Genesis 32
3 Jacob sent messengers ahead of him to his brother Esau in the land of Seir, the country of Edom.
4 He instructed them: “This is what you are to say to my lord Esau: ‘Your servant Jacob says, I have been staying with Laban and have remained there till now. 5 I have cattle and donkeys, sheep and goats, male and female servants. Now I am sending this message to my lord, that I may find favor in your eyes.’”
6 When the messengers returned to Jacob, they said, “We went to your brother Esau, and now he is coming to meet you, and four hundred men are with him.”
7 In great fear and distress Jacob divided the people who were with him into two groups, and the flocks and herds and camels as well. 8 He thought, “If Esau comes and attacks one group, the group that is left may escape.”
9 Then Jacob prayed, “O God of my father Abraham, God of my father Isaac, Lord, you who said to me, ‘Go back to your country and your relatives, and I will make you prosper,’ 10 I am unworthy of all the kindness and faithfulness you have shown your servant. I had only my staff when I crossed this Jordan, but now I have become two camps. 11 Save me, I pray, from the hand of my brother Esau, for I am afraid he will come and attack me, and also the mothers with their children. 12 But you have said, ‘I will surely make you prosper and will make your descendants like the sand of the sea, which cannot be counted.’”
13 He spent the night there, and from what he had with him he selected a gift for his brother Esau: 14 two hundred female goats and twenty male goats, two hundred ewes and twenty rams, 15 thirty female camels with their young, forty cows and ten bulls, and twenty female donkeys and ten male donkeys. 16 He put them in the care of his servants, each herd by itself, and said to his servants, “Go ahead of me, and keep some space between the herds.”
17 He instructed the one in the lead: “When my brother Esau meets you and asks, ‘Who do you belong to, and where are you going, and who owns all these animals in front of you?’ 18 then you are to say, ‘They belong to your servant Jacob. They are a gift sent to my lord Esau, and he is coming behind us.’”
19 He also instructed the second, the third and all the others who followed the herds: “You are to say the same thing to Esau when you meet him. 20 And be sure to say, ‘Your servant Jacob is coming behind us.’” For he thought, “I will pacify him with these gifts I am sending on ahead; later, when I see him, perhaps he will receive me.” 21 So Jacob’s gifts went on ahead of him, but he himself spent the night in the camp.
Jacob Wrestles With God
22 That night Jacob got up and took his two wives, his two female servants and his eleven sons and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. 23 After he had sent them across the stream, he sent over all his possessions. 24 So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak. 25 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. 26 Then the man said, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.”
But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.”
27 The man asked him, “What is your name?”
“Jacob,” he answered.
28 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.”
29 Jacob said, “Please tell me your name.”
But he replied, “Why do you ask my name?” Then he blessed him there.
30 So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, “It is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared.”
31 The sun rose above him as he passed Peniel, and he was limping because of his hip. 32 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.
Genesis 32 (NIV)
This chapter tells the story of what happened when Jacob was on his way back home. He knew he was going to meet Esau, and considering what had transpired between him and Esau (Genesis 27), he was prepared for a not-so-great welcome. Jacob prayed to God and he had the idea to dispatch various gifts to Esau as a way to pacify him.
After Jacob had sent his wife and all his possessions had crossed the ford of the Jabbok, he had an encounter with God that left him with a broken hip and a new name.
Lessons from Genesis 32:
- Holding God to His word: God always keeps His word. The reason why some promises and prophecies don’t come to pass in our lives is because we forget them or proclaim falsities that hinder the word from becoming manifest. Jacob was about to confront his brother who wanted him dead, and so he held God to His word (in Genesis 32:9 and 12), recalling how God had told him to go back to the land promised to Abraham. God’s promise to him meant that now was not the time for him to die.
When you hold God to His word, you establish the word of God in your life and align your outcomes to what God said.
- God can use the little you have to make you successful and prosperous: In Genesis 32 verse 10, Jacob worships God for taking him from a man with just a staff to two camps. When you commit your “little” to God, He will show you how to use it to produce abundance and He will empower you to prosper.
- There is power in prayer to change even the hearts of men: When faced with adversity, call upon the name of the Lord. Jacob called on God to deliver from Esau and God did in fact touch Esau’s heart. He went from wanting to kill Jacob to wanting to hug him.
- Divine inspiration: God speaks to us in many ways including through thoughts. At times you pray about something and then you suddenly have an amazing idea, that’s divine inspiration. In Jacob’s case, he got the idea to send gifts to Esau to assuage his anger (Genesis 32:13-20)
- In your quiet times, seek God: God is always talking to us. However, because of the noise and busyness of life, at times we miss His voice. It is important to observe quiet times where you silence everything and just focus on God. In these moments, turn off every distraction and clear your mind of all thoughts, just focus on God and He will minister to you.
- Submit to God, do not become too great in your own eyes: Genesis 25-29 describes Jacob’s struggle with the Lord, Jacob could not be overpowered and so his hip was wrenched leaving him with a limp.
When you submit to God, His will becomes your will, you obey what He says without resistance. However, when you resist God and refuse to submit, you may find yourself faced with situations that will compel you to submit (e.g. Jonah and the fish – Jonah chapter 1 to 3). Don’t wait till your hip is broken to submit to God, let His Spirit guide you in His ways.
- Jacob’s new name: Like Abraham (in Genesis 17), Jacob had a life altering encounter with God that resulted in him getting a new name. He went from being Jacob to Israel. Interesting that the name was given to him as a blessing (Genesis 32:26-28). A person’s name is an identifier, by giving Jacob a new name, God gave him a new identity – he (Jacob) was no longer to be a fraudster but an overcomer.
- What men consider sacred: Because the socket of Jacob’s hip was touched near the tendon, the Israelites do not eat the tendon attached to the socket of the hip, it is not considered Kosher.
It is good to educate oneself about the origin of certain practices before adopting them as one’s traditions. Also important is to not judge others who practice traditions you choose not to honour. Let God’s love fill your heart and guide you in your decisions.
Reflection
- Do you observe quiet times with God?
- God can use anything you have to make you prosperous, what are some things or attributes you possess? How can you commit them to God so He can use them for your expansion and His glory?
Further reading
- Romans 10:13 AMP [For “whoever calls on the name of the Lord [in prayer] will be saved.” [Joel 2:32]]
- Psalms 4:4 NIV [Tremble and do not sin; when you are on your beds, search your hearts and be silent.]
- James 4:7 NIV [Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.]
Proverbs 3:7 [Be not wise in thine own eyes: Fear the LORD , and depart from evil. ]
Prayer
Heavenly Father, you are my God and my hope is in you. Today, I entrust you with all that I am and all that I have that you will use it all for your glory. I acknowledge that I am not an empty vessel, help me recognize my God-given potential and inspire me with new ideas so that I can be a blessing, not only to me and mine but to multitudes. Today, I submit myself to you, let your perfect will be done in my life. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Community
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