Genesis 32:24
New International Version
So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak.

New Living Translation
This left Jacob all alone in the camp, and a man came and wrestled with him until the dawn began to break.

English Standard Version
And Jacob was left alone. And a man wrestled with him until the breaking of the day.

Berean Standard Bible
So Jacob was left all alone, and there a man wrestled with him until daybreak.

King James Bible
And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day.

New King James Version
Then Jacob was left alone; and a Man wrestled with him until the breaking of day.

New American Standard Bible
Then Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him until daybreak.

NASB 1995
Then Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him until daybreak.

NASB 1977
Then Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him until daybreak.

Legacy Standard Bible
Then Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him until the breaking of dawn.

Amplified Bible
So Jacob was left alone, and a Man [came and] wrestled with him until daybreak.

Christian Standard Bible
Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him until daybreak.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him until daybreak.

American Standard Version
And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day.

Contemporary English Version
Afterwards, Jacob went back and spent the rest of the night alone. A man came and fought with Jacob until just before daybreak.

English Revised Version
And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
So Jacob was left alone. Then a man wrestled with him until dawn.

Good News Translation
but he stayed behind, alone. Then a man came and wrestled with him until just before daybreak.

International Standard Version
And so Jacob was left alone, and he struggled with a man until daybreak.

Majority Standard Bible
So Jacob was left all alone, and there a man wrestled with him until daybreak.

NET Bible
So Jacob was left alone. Then a man wrestled with him until daybreak.

New Heart English Bible
Then Jacob was left alone. And a man wrestled with him until the rising of the dawn.

Webster's Bible Translation
And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him, until the breaking of the day.

World English Bible
Jacob was left alone, and wrestled with a man there until the breaking of the day.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
And Jacob is left alone, and One wrestles with him until the ascending of the dawn;

Young's Literal Translation
And Jacob is left alone, and one wrestleth with him till the ascending of the dawn;

Smith's Literal Translation
And Jacob will be left alone by himself, and a man will wrestle with him till the ascending of the morning.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
He remained alone: and behold a man wrestled with him till morning.

Catholic Public Domain Version
he remained alone. And behold, a man wrestled with him until morning.

New American Bible
Jacob was left there alone. Then a man wrestled with him until the break of dawn.

New Revised Standard Version
Jacob was left alone; and a man wrestled with him until daybreak.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
And Jacob was left alone; and there a man wrestled with him until daybreak.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
And Yaquuv remained alone, and a man fought with him until the rising of dawn.
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
And Jacob was left alone; and a man wrestled with him till the morning.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Jacob Wrestles with God
23He took them and sent them across the stream, along with all his possessions. 24So Jacob was left all alone, and there a man wrestled with him until daybreak. 25When the man saw that he could not overpower Jacob, he struck the socket of Jacob’s hip and dislocated it as they wrestled.…

Cross References
Hosea 12:3-4
In the womb he grasped his brother’s heel, and in his vigor he wrestled with God. / Yes, he struggled with the angel and prevailed; he wept and sought His favor; he found Him at Bethel and spoke with Him there—

Exodus 33:11
Thus the LORD would speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. Then Moses would return to the camp, but his young assistant Joshua son of Nun would not leave the tent.

1 Kings 19:11-13
Then the LORD said, “Go out and stand on the mountain before the LORD. Behold, the LORD is about to pass by.” And a great and mighty wind tore into the mountains and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. / After the earthquake there was a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a still, small voice. / When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave. Suddenly a voice came to him and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

Job 23:6
Would He contend with me in His great power? No, He would certainly take note of me.

Psalm 17:15
As for me, I will behold Your face in righteousness; when I awake, I will be satisfied in Your presence.

Psalm 34:7
The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear Him, and he delivers them.

Psalm 77:2
In the day of trouble I sought the Lord; through the night my outstretched hands did not grow weary; my soul refused to be comforted.

Psalm 91:11-12
For He will command His angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways. / They will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.

Isaiah 41:10
Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will surely help you; I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.

Isaiah 49:25
Indeed, this is what the LORD says: “Even the captives of the mighty will be taken away, and the plunder of the tyrant will be retrieved; I will contend with those who contend with you, and I will save your children.

Daniel 10:8-19
So I was left alone, gazing at this great vision. No strength remained in me; my face grew deathly pale, and I was powerless. / I heard the sound of his words, and as I listened, I fell into a deep sleep, with my face to the ground. / Suddenly, a hand touched me and set me trembling on my hands and knees. ...

Matthew 4:1-11
Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. / After fasting forty days and forty nights, He was hungry. / The tempter came to Him and said, “If You are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.” ...

Matthew 26:36-46
Then Jesus went with His disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and He told them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” / He took with Him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee and began to be sorrowful and deeply distressed. / Then He said to them, “My soul is consumed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with Me.” ...

Mark 1:12-13
At once the Spirit drove Jesus into the wilderness, / and He was there for forty days, being tempted by Satan. He was with the wild animals, and the angels ministered to Him.

Luke 22:39-46
Jesus went out as usual to the Mount of Olives, and the disciples followed Him. / When He came to the place, He told them, “Pray that you will not enter into temptation.” / And He withdrew about a stone’s throw beyond them, where He knelt down and prayed, ...


Treasury of Scripture

And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day.

wrestled.

Genesis 30:8
And Rachel said, With great wrestlings have I wrestled with my sister, and I have prevailed: and she called his name Naphtali.

Luke 13:24
Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able.

Luke 22:44
And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.

man.

Genesis 32:28,30
And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed…

Genesis 48:16
The Angel which redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads; and let my name be named on them, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth.

Isaiah 32:2
And a man shall be as an hiding place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest; as rivers of water in a dry place, as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land.

breaking of the day.

Exodus 14:27
And Moses stretched forth his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to his strength when the morning appeared; and the Egyptians fled against it; and the LORD overthrew the Egyptians in the midst of the sea.

Song of Solomon 2:17
Until the day break, and the shadows flee away, turn, my beloved, and be thou like a roe or a young hart upon the mountains of Bether.

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Alone Ascending Breaking Dawn Daybreak Fighting Jacob Rising Wrestled
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Alone Ascending Breaking Dawn Daybreak Fighting Jacob Rising Wrestled
Genesis 32
1. Jacob's vision at Mahanaim.
3. His message to Esau.
6. He is afraid of Esau's coming.
9. He prays for deliverance.
13. He sends a present to Esau, and passes the brook Jabbok.
24. He wrestles with an angel at Peniel, where he is called Israel.
31. He halts.














So Jacob was left all alone
The phrase "Jacob was left all alone" signifies a moment of profound solitude and introspection. In the Hebrew text, the word for "alone" is "לְבַדּוֹ" (levaddo), which emphasizes the isolation Jacob experienced. This solitude is not merely physical but also spiritual, as Jacob is on the brink of a transformative encounter with God. Historically, this moment follows Jacob's strategic planning to appease his brother Esau, highlighting his fear and anxiety. In a conservative Christian perspective, this solitude is seen as a necessary precursor to divine encounter, where God often meets individuals in their isolation, away from distractions, to bring about significant spiritual growth and change.

and there a man wrestled with him
The "man" who wrestles with Jacob is a mysterious figure, often interpreted as a theophany, a physical manifestation of God, or an angel. The Hebrew word for "wrestled" is "וַיֵּאָבֵק" (vaye'avek), which conveys a sense of struggle and physical engagement. This wrestling match is symbolic of Jacob's lifelong struggle with God and man, reflecting his inner turmoil and quest for blessing. From a conservative Christian viewpoint, this encounter is seen as a pivotal moment where Jacob confronts his own limitations and reliance on human strength, ultimately leading to a deeper dependence on God.

until daybreak
The phrase "until daybreak" indicates the duration and intensity of the struggle. The Hebrew "עַד עֲלוֹת הַשָּׁחַר" (ad alot hashachar) suggests a prolonged and exhausting encounter that lasts through the night. Daybreak symbolizes a new beginning, a transition from darkness to light, both literally and metaphorically. In the context of Jacob's life, this marks a turning point where he receives a new identity and blessing. Conservative Christian interpretation often sees this as a metaphor for spiritual awakening and renewal, where the struggle with God leads to a new dawn of understanding and purpose in one's life.

(24) There wrestled.--This verb, abak, occurs only here, and without doubt it was chosen because of its resemblance to the name Jabbok. Its probable derivation is from a word signifying dust, because wrestlers were quickly involved in a cloud of dust, or because, as was the custom in Greece, they rubbed their bodies with it.

A man.--Such he seemed to be to Jacob; but Hosea (Genesis 12:4) calls him an angel; and, in Genesis 32:30, Jacob recognises in him a manifestation of the Deity, as Hagar had done before, when an angel appeared to her (Genesis 16:13). There is no warrant for regarding the angel as an incarnation of Deity, any more than in the case of Manoah (Judges 13:22); but it was a manifestation of God mediately by His messenger, and was one of the many signs indicative of a more complete manifestation by the coming of the Word in the flesh. The opposite idea of many modern commentators, that the narrative is an allegory, is contradicted by the attendant circumstances, especially by the change of Jacob's name, and his subsequent lameness, to which national testimony was borne by the customs of the Jews.

Verse 24. - And Jacob was left alone (probably on the north bank of the Jabbok; but vide on ver. 23); and there wrestled - thus assaulting in his strong point one who had been a wrestler or heel-catcher from his youth (Murphy). The old word נֶךאבַק, niph. of אָבַק, unused, a dehorn, from חָבַק, dust, because in wrestling the dust is raised (Aben Ezra, Gesenius), or a weakened form of חָבַק, to wind round, to embrace (Furst), obviously contains an allusion to the Jabbok (vide on ver. 22) - a man - called an angel by Hosea (Genesis 12:4), and God by Jacob (ver. 30); but vide infra - with him until the breaking of the day - literally, the ascending of the morning.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
So Jacob
יַעֲקֹ֖ב (ya·‘ă·qōḇ)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3290: Jacob -- a son of Isaac, also his desc

was left
וַיִּוָּתֵ֥ר (way·yiw·wā·ṯêr)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Nifal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 3498: To jut over, exceed, to excel, to remain, be left, to leave, cause to abound, preserve

all alone,
לְבַדּ֑וֹ (lə·ḇad·dōw)
Preposition-l | Noun - masculine singular construct | third person masculine singular
Strong's 905: Separation, a part of the body, branch of a, tree, bar for, carrying, chief of

and [there] a man
אִישׁ֙ (’îš)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 582: Man, mankind

wrestled
וַיֵּאָבֵ֥ק (way·yê·’ā·ḇêq)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Nifal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 79: To bedust, grapple

with him
עִמּ֔וֹ (‘im·mōw)
Preposition | third person masculine singular
Strong's 5973: With, equally with

until
עַ֖ד (‘aḏ)
Preposition
Strong's 5704: As far as, even to, up to, until, while

daybreak.
עֲל֥וֹת (‘ă·lō·wṯ)
Verb - Qal - Infinitive construct
Strong's 5927: To ascend, in, actively


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OT Law: Genesis 32:24 Jacob was left alone and wrestled (Gen. Ge Gn)
Genesis 32:23
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