The sun rose above him as he passed by Penuel, and he was limping because of his hip. The sun rose above himThis phrase signifies a new beginning and a fresh start. In the Hebrew context, the rising sun often symbolizes hope, renewal, and divine favor. After Jacob's intense encounter with God, the rising sun marks a transition from darkness to light, both literally and spiritually. It suggests that Jacob's struggle and perseverance have led to a new day, filled with the promise of God's continued presence and blessing. as he passed by Penuel
"Penuel" or "Peniel" means "face of God" in Hebrew. This location is significant because it is where Jacob wrestled with God and saw Him face to face. The name itself is a testament to the profound spiritual encounter Jacob experienced. Historically, this place becomes a landmark of divine-human interaction, reminding believers of the possibility of encountering God in their own lives. It emphasizes the personal nature of faith and the transformative power of divine encounters. and he was limping
Jacob's limp is a physical reminder of his encounter with God. In Hebrew culture, physical marks or changes often symbolize deeper spiritual truths. Jacob's limp signifies his humility and dependence on God. It serves as a constant reminder of his struggle and the blessing that followed. Spiritually, it teaches that encounters with God may leave us changed, sometimes in ways that are visible to others, and that our weaknesses can become testimonies of God's strength. because of his hip
The hip, in this context, represents strength and stability. Jacob's injury to his hip indicates a shift from relying on his own strength to depending on God. Historically, this moment marks a turning point in Jacob's life, where he moves from self-reliance to faith in God's promises. It is a powerful reminder that true strength comes from God, and that our vulnerabilities can lead us to a deeper reliance on Him. This phrase encourages believers to embrace their weaknesses as opportunities for God's power to be made perfect. Persons / Places / Events 1. JacobThe central figure in this passage, Jacob is returning to his homeland after years of living with his uncle Laban. He has just experienced a transformative encounter with God, where he wrestled with a divine being and received a new name, Israel. 2. Penuel (Peniel)The place where Jacob wrestled with God. The name means "face of God," signifying the profound spiritual encounter Jacob had, where he saw God face to face and yet his life was spared. 3. The LimpAs a result of his wrestling match, Jacob's hip was touched, causing him to limp. This physical change serves as a lasting reminder of his encounter with God and the transformation that took place. 4. The Sun RisingSymbolically, the rising sun represents a new beginning for Jacob. It marks the start of a new chapter in his life as he moves forward with a new identity and a renewed relationship with God. 5. The Wrestle with GodThis event is a pivotal moment in Jacob's life, symbolizing his struggle with God and man, and his ultimate submission and transformation. Teaching Points Transformation through StruggleJust as Jacob was transformed through his struggle with God, we too can experience spiritual growth and transformation through our own struggles and challenges. God's Presence in Our LivesJacob's encounter at Penuel reminds us that God is present in our lives, even in our struggles, and desires to bless and transform us. Physical Reminders of Spiritual TruthsJacob's limp serves as a physical reminder of his encounter with God. We should be mindful of the ways God marks our lives with reminders of His presence and work. New BeginningsThe rising sun symbolizes new beginnings. In Christ, we are offered a fresh start and a new identity, just as Jacob received a new name. Perseverance in FaithJacob's perseverance in wrestling with God teaches us the importance of holding onto our faith, even when faced with challenges. Bible Study Questions 1. How does Jacob's encounter with God at Penuel change his identity and relationship with God? Reflect on a time when a struggle led to a transformation in your own life. 2. In what ways does the physical reminder of Jacob's limp serve as a spiritual lesson for us today? Can you identify any "limps" in your life that remind you of God's work? 3. How does the concept of new beginnings, as symbolized by the rising sun, resonate with the New Testament teachings on being a new creation in Christ? 4. Compare Jacob's wrestling with God to other biblical figures who experienced transformative encounters with God. What common themes do you see? 5. How can we apply the lesson of perseverance in faith from Jacob's account to our own spiritual journeys, especially when facing difficult circumstances? Connections to Other Scriptures Genesis 28:10-22Jacob's dream at Bethel, where God promises to be with him. This earlier encounter with God sets the stage for his later transformation at Penuel. Hosea 12:3-4Hosea references Jacob's struggle with God, highlighting his perseverance and the divine blessing he received. 2 Corinthians 12:7-10Paul's "thorn in the flesh" can be compared to Jacob's limp, both serving as reminders of God's power in human weakness. Exodus 33:11Moses speaking to God face to face, similar to Jacob's encounter at Penuel, emphasizing the intimacy of their relationship with God. People Esau, Isaac, Israelites, Jacob, Laban, Penuel, SeirPlaces Edom, Jabbok River, Jordan River, Mahanaim, Mizpah, Peniel, Penuel, SeirTopics Crossed, Damaged, Halted, Halting, Hip, Leg, Limped, Limping, Passed, Past, Peniel, Penuel, Penu'el, Riseth, Rose, Steps, Thigh, UnequalDictionary of Bible Themes Genesis 32:22-32 4438 eating Genesis 32:24-32 8613 prayer, persistence Genesis 32:31-32 5278 cripples
5296 disabilities Library Mahanaim: the Two Camps
And Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met him. And when Jacob saw them, he said, This is God's host: and he called the name of that place Mahanaim' (i.e. Two camps).--GENESIS xxxii. 1, 2. This vision came at a crisis in Jacob's life. He has just left the house of Laban, his father-in-law, where he had lived for many years, and in company with a long caravan, consisting of wives, children, servants, and all his wealth turned into cattle, is journeying back again to Palestine. His road …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy ScriptureThe Twofold Wrestle --God's with Jacob and Jacob's with God
'And Jacob said, O God of my father Abraham, and God of my father Isaac, the Lord which saidst unto me, Return unto thy country, and to thy kindred, and I will deal well with thee: I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies, and of all the truth, which Thou hast shewed unto Thy servant; for with my staff I passed over this Jordan; and now I am become two bands. Deliver me, I pray thee, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau: for I fear him, lest he will come and smite me, and the …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture "And He Said, Let Me Go, for the Day Breaketh. " --Genesis xxxii. 26
"And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh."--Genesis xxxii. 26. Let me go, the day is breaking, Dear companions, let me go; We have spent a night of waking In the wilderness below; Upward now I bend my way, Part we here at break of day. Let me go, I may not tarry, Wrestling thus with doubts and fears, Angels wait my soul to carry, Where my risen Lord appears; Friends and kindred, weep not so, If you love me let me go. We have travell'd long together, Hand in hand, and heart in heart, Both …
James Montgomery—Sacred Poems and Hymns Of the Name of God
Exod. iii. 13, 14.--"And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them? And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you." We are now about this question, What God is. But who can answer it? Or, if answered, who can understand it? It should astonish us in …
Hugh Binning—The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning Gen. xxxi. 11
Of no less importance and significance is the passage Gen. xxxi. 11 seq. According to ver. 11, the Angel of God, [Hebrew: mlaK halhiM] appears toJacob in a dream. In ver. 13, the same person calls himself the God of Bethel, with reference to the event recorded in chap. xxviii. 11-22. It cannot be supposed that in chap xxviii. the mediation of a common angel took place, who, however, had not been expressly mentioned; for Jehovah is there contrasted with the angels. In ver. 12, we read: "And behold …
Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg—Christology of the Old Testament Jacob-Wrestling
"Lord, teach us to pray."--Luke xi. 1. "Jacob called the name of the place Peniel."--Gen. xxxii. 30. ALL the time that Jacob was in Padan-aram we search in vain for prayer, for praise. or for piety of any kind in Jacob's life. We read of his marriage, and of his great prosperity, till the land could no longer hold him. But that is all. It is not said in so many words indeed that Jacob absolutely denied and forsook the God of his fathers: it is not said that he worshipped idols in Padan-aram: that …
Alexander Whyte—Lord Teach Us To Pray The Great Shepherd
He shall feed his flock like a shepherd; He shall gather the lambs with His arm, and carry them in His bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young. I t is not easy for those, whose habits of life are insensibly formed by the customs of modern times, to conceive any adequate idea of the pastoral life, as obtained in the eastern countries, before that simplicity of manners, which characterized the early ages, was corrupted, by the artificial and false refinements of luxury. Wealth, in those …
John Newton—Messiah Vol. 1 Pleading
We shall consider our text, then, as one of the productions of a great master in spiritual matters, and we will study it, praying all the while that God will help us to pray after the like fashion. In our text we have the soul of a successful pleader under four aspects: we view, first, the soul confessing: "I am poor and needy." You have next, the soul pleading, for he makes a plea out of his poor condition, and adds, "Make haste unto me, O God!" You see, thirdly, a soul in it's urgency, for he cries, …
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 17: 1871 Explanatory and Biographical
INTRODUCTION TO [202]BOOK I English lyrical religious poetry is less easily divisible than our secular verse into well-marked periods, whether in regard to matter or to manner. Throughout its long course it has in great measure the groundwork of a common Book, a common Faith, and a common Purpose. And although incidents from human life and aspects of nature are not excluded (and have in this selection, when possible, been specially gathered, with the view of varying the garland here presented)--yet …
Francis Turner Palgrave—The Treasury of Sacred Song The Worst Things Work for Good to the Godly
DO not mistake me, I do not say that of their own nature the worst things are good, for they are a fruit of the curse; but though they are naturally evil, yet the wise overruling hand of God disposing and sanctifying them, they are morally good. As the elements, though of contrary qualities, yet God has so tempered them, that they all work in a harmonious manner for the good of the universe. Or as in a watch, the wheels seem to move contrary one to another, but all carry on the motions of the watch: …
Thomas Watson—A Divine Cordial The Angel of the Lord in the Pentateuch, and the Book of Joshua.
The New Testament distinguishes between the hidden God and the revealed God--the Son or Logos--who is connected with the former by oneness of nature, and who from everlasting, and even at the creation itself, filled up the immeasurable distance between the Creator and the creation;--who has been the Mediator in all God's relations to the world;--who at all times, and even before He became man in Christ, has been the light of [Pg 116] the world,--and to whom, specially, was committed the direction …
Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg—Christology of the Old Testament Meditations for the Morning.
1. Almighty God can, in the resurrection, as easily raise up thy body out of the grave, from the sleep of death, as he hath this morning wakened thee in thy bed, out of the sleep of nature. At the dawning of which resurrection day, Christ shall come to be glorified in his saints; and every one of the bodies of the thousands of his saints, being fashioned like unto his glorious body, shall shine as bright as the sun (2 Thess. i. 10; Jude, ver. 14; Phil. iii. 21; Luke ix. 31;) all the angels shining …
Lewis Bayly—The Practice of Piety St. Malachy's Apostolic Labours, Praises and Miracles.
[Sidenote: 1140, October] 42. (23). Malachy embarked in a ship, and after a prosperous voyage landed at his monastery of Bangor,[576] so that his first sons might receive the first benefit.[577] In what state of mind do you suppose they were when they received their father--and such a father--in good health from so long a journey? No wonder if their whole heart gave itself over to joy at his return, when swift rumour soon brought incredible gladness even to the tribes[578] outside round about them. …
H. J. Lawlor—St. Bernard of Clairvaux's Life of St. Malachy of Armagh A Treatise of the Fear of God;
SHOWING WHAT IT IS, AND HOW DISTINGUISHED FROM THAT WHICH IS NOT SO. ALSO, WHENCE IT COMES; WHO HAS IT; WHAT ARE THE EFFECTS; AND WHAT THE PRIVILEGES OF THOSE THAT HAVE IT IN THEIR HEARTS. London: Printed for N. Ponder, at the Peacock in the Poultry, over against the Stocks market: 1679. ADVERTISEMENT BY THE EDITOR. "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom," and "a fountain of life"--the foundation on which all wisdom rests, as well as the source from whence it emanates. Upon a principle …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3 Thirdly, for Thy Actions.
1. Do no evil, though thou mightest; for God will not suffer the least sin, without bitter repentance, to escape unpunished. Leave not undone any good that thou canst. But do nothing without a calling, nor anything in thy calling, till thou hast first taken counsel at God's word (1 Sam. xxx. 8) of its lawfulness, and pray for his blessings upon thy endeavour; and then do it in the name of God, with cheerfulness of heart, committing the success to him, in whose power it is to bless with his grace …
Lewis Bayly—The Practice of Piety Fragrant Spices from the Mountains of Myrrh. "Thou Art all Fair, My Love; There is no Spot in Thee. " --Song of Solomon iv. 7.
FRAGRANT SPICES FROM THE MOUNTAINS OF MYRRH. HOW marvellous are these words! "Thou art all fair, My love; there is no spot in thee." The glorious Bridegroom is charmed with His spouse, and sings soft canticles of admiration. When the bride extols her Lord there is no wonder, for He deserves it well, and in Him there is room for praise without possibility of flattery. But does He who is wiser than Solomon condescend to praise this sunburnt Shulamite? Tis even so, for these are His own words, and were …
Charles Hadden Spurgeon—Till He Come A Believer's Privilege at Death
'For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.' Phil 1:1I. Hope is a Christian's anchor, which he casts within the veil. Rejoicing in hope.' Rom 12:12. A Christian's hope is not in this life, but he hash hope in his death.' Prov 14:42. The best of a saint's comfort begins when his life ends; but the wicked have all their heaven here. Woe unto you that are rich! for ye have received your consolation.' Luke 6:64. You may make your acquittance, and write Received in full payment.' Son, remember that …
Thomas Watson—A Body of Divinity Genesis
The Old Testament opens very impressively. In measured and dignified language it introduces the story of Israel's origin and settlement upon the land of Canaan (Gen.--Josh.) by the story of creation, i.-ii. 4a, and thus suggests, at the very beginning, the far-reaching purpose and the world-wide significance of the people and religion of Israel. The narrative has not travelled far till it becomes apparent that its dominant interests are to be religious and moral; for, after a pictorial sketch of …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament Links Genesis 32:31 NIVGenesis 32:31 NLTGenesis 32:31 ESVGenesis 32:31 NASBGenesis 32:31 KJV
Genesis 32:31 Commentaries
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