Genesis 32
32
Jacob’s Fear of Esau
1Now as Jacob went on his way, the angels of God met him. 2And when he saw them, Jacob said, “This is God’s #32:2 Or companycamp.” So he named that place #32:2 I.e., Two Camps, or Two CompaniesMahanaim.
3Then Jacob sent messengers ahead of himself to his brother Esau in the land of Seir, the #32:3 Lit fieldcountry of Edom. 4He commanded them, saying, “This is what you shall say to my lord Esau: ‘Your servant Jacob says the following: “I have resided with Laban, and stayed until now; 5and I have oxen, donkeys, flocks, and male and female servants; and I have sent messengers to tell my lord, so that I may find favor in your sight.” ’ ”
6And the messengers returned to Jacob, saying, “We came to your brother Esau, and furthermore he is coming to meet you, and four hundred men are with him.” 7Then Jacob was greatly afraid and distressed; and he divided the people who were with him, and the flocks, the herds, and the camels, into two companies; 8for he said, “If Esau comes to the one company and #32:8 Lit strikesattacks it, then the company which is left will escape.”
9Then Jacob said, “God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac, Lord, who said to me, ‘Return to your country and to your relatives, and I will #32:9 Lit do good with youmake you prosper,’ 10#32:10 Lit I am less than allI am unworthy of all the #32:10 I.e., generosityfavor and of all the #32:10 Or truthfaithfulness, which You have shown to Your servant; for with only my staff I crossed this Jordan, and now I have become two companies. 11Save me, please, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau; for I fear him, that he will come and #32:11 Lit strikeattack me and the mothers with the children. 12For You said, ‘I will assuredly #32:12 Lit do good with youmake you prosper and make your #32:12 Lit seeddescendants as the sand of the sea, which is too great to be counted.’ ”
13So he spent the night there. Then he #32:13 Lit tookselected from what #32:13 Lit had come to his handhe had with him a gift for his brother Esau: 14two hundred female goats and twenty male goats, two hundred ewes and twenty rams, 15thirty milking camels and their colts, forty cows and ten bulls, and twenty female donkeys and ten male donkeys. 16Then he placed them in the #32:16 Lit handcare of his servants, every flock by itself, and said to his servants, “Pass on ahead of me, and put a space between flocks.” 17And he commanded the #32:17 Lit firstone in front, saying, “When my brother Esau meets you and asks you, saying, ‘To whom do you belong, and where are you going, and to whom do these animals in front of you belong?’ 18then you shall say, ‘These belong to your servant Jacob; it is a gift sent to my lord Esau. And behold, he also is behind us.’ ” 19Then he commanded also the second and the third, and all those who followed the flocks, saying, “In this way you shall speak to Esau when you find him; 20and you shall say, ‘Behold, your servant Jacob also is behind us.’ ” For he said, “I will appease him with the gift that goes ahead of me. Then afterward I will see his face; perhaps he will accept me.” 21So the gift passed on ahead of him, while he himself spent that night in the camp.
22Now he got up that same night and took his two wives, his two female slaves, and his eleven children, and crossed the shallow place of the Jabbok. 23He took them and sent them across the stream. And he sent across whatever he had.
Jacob Wrestles
24Then Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him until daybreak. 25When the man saw that he had not prevailed against him, he touched the socket of #32:25 Lit hisJacob’s hip; and the socket of Jacob’s hip was dislocated while he wrestled with him. 26Then he said, “Let me go, for the dawn is breaking.” But he said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” 27So he said to him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Jacob.” 28Then he said, “Your name shall no longer be Jacob, but #32:28 I.e., he who contends with God; or God contendsIsrael; for you have contended with God and with men, and have prevailed.” 29And Jacob asked him and said, “Please tell me your name.” But he said, “Why is it that you ask my name?” And he blessed him there. 30So Jacob named the place #32:30 I.e., the face of GodPeniel, for he said, “I have seen God face to face, yet my #32:30 Lit soullife has been #32:30 Lit savedspared.” 31Now the sun rose upon him just as he crossed over Penuel, and he was limping on his hip. 32Therefore, to this day the sons of Israel do not eat the tendon of the hip which is on the socket of the hip, because he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip in the tendon of the hip.
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Genesis 32: NASB2020
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Genesis 32
32
Jacob Sends Messages and Gifts to Esau
1 # 32:1
Genesis 32:1–32
in English Bibles is Genesis 32:2–33 in the Hebrew Bible. As Jacob went on his way, God’s angels met him. 2When he saw them, Jacob said, “This is God’s camp!” He named that place Mahanaim [Two Camps].
3Jacob sent messengers ahead of him to his brother Esau in Seir, the country of Edom. 4He commanded them to give this message to Esau, “Sir, this is what Jacob has to say, ‘I’ve been living with Laban and have stayed until now. 5I have cattle and donkeys, sheep and goats, and male and female slaves. I’ve sent ⌞these messengers⌟ to tell you ⌞this news⌟ in order to win your favor.’ ”
6When the messengers came back to Jacob, they said, “We went to your brother Esau. He is coming to meet you with 400 men.”
7Jacob was terrified and distressed. So he divided the people, the sheep and goats, the cattle, and the camels into two camps. 8He thought, “If Esau attacks the one camp, then the other camp will be able to escape.”
9Then Jacob prayed, “God of my grandfather Abraham and God of my father Isaac! Lord, you said to me, ‘Go back to your land and to your relatives, and I will make you prosperous.’ 10I’m not worthy of all the love and faithfulness you have shown me. I only had a shepherd’s staff when I crossed the Jordan River, but now I have two camps. 11Please save me from my brother Esau, because I’m afraid of him. I’m afraid that he’ll come and attack me and the mothers and children too. 12But you did say, ‘I will make sure that you are prosperous and that your descendants will be as many as the grains of sand on the seashore. No one will be able to count them because there are so many.’ ”
13He stayed there that night. Then he prepared a gift for his brother Esau from what he had brought with him: 14200 female goats and 20 male goats, 200 female sheep and 20 male sheep, 1530 female camels with their young, 40 cows and 10 bulls, 20 female donkeys and 10 male donkeys.
16He placed servants in charge of each herd. Then he said to his servants, “Go ahead of me, and keep a distance between the herds.” 17He commanded the first servant, “When my brother Esau meets you and asks you, ‘To whom do you belong, and where are you going, and whose animals are these ahead of you?’ 18then say, ‘Sir, they belong to your servant Jacob. This is a gift sent to you. Jacob is right behind us.’ ” 19He also commanded the second servant, the third, and all the others who followed the herds. He said, “Say the same thing to Esau when you find him. 20And be sure to add, ‘Jacob is right behind us, sir.’ ” He thought, “I’ll make peace with him by giving him this gift that I’m sending ahead of me. After that I will see him, and he’ll welcome me back.” 21So Jacob sent the gift ahead of him while he stayed in the camp that night.
Jacob’s Fourth Encounter with God—He Wrestles with God
22During that night he got up and gathered his two wives, his two slaves and his eleven children and crossed at the shallow part of the Jabbok River. 23After he sent them across the stream, he sent everything else across. 24So Jacob was left alone. Then a man wrestled with him until dawn. 25When the man saw that he could not win against Jacob, he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip so that it was dislocated as they wrestled. 26Then the man said, “Let me go; it’s almost dawn.”
But Jacob answered, “I won’t let you go until you bless me.”
27So the man asked him, “What’s your name?”
“Jacob,” he answered.
28The man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob but Israel [He Struggles With God], because you have struggled with God and with men—and you have won.”
29Jacob said, “Please tell me your name.”
The man answered, “Why do you ask for my name?” Then he blessed Jacob there. 30So Jacob named that place Peniel [Face of God], because he said, “I have seen God face to face, but my life was saved.” 31The sun rose as he passed Penuel.#32:31 Another name for Peniel. He was limping because of his hip. 32(Therefore, even today the people of Israel do not eat the muscle of the thigh attached to the hip socket because God touched the socket of Jacob’s hip at the muscle of the thigh.)
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