64 | Genesis 32:1
Jacob Prepares to Meet Esau
Ja cob also went on his way, and the an gels of God met him. 2 When Ja cob saw them,
32 a he said,“ This is the camp of God!” So he named that place Ma ha na im. b
3
Ja cob sent mes sen gers ahead of him to his broth er Esau in the land of Seir, the coun try of Edom. 4 He in struct ed them:“ This is what you are to say to my lord Esau:‘ Your ser vant Ja cob says, I have been stay ing with La ban and have re mained there till now. 5 I have cat tle and don keys, sheep and goats, male and fe male ser vants. Now I am send ing this mes sage to my lord, that I may find fa vor in your eyes.’”
6
When the mes sen gers re turned to Ja cob, they said,“ We went to your broth er Esau, and now he is com ing to meet you, and four hun dred men are with him.”
7
In great fear and dis tress Ja cob di vid ed the people who were with him into two groups, c and the flocks and herds and cam els as well. 8 He thought,“ If Esau comes and at tacks one group, d the group d that is left may es cape.”
9
Then Ja cob prayed,“ O God of my fa ther Abraham, God of my fa ther Isaac, Lord, you who said to me,‘ Go back to your coun try and your rel a tives, and I will make you pros per,’ 10 I am un wor thy of all the kind ness and faith ful ness you have shown your ser vant. I had only my staff when I crossed this Jor dan, but now I have be come two camps.
11
Save me, I pray, from the hand of my broth er Esau, for I am afraid he will come and at tack me, and also the moth ers with their chil dren. 12 But you have said,‘ I will sure ly make you pros per and will make your de scen dants like the sand of the sea, which can not be count ed.’”
13
He spent the night there, and from what he had with him he se lect ed a gift for his broth er Esau: 14 two hun dred fe male goats and twen ty male goats, two hun dred ewes and twen ty rams,
15 thir ty fe male cam els with their young, for ty cows and ten bulls, and twen ty fe male don keys and ten male don keys. 16 He put them in the care of his ser vants, each herd by it self, and said to his ser vants,“ Go ahead of me, and keep some space be tween the herds.”
17
He in struct ed the one in the lead:“ When my broth er Esau meets you and asks,‘ Who do you be long to, and where are you go ing, and who owns all these an i mals in front of you?’ 18 then you are to say,‘ They be long to your ser vant Ja cob. They are a gift sent to my lord Esau, and he is com ing be hind us.’”
19
He also in struct ed the sec ond, the third and all the oth ers who fol lowed the herds:“ You are to say the same thing to Esau when you meet him.
20
And be sure to say,‘ Your ser vant Ja cob is com ing be hind us.’” For he thought,“ I will pac i fy him with these gifts I am send ing on ahead; lat er, when I see him, per haps he will re ceive me.” 21 So Ja cob’ s gifts went on ahead of him, but he him self spent the night in the camp.
Jacob Wrestles With God
22
That night Ja cob got up and took his two wives, his two fe male ser vants and his elev en sons and crossed the ford of the Jab bok. 23 Af ter he had sent them across the stream, he sent over all his pos ses sions. 24 So Ja cob was left alone, and
a
In Hebrew texts 32:1-32 is numbered 32:2-33. b
2 Mahanaim means two camps. c
7 Or camps d
8 Or camp
32:1 – 21 After making a covenant of peace with Laban, Jacob must confront the problem he left to escape: Esau. He sends a message to his brother and learns that Esau is coming with 400 men( 32:1 – 6). Assuming Esau is a threat, Jacob divides his camp so that Esau cannot attack the entire group( vv. 7 – 8). He prays that God will deliver him and prepares a gift for Esau, hoping to appease him( vv. 13 – 21).
32:1 angels of God This exact phrase occurs elsewhere only in 28:12— also in connection with Jacob. Spiritual messengers from God, like those Jacob earlier witnessed, now meet him in a tumultuous time. Compare 35:7. 32:2 This is the camp of God This phrase seems to have both military and residential connotations( 1Ch 12:22; compare Jdg 18:12). Mahanaim The Hebrew word used here, machanayim, is plural and means“ two camps.” It is unclear why Jacob did not choose to use a singular form when naming this place; Jacob uses a singular form of the same word( machaneh in Hebrew, meaning“ camp”) in his explanation of the name. The plural form could indicate that Jacob is referencing the meeting of his camp and God’ s camp( where the angels of God are), or even referencing three different camps: his own, God’ s and Esau’ s. Jacob could have seen Esau’ s camp by this point or knew it was nearby. The specific site of this location is unknown. 32:3 in the land of Seir, the country of Edom The land of Esau’ s descendants( see Ge 25:30). 32:5 cattle and donkeys, sheep and goats, male and female servants This listing is probably intended as a hint to Esau that Jacob has wealth to share. This is likely Jacob’ s way of saying he intends to compensate for Esau’ s loss of wealth many years ago when he took Esau’ s birthright( 25:31 – 34; 27:36; compare 32:20). 32:6 four hundred men If other references to this number of men are analogous( 1Sa 22:2; 25:13; 30:10,17), 400 appears to have been the normal size of a militia.
32:9 – 12 Jacob does not pray for Esau’ s demise, as though Esau were his enemy. Rather, Jacob knows he wronged his brother and is undeserving of God’ s protection for this reason( Ge 32:10).
32:20 I will pacify The Hebrew word used here, kaphar— which may be literally rendered as“ to cover over”( 6:14)— is often used in the OT to describe atonement— the covering over of sin( see Lev 4:20 and note; Isa 6:7 and note).
32:22 – 32 As Jacob anticipates his brother’ s arrival, God appears as a man( see Ge 32:24 and note) and wrestles