Jan 4 – Daily Question

The scene of Jacob wrestling is a tricky one to analyze and seek clear answers, beginning with the questions of who and why is Jacob fighting. Initially the title of the chapter signals he fights with God, but Kass says the opponents were evenly matched. Therefore, it does not seem remotely possible that Jacob would be able to perfectly match God in strength or strategy. Although Jacob says that he has seen God after the fight, I assume he means through the interaction with this other powerful being. This leads me to believe the fight was with an angel, who was able to call on God for extra strength to eventually injure Jacob. Jacob finds himself alone and and scared, but he is anything but weak in the battle. He relies on his own strength to fight a being greater than himself , and he earns a new name for himself. But did he win the fight? It is not obvious that there is a clear winner, as they fought evenly until the angel had to call on a higher power. I agree with Kass’s theory that the angel may be “a stand-in for Esau,” and this battle represents his fear of seeing his brother again and the previous struggles they shared in their mother’s womb. The equal strength they fight with may represent their equality as twins, but the angel then calls on divine strength to overcome Jacobin the end. It is interesting that the angel waits until daylight to draw from divine power, but as Kass suggests, this may be because the angel does not desire Jacob to discovery his identity. This seems to be another hint that the angel is a representation of Esau, and like birth, he wants Jacob to release him. Although I think the angel wins the fight because visibly harms Jacob, Jacob does not leave empty handed. He once again demands a blessing and gets a name tied to God that represents a title of victory. This scene is very complex, but it gives another insight into the relationship between Jacob and Esau.