For the Genesis 32:22-26 PODCAST, Click Here!
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. 23 He took them, sent them over the brook, and sent over what he had. 24 Then Jacob was left alone; and a Man wrestled with him until the breaking of day. 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!” ~ Genesis 32:22-26
Today, we return to our study of Genesis 32 where Jacob is gearing up for his meeting with his brother Esau. Whereas Jacob expected to meet with his brother, God had a different plan for this somewhat broken man. In today's passage we will see Jacob meet with God who will wrestle with Jacob, and in the end, He will rename him reflecting his necessary struggles with God that will lead to Jacob being made a new man.
In v.22-23 of today's passage we read, "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. 23 He took them, sent them over the brook, and sent over what he had."
The context here demands that we remember who these people picture. The two wives of Jacob, Rachel and Leah, picture the grace of God and the Law of God respectively. The two female servants are Bilhah and Zilpah who picture the two exiles of the people of Israel. Jacob's children picture the people of Israel as a collective whole. Jacob took all of them in the night and prepared them for what laid ahead by having them cross over the Jabbok river which means "pouring out."
The Jabbok river was a tributary to the Jordan River and it was located between the Sea of Galilee up north and the Dead Sea down south. The Jabbok is named here because it shows what will come to those who trust in the God of the Bible. And it will be just like the name of Israel, a double entendre. In the years ahead for this group of people, God will deal with them in a singular and unique way. It will be a relationship distinct from all other peoples on earth and it will show to the world God’s immense love and His covenant keeping faithfulness. There will be pouring out of God’s favor and God's wrath upon them. The difference will be determined by what they will choose to do with the Lord Jesus Christ. For those who trust in Him, God's favor. For those who trust not, the wrath of God.
In v.24 of today's passage we read, "Then Jacob was left alone; and a Man wrestled with him until the breaking of day."
Jacob was alone in the dark on the north bank of the Jabbock river. All of a sudden, without any announcement a Man entered into the narrative. Although Jacob probably thought this was Esau, he didn't know that it was actually God. In this encounter, Jacob was being given a new experience with God, one which would prefigure the coming days for his posterity. I have discovered that in order to bring about such an event in any of us, God begins with our senses. We are physical beings and so God uses our physical senses and experiences when He reveals Himself to us. But we are also rational beings and so He will come to us through our memories, our reason, and our logic. In addition, we are spiritual beings and so He will come to us by communing with us on a spiritual level. This is how God chose to meet Jacob that night in the dark of night.
Jacob was a man of self-determination. He was the greatest manipulator in the history of mankind. He set up a pillar and made a vow to God before leaving Canaan and then obtained two wives, a family, and wealth from his father-in-law. Now on his return, he took wise measures to ensure his brother would receive him favorably. All the while God had been with him, but he hadn’t been fully dependent on Him in the truest sense.
There are some things that we’ll only learn through pain because it is our pain and suffering that make us desperate enough for God. As God wrestled with him that night, Jacob experienced a measure of desperation which made him begin to learn what it meant to be reliant and dependent on God. This fixed wrestling match which occurred a bit less than 4000 years ago pictures for all of us our utter need to struggle with ourselves, life and God. Whoever wins this battle will determine so much including our sanctification and the role we will play before God into eternity.
In v.25 of today's passage we read, "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."
The fixed wrestling match continued throughout the night. Since the Man was none other than the Lord Jesus, He could have defeated Jacob easily, but He chose not to because the struggle was a must for the development of Jacob's faith in God. For all of his existence, Jacob was a man of strength even before his birth. In the womb, according to Genesis 25:22, Jacob struggled with his brother. For all of his life, Jacob was a man who struggled with himself, others and God. His life was one of meeting and defeating adversaries.
One of the most curious passages in the world, we read, "Now when He saw that He did not prevail against him." The all-powerful God could not prevail over Jacob? How ridiculous are these words. That is until we remember that in order to complete His spiritual development in the life of Jacob, it had to be this way. God used a physical ailment to bless Jacob. God touched him right at the socket of his hip in order to reduce him to a state of complete dependence. God just touched Jacob, He didn't even hit him. God did this so that Jacob could not run. That's what he was used to doing his whole life, running. When he stole the blessing twenty years before from his brother, Jacob ran away. When he was with Laban and he wanted to leave, Jacob ran away. And he was probably thinking I can just run away. The only thing Jacob could do at that point was to cling to the Lord.
God wrestles with us like this because we learn best through processes, not the propositions. It was at that point that suddenly Jacob's hip was wrenched. Our physical strength comes from our legs. In that moment, Jacob could no longer rely on them as he once did. He could no longer prevail in his struggles relying on His own strength. With a single touch by this Man of mystery, Jacob was utterly made dependent on Him to stand. In one moment, this Man had become Jacob's only hope. Like all of us, Jacob had a singular moment with God when he realized his utter dependency upon God as God touched him and he could no longer be dependent upon himself. Again, there are some things that we’ll only learn through pain.
The name of the Jabbock River came from this fixed wrestling match between God and Jacob. In his isolation, all the things that had defined his life to that point had been stripped away and Jacob was alone with God. God has to break us before He can bless us. The pouring forth of eternal life is the result of us coming to the end of ourselves and realizing we must have the God of the Bible at the helm of our lives.
In v.26 of today's passage we read, "And He said, 'Let Me go, for the day breaks.' But he said, 'I will not let You go unless You bless me!'"
The Creator wrestled with Jacob and he overpowered Him. At that point God sought deliverance from Jacob. We read His words, "The day is breaking, let Me go." How odd, until we begin to realize that this is a picture of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus from the dead! It was the Lord Jesus who went to the cross and freed us from the penalty and power of sin. And, unless the Spirit of God brings rebirth to us, we remain in unforgiven sin which is out to destroy us. The picture God gave us that night was of the battle won for us through the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ from the dead.
It was then that Jacob said, "I will not let You go unless You bless me!" It is completely evident that Jacob had come to realize that this Man was God. And so, Jacob asked for a blessing and he remained firm until the blessing was given. In that moment, Jacob's disability revealed a greater power in his life, the power of God. This power is discovered by the weak as we decide to be totally reliant on the all-sufficient God of the Bible. This is the goal of our sanctification which is the on-going process in the born again believers life whereby God is changing our way of thinking and our way of living.
Jacob had spent his whole life grasping for the blessings of this world. He sought it from his father, his wife, and his wealth. His whole life was a wrestling match looking for the so-called American Dream. Up until this point of time in the life of Jacob nothing that this world offered him really worked. Not until, he found himself alone and afraid, and in the darkness of the night, God subdued him. It is not until God begins to define us that we begin to see what life on planet earth is really about.
