Jacob, having come to terms with his father-in-law Laban, continues his journey of return to the land and home of his parents. Upon reaching the Jordan he finds that his brother Esau is aware of his approach and is coming to meet him with a force of four hundred men. He takes action to minimize the risk of a violent confrontation and then separates himself from his household for the night.
The text then describes one of the most enigmatic scenes in the Torah: Jacob’s confrontation with the mysterious “man,” or figure, or being. He wrestles with the man throughout the night and, as dawn approaches, we read the following. (NJPS translation, emphasis added)
Genesis 32: 27-31
וַיֹּ֣אמֶר שַׁלְּחֵ֔נִי כִּ֥י עָלָ֖ה הַשָּׁ֑חַר וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ לֹ֣א אֲשַֽׁלֵּחֲךָ֔ כִּ֖י אִם־בֵּרַכְתָּֽנִי׃
Then he said, “Let me go, for dawn is breaking.” But he answered, “I will not let you go, unless you bless me.”
וַיֹּ֥אמֶר אֵלָ֖יו מַה־שְּׁמֶ֑ךָ וַיֹּ֖אמֶר יַעֲקֹֽב׃
Said the other, “What is your name?” He replied, “Jacob.”
We do not know, until we reach the last of the four va’yomer clauses, whose voice initiated the exchange. Working backward through the exchange it is clear that it is the “man” who asks to be released. That implies that it is in Jacob’s power to consent or refuse. And that tells us something about the character of the “man.” The man might be a heavenly entity of some sort, probably an angel, but clearly not one powerful enough to defeat Jacob or to force Jacob to release him/it. It is certainly not God.
The exchange continues …
וַיֹּ֗אמֶר לֹ֤א יַעֲקֹב֙ יֵאָמֵ֥ר עוֹד֙ שִׁמְךָ֔ כִּ֖י אִם־יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל כִּֽי־שָׂרִ֧יתָ עִם־אֱלֹהִ֛ים וְעִם־אֲנָשִׁ֖ים וַתּוּכָֽל׃
Said he, “Your name shall no longer be Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with beings divine and human, and have prevailed.”
It is often suggested that Jacob’s name is changed to Israel at this point in the account. But that creates a problem for two reasons. First, we immediately find that the name Jacob continues to be used. And second, in an exchange in Chapter 35 that is explicitly between God and Jacob, God does change Jacob’s name.
That problem is resolved by inspection of the verb in verse 29. The verb in the operative clause is ye’a’mer, which is 3rd person masc. sing. imperfect. That does not effect change. It announces a change that will occur in the future.
The account continues …
וַיִּשְׁאַ֣ל יַעֲקֹ֗ב וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ הַגִּֽידָה־נָּ֣א שְׁמֶ֔ךָ וַיֹּ֕אמֶר לָ֥מָּה זֶּ֖ה תִּשְׁאַ֣ל לִשְׁמִ֑י וַיְבָ֥רֶךְ אֹת֖וֹ שָֽׁם׃
Jacob asked, “Pray tell me your name.” But he said, “You must not ask my name!” And he took leave of him there.
This translation seems to want to simplify the story. But in doing so it misses the point of the verse. Jacob did ask, “Pray tell me your name.” That is clear. But the response received was not the refusal of the NJPS translation.
The literal response is: “Why is this (that) you ask my name?” Or, simply, Why do you ask my name? The sense is that the name of the man is not important to the story or to Jacob, at least at that point of the story.
The verse continues: And he blessed him there. There is nothing ambiguous in the Hebrew text of that clause. It does not say, “And he took leave of him,” as the NJPS has it.
So, the condition that Jacob set for his release of the angel, that he receive a blessing from him, is met and Jacob released him/it. We are not told specifically what blessing the angel bestows on Jacob. It is possible that we are to understand that the wrenching of Jacob’s hip and the resulting prohibition of eating the thigh muscle, in itself, is the blessing. That is, the establishment of that restriction, requiring extraordinary behavior of Jacob and his line forever, is to be understood as a blessing.
The ambiguity about the identity or character of the man/being with whom Jacob wrestled is fostered by Jacob’s announcement in verse 31:
וַיִּקְרָ֧א יַעֲקֹ֛ב שֵׁ֥ם הַמָּק֖וֹם פְּנִיאֵ֑ל כִּֽי־רָאִ֤יתִי אֱלֹהִים֙ פָּנִ֣ים אֶל־פָּנִ֔ים וַתִּנָּצֵ֖ל נַפְשִֽׁי׃
So, Jacob named the place Peniel, meaning, “I have seen a divine being face to face, yet my life has been preserved.
The use of elohim to describe the man/being is sometimes understood as referring to God, but the context and the previous text makes it clear that is incorrect.
We will now fast-forward through the stories about Jacob’s meeting with Esau, Jacob’s settling near Shechem, the rape of Dinah, and God’s instruction to Jacob to return to Beit El, which was the place where Jacob experienced his dream of the ladder on his way to Paddan Aram.
Gen 35:6-12
וַיָּבֹ֨א יַעֲקֹ֜ב ל֗וּזָה אֲשֶׁר֙ בְּאֶ֣רֶץ כְּנַ֔עַן הִ֖וא בֵּֽית־אֵ֑ל ה֖וּא וְכׇל־הָעָ֥ם אֲשֶׁר־עִמּֽוֹ׃
Thus, Jacob came to Luz—that is, Bethel—in the land of Canaan, he and all the people who were with him.
וַיִּ֤בֶן שָׁם֙ מִזְבֵּ֔חַ וַיִּקְרָא֙ לַמָּק֔וֹם אֵ֖ל בֵּֽית־אֵ֑ל כִּ֣י שָׁ֗ם נִגְל֤וּ אֵלָיו֙ הָֽאֱלֹהִ֔ים בְּבׇרְח֖וֹ מִפְּנֵ֥י אָחִֽיו׃
There he built an altar and named the site El-bethel, for it was there that God had been revealed to him when he was fleeing from his brother.
וַתָּ֤מׇת דְּבֹרָה֙ מֵינֶ֣קֶת רִבְקָ֔ה וַתִּקָּבֵ֛ר מִתַּ֥חַת לְבֵֽית־אֵ֖ל תַּ֣חַת הָֽאַלּ֑וֹן וַיִּקְרָ֥א שְׁמ֖וֹ אַלּ֥וֹן בָּכֽוּת׃ {פ}
Deborah, Rebekah’s nurse, died, and was buried under the oak below Bethel; so, it was named Allon-bacuth.
(Some say that Rebecca had sent Deborah to Paddan Aram to tell Jacob it was safe for him to come home. Others say that this is actually an allusion to the fact that Rebecca had died.)
The critical passage for our purposes is this:
וַיֵּרָ֨א אֱלֹהִ֤ים אֶֽל־יַעֲקֹב֙ ע֔וֹד בְּבֹא֖וֹ מִפַּדַּ֣ן אֲרָ֑ם וַיְבָ֖רֶךְ אֹתֽוֹ׃
God appeared again to Jacob on his arrival from Paddan-aram. God blessed him,
וַיֹּֽאמֶר־ל֥וֹ אֱלֹהִ֖ים שִׁמְךָ֣ יַעֲקֹ֑ב לֹֽא־יִקָּרֵא֩ שִׁמְךָ֨ ע֜וֹד יַעֲקֹ֗ב כִּ֤י אִם־יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ יִהְיֶ֣ה שְׁמֶ֔ךָ וַיִּקְרָ֥א אֶת־שְׁמ֖וֹ יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃
saying to him,
“You whose name is Jacob,
You shall be called Jacob no more,
But Israel shall be your name.” Thus, he was named Israel.
So, it is God who actually changes Jacob’s name, and that occurs here, not in the Chapter 32 episode.
וַיֹּ֩אמֶר֩ ל֨וֹ אֱלֹהִ֜ים אֲנִ֨י אֵ֤ל שַׁדַּי֙ פְּרֵ֣ה וּרְבֵ֔ה גּ֛וֹי וּקְהַ֥ל גּוֹיִ֖ם יִהְיֶ֣ה מִמֶּ֑ךָּ וּמְלָכִ֖ים מֵחֲלָצֶ֥יךָ יֵצֵֽאוּ׃
And God said to him,
“I am El Shaddai.
And here God seemingly answers the question that Jacob asked of the “man” after the night of struggle.
Be fertile and increase;
A nation, yea an assembly of nations,
Shall descend from you.
Kings shall issue from your loins.
וְאֶת־הָאָ֗רֶץ אֲשֶׁ֥ר נָתַ֛תִּי לְאַבְרָהָ֥ם וּלְיִצְחָ֖ק לְךָ֣ אֶתְּנֶ֑נָּה וּֽלְזַרְעֲךָ֥ אַחֲרֶ֖יךָ אֶתֵּ֥ן אֶת־הָאָֽרֶץ׃
The land that I assigned to Abraham and Isaac
I assign to you;
And to your offspring to come
Will I assign the land.”
The covenant of the land and the promise of great increase are explicitly passed through the line of Jacob.
וַיַּ֥עַל מֵעָלָ֖יו אֱלֹהִ֑ים בַּמָּק֖וֹם אֲשֶׁר־דִּבֶּ֥ר אִתּֽוֹ׃
God parted from him at the spot where [God] had spoken to him; [twice]
Conclusions:
- Jacob’s wrestling during the night before his meeting with Esau is with a divine being, an angel. It is not with God, who would certainly not have had to ask for Jacob’s release. And it was not with a man, who would not have had the power to bless him.
- The reference to Jacob’s name change in Chapter 32 was an announcement that his name would be changed. It did not effect the change at that time.
- The correct translation of the clause in 32:30 confirms that the angel did bless Jacob, fulfilling the condition set for the angel’s release.
- It is possible that the damage to Jacob’s hip was actually the “blessing” Jacob received from the angel.
- The change of Jacob’s name, announced in Chapter 32, was effected by God in Chapter 35. It is accompanied by God’s revelation of the name El Shaddai, in answer to Jacob’s prior request. In the Exodus account of the burning bush, God tells Moses that it was by the name El Shaddai that God was known to the patriarchs.
CRL 12/04/2023