Genesis 32:1 So Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met him. 2 When Jacob saw them, he said, “This is God’s camp.” And he called the name of that place Mahanaim. [Literally Double Camp]
Remember Jacob’s dream at Bethel, while fleeing from his brother Esau as he made exodus from the land of Canaan, was of a ladder and the Angel of Yahweh at the top and the angels of Yahweh ascending and descending upon it. Now he see a host of them in person while awake.
"There is an evident allusion ... to the appearance upon the ladder (cf. Ge 28:12), and this occurring to Jacob on his return to Canaan, was an encouraging pledge of the continued presence and protection of God (Ps 34:7; Heb 1:14).” (Jamieson-Fausset-Brown)
"Mahanaim, two camps or hosts, or the camp of God; a city in Gilead, mentioned in Joshua 13:26; Joshua 21:38; denoting that the angel of the Lord encampeth round about them that fear him. Psalms 34:7.” (Joseph Sutcliffe) It seems that Yahweh— dubbed "the fear of Isaac”— had also become the fear of His servant Jacob.
"The appearance of this invisible host may have been designed to celebrate Jacob's triumph over Laban, as after Christ's victory over Satan in the wilderness angels came and ministered unto him (Rupertus, Wordsworth), or to remind him that he owed his deliverance to Divine interposition (Calvin, Bush, Lange), but was more probably intended to assure him of protection in his approaching interview with Esau (Josephus, Chrysostom, Rosenmüller, Keil, Murphy, 'Speaker's Commentary'), and perhaps also to give him welcome in returning home again to Canaan (Kurtz), if not in addition to suggest that his descendants would require to fight for their inheritance (Kalisch).” (The Pulpit Commentary) They did not have to fight for their inheritance at that time, but the visitation from the angels of Yahweh might have caused Jacob to fear such.
3 Then Jacob sent messengers before him to Esau his brother in the land of Seir, the country of Edom. 4 And he commanded them, saying, “Speak thus to my lord Esau, ‘Thus your servant Jacob says: “I have dwelt with Laban and stayed there until now. 5 I have oxen, donkeys, flocks, and male and female servants; and I have sent to tell my lord, that I may find favor in your sight.”’”
Jacobs calls Esau his lord, and himself his servant. Some say that he did this "to intimate that he did not insist on the prerogatives of the birthright” (Benson) but this itself would be deceitful in my mind. And Jacob was beyond this. Rather, “Jacob salutes his brother as a prince, but he says nothing of the birthright. That being the gift of God, must not be given to another.” (Joseph Sutcliffe)
“AND HE GIVES HIM a short account of himself and of his property, and where he had sojourned, expressing withal a desire for his favour and friendship… This message of Jacob shows great prudence in him [perhaps insight from the angels of God]; for had he returned into Canaan without informing his brother, and making him acquainted with the substance he had brought with him from Haran, Esau, who lived at a distance from his father Isaac, probably would have thought, when he came to take possession of Isaac’s property on his death, that Jacob had obtained all his substance from his father, to Esau’s prejudice, which might have created an irreconcilable misunderstanding between them.” (Benson Commentary)
6 Then the messengers returned to Jacob, saying, “We came to your brother Esau, and he also is coming to meet you, and four hundred men are with him.” 7 So Jacob was greatly afraid and distressed; and he divided the people that were with him, and the flocks and herds and camels, into two companies. 8 And he said, “If Esau comes to the one company and attacks it, then the other company which is left will escape.
God had promised him a great prosperity, but there was Biblical precedence of Him beginning anew from scratch. And Jacob loved his wives and children... and other souls who had attached themselves to him. Four hundred men of Esau's clan-- here is proof that Esau "had grown to be a powerful chieftain. If the hypothesis be admissible that he had already begun to live by the sword (Genesis 27:40), and was now invading the territory of the Horites, which he afterwards occupied (Delitzsch, Keil, Kurtz), it will serve to explain his appearance in the land of Seir, while as yet he had not finally retired from Canaan.” (Pulpit Commentary)
Jacob split into two companies. "This seems to have been a stratagem resorted to with caravans in the East from days of old, Procksch charges Jacob with smooth trickery (Schlaukopf) on account of this stratagem, whereas Jacob is employing nothing other than justifiable prudence.” (H C Leopold) It was even a Hebrew custom to cast lots and let Yahweh decide on matters.
9 Then Jacob said, “O God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac, the Lord who said to me, ‘Return to your country and to your family, and I will deal well with you’: 10 I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies and of all the truth which You have shown Your servant; for I crossed over this Jordan with my staff, and now I have become two companies. 11 Deliver me, I pray, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau; for I fear him, lest he come and attack me and the mother with the children. 12 For You said, ‘I will surely treat you well, and make your descendants as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude.’”
As the publican who smote his breast and could not even look towards heaven: Jacob “was conscious how deeply he had offended his brother, and remembered the enmity which his brother cherished against him, and hence was not without an apprehension that he might now execute the threatened revenge. We see here how a consciousness of sin tends to weaken faith, and to produce fear and dread. For, notwithstanding the repeated experience Jacob had had of the divine protection; though he had just seen himself surrounded with a host of guardian angels; though he had undertaken his journey in obedience to God’s express command, and had God’s renewed promise to assure him of a safe return, (Gen 28:15; 31:13,) yet a consciousness of having injured his brother, and of his brother’s having it in his power, should God permit him, to avenge himself, damps his faith, and fills him with the most painful and distressing apprehensions.” (Benson Commentary)
"Oh God of my father Abraham. Jacob in terror has recourse to God, to his covenant and promises. He pleads that God had bade him return; that he had already done great things for him, though not worthy of the least of his mercies; and surely he would not now allow an angry brother to frustrate the riches of his grace. What a model is this prayer for christians in the time of trouble!” (Joseph Sutcliffe) "O God of my father Abraham, and father Isaac — This he could better plead, because the government was entailed upon him...” (Benson Commentary)
Genesis 32:13 So he lodged there that same night, and took what came to his hand as a present for Esau his brother: 14 two hundred female goats and twenty male goats, two hundred ewes and twenty rams, 15 thirty milk camels with their colts, forty cows and ten bulls, twenty female donkeys and ten foals.
"And took of that which came to his hand - בידו הבא habba beyado, which came under his hand, i.e., what, in the course of God's providence, came under his power” (Adam Clarke) — all the wage of his labor under the heavy yoke of service to Laban.
"This was a princely present, and such as was sufficient to have compensated Esau for any kind of temporal loss he might have sustained in being deprived of his birthright… By all this we see that Jacob was led to make restitution for the injury he had done to his brother. Restitution for injuries done to man is essentially requisite if in our power. He who can and will not make restitution for the wrongs he has done, can have no claim even on the mercy of God. ” (Adam Clarke)
16 Then he delivered them to the hand of his servants, every drove by itself, and said to his servants, “Pass over before me, and put some distance between successive droves.” 17 And he commanded the first one, saying, “When Esau my brother meets you and asks you, saying, ‘To whom do you belong, and where are you going? Whose are these in front of you?’ 18 then you shall say, ‘They are your servant Jacob’s. It is a present sent to my lord Esau; and behold, he also is behind us.’” 19 So he commanded the second, the third, and all who followed the droves, saying, “In this manner you shall speak to Esau when you find him; 20 and also say, ‘Behold, your servant Jacob is behind us.’” For he said, “I will appease him with the present that goes before me, and afterward I will see his face; perhaps he will accept me.” 21 So the present went on over before him, but he himself lodged that night in the camp.
"A gift opens the way for the giver and ushers him into the presence of the great." (Pro 18:16) “The repetition... was calculated to appease Esau, and persuade him that Jacob was approaching him in all brotherly confidence and affection. 'Appease him.’ Jacob designs this gift to be the means of propitiating his brother before he appears in his presence.” (Albert Barnes)
Jacob prayed and then acted.
"The design of the holy man was not to busy and to vex himself, as one discontented with the sole help of God. For although he was certainly persuaded that to have God propitious to him would alone be sufficient, yet he did not omit the use of the means which were in his power, while leaving success in the hand of God. For though by prayer we cast our cares upon God, that we may have peaceful and tranquil minds; yet this security ought not to render us indolent. For the Lord will have all the aids which he affords us applied to use. But the diligence of the pious differs greatly from the restless activity of the world; because the world, relying on its own industry, independently of the blessing of God, does not consider what is right or lawful; moreover it is always in trepidation, and by its bustling, increases more and more its own disquietude. The pious, however, hoping for the success of their labor, only from the mercy of God, apply their minds in seeking out means, for this sole reason, that they may not bury the gifts of God by their own torpor. When they have discharged their duty, they still depend on the same grace of God; and when nothing remains which they can attempt, they nevertheless are at rest.” (John Calvin)
Genesis 32:22 And he arose that night and took his two wives, his two female servants, and his eleven sons, and crossed over the ford of Jabbok (literally, he will empty). 23 He took them, sent them over the brook, and sent over what he had.
Easu is coming! "Jacob, whose administrative powers were of a very high character, sees his wives, children, and cattle not only through the ford, but across the valley on to the high ground beyond. Staying himself to the very last, he is left alone on the south side of the torrent, but still in the ravine, across which the rest had taken their way. The definite proof that Jacob remained on the south side lies in the fact that Peniel belonged to the tribe of Gad…” (Ellicott's Commentary) who chose their inheritance on that side of the river. Spiritually, "Jacob seems to have gone through the principles or foundations of faith in God and repentance toward him, ... and to have entered upon the stage of spontaneous action. He had that inward feeling of spiritual power which prompted the apostle to say, 'I can do all things.’” (Barnes' Notes on the Bible) And now, he is left alone.
24 Then Jacob was left alone; and a Man wrestled with him until the breaking of day.
left alone-- "In some private place, that he might more freely and ardently pour out his soul in prayer, and again spread his cares and fears before God. There wrestled a man with him — the eternal Word, or Son of God, who often appeared in a human shape, before he assumed the human nature. We are told by Hosea 12:4, how Jacob wrestled with him; He wept and made supplication: prayers and tears were his weapons. It was not only a corporal but a spiritual wrestling, by vigorous faith and holy desire; and this circumstance shows that the person with whom he wrestled was not a created angel, but the Angel of the covenant; for surely he would not pray and make supplication to a creature. Indeed, in the passage just referred to, Hosea terms him Jehovah, God of hosts...” (Benson Comm.)
25 Now when He saw that He did not prevail against him, He touched the socket of his hip; and the socket of Jacob’s hip was out of joint as He wrestled with him. 26 And He said, “Let Me go, for the day breaks.” But he said, “I will not let You go unless You bless me!”
The asking of permission to depart by the God-man was the acknowledgment that Jacob had prevailed. "The struggle must end at daybreak, because Jacob must now go to do his duty; and the wrestling had been for the purpose of giving him courage, and enabling him to meet danger and difficulty in the power of faith. A curious Jewish idea is that the angel was that one whose duty it was to defend and protect Esau. By the aid of his own protecting angel Jacob, they say, had overpowered him, and had won the birthright and the precedence as 'Israel, a prince with God and man.’” (Ellicott's Commentary) Even more, "THE angel of Yahweh encamps around those who fear Him, and delivers them." (Psalm 34:7)
Jacob would not let the Lord go until He blessed him. “A… commendable virtue is Jacob’s consuming hunger for God. 'I will not let you go unless you bless me' (32:26).” (The Baker Illustrated Bible Commentary)
27 So He said to him, “What is your name?” He said, “Jacob.”[Supplanter] 28 And He said, “Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel; [Prince with God] for you have struggled with God and with men, and have prevailed.”
Jacob- the surplanting, heal-grabbing trickster- is renamed Israel.
"Although Jacob lost the encounter physically, he won a great spiritual victory. He learned to triumph through defeat and to be strong through weakness. Emptied of self and of confidence in his own cleverness, he confessed he was Jacob, a supplanter, a 'con man.' God then changed his name to Israel (variously translated as 'God rules,' 'one who strives with God,' or 'a prince of God').” (Believer's Bible Comm.) Long ago, Jacob had taken the first step of Jacob’s ladder, God calling that which was not as though it were (Rom 4:17): "He became a new man; but it was not till after a severe struggle that he got his name, his heart, and his character changed. After this he was no more Jacob the supplanter, but Israel - the man who prevails with God, and sees him face to face.” (Adam Clarke)
Excerpt from "Spiritual Israel" by By Doug Batchelor & Steve Wohlberg
"The Name ‘Israel’—...The first time the name 'Israel' appears in Scripture is when it was spoken to Jacob after his long night of wrestling with a powerful opponent. The heavenly stranger finally said, 'Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed' (Genesis 32:28). Thus the name ‘Israel' was at first a name of heavenly origin applied to Jacob alone. It represented his spiritual victory over sin...
Jacob had 12 sons who later moved into Egypt. The descendants of these sons eventually multiplied into the 12 tribes, which were later forced into slavery by the Egyptians until the time of Moses. Then God told Pharaoh through Moses, 'Israel is my son, even my firstborn ... Let my son go' (Exodus 4:22, 23). Note here that the name ‘Israel' is expanded to include Jacob’s descendants. Therefore, the name ‘Israel' first applied to a victorious man, then to his people...
Israel, God’s Son—About 800 B.C., the Lord spoke through the prophet Hosea, saying, 'When Israel was a child, then I loved him, and called my son out of Egypt' (Hosea 11:1). Yet by this time, the nation of Israel had failed to live up to the spiritual meaning of its name…
Approx. 800 years after Hosea’s prophecy, we learn, 'Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king’ Matt. 2:1). Because Herod felt threatened by this new child king, he sent soldiers who 'slew all the children that were in Bethlehem' (v.16). Joseph was warned of the impending crisis in advance when 'The angel of the Lord appeareth to [him] in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word' (v. 13). So the family arose and 'departed into Egypt' (v. 14).
Matthew writes that the child Jesus remained in Egypt 'until the death of Herod: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Out of Egypt have I called my son' (v. 15). Notice that Matthew quotes Hosea 11:1—which originally referred to the nation of Israel coming out of Egypt—and actually declares it more perfectly ‘fulfilled' in Jesus Christ!
(Please don’t miss this important point that a prophecy in the Bible can have a duel application with both a literal and spiritual fulfillment.)
… Matthew’s Amazing Revelation— A careful study of Matthew reveals even further that Christ’s story actually repeats the history of ancient Israel, point by point—but He overcame where they had failed. Notice the following amazing parallels between the history of ancient Israel and Jesus Christ:
In the Old Testament, a man named Joseph has dreams and goes into Egypt to preserve his family (Genesis 45:5). In the New Testament, another Joseph likewise had dreams and goes into Egypt to preserve his family (Matthew 2:13).
When the young nation of Israel comes out of Egypt, God calls it 'my son' (Exodus 4:22). When Jesus comes out of Egypt, God says 'Out of Egypt have I called my son' (Matthew 2:15).
When Israel leaves Egypt, her people go through the Red Sea. The apostle Paul says they were 'baptized unto Moses ... in the sea' (1 Corinthians 10:2). Jesus is also baptized 'to fulfill all righteousness,’ and immediately afterward God proclaims Him, 'my beloved Son' (Matthew 3:15-17)
After the Red Sea crossing, the Israelites spend 40 years in the wilderness—led by the pillar of fire, God’s Spirit. Immediately after baptism, Jesus is 'led up of the Spirit into the wilderness’ for 40 days (Matthew 4:1, 2).
At the end of the 40 years, Moses writes Deuteronomy. At the end of Jesus’ 40 days, He resists Satan’s temptations by quoting three Scriptures—all from Deuteronomy!
In Psalm 80:8, God calls Israel a ‘vine' that He brought 'out of Egypt.' Jesus later declares, 'I am the true vine' (John 15:1).
In the Old Testament, the name ‘Israel' first applied to one man: Jacob—representing his spiritual victory over sin. Even so, in the New Testament, Jesus Christ is the Israel who came 'out of Egypt.' He is the one victorious man who overcame all sin!”
[End of Excerpt- "Spiritual Israel" by By Doug Batchelor & Steve Wohlberg]
29 Then Jacob asked, saying, “Tell me Your name, I pray.” And He said, “Why is it that you ask about My name [Aldine edition of the Septuagint & MSS add- "seeing it is Wonderful"]?” And He blessed him there.
"Jacob... wished to have heard from his own lips that name by which he desired to be invoked and worshipped.… [say it-- "Yeshua"] Canst thou be ignorant who I am?... He gave him the new heart and the new nature which God alone can give to fallen man, and by the change he wrought in him, sufficiently showed who he was. After this clause the Aldine edition of the Septuagint, and several MSS., add… ‘which is Wonderful.’…” (Clarke)
"For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. and His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace." (Isaiah 9:6)
30 So Jacob called the name of the place Peniel [Literally Face of God] “For I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.” 31 Just as he crossed over Penuel the sun rose on him, and he limped on his hip.
"Jacob called the name of the place Peniel (the face of God) because he realized he had seen the Lord." (Believer's Bible Commentary) And Jacob limped on his hip; he retained that physical disability, “as a memorial of acceptance and spiritual victory, and a symbol of the frailty of earthly strength, in the crisis of life, when God meets man face to face. See the hymn 'Come, O thou Traveller unknown' (Charles Wesley).” (Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges)
32 Therefore to this day the children of Israel do not eat the muscle that shrank, which is on the hip socket, because He touched the socket of Jacob’s hip in the muscle that shrank.
"Pfeiffer points out that verse 32 is still true among Jews today: 'The sciatic nerve, or thigh vein, must be removed from the slaughtered animal before that portion of the animal may be prepared for consumption by orthodox Jews.'" (Believer's Bible Commentary) "Not from any superstitious conceit about it, but only for a memorial of this admirable conflict, the blessed effects whereof even the future generations received." (Matthew Poole)