob and he said thy name shall be called no more jacob but israel for as a prince has to thou power with god and with men and hast prevailed genesis 32 verses 27 and 28.
jacob came from an interesting family he was descended from those who would multiply into many nations through his grandfather's faith he inherited some of his grandmother sarah's jealousy some of his mother's sly wit and some of his father's loyalty he was given the name supplanter at birth and lived up to it jacob was a selfish man in his early years jacob is changed in part by his love for rachel and his loyalty to her family but it is in his wrestling with god that he reaches a turning point he is christened israel the prince of god what does it mean to have a new name it is a new persona throughout the bible god does this numerous times every new believer receives the same treatment from jesus therefore if anyone is in christ he is a new creature the old things passed away behold new things have come first corinthians 5 verse 17 as we continue reading genesis we see jacob's name changing back and forth from his old to his new throughout his life god reminds jacob of his new name once more in genesis 35 verse 10. this is something that frequently happens to us god calls us his beloved a new creation in him but we forget who we are we should cling to our new identity after we've wrestled with god we may make mistakes and lose sight of who we are but we can always return to what god has called us to be god wants us to know him intimately 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 genesis 32 verse 29 jacob understood who god was he was aware that god was the god of his father and grandfather however the god jacob wrestled with through the jabok was god in the form of man god became the god of jacob's heart during the wrestling match many people are aware of god but have never had a genuine life-changing encounter with him understanding what god has done for others is not the same as comprehending what he has done for you god is far more concerned with the state of our hearts than with how successfully we appear to be living a righteous life spending time with god is the only way to have a relationship with him reading the bible praying and worshiping with our hearts and minds completely focused on god brings us closer more intimately into his presence the greatest impediment to spending time with god is sometimes ourselves our priorities become muddled i know that starting my day by spending time in god's word and or praying makes the rest of the day go more smoothly the events of my day do not change but my attitude does because god's peace is with me closeness to god requires humility the son rose above him as he passed peniel and he was limping because of his hip genesis 32 31. this physical disability was a sign of his new humility for the proud self-sufficient quick-witted jacob merriam-webster defines humility as freedom from pride or arrogance in today's world humility appears to be anti-culture and anti-success in god's world however we become better people when we put our pride aside and rely on him god humbled many biblical figures including jacob similar stories can be found in simon peter and saul's conversion to paul indeed paul would later write about a thorn in his flesh or because of these surpassingly great revelations therefore in order to keep me from being conceited i was given a thorn in my flesh a messenger of satan to torment me three times i pleaded with the lord to take it away from me but he said to me my grace is sufficient for you for my power is made perfect in weakness therefore i will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses so that christ's power may rest on me that is why for christ's sake i delight in weaknesses in insults in hardships in persecutions in difficulties for when i am weak then i am strong second corinthians 12 verses 7 to 10 no one would want to go through life with a disability or ailment to keep them humble but god knows what we need and that our dependence on him instead of ourselves is our greatest strength the sun was rising on jacob as he limped away he had a new ailment but also a new identity a new name and a new intimacy with god god wants to bless you when god makes us wrestle with him for some blessings it is not because god is hesitant to bless us even if it appears that way at first it's because he has more blessings for us when we wrestle than when we don't remember that god sought out jacob for this match god was the catalyst when god appeared jacob was stewing in his own anxiety over esau and his approaching slaughter squad and the wrestling drew jacob out of his fearful trance and forced him to concentrate on god i doubt jacob wanted or even thought he needed this forced focus at first it wouldn't surprise me if jacob had prayed at the start god would you get rid of this guy this is exactly what i don't need right now but what he discovered was that the wrestling was a channel for god's blessing on him the same can be said for us continue to wrestle what do you really need from god right now do not let god go until he blesses you in your anguish fear and uncertainty god will meet you however he may not meet you in the manner you expect or desire your greatest ally may appear at first to be your adversary prompting you to wrestle with him if so keep jacob in mind there are numerous benefits to wrestling you may not require soft words of comfort you may not require time alone with your thoughts you may not require sleep and you may not even require a healthy hip what you require is god's favor when god invites you to wrestle with him in prayer it is an invitation to receive his blessing continue to stick with him and don't give up don't let go of him until he blesses you he loves to bless tenacious faith and you will be transformed as a result today we like jacob can enter into a relationship with christ by confessing our sins and declaring god to be our savior and redeemer god can give us a new life as his children by admitting our brokenness to him and we can enter into an eternal relationship with him full of his blessings and good promises for our lives through his new name israel jacob was able to experience a new identity similarly when we come to know christ we undergo a transformation everything changes our lives our thoughts our actions and so on we can also learn from jacob's story that people in the bible wrestled with god in ways other than physical ones there's nothing wrong with having questions and wanting to learn more about the bible christian faith is not blind but rather founded on how god has provided for us in the past we can fight him and still come out with a new identity blessings through wrestling keep in mind what god did when he wrestled jacob jacob spent the night anticipating esau's arrival he was terrified and desperate but he came out of the night with god's blessing and a renewed faith all of our faith-based struggles with god lead to peace when we need god's comfort he sometimes send it in unexpected and even unwanted packages if necessary god will make us limp in order to strengthen our faith god even inflicted a crippling injury on jacob this made jacob even more vulnerable to esau forcing jacob's faith to rest more fully on god rather than himself if necessary god will make us limp in order to strengthen our faith finally jacob's identity was altered as a result of his wrestling with god he was no longer to be remembered as someone who obtained his blessing through deception he received god's blessing this time because he prevailed with god through faith this struggle turned out to be a profoundly gracious gift of restoration from god similar to the gift jesus gave peter by allowing him to affirm his love for jesus as many times as he had denied it so when they had dined jesus saith to simon peter simon son of jonas lovest thou me more than these he saith unto him yea lord thou knowest that i love thee he saith unto him feed my lambs he saith to him again the second time simon son of jonas lovest thou me he saith unto him yay lord thou knowest that i love thee he saith unto him feed my sheep he saith unto him the third time simon son of jonas lovest thou me peter was grieved because he said unto him the third time lovest thou me and he said unto him lord thou knowest all things thou knowest that i love thee jesus saith unto him feed my sheep john 21 verses 15 to 17.
