(Genesis 32:24-32) Then Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him until daybreak. 25 When he saw that he had not prevailed against him, he touched the socket of his thigh; so the socket of Jacob’s thigh was dislocated while he wrestled with him. 26 Then he said, “Let me go, for the dawn is breaking.” But he said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” 27 So he said to him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Jacob.” 28 He said, “Your name shall no longer be Jacob, but Israel; for you have striven with God and with men and have prevailed.” 29 Then 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. 30 So Jacob named the place Peniel, for he said, “I have seen God face to face, yet my life has been preserved.” 31 Now the sun rose upon him just as he crossed over Penuel, and he was limping on his thigh. 32 Therefore, to this day the sons of Israel do not eat the sinew of the hip which is on the socket of the thigh, because he touched the socket of Jacob’s thigh in the sinew of the hip.
TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:
Hosea 12 mentions that Jacob wrestled with an "angel", although "He" is capitalized. And putting everything into context with this scripture above... it could most certainly be THE angel of the Lord (Jesus pre-incarnate).
Jacob probably felt very vulnerable - like - being between a rock and a hard place. He was leaving behind an angry father-in-law, and was now moving towards his brother, Esau. And so now he found himself wrestling with God, trying to find some control in his life... only to learn that in order to receive God's blessings - he needed to give the control to God.
Jacob's name means "deceiver". In those days, parents would often not name their babies for a while until they saw their child's character (or unless God told them to name them something specific). But here, God renamed him "Israel", which means "He struggles with God".
I see this "fight" as being more like a parent play-fighting with a child. We know that there is no way we could ever win a physical fight against an angel, let alone God. This fight went on all night because Jacob did not want to give up. Then it was kind of like, "Oh, you haven't had enough yet?... okay then, what about this?"
When one tries to fight against God - one is going to lose. And even fighting with God - can cost us something. It cost Jacob a dislocated hip! And THEN Jacob submitted and sought God's favor... which brought about a blessing.
I prefer to figure out God's will before there are any consequences, but... making mistakes is something I cannot avoid even when trying. There have been times when I have chosen to do things my way, and then God allowed me to lose something. This usually gets my attention fairly quickly. In these "wrestling-matches" with God, I can't be angry with Him when things don't go my way because I know God has a better way. It is all about coming to grips with what God wants for us in our lives... submitting and giving the control to God and trusting that He knows best!
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