1 Early the next morning, Laban kissed his grandchildren and his daughters goodbye; then he set out on his journey back home,
2 while Jacob continued on his own way. Then God's messengers encountered Jacob.
3 When he saw them he said, "This is God's encampment." So he named that place Mahanaim.
4 Jacob sent messengers ahead to his brother Esau in the land of Seir, the country of Edom,
5 with this message: "Thus shall you say to my lord Esau: 'Your servant Jacob speaks as follows: I have been staying with Laban and have been detained there until now.
6 I own cattle, asses and sheep, as well as male and female servants. I am sending my lord this information in the hope of gaining your favor.'"
7 When the messengers returned to Jacob, they said, "We reached your brother Esau. He is now coming to meet you, accompanied by four hundred men."
8 Jacob was very much frightened. In his anxiety, he divided the people who were with him, as well as his flocks, herds and camels, into two camps.
9 "If Esau should attack and overwhelm one camp," he reasoned, "the remaining camp may still survive."
10 Then he prayed: "O God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac! You told me, O LORD, 'Go back to the land of your birth, and I will be good to you.'
11 I am unworthy of all the acts of kindness that you have loyally performed for your servant: although I crossed the Jordan here with nothing but my staff, I have now grown into two companies.
12 Save me, I pray, from the hand of my brother Esau! Otherwise I fear that when he comes he will strike me down and slay the mothers and children.
13 You yourself said, 'I will be very good to you, and I will make your descendants like the sands of the sea, which are too numerous to count.'"
14 After passing the night there, Jacob selected from what he had with him the following presents for his brother Esau:
15 two hundred she-goats and twenty he-goats; two hundred ewes and twenty rams;
16 thirty milch camels and their young; forty cows and ten bulls; twenty she-asses and ten he-asses.
17 He put these animals in charge of his servants, in separate droves, and he told the servants, "Go on ahead of me, but keep a space between one drove and the next."
18 To the servant in the lead he gave this instruction: "When my brother Esau meets you, he may ask you, 'Whose man are you? Where are you going? To whom do these animals ahead of you belong?'
19 Then you shall answer, 'They belong to your brother Jacob, but they have been sent as a gift to my lord Esau; and Jacob himself is right behind us.'"
20 He gave similar instructions to the second servant and the third and to all the others who followed behind the droves, namely: "Thus and thus shall you say to Esau, when you reach him;
21 and be sure to add, 'Your servant Jacob is right behind us.'" For Jacob reasoned, "If I first appease him with gifts that precede me, then later, when I face him, perhaps he will forgive me."
22 So the gifts went on ahead of him, while he stayed that night in the camp.
23 In the course of that night, however, Jacob arose, took his two wives, with the two maidservants and his eleven children, and crossed the ford of the Jabbok.
24 After he had taken them across the stream and had brought over all his possessions,
25 Jacob was left there alone. Then some man wrestled with him until the break of dawn.
26 When the man saw that he could not prevail over him, he struck Jacob's hip at its socket, so that the hip socket was wrenched as they wrestled.
27 The man then said, "Let me go, for it is daybreak." But Jacob said, "I will not let you go until you bless me."
28 "What is your name?" the man asked. He answered, "Jacob."
29 Then the man said, "You shall no longer be spoken of as Jacob, but as Israel, because you have contended with divine and human beings and have prevailed."
30 Jacob then asked him, "Do tell me your name, please." He answered, "Why should you want to know my name?" With that, he bade him farewell.
31 Jacob named the place Peniel, "Because I have seen God face to face," he said, "yet my life has been spared."
32 At sunrise, as he left Penuel, Jacob limped along because of his hip.
33 That is why, to this day, the Israelites do not eat the sciatic muscle that is on the hip socket, inasmuch as Jacob's hip socket was struck at the sciatic muscle.
Versículos relacionados com Genesis, 32:
Genesis 32 reports Jacob's preparation to meet his brother Esau, whom he had deceived and betrayed years earlier. The chapter narrates Jacob's struggle with a mysterious man, who some interpret as God. Jacob also sends gifts to Esau hoping to placate his wrath and reconcile with him. Below are five verses related to the themes of the chapter:
Psalm 34:19 - "Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him from all." This verse reflects Jacob's state of mind as he prepared to meet Esau. He was fearful and distressed, concerned about his brother's wrath and the possible consequences of his past acts.
Hosea 12:3-4 - "In the womb, he supplanted his brother, and in his strength fought with God. He fought with the angel and prevailed; he cried and pleased him. In Bethel he found him and spoke to us." This verse refers to Jacob's struggle with the mysterious man in Genesis 32, who some interpret as God or an angel sent by him. The struggle represents Jacob's effort to confront and overcome his past.
Proverbs 16:7 - "When the ways of man pleases the Lord, he makes even his enemies to have peace with him." This verse is relevant to Jacob's situation, who was trying to placate his brother Esau's wrath sending gifts and showing humility. The idea is that when a man pleases God, he can expect his enemies to be pacified and peace will be restored.
Ezekiel 36:26-"I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will take from your flesh the heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh." This verse speaks of the transformation that God operates in the hearts of the people who seek Him. It is a relevant idea for the process of personal transformation that Jacob was going through, confronting his past and seeking reconciliation with his brother.
Galatians 6:7 - "Do not deceive you: God is not moiled from God; for what man sow will be reaping." This verse emphasizes the importance of personal responsibility and divine justice. It is a warning to Jacob and all who seek to follow God so that they may remember that their choices and actions will have consequences, and that they must take responsibility for them.
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