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Jacob Fears Esau
Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met him.
Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met him.
Jacob Sends Gifts to Esau
Then Jacob sent messengers ahead to his brother, Esau, who was living in the region of Seir in the land of Edom.
instructing them, “Thus you shall say to my lord Esau: Thus says your servant Jacob, ‘I have sojourned with Laban and stayed until now.
He told them, “Give this message to my master Esau: ‘Humble greetings from your servant Jacob. Until now I have been living with Uncle Laban,
I have oxen, donkeys, flocks, male servants, and female servants. I have sent to tell my lord, in order that I may find favor in your sight.’”
and now I own cattle, donkeys, flocks of sheep and goats, and many servants, both men and women. I have sent these messengers to inform my lord of my coming, hoping that you will be friendly to me.’”
And the messengers returned to Jacob, saying, “We came to your brother Esau, and he is coming to meet you, and there are four hundred men with him.”
After delivering the message, the messengers returned to Jacob and reported, “We met your brother, Esau, and he is already on his way to meet you — with an army of 400 men!”
Then Jacob was greatly afraid and distressed. He divided the people who were with him, and the flocks and herds and camels, into two camps,
Jacob was terrified at the news. He divided his household, along with the flocks and herds and camels, into two groups.
thinking, “If Esau comes to the one camp and attacks it, then the camp that is left will escape.”
He thought, “If Esau meets one group and attacks it, perhaps the other group can escape.”
And Jacob said, “O God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac, O Lord who said to me, ‘Return to your country and to your kindred, that I may do you good,’
Then Jacob prayed, “O God of my grandfather Abraham, and God of my father, Isaac — O LORD, you told me, ‘Return to your own land and to your relatives.’ And you promised me, ‘I will treat you kindly.’
I am not worthy of the least of all the deeds of steadfast love and all the faithfulness that you have shown to your servant, for with only my staff I crossed this Jordan, and now I have become two camps.
I am not worthy of all the unfailing love and faithfulness you have shown to me, your servant. When I left home and crossed the Jordan River, I owned nothing except a walking stick. Now my household fills two large camps!
Please deliver me from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau, for I fear him, that he may come and attack me, the mothers with the children.
O LORD, please rescue me from the hand of my brother, Esau. I am afraid that he is coming to attack me, along with my wives and children.
But you said, ‘I will surely do you good, and make your offspring as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude.’”
But you promised me, ‘I will surely treat you kindly, and I will multiply your descendants until they become as numerous as the sands along the seashore — too many to count.’”
So he stayed there that night, and from what he had with him he took a present for his brother Esau,
Jacob stayed where he was for the night. Then he selected these gifts from his possessions to present to his brother, Esau:
two hundred female goats and twenty male goats, two hundred ewes and twenty rams,
200 female goats, 20 male goats, 200 ewes, 20 rams,
thirty milking camels and their calves, forty cows and ten bulls, twenty female donkeys and ten male donkeys.
30 female camels with their young, 40 cows, 10 bulls, 20 female donkeys, and 10 male donkeys.
These he handed over to his servants, every drove by itself, and said to his servants, “Pass on ahead of me and put a space between drove and drove.”
He divided these animals into herds and assigned each to different servants. Then he told his servants, “Go ahead of me with the animals, but keep some distance between the herds.”
He instructed the first, “When Esau my brother meets you and asks you, ‘To whom do you belong? Where are you going? And whose are these ahead of you?’
He gave these instructions to the men leading the first group: “When my brother, Esau, meets you, he will ask, ‘Whose servants are you? Where are you going? Who owns these animals?’
then you shall say, ‘They belong to your servant Jacob. They are a present sent to my lord Esau. And moreover, he is behind us.’”
You must reply, ‘They belong to your servant Jacob, but they are a gift for his master Esau. Look, he is coming right behind us.’”
He likewise instructed the second and the third and all who followed the droves, “You shall say the same thing to Esau when you find him,
Jacob gave the same instructions to the second and third herdsmen and to all who followed behind the herds: “You must say the same thing to Esau when you meet him.
And be sure to say, ‘Look, your servant Jacob is right behind us.’”
Jacob thought, “I will try to appease him by sending gifts ahead of me. When I see him in person, perhaps he will be friendly to me.”
Jacob thought, “I will try to appease him by sending gifts ahead of me. When I see him in person, perhaps he will be friendly to me.”
So the present passed on ahead of him, and he himself stayed that night in the camp.
So the gifts were sent on ahead, while Jacob himself spent that night in the camp.
Jacob Wrestles with God
During the night Jacob got up and took his two wives, his two servant wives, and his eleven sons and crossed the Jabbok River with them.
He took them and sent them across the stream, and everything else that he had.
After taking them to the other side, he sent over all his possessions.
And Jacob was left alone. And a man wrestled with him until the breaking of the day.
This left Jacob all alone in the camp, and a man came and wrestled with him until the dawn began to break.
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.
When the man saw that he would not win the match, he touched Jacob’s hip and wrenched it out of its socket.
Then he said, “Let me go, for the day has broken.” But Jacob said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.”
Then the man said, “Let me go, for the dawn is breaking!”
But Jacob said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.”
But Jacob said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.”
And he said to him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Jacob.”
“What is your name?” the man asked.
He replied, “Jacob.”
He replied, “Jacob.”
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.
“Please tell me your name,” Jacob said.
“Why do you want to know my name?” the man replied. Then he blessed Jacob there.
“Why do you want to know my name?” the man replied. Then he blessed Jacob there.
Jacob named the place Peniel (which means “face of God”), for he said, “I have seen God face to face, yet my life has been spared.”
The sun rose upon him as he passed Penuel, limping because of his hip.
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.
(Even today the people of Israel don’t eat the tendon near the hip socket because of what happened that night when the man strained the tendon of Jacob’s hip.)