Genesis 32:22-32
Jacob is one of the more interesting characters from the Old Testament. He’s the son of Isaac and grandson of Abraham. He ends up being father himself to a group of sons who deceive him into believing that his favorite child, Joseph, has been torn apart by wild animals when in fact those same brothers sold Joseph into slavery jealous of the attention he was receiving from Isaac.
For the record, at the time Joseph was something of a brat in his own right.
For much of his life, Jacob is referred to as a deceiver. He is a master manipulator and as such he’s able to cheat his older brother Esau out of his birthright as well as Isaac’s deathbed blessing. Jacob seems to place a priority on his relationship with God, he just tends to set God aside when relating to Him creates an inconvenience. Much of what we know about Jacob – read Genesis chapters 25-32 – involves ongoing, never-ending drama in every way imaginable. If he’s not in a struggle of some kind with a family member, then he’s at odds with a spouse. His life consists of one grand plan after another, most of them deceitful on some level and always focused on getting him what he wants.
And for what it’s worth, most of what Jacob wants is good. He wants to be a spiritual leader to his family. He wants to live in peace with his 4 wives and eleven sons. He seems to want to grow in his faith, but it isn’t until an amazing encounter with God Himself that we see a significant change in Jacob.
It’s an encounter that will leave him humbled and hobbled. It’s an encounter that once again will demonstrate just how wonderful God’s grace is. It’s an encounter that also shows us that Jesus is alive and present in the Old Testament. Take a look at these verses and see what I mean. Genesis 32:22-32…
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. After taking them to the other side, he sent over all his possessions. 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 would not win the match, he touched Jacob’s hip and wrenched it out of its socket. 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.” “What is your name?” the man asked. He replied, “Jacob.”
“Your name will no longer be Jacob,” the man told him. “From now on you will be called Israel, because you have fought with God and with men and have won.”
“Please tell me your name,” Jacob said. “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 was rising as Jacob left Peniel, and he was limping because of the injury to his hip. (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.)
Imagine this moment arriving at the culmination of a lifetime of deceit. This “Man” who wrestles with Jacob is thought by many Bible scholars to represent what’s known as a “Christophany” which is basically an incarnation of Jesus appearing in the Old Testament. The wrestling match itself is an image that we all have more than likely faced, right? We’ve lived out seasons of our lives where it’s all about us. Whatever we need to do to meet whatever self-focused desires we have we’ll do. We bend over backwards to rationalize our behavior and if we do feel convicted in anyway, we determine to discuss it with God at a later date. And it’s an internal, spiritual struggle that can feel a lot like a WWF wrestling match.
What God does here is pretty fascinating. He allows Jacob to believe that he has the upper hand in this battle. Why would He do that? We see it…God is setting Jacob up to be humbled in a mighty way. Just when Jacob thinks he has the edge in this epic, physical battle with a mere touch God dislocates his hipbone from the socket.
Just one touch erases the sure victory of the physical battle and Jacob comes away not just humbled but with a new sense of the role that God is playing in his life.
Up until this interaction with God, Jacob was living in fear of a looming confrontation with his brother, Esau. After he cheated Esau out of Isaac’s birthright blessing, Esau vowed that at some point he would track Jacob down and kill him. Jacob sees that moment at hand, and he cries out God for protection. It’s a moment of vulnerability that we’ve not seen from Jacob before. The result of that prayer plays out in Genesis 33:3-4…
As he approached his brother, he bowed to the ground seven times before him. Then Esau ran to meet him and embraced him, threw his arms around his neck, and kissed him. And they both wept.
God’s grace wiped away years of deception and anger and jealousy. And so it is for us. Once we surrender the wrestling match, we at times seem committed to having with God and allow Him to touch us in a way that restore a humble, faithful heart the areas of our lives that He will heal will leave us awestruck. His love for us is just that big.
Stop wrestling. Receive His grace and revel in His love!