Why Did Jacob Wrestle With God?

In the Bible, Jacob was the third patriarch for the Jewish community, and he was an ancestor of the twelve tribes of Israel. He is an important individual for Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. Jacob tricked his father into giving him his blessing, a trick for which his brother Esau vowed to kill Jacob. Jacob was afraid and mistook a wrestle with God thinking it was Esau or one of his men. There are a couple of different translations and versions for the story of when Jacob wrestled with God.

After Jacob tricked his father into giving him his blessing, Esau threatened to kill Jacob. This threat caused Jacob to leave the area and move to another area where his uncle lived. In this new area Jacob married, started a family and became a wealthy man.

When Jacob returned to the area where he used to live he became afraid of Esau because he was told that Esau had gathered four hundred men and was coming to kill him. Jacob sent his family away for safety.

Conquering Fear and Blaming Fate

In Genesis there is a story of Jacob being attacked. Jacob was very fearful of a pending attack by Esau and he blamed the attack on Esau. The Bible states that Jacob prayed to God to help him win the battle with Esea. The lesson of the Bible is that if a believer asks God for help, then God will help the believer fight the battle.

There are two different translations of the wrestling - one where Jacob wrestles with God and a second translation where Jacob wrestles with an angel.

Jacob Wrestled with God

One translation states that while Jacob was travelling through the desert, he was left alone one night. While he was alone, he wrestled a man for the entirety of the night. He wrestled with the man until the sun rose in the morning.

In the morning, the man stated that he had to leave. Jacob was injured from the fighting, but he insisted that the man stay and bless Jacob.

The man is revealed to be God. Jacob is blessed, and he is given a new name, “Israel.” This new name, “Israel,” means “wrestled with God.”  Jacob named the place where the two had wrestled as “Peniel.” This translates to “the face of God.” Jacob named it such because he saw the face of God there.

Jacob Wrestled with an Angel

Another version states that Jacob didn’t wrestle with God. Instead, God sent an angel down to wrestle with Jacob, and the angel left at dawn. In this version of the story, the angel is the guardian angel of Esau. The struggle was symbolically meant to be a struggle between spiritual and physical forces.

Reason for Jacob’s Fear - The Deception of Esau

Later in his life, Jacob's father Isaac became blind. Isaac wanted to bless his firstborn and favorite son, Esau. However, Rebecca wanted to blessing to go to Jacob. Rebecca and Jacob were able to trick Isaac into thinking that Jacob was Esau. Thus, the blessings went to Jacob instead of Esau.

When Esau discovered Jacob’s trickery, he was upset and begged his father to bless him as well. However, Isaac already gave his blessing out to Jacob and could not give a second blessing. Since Esau was betrayed, he vowed to kill his brother.

Jacob and His Family

In the Hebrew Bible, Jacob is the son of Isaac and Rebecca. He is also the twin brother of Esau. As Jacob grew older, he eventually had twelve sons and multiple daughters. His two wives, Leah and Rachel, gave birth to the majority of the children. Some of Jacob’s children included:

• Reuben
• Simeon
• Levi
• Dan
• Gad
• Dinah
• Zebulun
• Benjamin

According to the Book of Genesis, Jacob moved to Egypt because of an extreme drought in Canaan. After seventeen years in Egypt, Jacob died. Jacob’s remains were carried back to Canaan by Joseph. Jacob eventually was buried in the Cave of Machpelah. 

Fighting of Jacob and Esau

When Rebecca was pregnant with Jacob and his twin brother, she was extremely uncomfortable. She inquired to God as to why she was so uncomfortable and why she was suffering. The Bible states that her pain was because the twins were fighting in her womb.

A further prophecy told Rebecca that not only were the twins currently fighting in her womb, but that the twins would continue fighting their entire lives. The prophecy also states that the two boys would become two separate nations, and that the older brother would serve the younger brother. Additionally, if one brother fell, the other brother would rise.

When Rebecca gave birth, Jacob was born second after Esau. Jacob translates to “on the heel of another,” or “he who follows upon the heels of one.” Throughout their childhood, the twins differed from each other. Esau became a hunter, while Jacob preferred to stay indoors. Esau was the favorite son of Isaac, and Jacob was the favorite son of Rebecca.