Reference: Jacob
American
Son of Isaac and Rebekah, and twin-brother to Esau. As at his birth he held his brother's heel, he was called Jacob, that is, the heel-holder, one who comes behind and catches the heel of his adversary, a supplanter, Ge 25:26. This was a king of predictive intimation of his future conduct in life. Jacob was meek and peaceable, living a shepherd life at home. Esau was more turbulent and fierce, and passionately fond of hunting. Isaac was partial to Esau, Rebekah to Jacob. Jacob having taken advantage of his brother's absence and his father's infirmity to obtain the blessing of the birthright, or primogeniture, was compelled to fly into Mesopotamia to avoid the consequences of his brother's wrath, Ge 27-28. On his journey the Lord appeared to him in a dream, (see LADDER,) promised him His protection, and declared His purpose relative to his descendants' possessing the land of Canaan, and the descent of the Messiah through him, Ge 28:10, etc. His subsequent days, which he calls "few and evil," were clouded with many sorrows, yet amid them all he was sustained by the care and favor of God. On his solitary journey of six hundred miles into Mesopotamia, and during the toils and injuries of this twenty years' service with Laban, God still prospered him, and on his return to the land of promise inclined the hostile spirits of Laban and of Esau to peace. On the border of Canaan the angels of God met him, and the God of angels wrestled with him, yielded him the blessing, and gave him the honored name of Israel. But sore trials awaited him: his mother was no more; his sister-wives imbittered his life with their jealousies; his children Dinah, Simeon, Levi and Reuben filled him with grief and shame; his beloved Rachel and his father were removed by death; Joseph his favorite son he had given up as slain by wild beasts; and the loss of Benjamin threatened to bring his gray hairs with sorrow to the grave. But the sunset of his life was majestically calm and bright. For seventeen years, he enjoyed in the land of Goshen a serene happiness: he gave a dying blessing in Jehovah's name to his assembled sons; visions of their future prosperity rose before his eyes, especially the long line of the royal race of Judah, culminating in the glorious kingdom of SHILOH. "He saw it, and was glad." Soon after, he was gathered to his fathers, and his body was embalmed, and buried with all possible honors in the burial-place of Abraham near Hebron, B. C. 1836-1689. In the history of Jacob we observe that in repeated instances he used unjustifiable means to secure promised advantages, instead of waiting, in faith and obedience, for the unfailing providence of God. We observe also the divine chastisement of his sins, and his steadfast growth in grace to the last, Ge 25-50. His name is found in the New Testament, illustrating the sovereignty of God and the power of faith, Ro 9:13; Heb 11:9,21.
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After this, his brother came out grasping Esau's heel with his hand. So he was named Jacob. Isaac was 60 years old when they were born.
As it is written: Jacob I have loved, but Esau I have hated.
By faith he stayed as a foreigner in the land of promise, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, co-heirs of the same promise.
By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph, and, he worshiped, leaning on the top of his staff.
Easton
one who follows on another's heels; supplanter, (Ge 25:26; 27:36; Ho 12:2-4), the second born of the twin sons of Isaac by Rebekah. He was born probably at Lahai-roi, when his father was fifty-nine and Abraham one hundred and fifty-nine years old. Like his father, he was of a quiet and gentle disposition, and when he grew up followed the life of a shepherd, while his brother Esau became an enterprising hunter. His dealing with Esau, however, showed much mean selfishness and cunning (Ge 25:29-34).
When Isaac was about 160 years of age, Jacob and his mother conspired to deceive the aged patriarch (Ge 27), with the view of procuring the transfer of the birthright to himself. The birthright secured to him who possessed it (1) superior rank in his family (Ge 49:3); (2) a double portion of the paternal inheritance (De 21:17); (3) the priestly office in the family (Nu 8:17-19); and (4) the promise of the Seed in which all nations of the earth were to be blessed (Ge 22:18).
Soon after his acquisition of his father's blessing (Ge 27), Jacob became conscious of his guilt; and afraid of the anger of Esau, at the suggestion of Rebekah Isaac sent him away to Haran, 400 miles or more, to find a wife among his cousins, the family of Laban, the Syrian (28). There he met with Rachel (29). Laban would not consent to give him his daughter in marriage till he had served seven years; but to Jacob these years "seemed but a few days, for the love he had to her." But when the seven years were expired, Laban craftily deceived Jacob, and gave him his daughter Leah. Other seven years of service had to be completed probably before he obtained the beloved Rachel. But "life-long sorrow, disgrace, and trials, in the retributive providence of God, followed as a consequence of this double union."
At the close of the fourteen years of service, Jacob desired to return to his parents, but at the entreaty of Laban he tarried yet six years with him, tending his flocks (Ge 31:41). He then set out with his family and property "to go to Isaac his father in the land of Canaan" (Ge 31). Laban was angry when he heard that Jacob had set out on his journey, and pursued after him, overtaking him in seven days. The meeting was of a painful kind. After much recrimination and reproach directed against Jacob, Laban is at length pacified, and taking an affectionate farewell of his daughters, returns to his home in Padanaram. And now all connection of the Israelites with Mesopotamia is at an end.
Soon after parting with Laban he is met by a company of angels, as if to greet him on his return and welcome him back to the Land of Promise (Ge 32:1-2). He called the name of the place Mahanaim, i.e., "the double camp," probably his own camp and that of the angels. The vision of angels was the counterpart of that he had formerly seen at Bethel, when, twenty years before, the weary, solitary traveller, on his way to Padan-aram, saw the angels of God ascending and descending on the ladder whose top reached to heaven (Ge 28:12).
He now hears with dismay of the approach of his brother Esau with a band of 400 men to meet him. In great agony of mind he prepares for the worst. He feels that he must now depend only on God, and he betakes himself to him in earnest prayer, and sends on before him a munificent present to Esau, "a present to my lord Esau from thy servant Jacob." Jacob's family were then transported across the Jabbok; but he himself remained behind, spending the night in communion with God. While thus engaged, there appeared one in the form of a man who wrestled with him. In this mysterious contest Jacob prevailed, and as a memorial of it his name was changed to Israel (wrestler with God); and the place where this occured he called Peniel, "for", said he, "I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved" (Ge 32:25-31).
After this anxious night, Jacob went on his way, halting, mysteriously weakened by the conflict, but strong in the assurance of the divine favour. Esau came forth and met him; but his spirit of revenge was appeased, and the brothers met as friends, and during the remainder of their lives they maintained friendly relations. After a brief sojourn at Succoth, Jacob moved forward and pitched his tent near Shechem (q.v.), Ge 33:18; but at length, under divine directions, he moved to Bethel, where he made an altar unto God (Ge 35:6-7), and where God appeared to him and renewed the Abrahamic covenant. While journeying from Bethel to Ephrath (the Canaanitish name of Bethlehem), Rachel died in giving birth to her second son Benjamin (), fifteen or sixteen years after the birth of Joseph. He then reached the old family residence at Mamre, to wait on the dying bed of his father Isaac. The complete reconciliation between Esau and Jacob was shown by their uniting in the burial of the patriarch (Ge 35:27-29).
Jacob was soon after this deeply grieved by the loss of his beloved son Joseph through the jealousy of his brothers (Ge 37:33). Then follows the story of the famine, and the successive goings down into Egypt to buy corn (42), which led to the discovery of the long-lost Joseph, and the patriarch's going down with all his household, numbering about seventy souls (Ex 1:5; De 10:22; Ac 7:14), to sojourn in the land of Goshen. Here Jacob, "after being strangely tossed about on a very rough ocean, found at last a tranquil harbour, where all the best affections of his nature were gently exercised and largely unfolded" (Ge 48). At length the end of his checkered course draws nigh, and he summons his sons to his bedside that he may bless them. Among his last words he repeats the story of Rachel's death, although forty years had passed away since that event took place, as tenderly as if it had happened only yesterday; and when "he had made an end of charging his sons, he gathered up his feet into the bed, and yielded up the ghost" (Ge 49:33). His body was embalmed and carried with great pomp into the land of Canaan, and buried beside his wife Leah in the cave of Machpelah, according to his dying charge. There, probably, his embalmed body remains to this day (Ge 50:1-13). (See Hebron.)
The history of Jacob is referred to by the prophets Hosea (Ho 12:3-4,12) and Malachi (Mal 1:2). In Mic 1:5 the name is a poetic synonym for Israel, the kingdom of the ten tribes. There are, besides the mention of his name along with those of the other patriarchs, distinct references to events of his life in Paul's epistles (Ro 9:11-13; Heb 12:16; 11:21). See references to his vision at Bethel and his possession of land at Shechem in Joh 1:51; 4:5,12; also to the famine which was the occasion of his going down into Egypt in Ac 7:12 (See Luz; Bethel.)
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And all the nations of the earth will be blessed by your offspring because you have obeyed My command."
After this, his brother came out grasping Esau's heel with his hand. So he was named Jacob. Isaac was 60 years old when they were born.
Once when Jacob was cooking a stew, Esau came in from the field, exhausted. He said to Jacob, "Let me eat some of that red stuff, because I'm exhausted." That is why he was [also] named Edom. read more. Jacob replied, "First sell me your birthright." "Look," said Esau, "I'm about to die, so what good is a birthright to me?" Jacob said, "Swear to me first." So he swore to Jacob and sold his birthright to him. Then Jacob gave bread and lentil stew to Esau; he ate, drank, got up, and went away. So Esau despised his birthright.
So he said, "Isn't he rightly named Jacob? For he has cheated me twice now. He took my birthright, and look, now he has taken my blessing." Then he asked, "Haven't you saved a blessing for me?"
And he dreamed: A stairway was set on the ground with its top reaching heaven, and God's angels were going up and down on it.
For 20 years I have worked in your household-14 years for your two daughters and six years for your flocks-and you have changed my wages 10 times!
Jacob went on his way, and God's angels met him. When he saw them, Jacob said, "This is God's camp." So he called that place Mahanaim.
When the man saw that He could not defeat him, He struck Jacob's hip as they wrestled and dislocated his hip socket. Then He said to Jacob, "Let Me go, for it is daybreak." But Jacob said, "I will not let You go unless You bless me." read more. "What is your name?" the man asked. "Jacob!" he replied. "Your name will no longer be Jacob," He said. "It will be Israel because you have struggled with God and with men and have prevailed." Then Jacob asked Him, "Please tell me Your name." But He answered, "Why do you ask My name?" And He blessed him there. Jacob then named the place Peniel, "For," [he said,] "I have seen God face to face, and I have been delivered." The sun shone on him as he passed by Penuel-limping on his hip.
After Jacob came from Paddan-aram, he arrived safely at the Canaanite city of Shechem and camped in front of the city.
So Jacob and all who were with him came to Luz (that is, Bethel) in the land of Canaan. Jacob built an altar there and called the place God of Bethel because it was there that God had revealed Himself to him when he was fleeing from his brother.
Jacob came to his father Isaac at Mamre in Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron), where Abraham and Isaac had stayed. Isaac lived 180 years. read more. He took his last breath and died, and was gathered to his people, old and full of days. His sons Esau and Jacob buried him.
His father recognized it. "It is my son's robe," he said. "A vicious animal has devoured him. Joseph has been torn to pieces!"
Reuben, you are my firstborn, my strength and the firstfruits of my virility, excelling in prominence, excelling in power.
When Jacob had finished instructing his sons, he drew his feet into the bed and died. He was gathered to his people.
Then Joseph, leaning over his father's face, wept and kissed him. He commanded his servants who were physicians to embalm his father. So they embalmed Israel. read more. They took 40 days to complete this, for embalming takes that long, and the Egyptians mourned for him 70 days. When the days of mourning were over, Joseph said to Pharaoh's household, "If I have found favor with you, please tell Pharaoh that my father made me take an oath, saying, 'I am about to die. You must bury me there in the tomb that I hewed out for myself in the land of Canaan.' Now let me go and bury my father. Then I will return." So Pharaoh said, "Go and bury your father in keeping with your oath." Then Joseph went to bury his father, and all Pharaoh's servants, the elders of his household, and all the elders of the land of Egypt went with him, along with all Joseph's household, his brothers, and his father's household. Only their children, their sheep, and their cattle were left in the land of Goshen. Horses and chariots went up with him; it was a very impressive procession. When they reached the threshing floor of Atad, which is across the Jordan, they lamented and wept loudly, and Joseph mourned seven days for his father. When the Canaanite inhabitants of the land saw the mourning at the threshing floor of Atad, they said, "This is a solemn mourning on the part of the Egyptians." Therefore the place is named Abel-mizraim. It is across the Jordan. So Jacob's sons did for him what he had commanded them. They carried him to the land of Canaan and buried him in the cave at Machpelah in the field near Mamre, which Abraham had purchased as a burial site from Ephron the Hittite.
The total number of Jacob's descendants was 70; Joseph was already in Egypt.
For every firstborn among the Israelites is Mine, both man and animal. I consecrated them to Myself on the day I struck down every firstborn in the land of Egypt. But I have taken the Levites in place of every firstborn among the Israelites. read more. From the Israelites, I have given the Levites exclusively to Aaron and his sons to perform the work for the Israelites at the tent of meeting and to make atonement on their behalf, so that no plague will come against the Israelites when they approach the sanctuary."
Your fathers went down to Egypt, 70 people in all, and now the Lord your God has made you as numerous as the stars of the sky.
He must acknowledge the firstborn, the son of the unloved wife, by giving him a double portion of everything that belongs to him, for he is the firstfruits of his virility; he has the rights of the firstborn.
The Lord also has a dispute with Judah. He is about to punish Jacob according to his ways; He will repay him based on his actions. In the womb he grasped his brother's heel, and as an adult he wrestled with God.
In the womb he grasped his brother's heel, and as an adult he wrestled with God. Jacob struggled with the Angel and prevailed; he wept and sought His favor. He found him at Bethel, and there He spoke with him.
Jacob struggled with the Angel and prevailed; he wept and sought His favor. He found him at Bethel, and there He spoke with him.
Jacob fled to the land of Aram. Israel worked to earn a wife; he tended flocks for a wife.
All this will happen because of Jacob's rebellion and the sins of the house of Israel. What is the rebellion of Jacob? Isn't it Samaria? And what is the high place of Judah? Isn't it Jerusalem?
"I have loved you," says the Lord. But you ask: "How have You loved us?" "Wasn't Esau Jacob's brother?" [This is] the Lord's declaration. "Even so, I loved Jacob,
Then He said, "I assure you: You will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man."
so He came to a town of Samaria called Sychar near the property that Jacob had given his son Joseph.
You aren't greater than our father Jacob, are you? He gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did his sons and livestock."
When Jacob heard there was grain in Egypt, he sent our forefathers the first time.
Joseph then invited his father Jacob and all his relatives, 75 people in all,
(for though they had not been born yet or done anything good or bad, so that God's purpose according to election might stand, not from works but from the One who calls) she was told: The older will serve the younger. read more. As it is written: Jacob I have loved, but Esau I have hated.
By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph, and, he worshiped, leaning on the top of his staff.
And see that there isn't any immoral or irreverent person like Esau, who sold his birthright in exchange for one meal.
Fausets
(See ESAU; ISAAC.) ("supplanter", or "holding the heel".) Esau's twin brother, but second in point of priority. Son of Isaac, then 60 years old, and Rebekah. As Jacob "took his brother by the heel (the action of a wrestler) in the womb" (Ho 12:3), so the spiritual Israel, every believer, having no right in himself to the inheritance, by faith when being born again of the Spirit takes hold of the bruised heel, the humanity, of Christ crucified, "the Firstborn of many brethren." He by becoming a curse for us became a blessing to the true Israel; contrast Heb 12:16-17. Jacob was a "plain," i.e. an upright man, steady and domestic, affectionate, so his mother's favorite: Ge 25:24, etc., "dwelling in tents," i.e. staying at home, minding the flocks and household duties; not, like Esau, wandering abroad in keen quest of game, "a man of the field," wild, restless, self indulgent, and seldom at home in the tent.
Having bought the birthright from Esau, he afterward, at Rebekah's instigation, stole the blessing which his father intended for Esau, but which God had appointed to him even when the two sons were yet unborn; "the elder shall serve the younger" (Ge 25:23; 27:29; Mal 1:3; Ro 9:12). His seeking a right end by wrong means (Genesis 27) entailed a life-long retribution in kind. Instead of occupying the first place of honour in the family he had to flee for his life; instead of a double portion, he fled with only the staff in his hand. It was now, when his schemes utterly failed, God's grace began to work in him and for him, amidst his heavy outward crosses. If he had waited in faith God's time, and God's way, of giving the blessing promised by God, and not unlawfully with carnal policy foiled Isaac's intention, God would have defeated his father's foolish purpose and Jacob would have escaped his well deserved chastisement.
The fear of man, precautions cunning, habitual timidity as to danger, characterize him, as we might have expected in one quiet and shrewd to begin with, then schooled in a life exposed to danger from Esau, to grasping selfishness from Laban, and to undutifulness from most of his sons (Ge 31:15,42; 34:5,30; 43:6,11-12). Jacob's grand superiority lay in his abiding trust in the living God. Faith made him "covet earnestly the best gift," though his mode of getting it (first by purchase from the reckless, profane Esau, at the cost of red pottage, taking ungenerous advantage of his brother's hunger; next by deceit) was most unworthy.
When sent forth by his parents to escape Esau, and to get a wife in Padan Aram, he for the first time is presented before us as enjoying God's manifestations at Bethel in his vision of the ladder set up on earth, and the top reaching heaven, with "Jehovah standing above, and the angels of God ascending and descending (not descending and ascending, for the earth is presupposed as already the scene of their activity) on it," typifying God's providence and grace arranging all things for His people's good through the ministry of "angels" (Genesis 28; Heb 1:14). When his conscience made him feel his flight was the just penalty of his deceit God comforts him by promises of His grace.
Still more typifying Messiah, through whom heaven is opened and also joined to earth, and angels minister with ceaseless activity to Him first, then to His people (Joh 14:6; Re 4:1; Ac 7:56; Heb 9:8; 10:19-20). Jacob the man of guile saw Him at the top of the ladder; Nathanael, an Israelite without guile, saw Him at the bottom in His humiliation, which was the necessary first step upward to glory. Joh 1:51; "hereafter," Greek "from now," the process was then beginning which shall eventuate in the restoration of the union between heaven and earth, with greater glory than before (Re 5:8; Revelation 21:1 - 22:21). Then followed God's promise of (1) the land and (2) of universal blessing to all families of the earth "in his seed," i.e. Christ; meanwhile he should have
(1) God's presence,
(2) protection in all places,
(3) restoration to home,
(4) unfailing faithfulness (Ge 28:15; compare Ge 28:20-21).
Recognizing God's manifestation as sanctifying the spot, he made his stony pillow into a pillar, consecrated with oil (See BETHEL), and taking up God's word he vowed that as surely as God would fulfill His promises (he asked no more than "bread and raiment") Jehovah should be his God, and of all that God gave he would surely give a tenth to Him; not waiting until he should be rich to do so, but while still poor; a pattern to us (compare Ge 32:10). Next follows his seven years' service under greedy Laban, in lieu of presents to the parents (the usual mode of obtaining a wife in the East, Ge 24:53, which Jacob was unable to give), and the imposition of Leah upon him instead of Rachel; the first installment of his retributive chastisement in kind for his own deceit. Kennicott suggested that Jacob served 14 years for his wives, then during 20 years he took care of Laban's cattle as a friend, then during six years he served for wages (Ge 31:38,41).
One (zeh) 20 years I was with thee (tending thy flocks, but not in thy house); another (zeh) 20 years I was for myself in thy house, serving thee 14 years for thy two daughters, and six years for thy cattle. The ordinary view that he was only 20 years old in Padan Aram would make him 77 years old in going there; and as Joseph, the second youngest, was born at the end of the first 14 years, the 11 children born before Benjamin would be all born within six or seven years, Leah's six, Rachel's one, Bilhah's two, and Zilpah's two. It is not certain that Dinah was born at this time. Zebulun may have been borne by Leah later than Joseph, it not being certain that the births all followed in the order of their enumeration, which is that of the mothers, not that of the births. Rachel gave her maid to Jacob not necessarily after the birth of Leah's fourth son; so Bilhah may have borne Dan and Naphtali before Judah's birth.
Leah then, not being likely to have another son, probably gave Zilpah to Jacob, and Asher and Naphtali were born; in the beginning of the last of the seven years probably Leah bore Issachar, and at its end Zebulun. But in the view of Kennicott and Speaker's Commentary Jacob went to Laban at 57; in the first 14 years had sons, Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah by Leah; Dan and Naphtali by Bilhah; in the 20 years (Ge 35:29) next had Gad and Asher by Zilpah, Issachar and Zebulun by Leah, lastly Dinah by Leah and Joseph by Rachel; then six years' service for cattle, then flees from Padan Aram where he had been 40 years, at 97. In Jacob's 98th year Benjamin is born and Rachel dies. Joseph at 17 goes to Egypt, at 30 is governor. At 130 Jacob goes to Egypt (Ge 46:1); dies at 147 (Ge 47:28).
The assigning of 40, instead of 20, years to his sojourn with Laban allows time for Er and Onan to be grown up when married; their strong passions leading them to marry, even so, at an early age for that time. The common chronology needs some correction, since it makes Judah marry at 20, Er and Onan at 15. On Jacob desiring to leave, Laban attested God's presence with Jacob. "I have found by experience (Hebrew "by omens from serpents," the term showing Laban's paganness: Ge 30:19,32) that the Lord hath blessed me for thy sake." Jacob then required as wages all the speckled and spotted sheep and goats, which usually are few, sheep in the East being generally white, the goats black or brown, not speckled.
With characteristic sharpness Jacob adopted a double plan of increasing the wages agreed on. Peeling rods of (Gesenius) storax ("poplar"), almond ("hazel"), and plane tree ("chesnut") in strips, so that the dazzling white wood of these trees should appear under the dark outside, he put them in the drinking troughs; the cattle consequently brought forth spotted, speckled young, which by the agreement became Jacob's. Thus by trickery he foiled Laban's trickery in putting three days' journey between his flock tended by Jacob and Jacob's stipulated flock of spotted and speckled goats and brown put under the care of his sons. Secondly, Jacob separated the speckled young, which were his, so as to be constantly in view of Laban's
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And the man said: This one, at last, is bone of my bone, and flesh of my flesh; this one will be called woman, for she was taken from man. This is why a man leaves his father and mother and bonds with his wife, and they become one flesh.
Then he brought out objects of silver and gold, and garments, and gave [them] to Rebekah. He also gave precious gifts to her brother and her mother.
And the Lord said to her: Two nations are in your womb; two people will [come] from you and be separated. One people will be stronger than the other, and the older will serve the younger. When her time came to give birth, there were indeed twins in her womb.
The Lord appeared to him and said, "Do not go down to Egypt. Live in the land that I tell you about;
May peoples serve you and nations bow down to you. Be master over your brothers; may your mother's sons bow down to you. Those who curse you will be cursed, and those who bless you will be blessed.
Look, I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go. I will bring you back to this land, for I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you."
Then Jacob made a vow: "If God will be with me and watch over me on this journey, if He provides me with food to eat and clothing to wear, and if I return safely to my father's house, then the Lord will be my God. read more. This stone that I have set up as a marker will be God's house, and I will give to You a tenth of all that You give me."
Let me go through all your sheep today and remove every sheep that is speckled or spotted, every dark-colored sheep among the lambs, and the spotted and speckled among the female goats. [Such] will be my wages.
"When the flocks were breeding, I saw in a dream that the streaked, spotted, and speckled males were mating with the females. In that dream the Angel of God said to me, 'Jacob!' and I said: Here I am. read more. And He said, 'Look up and see: all the males that are mating with the flocks are streaked, spotted, and speckled, for I have seen all that Laban has been doing to you. I am the God of Bethel, where you poured oil on the stone marker and made a solemn vow to Me. Get up, leave this land, and return to your native land.' "
Are we not regarded by him as outsiders? For he has sold us and has certainly spent our money.
I've been with you these 20 years. Your ewes and female goats have not miscarried, and I have not eaten the rams from your flock.
For 20 years I have worked in your household-14 years for your two daughters and six years for your flocks-and you have changed my wages 10 times! If the God of my father, the God of Abraham, the Fear of Isaac, had not been with me, certainly now you would have sent me off empty-handed. But God has seen my affliction and my hard work, and He issued His verdict last night."
Jacob was greatly afraid and distressed; he divided the people with him into two camps, along with the flocks, cattle, and camels.
Then Jacob said, "God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac, the Lord who said to me, 'Go back to your land and to your family, and I will cause you to prosper,' I am unworthy of all the kindness and faithfulness You have shown Your servant. Indeed, I crossed over this Jordan with my staff, and now I have become two camps.
I am unworthy of all the kindness and faithfulness You have shown Your servant. Indeed, I crossed over this Jordan with my staff, and now I have become two camps.
I am unworthy of all the kindness and faithfulness You have shown Your servant. Indeed, I crossed over this Jordan with my staff, and now I have become two camps. Please rescue me from the hand of my brother Esau, for I am afraid of him; otherwise, he may come and attack me, the mothers, and their children. read more. You have said, 'I will cause you to prosper, and I will make your offspring like the sand of the sea, which cannot be counted.' "
Then He said to Jacob, "Let Me go, for it is daybreak." But Jacob said, "I will not let You go unless You bless me."
but Jacob went on to Succoth. He built a house for himself and stalls for his cattle; that is why the place was called Succoth.
He purchased a section of the field from the sons of Hamor, Shechem's father, for 100 qesitahs, where he had pitched his tent.
Jacob heard that Shechem had defiled his daughter Dinah, but since his sons were with his cattle in the field, he remained silent until they returned.
Then Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, "You have brought trouble on me, making me odious to the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites and the Perizzites. We are few in number; if they unite against me and attack me, I and my household will be destroyed."
He took his last breath and died, and was gathered to his people, old and full of days. His sons Esau and Jacob buried him.
His father recognized it. "It is my son's robe," he said. "A vicious animal has devoured him. Joseph has been torn to pieces!" Then Jacob tore his clothes, put sackcloth around his waist, and mourned for his son many days. read more. All his sons and daughters tried to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. "No," he said. "I will go down to Sheol to my son, mourning." And his father wept for him.
Their father Jacob said to them, "You have deprived me of my sons. Joseph is gone and Simeon is gone. Now you want to take Benjamin. Everything happens to me!"
Their father Jacob said to them, "You have deprived me of my sons. Joseph is gone and Simeon is gone. Now you want to take Benjamin. Everything happens to me!"
"Why did you cause me so much trouble?" Israel asked. "Why did you tell the man that you had another brother?"
Then their father Israel said to them, "If it must be so, then do this: Put some of the best products of the land in your packs and take them down to the man as a gift-some balsam and some honey, aromatic gum and resin, pistachios and almonds. Take twice as much money with you. Return the money that was returned [to you] in the top of your bags. Perhaps it was a mistake.
Then Israel said, "Enough! My son Joseph is still alive. I will go to see him before I die."
Israel set out with all that he had and came to Beer-sheba, and he offered sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac.
Now Jacob lived in the land of Egypt 17 years, and his life span was 147 years. When the time drew near for him to die, he called his son Joseph and said to him, "If I have found favor in your eyes, put your hand under my thigh [and promise me] that you will deal with me in faithful love. Do not bury me in Egypt. read more. When I lie down with my fathers, carry me away from Egypt and bury me in their burial place." Joseph answered, "I will do what you have asked." And Jacob said, "Swear to me." So Joseph swore to him. Then Israel bowed [in thanks] at the head of his bed.
When Jacob was told, "Your son Joseph has come to you," Israel summoned his strength and sat up in bed.
Over and above what I am giving your brothers, I am giving you the one mountain slope that I took from the hand of the Amorites with my sword and bow."
Simeon and Levi are brothers; their knives are vicious weapons. May I never enter their council; may I never join their assembly. For in their anger they kill men, and on a whim they hamstring oxen.
I wait for Your salvation, Lord.
These are the tribes of Israel, 12 in all, and this was what their father said to them. He blessed them, and he blessed each one with a suitable blessing.
The Lord came down in a cloud, stood with him there, and proclaimed [His] name Yahweh. Then the Lord passed in front of him and proclaimed: Yahweh-Yahweh is a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger and rich in faithful love and truth, read more. maintaining faithful love to a thousand [generations], forgiving wrongdoing, rebellion, and sin. But He will not leave [the guilty] unpunished, bringing the consequences of the fathers' wrongdoing on the children and grandchildren to the third and fourth generation.
and said to them, "I know that the Lord has given you this land and that dread of you has fallen on us, and everyone who lives in the land is panicking because of you.
Elisha said, "Don't be afraid, for those who are with us outnumber those who are with them." Then Elisha prayed, "Lord, please open his eyes and let him see." So the Lord opened the servant's eyes. He looked and saw that the mountain was covered with horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.
Would He prosecute me forcefully? No, He will certainly pay attention to me.
When I am afraid, I will trust in You. In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I will not fear. What can man do to me?
in God I trust; I will not fear. What can man do to me?
Or let it take hold of My strength; let it make peace with Me- make peace with Me.
Indeed, the bed is too short to stretch out on, and its cover too small to wrap up in. For the Lord will rise up as [He did] at Mount Perazim. He will rise in wrath, as at the valley of Gibeon, to do His work, His strange work, and to perform His task, His disturbing task. read more. So now, do not mock, or your shackles will become stronger. Indeed, I have heard from the Lord God of Hosts a decree of destruction for the whole land.
Egyptians are men, not God; their horses are flesh, not spirit. When the Lord raises His hand [to strike], the helper will stumble and the helped will fall; both will perish together.
His rock will pass away because of fear, and his officers will be afraid because of the signal flag. [This is] the Lord's declaration-whose fire is in Zion and whose furnace is in Jerusalem.
He gives strength to the weary and strengthens the powerless. Youths may faint and grow weary, and young men stumble and fall, read more. but those who trust in the Lord will renew their strength; they will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary; they will walk and not faint.
Take Me to court; let us argue our case together. State your [case], so that you may be vindicated.
In the womb he grasped his brother's heel, and as an adult he wrestled with God.
In the womb he grasped his brother's heel, and as an adult he wrestled with God. Jacob struggled with the Angel and prevailed; he wept and sought His favor. He found him at Bethel, and there He spoke with him.
but I hated Esau. I turned his mountains into a wasteland, and [gave] his inheritance to the desert jackals."
Reach a settlement quickly with your adversary while you're on the way with him, or your adversary will hand you over to the judge, the judge to the officer, and you will be thrown into prison.
From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been suffering violence, and the violent have been seizing it by force.
After dismissing the crowds, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray. When evening came, He was there alone.
Just then a Canaanite woman from that region came and kept crying out, "Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David! My daughter is cruelly tormented by a demon."
and He also said: For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two will become one flesh ?
Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, He got up, went out, and made His way to a deserted place. And He was praying there.
During those days He went out to the mountain to pray and spent all night in prayer to God.
"Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because I tell you, many will try to enter and won't be able
Then He said, "I assure you: You will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man."
Jesus told him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.
Joseph then invited his father Jacob and all his relatives, 75 people in all,
"Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!"
We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God: those who are called according to His purpose.
What then are we to say about these things? If God is for us, who is against us?
No, in all these things we are more than victorious through Him who loved us.
not from works but from the One who calls) she was told: The older will serve the younger.
For our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the world powers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavens.
Are they not all ministering spirits sent out to serve those who are going to inherit salvation?
During His earthly life, He offered prayers and appeals, with loud cries and tears, to the One who was able to save Him from death, and He was heard because of His reverence.
The Holy Spirit was making it clear that the way into the holy of holies had not yet been disclosed while the first tabernacle was still standing.
Therefore, brothers, since we have boldness to enter the sanctuary through the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that He has inaugurated for us, through the curtain (that is, His flesh);
By faith he stayed as a foreigner in the land of promise, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, co-heirs of the same promise.
These all died in faith without having received the promises, but they saw them from a distance, greeted them, and confessed that they were foreigners and temporary residents on the earth.
By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph, and, he worshiped, leaning on the top of his staff.
And see that there isn't any immoral or irreverent person like Esau, who sold his birthright in exchange for one meal. For you know that later, when he wanted to inherit the blessing, he was rejected because he didn't find any opportunity for repentance, though he sought it with tears.
The victor: I will give him the right to sit with Me on My throne, just as I also won the victory and sat down with My Father on His throne.
After this I looked, and there in heaven was an open door. The first voice that I had heard speaking to me like a trumpet said, "Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this."
When He took the scroll, the four living creatures and the 24 elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and gold bowls filled with incense, which are the prayers of the saints.
Hastings
1. Son of Isaac and Rebekah. His name is probably an elliptical form of an original Jakob'el, 'God follows' (i.e. 'rewards'), which has been found both on Babylonian tablets and on the pylons of the temple of Karnak. By the time of Jacob this earlier history of the word was overlooked or forgotten, and the name was understood as meaning 'one who takes by the heel, and thus tries to trip up or supplant' (Ge 25:26; 27:36; Ho 12:3). His history is recounted in Ge 25:21 to Ge 50:13, the materials being unequally contributed from three sources. For the details of analysis see Dillmann, Com., and Driver, LOT [Note: OT Introd. to the Literature of the Old Testament.] , p. 16. Priestly Narrative supplies but a brief outline; Jahwist and Elohist are closely interwoven, though a degree of original independence is shown by an occasional divergence in tradition, which adds to the credibility of the joint narrative.
Jacob was born in answer to prayer (Ge 25:21), near Beersheba; and the later rivalry between Israel and Edom was thought of as prefigured in the strife of the twins in the womb (Ge 25:22 f., 2Es 3:16; 2Es 6:8-10, Ro 9:11-13). The differences between the two brothers, each contrasting with the other in character and habit, were marked from the beginning. Jacob grew up a 'quiet man' (Ge 25:27 Revised Version margin), a shepherd and herdsman. Whilst still at home, he succeeded in overreaching Esau in two ways. He took advantage of Esau's hunger and heedlessness to secure the birthright, which gave him precedence even during the father's lifetime (Ge 43:33), and afterwards a double portion of the patrimony (De 21:17), with probably the domestic priesthood. At a later time, after careful consideration (Ge 27:11 ff.), he adopted the device suggested by his mother, and, allaying with ingenious falsehoods (Ge 27:20) his father's suspicion, intercepted also his blessing. Isaac was dismayed, but instead of revoking the blessing confirmed it (Ge 27:33-37), and was not able to remove Esau's bitterness. In both blessings later political and geographical conditions are reflected. To Jacob is promised Canaan, a well-watered land of fields and vineyards (De 11:14; 33:28), with sovereignty over its peoples, even those who were 'brethren' or descended from the same ancestry as Israel (Ge 19:37 f., 2Sa 8:12,14). Esau is consigned to the dry and rocky districts of Idum
See Verses Found in Dictionary
Cain said to his brother Abel, "Let's go out to the field." And while they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him.
He went by stages from the Negev to Bethel, to the place between Bethel and Ai where his tent had formerly been,
The firstborn gave birth to a son and named him Moab. He is the father of the Moabites of today.
Isaac prayed to the Lord on behalf of his wife because she was barren. The Lord heard his prayer, and his wife Rebekah conceived.
Isaac prayed to the Lord on behalf of his wife because she was barren. The Lord heard his prayer, and his wife Rebekah conceived. But the children inside her struggled with each other, and she said, "Why is this happening to me?" So she went to inquire of the Lord.
After this, his brother came out grasping Esau's heel with his hand. So he was named Jacob. Isaac was 60 years old when they were born. When the boys grew up, Esau became an expert hunter, an outdoorsman, but Jacob was a quiet man who stayed at home.
Jacob answered Rebekah his mother, "Look, my brother Esau is a hairy man, but I am a man with smooth skin.
But Isaac said to his son, "How did you ever find it so quickly, my son?" He replied, "Because the Lord your God worked it out for me."
Isaac began to tremble uncontrollably. "Who was it then," he said, "who hunted game and brought it to me? I ate it all before you came in, and I blessed him. Indeed, he will be blessed!" When Esau heard his father's words, he cried out with a loud and bitter cry and said to his father, "Bless me-me too, my father!" read more. But he replied, "Your brother came deceitfully and took your blessing." So he said, "Isn't he rightly named Jacob? For he has cheated me twice now. He took my birthright, and look, now he has taken my blessing." Then he asked, "Haven't you saved a blessing for me?"
So he said, "Isn't he rightly named Jacob? For he has cheated me twice now. He took my birthright, and look, now he has taken my blessing." Then he asked, "Haven't you saved a blessing for me?" But Isaac answered Esau: "Look, I have made him a master over you, have given him all of his relatives as his servants, and have sustained him with grain and new wine. What then can I do for you, my son?"
You will live by your sword, and you will serve your brother. But when you rebel, you will break his yoke from your neck.
and stay with him for a few days until your brother's anger subsides-
So Rebekah said to Isaac, "I'm sick of my life because of these Hittite women. If Jacob marries a Hittite woman like one of them, what good is my life?"
The Lord was standing there beside him, saying, "I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your offspring the land that you are now sleeping on.
Early in the morning Jacob took the stone that was near his head and set it up as a marker. He poured oil on top of it
Complete this week [of wedding celebration], and we will also give you this [younger] one in return for working yet another seven years for me."
Laban asked, "What should I give you?" And Jacob said, "You don't need to give me anything. If you do this one thing for me, I will continue to shepherd and keep your flock.
and that he has cheated me and changed my wages 10 times. But God has not let him harm me.
Jacob went on his way, and God's angels met him.
When the messengers returned to Jacob, they said, "We went to your brother Esau; he is coming to meet you-and he has 400 men with him."
"Your name will no longer be Jacob," He said. "It will be Israel because you have struggled with God and with men and have prevailed."
The young man did not delay doing this, because he was delighted with Jacob's daughter. Now he was the most important in all his father's house.
God said to Jacob, "Get up! Go to Bethel and settle there. Build an altar there to the God who appeared to you when you fled from your brother Esau."
Then they gave Jacob all their foreign gods and their earrings, and Jacob hid them under the oak near Shechem.
Jacob built an altar there and called the place God of Bethel because it was there that God had revealed Himself to him when he was fleeing from his brother.
Jacob set up a marker at the place where He had spoken to him-a stone marker. He poured a drink offering on it and anointed it with oil.
Jacob set up a marker on her grave; it is the marker at Rachel's grave to this day. Israel set out again and pitched his tent beyond the tower at Eder.
Jacob came to his father Isaac at Mamre in Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron), where Abraham and Isaac had stayed.
They were seated before him in order by age, from the firstborn to the youngest. The men looked at each other in astonishment.
Israel set out with all that he had and came to Beer-sheba, and he offered sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac. That night God spoke to Israel in a vision: "Jacob, Jacob!" He said. And Jacob replied, "Here I am." read more. God said, "I am God, the God of your father. Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for I will make you a great nation there. I will go down with you to Egypt, and I will also bring you back. Joseph will put his hands on your eyes." Jacob left Beer-sheba. The sons of Israel took their father Jacob in the wagons Pharaoh had sent to carry him, along with their children and their wives. They also took their cattle and possessions they had acquired in the land of Canaan. Then Jacob and all his children with him went to Egypt. His sons and grandsons, his daughters and granddaughters, indeed all his offspring, he brought with him to Egypt.
the land of Egypt is open before you; settle your father and brothers in the best part of the land. They can live in the land of Goshen. If you know of any capable men among them, put them in charge of my livestock."
Then Joseph settled his father and brothers in the land of Egypt and gave them property in the best part of the land, the land of Rameses, as Pharaoh had commanded.
Now Jacob lived in the land of Egypt 17 years, and his life span was 147 years.
But his father refused and said, "I know, my son, I know! He too will become a tribe, and he too will be great; nevertheless, his younger brother will be greater than he, and his offspring will become a populous nation."
Over and above what I am giving your brothers, I am giving you the one mountain slope that I took from the hand of the Amorites with my sword and bow."
Come together and listen, sons of Jacob; listen to your father Israel: Reuben, you are my firstborn, my strength and the firstfruits of my virility, excelling in prominence, excelling in power. read more. Turbulent as water, you will no longer excel, because you got into your father's bed and you defiled it-he got into my bed. Simeon and Levi are brothers; their knives are vicious weapons. May I never enter their council; may I never join their assembly. For in their anger they kill men, and on a whim they hamstring oxen. Their anger is cursed, for it is strong, and their fury, for it is cruel! I will disperse them throughout Jacob and scatter them throughout Israel. Judah, your brothers will praise you. Your hand will be on the necks of your enemies; your father's sons will bow down to you. Judah is a young lion- my son, you return from the kill- he crouches; he lies down like a lion and like a lioness-who wants to rouse him? The scepter will not depart from Judah, or the staff from between his feet, until He whose right it is comes and the obedience of the peoples belongs to Him. He ties his donkey to a vine, and the colt of his donkey to the choice vine. He washes his clothes in wine, and his robes in the blood of grapes. His eyes are darker than wine, and his teeth are whiter than milk. Zebulun will live by the seashore and will be a harbor for ships, and his territory will be next to Sidon. Issachar is a strong donkey lying down between the saddlebags. He saw that his resting place was good and that the land was pleasant, so he leaned his shoulder to bear a load and became a forced laborer. Dan will judge his people as one of the tribes of Israel. He will be a snake by the road, a viper beside the path, that bites the horses' heels so that its rider falls backwards. I wait for Your salvation, Lord. Gad will be attacked by [marauding] bands, but he will attack their heels. Asher's food will be rich, and he will produce royal delicacies. Naphtali is a doe set free that bears beautiful fawns. Joseph is a fruitful vine, a fruitful vine beside a spring; its branches climb over the wall. The archers attacked him, shot at him, and were hostile toward him. Yet his bow remained steady, and his strong arms were made agile by the hands of the Mighty One of Jacob, by the name of the Shepherd, the Rock of Israel, by the God of your father who helps you, and by the Almighty who blesses you with blessings of the heavens above, blessings of the deep that lies below, and blessings of the breasts and the womb. The blessings of your father excel the blessings of my ancestors and the bounty of the eternal hills. May they rest on the head of Joseph, on the crown of the prince of his brothers. Benjamin is a wolf; he tears [his prey]. In the morning he devours the prey, and in the evening he divides the plunder."
When Jacob had finished instructing his sons, he drew his feet into the bed and died. He was gathered to his people.
They carried him to the land of Canaan and buried him in the cave at Machpelah in the field near Mamre, which Abraham had purchased as a burial site from Ephron the Hittite.
They carried him to the land of Canaan and buried him in the cave at Machpelah in the field near Mamre, which Abraham had purchased as a burial site from Ephron the Hittite.
I will provide rain for your land in season, the early and late rains, and you will harvest your grain, new wine, and oil.
He must acknowledge the firstborn, the son of the unloved wife, by giving him a double portion of everything that belongs to him, for he is the firstfruits of his virility; he has the rights of the firstborn.
You are to respond by saying in the presence of the Lord your God: My father was a wandering Aramean. He went down to Egypt with a few people and lived there. There he became a great, powerful, and populous nation.
So Israel dwells securely; Jacob lives untroubled in a land of grain and new wine; even his skies drip with dew.
On that day Joshua made a covenant for the people at Shechem and established a statute and ordinance for them. Joshua recorded these things in the book of the law of God; he also took a large stone and set it up there under the oak next to the sanctuary of the Lord.
Joseph's bones, which the Israelites had brought up from Egypt, were buried at Shechem in the parcel of land Jacob had purchased from the sons of Hamor, Shechem's father, for 100 qesitahs.It was an inheritance for Joseph's descendants.
Then all the lords of Shechem and of Beth-millo gathered together and proceeded to make Abimelech king at the oak of the pillar in Shechem.
The elders and all the people who were at the gate said, "We are witnesses. May the Lord make the woman who is entering your house like Rachel and Leah, who together built the house of Israel. May you be powerful in Ephrathah and famous in Bethlehem.
Today when you leave me, you'll find two men at Rachel's Grave at Zelzah in the land of Benjamin. They will say to you, 'The donkeys you went looking for have been found, and now your father has stopped being concerned about the donkeys and is worried about you, asking: What should I do about my son?'
from Edom, Moab, the Ammonites, the Philistines, the Amalekites, and the spoil of Hadadezer son of Rehob, king of Zobah.
He placed garrisons throughout Edom, and all the Edomites were subject to David. The Lord made David victorious wherever he went.
Then Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel had gone to Shechem to make him king.
So Edom is still in rebellion against Judah's control today. Libnah also rebelled at that time.
Manasseh rested with his fathers, and he was buried in his own house. His son Amon became king in his place.
Have them bring a royal garment that the king himself has worn and a horse the king himself has ridden, which has a royal diadem on its head. Put the garment and the horse under the charge of one of the king's most noble officials. Have them clothe the man the king wants to honor, parade him on the horse through the city square, and proclaim before him, 'This is what is done for the man the king wants to honor.' " read more. The king told Haman, "Hurry, and do just as you proposed. Take a garment and a horse for Mordecai the Jew, who is sitting at the King's Gate. Do not leave out anything you have suggested."
I will restore your judges to what they once were, and your advisers to their former state. Afterwards you will be called the Righteous City, a Faithful City."
and whenever you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear this command behind you: "This is the way. Walk in it."
Your spoil will be gathered as locusts are gathered; people will swarm over it like an infestation of locusts.
Your eyes will see the king in his beauty; you will see a vast land.
The Lord is angry with all the nations- furious with all their armies. He will set them apart for destruction, giving them over to slaughter.
to provide for those who mourn in Zion; to give them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, festive oil instead of mourning, and splendid clothes instead of despair. And they will be called righteous trees, planted by the Lord, to glorify Him.
This is what the Lord says: A voice was heard in Ramah, a lament with bitter weeping- Rachel weeping for her children, refusing to be comforted for her children because they are no more.
In the womb he grasped his brother's heel, and as an adult he wrestled with God.
In the womb he grasped his brother's heel, and as an adult he wrestled with God. Jacob struggled with the Angel and prevailed; he wept and sought His favor. He found him at Bethel, and there He spoke with him.
Jacob fled to the land of Aram. Israel worked to earn a wife; he tended flocks for a wife.
Bethlehem Ephrathah, you are small among the clans of Judah; One will come from you to be ruler over Israel for Me. His origin is from antiquity, from eternity.
so He came to a town of Samaria called Sychar near the property that Jacob had given his son Joseph. Jacob's well was there, and Jesus, worn out from His journey, sat down at the well. It was about six in the evening.
You aren't greater than our father Jacob, are you? He gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did his sons and livestock."
When Jacob heard there was grain in Egypt, he sent our forefathers the first time.
Joseph then invited his father Jacob and all his relatives, 75 people in all,
were carried back to Shechem, and were placed in the tomb that Abraham had bought for a sum of silver from the sons of Hamor in Shechem.
(for though they had not been born yet or done anything good or bad, so that God's purpose according to election might stand, not from works but from the One who calls) she was told: The older will serve the younger. read more. As it is written: Jacob I have loved, but Esau I have hated.
By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph, and, he worshiped, leaning on the top of his staff.
Morish
Jacob. Ja'cob
Son of Isaac and Rebekah. Though a twin, he is called 'the younger,' being born after Esau. Before the children were born it was said, "the elder shall serve the younger." The promises made by God to Abraham were thus confirmed to Jacob, as they had been to Isaac. When they grew up, Esau became a hunter, whereas Jacob was a peaceful man, dwelling in tents. Isaac loved Esau, and Rebekah loved Jacob. The typical character of these three patriarchs has been described thus: "In general, Abraham is the root of all promise, and the picture of the life of faith; Isaac is a type of the heavenly Man, who receives the church; and Jacob represents Israel as heir of the promises according to the flesh." The difference may be seen by comparing Ge 22:17 ('stars ' and 'sand'), with Ge 26:4 ('stars' only), and Ge 28:14 ('dust of the earth' only).
Though Jacob was heir of the promises, and valued God's blessing in a selfish manner, he sought it not by faith, but tried in an evil and mean way to obtain it: first in buying the birthright when his brother was at the point of death; and then, in obtaining the blessing from his father by lying and deceit: a blessing which would surely have been his in God's way if he had waited: cf. Ge 48:14-20.
Jacob had then to become a wanderer; but God was faithful to him, and spoke to him, not openly as to Abraham, but in a dream. The ladder reaching to heaven, and the angels ascending and descending on it, showed that he on earth was the object of heaven's care. The promises as to the land being possessed by his descendants, and all nations being blessed in his Seed, were confirmed to him, with this difference that in connection with the latter promise it says "in thee and in thy seed," because it includes the earthly blessings to his seed in the millennium. God also said He would keep Jacob wherever he went, and bring him back to the promised land. Jacob called the place Beth-el, saying that it was the house of God, and the gate of heaven. It is figurative of Israel's position, not in heaven, but the 'gate' is theirs. He made a vow that if God would bless him and bring him back in peace, Jehovah should be his God. This was not the language of faith.
Jacob, who had tricked his brother, was treated in a similar way by Laban, and Leah was given to him as wife instead of Rachel, though he had Rachel, the one he loved, afterwards. He had not learnt to trust God, but used subtle ways to increase his possessions; and he also was dealt with in a like manner, having his wages changed 'ten times.' But God was watching over him and bade him return to the land of his fathers; and when Laban pursued after him, God warned him in a dream not to speak to Jacob either good or bad. They made a covenant together, and each went his way.
Immediately afterwards the angels of God met Jacob, and he recognised them as 'God's host.' Then he had to meet Esau, and doubtless conscience smote him, for he was greatly alarmed. He prayed to God for help, yet was full of plans, sending presents to appease his brother, and
dividing his people into two bands, so that if one of them were smitten, the other might escape. When he was alone God took him in hand: a 'man' (called 'the angel' in Ho 12:4) wrestled with him. He was lamed, yet he clung, and in faith said, "I will not let thee go, except thou bless me." He was accounted a victor, and his name was changed from Jacob to ISRAEL: "for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed." God did not yet make known His name to him.
God protected him from Esau, as He had from Laban: they kissed each other and wept. He then feigned that he would follow Esau to Seir, but turned aside to Shechem, where he bought the portion of a field, thus settling down for his own ease in the midst of the Canaanites, instead of going to Beth-el, God's house, from whence he had started. His peace was soon disturbed by his daughter Dinah going to see the daughters of the land, and being dishonoured, which was avenged by the slaughter of the Shechemites by his sons Simeon and Levi, bringing Jacob into great fear.
God used this humiliating sorrow to discipline Jacob, and recover him to his true calling. He therefore bade Jacob go to Beth-el, and make an altar there. This disclosed a sad state of things: he had to meet God, and must purify himself, and his household must put away their strange gods. He built an altar and called it, 'El-beth-el;' 'the God of Bethel.' God renewed His promises and revealed Himself to Jacob as GOD ALMIGHTY.
Jacob loved Joseph more than all his other sons, which caused them to hate Joseph; they also hated him for the communications given to him through dreams, and eventually sold him to the Ishmeelites. Again Jacob was dealt with deceitfully; his sons pretended that they had found Joseph's coat stained with blood, and Jacob was greatly distressed. But God was watching and overruling all for good. When Jacob and his household arrived in Egypt, he as a prince of God blessed Pharaoh king of Egypt. He lived in Egypt seventeen years, and died at the good old age of 147.
Jacob at the close of his life rose up to the height of God's thoughts, and by faith blessed the two sons of Joseph, being led of God to cross his hands, and gave the richest blessing to Ephraim. Then, as a true prophet of God, he called all his sons before him, and blessed them, with an appropriate prophecy as to the historical future of each (considered under each of the sons' names). He fell asleep, and his body was embalmed and carried into Palestine to lie with those of Abraham and Isaac.
Jacob being named ISRAEL led to his descendants being called the CHILDREN OF ISRAEL. They are however frequently addressed as 'JACOB,' or 'house of Jacob,' as if they had not preserved the higher character involved in the name of 'Israel,' but must be addressed by the natural name of their forefather, Jacob. Gen. 25
See Verses Found in Dictionary
I will indeed bless you and make your offspring as numerous as the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore. Your offspring will possess the gates of their enemies.
I will make your offspring as numerous as the stars of the sky, I will give your offspring all these lands, and all the nations of the earth will be blessed by your offspring,
Your offspring will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out toward the west, the east, the north, and the south. All the peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring.
But Israel stretched out his right hand and put it on the head of Ephraim, the younger, and crossing his hands, put his left on Manasseh's head, although Manasseh was the firstborn. Then he blessed Joseph and said: The God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, the God who has been my shepherd all my life to this day, read more. the Angel who has redeemed me from all harm- may He bless these boys. And may they be called by my name and the names of my fathers Abraham and Isaac, and may they grow to be numerous within the land. When Joseph saw that his father had placed his right hand on Ephraim's head, he thought it was a mistake and took his father's hand to move it from Ephraim's head to Manasseh's. Joseph said to his father, "Not that way, my father! This one is the firstborn. Put your right hand on his head." But his father refused and said, "I know, my son, I know! He too will become a tribe, and he too will be great; nevertheless, his younger brother will be greater than he, and his offspring will become a populous nation." So he blessed them that day with these words: Israel will invoke blessings by you, saying, "May God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh," putting Ephraim before Manasseh.
Jacob struggled with the Angel and prevailed; he wept and sought His favor. He found him at Bethel, and there He spoke with him.
Eliud fathered Eleazar, Eleazar fathered Matthan, Matthan fathered Jacob, and Jacob fathered Joseph the husband of Mary, who gave birth to Jesus who is called the Messiah.
Smith
Ja'cob
(supplanter), the second son of Isaac and Rebekah. He was born with Esau, probably at the well of Lahai-roi, about B.C. 1837. His history is related in the latter half of the book of Genesis. He bought the birthright from his brother Esau, and afterward acquired the blessing intended for Esau, by practicing a well-known deceit on Isaac. (Jacob did not obtain the blessing because of his deceit, but in spite of it. That which was promised he would have received in some good way; but Jacob and his mother, distrusting God's promise, sought the promised blessing in a wrong way, and received with it trouble and sorrow. --ED.) Jacob, in his 78th year, was sent from the family home to avoid his brother, and to seek a wife among his kindred in Padan-aram. As he passed through Bethel, God appeared to him. After the lapse of twenty-one years he returned from Padan-aram with two wives, two concubines, eleven sons and a daughter, and large property. He escaped from the angry pursuit of Laban, from a meeting with Esau, and from the vengeance of the Canaanites provoked by the murder of Shechem; and in each of these three emergencies he was aided and strengthened by the interposition of God, and in sign of the grace won by a night of wrestling with God his name was changed at Jabbok into Israel. Deborah and Rachel died before he reached Hebron; Joseph, the favorite son of Jacob, was sold into Egypt eleven years before the death of Isaac; and Jacob had probably exceeded his 130th year when he went tither. He was presented to Pharaoh, and dwelt for seventeen years in Rameses and Goshen, and died in his 147th year. His body was embalmed, carried with great care and pomp into the land of Canaan, and deposited with his fathers, and his wife Leah, in the cave of Machpelah. The example of Jacob is quoted by the first and the last of the minor prophets. Besides the frequent mention of his name in conjunction with the names of the other two patriarchs, there are distinct references to the events in the life of Jacob in four books of the New Testament -
Joh 1:51; 4:5,12; Ac 7:12,16; Ro 9:11-13; Heb 11:21; 12:16
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Then He said, "I assure you: You will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man."
so He came to a town of Samaria called Sychar near the property that Jacob had given his son Joseph.
You aren't greater than our father Jacob, are you? He gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did his sons and livestock."
When Jacob heard there was grain in Egypt, he sent our forefathers the first time.
were carried back to Shechem, and were placed in the tomb that Abraham had bought for a sum of silver from the sons of Hamor in Shechem.
(for though they had not been born yet or done anything good or bad, so that God's purpose according to election might stand, not from works but from the One who calls) she was told: The older will serve the younger. read more. As it is written: Jacob I have loved, but Esau I have hated.
By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph, and, he worshiped, leaning on the top of his staff.
And see that there isn't any immoral or irreverent person like Esau, who sold his birthright in exchange for one meal.
Watsons
JACOB, the son of Isaac and Rebekah. He was the younger brother of Esau, and a twin. It was observed, that at his birth he held his brother Esau's heel, and for this reason was called Jacob, Ge 25:26, which signifies "he supplanted." Jacob was of a meek and peaceable temper, and loved a quiet pastoral life; whereas Esau was of a fierce and turbulent nature, and was fond of hunting. Isaac had a particular fondness for Esau; but Rebekah was more attached to Jacob. The manner in which Jacob purchased his brother's birthright for a mess of pottage, and supplanted him by obtaining Isaac's blessing, is already referred to in the article ESAU.
The events of the interesting and chequered life of Jacob are so plainly and consecutively narrated by Moses, that they are familiar to all; but upon some of them a few remarks may be useful. As to the purchase of the birthright, Jacob appears to have been innocent so far as any guile on his part, or real necessity from hunger on the part of Esau, is involved in the question; but his obtaining the ratification of this by the blessing of Isaac though agreeable, indeed, to the purpose of God, that the elder should serve the younger, was blamable as to the means employed. The remarks of Dr. Hales on this transaction implicate Isaac also:
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After this, his brother came out grasping Esau's heel with his hand. So he was named Jacob. Isaac was 60 years old when they were born.
When Isaac was old and his eyes were so weak that he could not see, he called his older son Esau and said to him, "My son." And he answered, "Here I am." He said, "Look, I am old and do not know the day of my death. read more. Take your [hunting] gear, your quiver and bow, and go out in the field to hunt some game for me. Then make me the delicious food that I love and bring it to me to eat, so that I can bless you before I die." Now Rebekah was listening to what Isaac said to his son Esau. So while Esau went to the field to hunt some game to bring in, Rebekah said to her son Jacob, "Listen! I heard your father talking with your brother Esau. He said, 'Bring me some game and make some delicious food for me to eat so that I can bless you in the Lord's presence before I die.' Now obey every order I give you, my son. Go to the flock and bring me two choice young goats, and I will make them into a delicious meal for your father-the kind he loves. Then take it to your father to eat so that he may bless you before he dies." Jacob answered Rebekah his mother, "Look, my brother Esau is a hairy man, but I am a man with smooth skin. Suppose my father touches me. Then I will seem to be deceiving him, and I will bring a curse rather than a blessing on myself." His mother said to him, "Your curse be on me, my son. Just obey me and go get them for me." So he went and got them and brought them to his mother, and his mother made the delicious food his father loved. Then Rebekah took the best clothes of her older son Esau, which were there at the house, and had her younger son Jacob wear them. She put the goatskins on his hands and the smooth part of his neck. Then she handed the delicious food and the bread she had made to her son Jacob. When he came to his father, he said, "My father." And he answered, "Here I am. Who are you, my son?" Jacob replied to his father, "I am Esau, your firstborn. I have done as you told me. Please sit up and eat some of my game so that you may bless me." But Isaac said to his son, "How did you ever find it so quickly, my son?" He replied, "Because the Lord your God worked it out for me." Then Isaac said to Jacob, "Please come closer so I can touch you, my son. Are you really my son Esau, or not?" So Jacob came closer to his father Isaac. When he touched him, he said, "The voice is the voice of Jacob, but the hands are the hands of Esau." He did not recognize him, because his hands were hairy like those of his brother Esau; so he blessed him. Again he asked, "Are you really my son Esau?" And he replied, "I am." Then he said, "Serve me, and let me eat some of my son's game so that I can bless you." Jacob brought it to him, and he ate; he brought him wine, and he drank. Then his father Isaac said to him, "Please come closer and kiss me, my son." So he came closer and kissed him. When Isaac smelled his clothes, he blessed him and said: Ah, the smell of my son is like the smell of a field that the Lord has blessed. May God give to you- from the dew of the sky and from the richness of the land- an abundance of grain and new wine. May peoples serve you and nations bow down to you. Be master over your brothers; may your mother's sons bow down to you. Those who curse you will be cursed, and those who bless you will be blessed.
So he said, "Isn't he rightly named Jacob? For he has cheated me twice now. He took my birthright, and look, now he has taken my blessing." Then he asked, "Haven't you saved a blessing for me?" But Isaac answered Esau: "Look, I have made him a master over you, have given him all of his relatives as his servants, and have sustained him with grain and new wine. What then can I do for you, my son?" read more. Esau said to his father, "Do you only have one blessing, my father? Bless me-me too, my father!" And Esau wept loudly. Then his father Isaac answered him: Look, your dwelling place will be away from the richness of the land, away from the dew of the sky above. You will live by your sword, and you will serve your brother. But when you rebel, you will break his yoke from your neck.
You will live by your sword, and you will serve your brother. But when you rebel, you will break his yoke from your neck. Esau held a grudge against Jacob because of the blessing his father had given him. And Esau determined in his heart: "The days of mourning for my father are approaching; then I will kill my brother Jacob." read more. When the words of her older son Esau were reported to Rebekah, she summoned her younger son Jacob and said to him, "Listen, your brother Esau is consoling himself by planning to kill you. So now, my son, listen to me. Flee at once to my brother Laban in Haran, and stay with him for a few days until your brother's anger subsides-
Isaac summoned Jacob, blessed him, and commanded him: "Don't take a wife from the Canaanite women. Go at once to Paddan-aram, to the house of Bethuel, your mother's father. Marry one of the daughters of Laban, your mother's brother. read more. May God Almighty bless you and make you fruitful and multiply you so that you become an assembly of peoples. May God give you and your offspring the blessing of Abraham so that you may possess the land where you live as an alien, the land God gave to Abraham."
And Jacob listened to his father and mother and went to Paddan-aram.
Jacob left Beer-sheba and went toward Haran. He reached a certain place and spent the night there because the sun had set. He took one of the stones from the place, put it there at his head, and lay down in that place. read more. And he dreamed: A stairway was set on the ground with its top reaching heaven, and God's angels were going up and down on it. The Lord was standing there beside him, saying, "I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your offspring the land that you are now sleeping on. Your offspring will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out toward the west, the east, the north, and the south. All the peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring. Look, I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go. I will bring you back to this land, for I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you." When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he said, "Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it." He was afraid and said, "What an awesome place this is! This is none other than the house of God. This is the gate of heaven." Early in the morning Jacob took the stone that was near his head and set it up as a marker. He poured oil on top of it and named the place Bethel, though previously the city was named Luz. Then Jacob made a vow: "If God will be with me and watch over me on this journey, if He provides me with food to eat and clothing to wear, and if I return safely to my father's house, then the Lord will be my God. This stone that I have set up as a marker will be God's house, and I will give to You a tenth of all that You give me."
There I was-the heat consumed me by day and the frost by night, and sleep fled from my eyes.
I am unworthy of all the kindness and faithfulness You have shown Your servant. Indeed, I crossed over this Jordan with my staff, and now I have become two camps.
He himself went on ahead and bowed to the ground seven times until he approached his brother. But Esau ran to meet him, hugged him, threw his arms around him, and kissed him. Then they wept.
But Esau ran to meet him, hugged him, threw his arms around him, and kissed him. Then they wept. When Esau looked up and saw the women and children, he asked, "Who are these with you?" He answered, "The children God has graciously given your servant." read more. Then the female slaves and their children approached [him] and bowed down. Leah and her children also approached and bowed down, and then Joseph and Rachel approached and bowed down. So Esau said, "What do you mean by this whole procession I met?" "To find favor with you, my lord," he answered. "I have enough, my brother," Esau replied. "Keep what you have." But Jacob said, "No, please! If I have found favor with you, take this gift from my hand. For indeed, I have seen your face, [and it is] like seeing God's face, since you have accepted me. Please take my present that was brought to you, because God has been gracious to me and I have everything I need." So Jacob urged him until he accepted. Then Esau said, "Let's move on, and I'll go ahead of you." Jacob replied, "My lord knows that the children are weak, and I have nursing sheep and cattle. If they are driven hard for one day, the whole herd will die. Let my lord go ahead of his servant. I will continue on slowly, at a pace suited to the livestock and the children, until I come to my lord at Seir." Esau said, "Let me leave some of my people with you." But he replied, "Why do that? Please indulge me, my lord."
Jacob came to his father Isaac at Mamre in Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron), where Abraham and Isaac had stayed.
So Joseph went and informed Pharaoh: "My father and my brothers, with their sheep and cattle and all that they have, have come from the land of Canaan and are now in the land of Goshen." He took five of his brothers and presented them before Pharaoh. read more. Then Pharaoh asked his brothers, "What is your occupation?" And they said to Pharaoh, "Your servants, both we and our fathers, are shepherds." Then they said to Pharaoh, "We have come to live in the land for a while because there is no grazing land for your servants' sheep, since the famine in the land of Canaan has been severe. So now, please let your servants settle in the land of Goshen." Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, "[Now that] your father and brothers have come to you, the land of Egypt is open before you; settle your father and brothers in the best part of the land. They can live in the land of Goshen. If you know of any capable men among them, put them in charge of my livestock." Joseph then brought his father Jacob and presented him before Pharaoh, and Jacob blessed Pharaoh. Then Pharaoh said to Jacob, "How many years have you lived?" Jacob said to Pharaoh, "My pilgrimage has lasted 130 years. My years have been few and hard, and they have not surpassed the years of my fathers during their pilgrimages."
Jacob said to Pharaoh, "My pilgrimage has lasted 130 years. My years have been few and hard, and they have not surpassed the years of my fathers during their pilgrimages." So Jacob blessed Pharaoh and departed from Pharaoh's presence.
Over and above what I am giving your brothers, I am giving you the one mountain slope that I took from the hand of the Amorites with my sword and bow."
Then Jacob called his sons and said, "Gather around, and I will tell you what will happen to you in the days to come. Come together and listen, sons of Jacob; listen to your father Israel:
The scepter will not depart from Judah, or the staff from between his feet, until He whose right it is comes and the obedience of the peoples belongs to Him.
When Jacob had finished instructing his sons, he drew his feet into the bed and died. He was gathered to his people.
Then Joseph, leaning over his father's face, wept and kissed him. He commanded his servants who were physicians to embalm his father. So they embalmed Israel. read more. They took 40 days to complete this, for embalming takes that long, and the Egyptians mourned for him 70 days. When the days of mourning were over, Joseph said to Pharaoh's household, "If I have found favor with you, please tell Pharaoh that my father made me take an oath, saying, 'I am about to die. You must bury me there in the tomb that I hewed out for myself in the land of Canaan.' Now let me go and bury my father. Then I will return." So Pharaoh said, "Go and bury your father in keeping with your oath." Then Joseph went to bury his father, and all Pharaoh's servants, the elders of his household, and all the elders of the land of Egypt went with him, along with all Joseph's household, his brothers, and his father's household. Only their children, their sheep, and their cattle were left in the land of Goshen. Horses and chariots went up with him; it was a very impressive procession. When they reached the threshing floor of Atad, which is across the Jordan, they lamented and wept loudly, and Joseph mourned seven days for his father. When the Canaanite inhabitants of the land saw the mourning at the threshing floor of Atad, they said, "This is a solemn mourning on the part of the Egyptians." Therefore the place is named Abel-mizraim. It is across the Jordan.
During Jehoram's reign, Edom rebelled against Judah's domination and appointed their own king. So Jehoram crossed [into Edom] with his commanders and all his chariots. Then at night he set out to attack the Edomites who had surrounded him and the chariot commanders. read more. So Edom is still in rebellion against Judah's domination today. Libnah also rebelled at that time against his domination because he had abandoned the Lord God of his ancestors.
So Pilate told them, "Take Him yourselves and judge Him according to your law." "It's not legal for us to put anyone to death," the Jews declared.