Written by: Mark Prentice

Genesis 32 v 17-21
Jacob gave them their orders. To the servant with the first group of animals he said, “My brother Esau will come to you and ask, ‘Whose servant are you? Where are you going and whose animals are these?’ Then you will answer, ‘They belong to your servant Jacob. He sent them as a gift to you, my master Esau, and he also is coming behind us.’”
Jacob ordered the second servant, the third servant, and all the other servants to do the same thing. He said, “Say the same thing to Esau when you meet him. Say, ‘Your servant Jacob is coming behind us.’” Jacob thought, “If I send these gifts ahead of me, maybe Esau will forgive me. Then when I see him, perhaps he will accept me.” So Jacob sent the gifts to Esau, but he himself stayed that night in the camp.

Notes
Ever thought you’re on the scrap heap? Perhaps we’ve been blessed or encountered God in ways that should have had a deeper impact than they did. Maybe we realise how deep “sin” still goes. Or we recognise we should be further on in our discipleship than we are. Have I missed my chance to be all God called me to be? 

We need to remember that already, in a dream, Jacob has seen into heaven, he’s actually seen God, he’s heard God’s voice, he’s met with angels and he’s been blessed and protected by God throughout his life. How could you be anything other than spiritually sorted after having that much history with God?

God told Jacob to return to the place where he was born, which meant facing his brother, Esau. Last time these two met, Esau threatened to kill Jacob, and Jacob believed him! So, on his return, he sent gifts ahead, hoping to buy forgiveness. He struck the pose of subservience, hoping to manipulate acceptance; he fearfully followed behind, hoping that by the time he stood face to face with Esau, he would have done enough to regain his goodwill. This passage is designed to highlight how little Jacob had changed in spite of all that God had done.

Was God’s plan frustrated? Had Jacob missed his chance? No - God committed himself to Jacob, working relentlessly to transform him into the man who would be heralded a hero of the faith, an example to follow (Hebrews 11 v 21). Jacob was still not all God called him to be, but neither was he on the spiritual scrap heap! 

Confidence in the relentless grace of God, and patience with ourselves, might make the path of discipleship a less anxious a place to be.

Prayer
Father,
I should probably be ashamed of how little progress I have made in my faith, after all that you have done for me. Forgive me that I take so much for granted. Teach me to understand not only what you give, but also why you have given it.
Amen

Genesis 32 v 22-25
During the night Jacob rose and crossed the Jabbok River at the crossing, taking with him his two wives, his two slave girls and his eleven sons. He sent his family and everything he had across the river. So Jacob was alone, and a man came and wrestled with him until the sun came up. When the man saw he could not defeat Jacob, he struck Jacob’s hip and put it out of joint.

Notes
They battled for “supremacy”, the right to shape a life. Until tonight, Jacob alone retained this privilege. His cunning, deception, and sheer force of will were the tools with which he fashioned his own destiny. God was in view, but never in control. Jacob’s words betrayed his thinking: God was involved with Abraham and Isaac, but not yet with Jacob (Genesis 32 v 9). He prayed, while making his own plans; he saw God’s angels (Genesis 32 v 2), but would not rely on another, developing instead his own strategies for survival. 

God never said he would help those who help themselves.

Unrecognised, and uninvited, God was the aggressor in a confrontation that would leave him pre-eminent. In the morning Jacob would relinquish his claim to autonomy, but morning was a night away. Until morning, God left the full measure of his strength untapped, waiting for Jacob’s concession. It didn’t come. With a stroke, he dislocated Jacob’s hip, denying him the ability even to stand, let alone fight. Jacob clung onto his opponent for support, overwhelmed by God’s determination for sovereign involvement. God tried other ways of defeating Jacob, of provoking his submission, but he was left with no alternative but a direct power struggle to break Jacob’s self-reliance. 

Jacob’s strong and resourceful character, unless bridled, actually hindered his usefulness to God. Jacob’s limp symbolised his deliverance from a danger that plagues God’s people even now: our tendency to rely on our own resources, wisdom and provision, whilst holding God safely beyond the range of interference. We pray, then make our own plans. God is in view but never in control. 

Do not refuse God’s relentless grace like Jacob had. Concede to him the right to shape your life.

Prayer
Father,
Make me the kind of person who can perceive your grace at work in my life and who will respond to it. Give me courage to face my fear of the unknown, and to trust your sovereignty.
Amen

Genesis 32 v 26-32
Then he said to Jacob, “Let me go. The sun is coming up.”
But Jacob said, “I will let you go if you will bless me.”
The man said to him, “What is your name?”
And he answered, “Jacob.”
Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob. Your name will now be Israel, because you have wrestled with God and with people, and you have won.”
Then Jacob asked him, “Please tell me your name.”
But the man said, “Why do you ask my name?” Then he blessed Jacob there.
So Jacob named that place Peniel, saying, “I have seen God face to face, but my life was saved.” Then the sun rose as he was leaving that place, and Jacob was limping because of his leg. So even today the people of Israel do not eat the muscle that is on the hip joint of animals, because Jacob was touched there.

Notes
Dawn broke. Jacob had a long day ahead of him, and God would not be an excuse for Jacob’s failure to fulfil his fraternal responsibilities. He must go. But Jacob, clinging to God for support, refused to release him! Finally, Jacob recognised the supremacy of God and he asked for a blessing. But before God could build, he must tear down.

He asked for Jacob’s name, not from a place of ignorance, but to bring Jacob to the place of confession. His name was a description more than an identity tag. In divulging it, Jacob admitted he was the kind of person who grasped for what did not belong to him, and who would use whatever means necessary to get what he wanted. This was how he had lived. He entrusted this self-revelation to his assailant, only to learn that he would no longer be stigmatised. He would be given a new name - a name rooted in his past, but which would also hold out the promise of his future in God. Although “Israel” plays on the sound of the Hebrew phrase, “you have struggled”, this is not its meaning. The alliteration echoes Jacob’s history, but the name “Israel” actually means: “Let God Rule”. His name, like his limp, would serve as a permanent reminder that it was God who now wore the mantle of authority.

Israel no longer had the luxury of deciding whether or not to submit to God. His new name demanded this be the fundamental orientation of his life and being. His encounter with God had brought him through confession to a place of awareness of the authority and supremacy of God. This is a good measure of the authenticity of religious experience, and is the aim of all God’s dealings with us.

Prayer
Father,
Today I ask for this attitude of being willing to submit to you, and the wisdom to perceive when you are at work to make this a reality. Guard me from those experiences that deflect me from this goal.
Amen

Genesis 33 v 1-7
Jacob looked up and saw Esau coming, and with him were 400 men. So Jacob divided his children among Leah, Rachel and the two slave girls. Jacob put the slave girls with their children first, then Leah and her children behind them, and Rachel and Joseph last. Jacob himself went out in front of them and bowed down flat on the ground seven times as he was walking towards his brother.
But Esau ran to meet Jacob and put his arms around him and hugged him. Then Esau kissed him, and they both cried. When Esau looked up and saw the women and children, he asked, “Who are these people with you?”
Jacob answered, “These are the children God has given me. God has been good to me, your servant.”
Then the two slave girls and their children came up to Esau and bowed down flat on the earth before him. Leah and her children also came up to Esau and also bowed down flat on the earth. Last of all, Joseph and Rachel came up to Esau, and they, too, bowed down flat before him.

Notes
And so Jacob limped towards his brother. Jacob? I thought he had a new name, establishing a new character and perception of God! But he is consistently “Jacob”, until God meets him again at Bethel (Genesis 35 v 1-15) and reiterates that his name will be “Israel”. Even then, the text of Genesis wavers. Is he Israel (Genesis 46 v 1), or Jacob (47 v 9)? 

Those who walk across the pages of the Bible are not inherently more spiritual than we are, as though that explains why God can use them. Jacob’s very real encounter with God was undermined by the fragility of his very real humanity.

God had called him “Israel”. But while his perspective on life, God and himself had changed, the implications didn’t work instantaneously through his character and personality. As he limped towards Esau, he was already becoming one who “Lets God Rule”, but this lives in tension with an entire lifetime of living and thinking as “Jacob”. Even pivotal encounters with God rarely mean immediate transformation. They are part of a painful, ongoing process in which God’s will slowly gains ground in our lives.

As Christians, we are declared “righteous”, “in Christ”, “ruled by the Spirit”, etc (Romans 8 v 1-13). That is, if you like, our new identity, our new name. Are we then immediately transformed, perfectly reflecting Christ? No. Like Jacob/Israel we live in this tension between who God has called us to be, and the reality of who we remain. It will one day be resolved, but until then the text of our life wavers, unsure at times what to call us. This does not justify our failure to live up to our “new name”, but it is being honest about both Jacob and ourselves. 

Prayer
Father,
You have called us by a new name, and have given us a new nature. Forgive us for the times we fail to live by these gifts. Help us as we struggle to live out the reality of who we really are.
Amen

Genesis 33 v 8-11
Esau said, “I saw many herds as I was coming here. Why did you bring them?”
Jacob answered, “They were to please you, my master.”
But Esau said, “I already have enough, my brother. Keep what you have.”
Jacob said, “No! Please! If I have pleased you, then accept the gift I give you. I am very happy to see your face again. It is like seeing the face of God, because you have accepted me. So I beg you to accept the gift I give you. God has been very good to me, and I have more than I need.” And because Jacob begged, Esau accepted the gift.

Notes
The encounters with God and with Esau were connected in Jacob’s mind. 

For example, he was surprised that neither encounter resulted in his death! His life was spared on the banks of the River Jabbok (Genesis 32 v 30), and God accepted him in spite of (rather than because of) anything Jacob had done. Jacob’s whole approach to Esau was designed to minimise the threat of death at his brother’s hands (Genesis 32 v 7-12). Yet Esau, like God, accepted him. And again this acceptance was not on the basis of the preparations Jacob had made and the gifts he had sent ahead. 

Jacob was the victim of God’s involvement, yet it was Esau who reflected God’s attitude. True, Jacob had found a courage he didn’t have before (Genesis 33 v 3), and true, there was a degree of honesty that wasn’t there before (Genesis 33 v 8), but his behaviour was still a long way from being without duplicity. It was Esau – and we have heard nothing of God’s involvement with Esau – who was identified as acting like God. 

This seems to echo a very contemporary complaint: “I know people who aren’t Christians who live better lives than some of the Christians I know.” Often such sentiments are held out as a justification for doubting the authenticity of the Christian faith and therefore as an excuse not to commit to it. The fact that such allegations may be true is a damning indictment and calls us to confession and change. Read Peter’s words: 

“People who do not believe [in Christ] are living all around you… Live such good lives that they will see the good things you do and will give glory to God on the day when Christ comes again” (1 Peter 2 v 12).

Prayer
Father,
Forgive me for when I have lived in a way that gives others ammunition against the faith, and an excuse to turn away from it. By your grace, help me to live the lifestyle you have called me to – without apology, without compromise, without excuse.
Amen

Genesis 33 v 12-17
Then Esau said, “Let us be going. I will travel with you.”
But Jacob said to him, “My master, you know that the children are weak. And I must be careful with my flocks and their young ones. If I force them to go too far in one day, all the animals will die. So, my master, you go on ahead of me, your servant. I will follow you slowly and let the animals and the children set the speed at which we travel. I will meet you, my master, in Edom.”
So Esau said, “Then let me leave some of my people with you.”
“No, thank you,” said Jacob. “I only want to please you, my master.” So that day Esau started back to Edom. But Jacob went to Succoth, where he built a house for himself and shelters for his animals. That is why the place was named Succoth.

Notes
In our compartmentalised lives, it’s easy to think of our relationship with God as something that exists, and functions, without impinging on other relationships. For Jacob, it is in the context of his addressing the rift with Esau that he stumbles on such a significant juncture in his relationship with God. The two go hand in hand. Our relationship with God permeates our relationships with others, shaping and informing them. 

This means that as God deepens his relationship with us, it will impact our relationships with others. As we are reconciled to God, so we are called to be reconciled to others. As we experience God’s forgiveness, so we are called to forgive … or to be forgiven.

These verses, by contrast, are shot through with Jacob’s insecurity. He knew he had done wrong and sought to protect himself from the consequences, even when assured that those consequences would not materialise. His failure to either trust God or believe Esau left him unconvinced of his brother’s unilateral forgiveness.

Was Esau naïve in thinking his offer would mean they could go on as if nothing had happened? It can be as difficult to be forgiven as to forgive, and the declaration/acceptance of forgiveness is often only the first step to rebuilding trust. Jacob, this strange yet familiar mixture of “God’s rule” and “self-rule”, failed again to be the man God had called him to be. Tragically it seems he could not accept Esau’s acceptance, and so he remained reluctant to give himself to this relationship.

They parted company, in spite of Jacob’s deceitful promise to meet up again at Edom. The opportunity was lost, and the reconciliation never fully took hold. Jacob moved south, to the next chapter of his life – still not perfect, and still not rejected by God.

Prayer
Father,
Forgive me when I try to shut you out from other relationships in my life. Help me to realise the ways in which you wish to restore and impact those other relationships. Give me the courage to change, and the humility to be changed.
Amen

Genesis 33 v 18-20
Jacob left North West Mesopotamia and arrived safely at the city of Shechem in the land of Canaan. There he camped east of the city. He bought a part of the field where he had camped from the sons of Hamor, father of Shechem, for 100 pieces of silver. He built an altar there and named it after God, the God of Israel.

Notes
The last time Jacob built anything like an altar was fourteen years before, at Bethel, when he promised that if God was with him, protected him, provided for him and ensured peace for his family, then he would be Jacob’s God (Genesis 28 v 20-22) - a very conditional pledge of allegiance. This time was different. The altar declared unconditionally that God was Israel’s God. 

Finally God was getting somewhere with this reluctant patriarch! But it had been such a struggle. Why did God remain doggedly involved with someone so reluctant to concede to him? Wasn’t there someone more willing, more malleable?

Generations later, Paul left us an answer: “[Jacob] was chosen because he was the one God wanted to call … his choice does not depend on what people want or try to do” (see Romans 9 v 10-15). 

God remained committed because deep in the mysteries of his own loving heart, he decided he would be the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. He decided to bring Jacob to this place of unconditional submission and allegiance. This is why Jacob was not rejected, and it is why we are not rejected. It is why, in spite of all our failure and our slowness to learn, we, like Jacob, can have confidence that we will in the end be all that God has called us to be.

And Jacob did become all God had called him to be. In the end he would be a hero of the faith for he would leave to his twelve sons a land that God promised but that he did not yet possess. And so it is Jacob, and not Esau, that we are called to imitate (Hebrews 11 v 20 & 12 v 16). I wonder if we will.

Prayer
Father,
Thank you that my salvation and my growth in the faith does not finally depend on me. As I seek to respond to your love for me, give me the security in my relationship with you that allows me to take risks and to make mistakes.
Amen


word-on-the-web uses the Scripture text taken from the Youth Bible, New Century Version (Anglicised Edition) copyright 1993 by Word Publishing Milton Keynes