Scroll to the bottom for thoughts/discussion questions!
One-sentence summary: Jacob fights with God, has his name changed to Israel, reconciles with Esau, and Simeon and Levi avenge their sister after she is violated.
Jacob travels to the land of his fathers, and on his way, encounters angels. He declares, "This is God's camp." It seems God is giving him a clear sign that He is with him.
He sends messengers ahead to meet his brother Esau, commanding them to say to him, "Your servant, Jacob, says he has dwelt with Laban [all this time].... and has sent us ahead... may [he] find favor in your sight." They return without an answer from Esau, but tell Jacob that his brother is coming to him... along with 400 men.
Jacob is afraid, so he divides his camp in two. He cries out to God and reminds Him of the promise He made to him and his fathers and prays for deliverance. He sends his servants a second time with a plethora of animals from his flocks as a gift, again telling them to refer to him as "your servant, Jacob" before Esau. Jacob stays behind and crosses a brook in the middle of the night, along with his wives and children, afraid that Esau will kill him.
That night, a mysterious Man appears to Jacob Who wrestles with him all night. The Man (most likely the Angel of the Lord- the pre-incarnation of Christ) sees that Jacob is not giving up, so he touches his hip joint, putting it out of socket. He tells Jacob to let Him go, but Jacob refuses to let Him go until He blessed him. The Angel tells Jacob that he will no longer be called Jacob, but Israel (meaning "fighter of God") for "[he] has struggled with God and men and prevailed." Jacob asks the Man his name, but He says, "Why do you ask My name?" He instead blesses him, and Jacob calls the place Peniel, which means "face of God," because he says, "I have seen God face to face, yet my life has been spared." Afterward, he walks with a limp. This is why the people of Israel do not eat the muscle that is near the hip joint.
Jacob sees Esau coming with 400 men. He goes toward his brother, with his maidservants and their sons first, Leah and her sons behind, and lastly, Rachel and Joseph (ouch!) Jacob bows seven times as he approaches Esau, and all his wives and sons bow as well in turn. Esau asks about them, and Jacob introduces them. Esau asks why he has brought such gifts, and Jacob says he wants Esau's favor. Esau refuses the gifts, but Jacob insists, so he takes them. They decide for Esau to travel on ahead of them so that Jacob can go at a slower pace for his wives, children, and flocks. Jacob travels to Shechem and pitches his tent there.
Dinah, the daughter of Leah, goes into the city alone one day to visit the women. The prince of Shechem sees her and takes her forcefully. He tells his father the king that he wants to marry her, so they go to Jacob's house to talk to him about it. Knowing what has happened, Jacob and his sons are furious. They lie to the king and his son and say that if all the men of the city agree to be circumcised, they will agree. (It's interesting how the king promises to give them land if they intermarry with his people, but they do not take the bait, because they know that God has commanded them to be separate.) However, on the third day after all the men are circumcised and still in pain. Levi and Simeon slaughter them all, capture the wives and children, and plunder the whole city. Jacob is distressed because of what they have done, because he says the surrounding nations will hear and fight together against him, since he is few in number, and that he will be destroyed along with his household. His sons respond by asking if they should have let their sister be treated like a prostitute.
Thoughts/Discussions:
Have you ever "wrestled" with God? Did you "win?" What was that experience like?
Have you ever been tempted to take an offer that seemed good and would fulfill a dream but would cause you to compromise?
Jacob lived in fear of Esau for years, but it turned out that he didn't have to. Has something like that ever happened to you?