Thematic Bible
Thematic Bible
Prayer » Answered » Jacob, for deliverance from esau
Jacob said, O God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac, the Lord Who said to me, Return to your country and to your people and I will do you good, I am not worthy of the least of all the mercy and loving-kindness and all the faithfulness which You have shown to Your servant, for with [only] my staff I passed over this Jordan [long ago], and now I have become two companies. Deliver me, I pray You, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau; for I fear him, lest he come and smite [us all], the mothers with the children. read more.
And You said, I will surely do you good and make your descendants as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude. And Jacob lodged there that night and took from what he had with him as a present for his brother Esau: Two hundred she-goats, 20 he-goats, 200 ewes, 20 rams, Thirty milk camels with their colts, 40 cows, 10 bulls, 20 she-donkeys, and 10 [donkey] colts. And he put them into the charge of his servants, every drove by itself, and said to his servants, Pass over before me and put a space between drove and drove. And he commanded the first, When Esau my brother meets you and asks to whom you belong, where you are going, and whose are the animals before you, Then you shall say, They are your servant Jacob's; it is a present sent to my lord Esau; and moreover, he is behind us. And so he commanded the second and the third and all that followed the droves, saying, This is what you are to say to Esau when you meet him. And say, Moreover, your servant Jacob is behind us. For he said, I will appease him with the present that goes before me, and afterward I will see his face; perhaps he will accept me. So the present went on before him, and he himself lodged that night in the camp. But he rose up that [same] night and took his two wives, his two women servants, and his eleven sons and passed over the ford [of the] Jabbok. And he took them and sent them across the brook; also he sent over all that he had. And Jacob was left alone, and a Man wrestled with him until daybreak. And when [the Man] saw that He did not prevail against [Jacob], He touched the hollow of his thigh; and Jacob's thigh was put out of joint as he wrestled with Him. Then He said, Let Me go, for day is breaking. But [Jacob] said, I will not let You go unless You declare a blessing upon me. [The Man] asked him, What is your name? And [in shock of realization, whispering] he said, Jacob [supplanter, schemer, trickster, swindler]! And He said, Your name shall be called no more Jacob [supplanter], but Israel [contender with God]; for you have contended and have power with God and with men and have prevailed. Then Jacob asked Him, Tell me, I pray You, what [in contrast] is Your name? But He said, Why is it that you ask My name? And [the Angel of God declared] a blessing on [Jacob] there. And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel [the face of God], saying, For I have seen God face to face, and my life is spared and not snatched away. And as he passed Penuel [Peniel], the sun rose upon him, and he was limping because of his thigh. That is why to this day the Israelites do not eat the sinew of the hip which is on the hollow of the thigh, because [the Angel of the Lord] touched the hollow of Jacob's thigh on the sinew of the hip.
And You said, I will surely do you good and make your descendants as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude. And Jacob lodged there that night and took from what he had with him as a present for his brother Esau: Two hundred she-goats, 20 he-goats, 200 ewes, 20 rams, Thirty milk camels with their colts, 40 cows, 10 bulls, 20 she-donkeys, and 10 [donkey] colts. And he put them into the charge of his servants, every drove by itself, and said to his servants, Pass over before me and put a space between drove and drove. And he commanded the first, When Esau my brother meets you and asks to whom you belong, where you are going, and whose are the animals before you, Then you shall say, They are your servant Jacob's; it is a present sent to my lord Esau; and moreover, he is behind us. And so he commanded the second and the third and all that followed the droves, saying, This is what you are to say to Esau when you meet him. And say, Moreover, your servant Jacob is behind us. For he said, I will appease him with the present that goes before me, and afterward I will see his face; perhaps he will accept me. So the present went on before him, and he himself lodged that night in the camp. But he rose up that [same] night and took his two wives, his two women servants, and his eleven sons and passed over the ford [of the] Jabbok. And he took them and sent them across the brook; also he sent over all that he had. And Jacob was left alone, and a Man wrestled with him until daybreak. And when [the Man] saw that He did not prevail against [Jacob], He touched the hollow of his thigh; and Jacob's thigh was put out of joint as he wrestled with Him. Then He said, Let Me go, for day is breaking. But [Jacob] said, I will not let You go unless You declare a blessing upon me. [The Man] asked him, What is your name? And [in shock of realization, whispering] he said, Jacob [supplanter, schemer, trickster, swindler]! And He said, Your name shall be called no more Jacob [supplanter], but Israel [contender with God]; for you have contended and have power with God and with men and have prevailed. Then Jacob asked Him, Tell me, I pray You, what [in contrast] is Your name? But He said, Why is it that you ask My name? And [the Angel of God declared] a blessing on [Jacob] there. And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel [the face of God], saying, For I have seen God face to face, and my life is spared and not snatched away. And as he passed Penuel [Peniel], the sun rose upon him, and he was limping because of his thigh. That is why to this day the Israelites do not eat the sinew of the hip which is on the hollow of the thigh, because [the Angel of the Lord] touched the hollow of Jacob's thigh on the sinew of the hip.
And Jacob raised his eyes and looked, and behold, Esau was coming and with him 400 men. So he divided the children to Leah and to Rachel and to the two maids. And he put the maids and their children in front, Leah and her children after them, and Rachel and Joseph last of all. Then Jacob went over [the stream] before them and bowed himself to the ground seven times, until he came near to his brother. read more.
But Esau ran to meet him, and embraced him and fell on his neck and kissed him, and they wept. [Esau] looked up and saw the women and the children and said, Who are these with you? And [Jacob] replied, They are the children whom God has graciously given your servant. Then the maids came near, they and their children, and they bowed themselves. And Leah also with her children came near, and they bowed themselves. After them Joseph and Rachel came near, and they bowed themselves. Esau said, What do you mean by all this company which I met? And he said, These are that I might find favor in the sight of my lord. And Esau said, I have plenty, my brother; keep what you have for yourself. But Jacob replied, No, I beg of you, if now I have found favor in your sight, receive my gift that I am presenting; for truly to see your face is to me as if I had seen the face of God, and you have received me favorably. Accept, I beg of you, my blessing and gift that I have brought to you; for God has dealt graciously with me and I have everything. And he kept urging him and he accepted it. Then [Esau] said, Let us get started on our journey, and I will go before you. But Jacob replied, You know, my lord, that the children are tender and delicate and need gentle care, and the flocks and herds with young are of concern to me; for if the men should overdrive them for a single day, the whole of the flocks would die. Let my lord, I pray you, pass over before his servant; and I will lead on slowly, governed by [consideration for] the livestock that set the pace before me and the endurance of the children, until I come to my lord in Seir. Then Esau said, Let me now leave with you some of the people who are with me. But [Jacob] said, What need is there for it? Let me find favor in the sight of my lord. So Esau turned back that day on his way to Seir. But Jacob journeyed to Succoth and built himself a house and made booths or places of shelter for his livestock; so the name of the place is called Succoth [booths].
But Esau ran to meet him, and embraced him and fell on his neck and kissed him, and they wept. [Esau] looked up and saw the women and the children and said, Who are these with you? And [Jacob] replied, They are the children whom God has graciously given your servant. Then the maids came near, they and their children, and they bowed themselves. And Leah also with her children came near, and they bowed themselves. After them Joseph and Rachel came near, and they bowed themselves. Esau said, What do you mean by all this company which I met? And he said, These are that I might find favor in the sight of my lord. And Esau said, I have plenty, my brother; keep what you have for yourself. But Jacob replied, No, I beg of you, if now I have found favor in your sight, receive my gift that I am presenting; for truly to see your face is to me as if I had seen the face of God, and you have received me favorably. Accept, I beg of you, my blessing and gift that I have brought to you; for God has dealt graciously with me and I have everything. And he kept urging him and he accepted it. Then [Esau] said, Let us get started on our journey, and I will go before you. But Jacob replied, You know, my lord, that the children are tender and delicate and need gentle care, and the flocks and herds with young are of concern to me; for if the men should overdrive them for a single day, the whole of the flocks would die. Let my lord, I pray you, pass over before his servant; and I will lead on slowly, governed by [consideration for] the livestock that set the pace before me and the endurance of the children, until I come to my lord in Seir. Then Esau said, Let me now leave with you some of the people who are with me. But [Jacob] said, What need is there for it? Let me find favor in the sight of my lord. So Esau turned back that day on his way to Seir. But Jacob journeyed to Succoth and built himself a house and made booths or places of shelter for his livestock; so the name of the place is called Succoth [booths].
Seir » A range of hills southwest of the dead sea » Later inhabited by the descendants of esau after they destroyed the horim people
Then Jacob sent messengers ahead of him to his brother Esau in the land of Seir, the country of Edom.
And command the Israelites, You are to pass through the territory of your kinsmen the sons of Esau, who live in Seir; and they will be afraid of you. So watch yourselves carefully. Do not provoke or stir them up, for I will not give you of their land, no, not enough for the sole of your foot to tread on, for I have given Mount Seir to Esau for a possession.
The Horites also used to live in Seir, but the sons of Esau dispossessed them. They destroyed them from before them and settled in their place, just as Israel did in the land which the Lord gave them as their possession.)
“Edom shall be [taken as] a possession,
[Mount] Seir, Israel’s enemies, also will be a possession,
While Israel performs valiantly.
just as He did for the sons of Esau, who live in Seir, when He destroyed the Horites from before them; and the sons of Esau (the Edomites) dispossessed them and settled in their place [and remain there] even to this day.
Please let my lord go on ahead of his servant, and I will move on slowly, governed by the pace of the livestock that are in front of me and according to the endurance of the children, until I come to my lord in Seir [in Edom].”
So Esau dwelt in the hill country of Seir; Esau is Edom. And this is the history of the descendants of Esau the father of the Edomites in the hill country of Seir.