Wrestling with God

We continue to read our story of Jacob, and today read about an experience even stranger than the vision of the ladder going up to heaven.

Jacob has been preparing to meet with his estranged brother Esau. He was not at all sure what kind of meeting it was going to be with the brother whom he had cheated out of his birth-right. Each one was now rich and powerful in his own domain.

As our reading opens we are told that Jacob takes his two wives (Rachel and Leah), his two slave-girls and his 11 sons (the youngest, Benjamin, has not been born yet), together with all his possessions, across the River Jabbok to a safer place while he stays behind alone.

Jacob is now alone and then, during the whole night until dawn, he wrestles with an unknown man. As is clear later on, this ‘man’ is a messenger of the Lord, if not the Lord himself, in human form.

Jacob has struggled all his life to prevail, first with Esau, then with Laban, his uncle who is the father of his wife, Rachel. Now, as he is about to re-enter Canaan, he is shown that it is with God that he must “wrestle.” It is God who holds his destiny in his hands.

When the ‘man’ sees that Jacob is getting the upper hand, he strikes Jacob on the hip and dislocates it. God came to him in such a form that Jacob could wrestle with him successfully, yet he also showed Jacob that he could disable him at will.

With the coming of morning the stranger says, “Let me go, for day is breaking.” But Jacob will not let the man go without receiving his blessing. He seems to suspect the divine origin of his opponent. There is also an indication that Jacob is still having problems over their father’s blessing which he got by deceit. He wants now a direct blessing from God himself.

“What is your name?” asks the stranger. “Jacob” is the reply. “Your name shall no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have been strong against God, you shall prevail against humans.” The probable meaning of the word Israel is “May God show his strength” but here it is understood as “He has been strong against God.” At that very moment Jacob reaches full maturity as father and patriarch, his descendants acquire their national name. Later, Israel’s encounters with God will constantly entail intense struggle, with divine and human alike.

Jacob then asks the stranger his name but the only answer he gets is, “Why do you ask my name?” Given that the stranger is God himself, it is wrong to ask such a question and, in any case, it cannot be answered. The name of Yahweh could not be uttered by any observant Israelite. But the man does give Jacob his blessing. Henceforth all who bear Israel’s name will have a claim on God and His blessing.

Jacob, however, is now well aware of who the stranger is: “I have seen God face to face and have survived.” In the Hebrew Testament, to look upon the face of God spells instant death, except by special privilege. So Jacob calls the place, where he had his experience with the stranger, Peniel, which means ‘face of God’.

Then he leaves, limping because of his damaged hip, suggesting a maturing in his relationship with God, who is the real Lord of his life.

This enigmatic story, speaking of a physical struggle or wrestling with God, from which Jacob seems to emerge victor, is a parable for our spiritual encounter with God. It serves as an image of the spiritual combat that we need to undertake, and also as an icon of the value of persevering prayer. It was an advice that Jesus himself gave and also St Paul. Perseverance in prayer is a total must.

As Jacob recognises the supernatural character of his adversary and extorts a blessing from him, we too need to hold fast to God and “force” from him a blessing. Ours too will be fateful encounter with God: it will injure us for life, we may have to limp all our life with this “God-bias.” But perhaps that is what spiritual maturity is all about! If you have not wrestled with God, you are not mature yet.