Genesis 32
1 Jacob went on his way and some angels of God came to meet him.
And Jacob departed for his journey; and having looked up, he saw the host of God encamped; and the angels of God met him.
2 When he saw them he said, “This must be God's camp!” He named the place “Two Camps.”
And Jacob said, when he saw them, This is the Camp of God; and he called the name of that place, Encampments.
3 He sent messengers on ahead to meet his brother Esau who was living in the region of Seir in the country of Edom.
And Jacob sent messengers before him to Esau his brother to the land of Seir, to the country of Edom.
4 He told them, “This is what you are to say to my lord Esau. Your servant Jacob sends you this message. I've been staying with Laban up till now,
And he charged them, saying, Thus shall you say to my lord Esau: Thus says your servant Jacob; I have sojourned with Laban and tarried until now.
5 and I have cattle and donkeys and sheep and goats, and male and female slaves. I've sent these messengers to explain this to you my lord, hoping you'll be pleased to see me.”
And there were born to me oxen, and asses, and sheep, and menservants and women-servants; and I sent to tell my lord Esau, that your servant might find grace in your sight.
6 The messengers returned to Jacob and told him, “Your brother Esau is coming to meet you with 400 armed men!”
And the messengers returned to Jacob, saying, We came to your brother Esau, and behold! he comes to meet you, and four hundred men with him.
7 When Jacob heard this, he was absolutely terrified. He split all the people with him, along with the sheep, goats, cattle, and camels, into two groups,
And Jacob was greatly terrified, and was perplexed; and he divided the people that was with him, and the cows, and the camels, and the sheep, into two camps.
8 saying to himself, “If Esau comes and destroys one group, the other one can get away.”
And Jacob said, If Esau should come to one camp, and strike it, the other camp shall be in safety.
9 Jacob prayed, “God of my grandfather Abraham, God of my father Isaac! Lord, you were the one who told me, ‘Return to your own country and your family home, and I will treat you well.’
And Jacob said, God of my father Abraam, and God of my father Isaac, O Lord, you [are] he that said to me, Depart quickly to the land of your birth, and I will do you good.
10 I don't deserve all the trustworthy love and faithfulness you have shown your servant. I crossed the Jordan years ago with just my walking stick, and now I have two large camps.
Let there be to me a sufficiency of all the justice and all the truth which you have wrought with your servant; for with this my staff I passed over this Jordan, and now I am become two camps.
11 Please save me from my brother; defend me from Esau! I'm terrified that he's coming to attack me, my wives, and my children.
Deliver me from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau, for I am afraid of him, lest haply he should come and strike me, and the mother upon the children.
12 You yourself told me, ‘I will definitely treat you well. I will make your descendants as numerous as the sand of the seashore—too many to count.’”
But you said, I will do you good, and will make your seed as the sand of the sea, which shall not be numbered for multitude.
13 Jacob stayed the night there. Then he picked out animals as a gift to his brother Esau:
And he slept there that night, and took of the gifts which he carried [with him], and sent out to Esau his brother,
14 200 female goats, 20 male goats; 200 ewes, 20 rams;
two hundred she-goats, twenty he-goats, two hundred sheep, twenty rams,
15 30 female camels with their young, 40 cows, 10 bulls; 20 female donkeys, 10 male donkeys.
milch camels, and their foals, thirty, forty kine, ten bulls, twenty asses, and ten colts.
16 He put his servants in charge of each of the separate herds and told them, “Go on ahead of me, and keep a good distance between the herds.”
And he gave them to his servants [each] drove apart; and he said to his servants, Go on before me, and put a space between drove and drove.
17 He gave these instructions to those with the first herd: “When my brother Esau meets you and asks, ‘Who is your master, and where are you going, and whose are these animals with you?’
And he charged the first, saying, If Esau my brother meet you, and he ask you, saying, Whose are you? and whither would you go, and whose are these possessions advancing before you?
18 you are to say to him, ‘Your servant Jacob sends these as a gift to my lord Esau, and he's following us.’”
You shall say, Your servant Jacob's; he has sent gifts to my lord Esau, and behold! he is behind us.
19 He gave the same instructions to those with the second and third and all the subsequent herds, telling them, “This what you are to say to Esau when he meets you.
And he charged the first and the second and the third, and all that went before him after these flocks, saying, Thus shall you speak to Esau when you find him;
20 You must also tell him, ‘Your servant Jacob is right behind us.’” Jacob said to himself, “Maybe by sending these gifts on ahead Esau won't be angry with me and when I meet him he'll be kind to me.”
and you shall say, Behold your servant Jacob comes after us. For he said, I will propitiate his countenance with the gifts going before his presence, and afterwards I will behold his face, for perhaps he will accept me.
21 So the gifts went on ahead while Jacob spent the night at the camp.
So the presents went on before him, but he himself lodged that night in the camp.
22 He got up during the night and took his two wives and the two personal maids and his eleven sons and crossed the Jabbok River at the ford.
And he rose up in that night, and took his two wives and his two servant-maids, and his eleven children, and crossed over the ford of Jaboch.
23 After helping them cross he also sent over everything that belonged to him.
And he took them, and passed over the torrent, and brought over all his possessions.
24 But Jacob stayed there alone. A man came and wrestled with him until dawn.
And Jacob was left alone; and a man wrestled with him till the morning.
25 When the man realized he couldn't beat Jacob, he hit Jacob's hip socket and put it out of joint as he wrestled with him.
And he saw that he prevailed not against him; and he touched the broad part of his thigh, and the broad part of Jacob's thigh was benumbed in his wrestling with him.
26 Then the man said, “Let me go because it's almost dawn.” “I won't let you go unless you bless me,” Jacob replied.
And he said to him, Let me go, for the day has dawned; but he said, I will not let you go, except you bless me.
27 “What's your name?” the man asked. “Jacob,” he replied.
And he said to him, What is your name? and he answered, Jacob.
28 “Jacob will no longer be you name,” said the man. “Instead you will be called Israel, because you fought with God and with men and you won.”
And he said to him, Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel shall be your name; for you have prevailed with God, and shall be mighty with men.
29 “Please tell me your name,” Jacob asked. “Why do you ask me my name?” the man replied. Then he blessed Jacob there.
And Jacob asked and said, Tell me your name; and he said, Therefore do you ask after my name? and he blessed him there.
30 Jacob named the place Peniel, saying, “I saw God face to face and I'm still alive!”
And Jacob called the name of that place, the Face of God; for, [said he, ]I have seen God face to face, and my life was preserved.
31 The sun came up as Jacob left Peniel, limping along because of his damaged hip.
And the sun rose upon him, when he passed the Face of God; and he halted upon his thigh.
32 (That's why, even today, Israelites don't eat the thigh tendon attached to the hip socket, because that's where the man hit Jacob's hip socket.)
Therefore the children of Israel will by no means eat of the sinew which was benumbed, which is on the broad part of the thigh, until this day, because [the angel] touched the broad part of the thigh of Jacob—[even] the sinew which was benumbed.
