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Genesis 32

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1 And Jacob went on his way; and the angels of God met him.

2 And when Jacob saw them he said, This is the camp of God. And he called the name of that place Mahanaim.

3 And Jacob sent messengers before his face to Esau his brother, into the land of Seir, the fields of Edom.

4 And he commanded them, saying, Thus shall ye speak to my lord, to Esau: Thy servant Jacob speaks thus -- With Laban have I sojourned and tarried until now;

5 and I have oxen, and asses, sheep, and bondmen, and bondwomen; and I have sent to tell my lord, that I may find favour in thine eyes.

6 And the messengers returned to Jacob, saying, We came to thy brother, to Esau; and he also is coming to meet thee, and four hundred men with him.

7 Then Jacob was greatly afraid, and was distressed; and he divided the people that were with him, and the sheep and the cattle and the camels, into two troops.

8 And he said, If Esau come to the one troop and smite it, then the other troop which is left shall escape.

9 And Jacob said, God of my father Abraham, and God of my father Isaac, Jehovah, who saidst unto me: Return into thy country and to thy kindred, and I will do thee good,

10 -- I am too small for all the loving-kindness and all the faithfulness that thou hast shewn unto thy servant; for with my staff I passed over this Jordan, and now I am become two troops.

11 Deliver me, I pray thee, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau; for I fear him, lest he come and smite me, [and] the mother with the children.

12 And thou saidst, I will certainly deal well with thee, and make thy seed as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude.

13 And he lodged there that night; and took of what came to his hand a gift for Esau his brother --

14 two hundred she-goats, and twenty he-goats; two hundred ewes, and twenty rams;

15 thirty milch camels with their colts; forty kine, and ten bulls; twenty she-asses, and ten young asses.

16 And he delivered [them] into the hand of his servants, every drove by itself; and he said to his servants, Go on before me, and put a space between drove and drove.

17 And he commanded the foremost, saying, When Esau my brother meets thee, and asks thee, saying, Whose art thou, and where goest thou, and whose are these before thee?

18 -- then thou shalt say, Thy servant Jacob's: it is a gift sent to my lord, to Esau. And behold, he also is behind us.

19 And so commanded he the second, and the third, and all that followed the droves, saying, According to this word shall ye speak to Esau when ye find him.

20 And, moreover, ye shall say, Behold, thy servant Jacob is behind us. For he said, I will propitiate him with the gift that goes before me, and afterwards I will see his face: perhaps he will accept me.

21 And the gift went over before him; and he himself lodged that night in the camp.

22 And he rose up that night, and took his two wives, and his two maidservants, and his eleven sons, and passed over the ford of the Jabbok;

23 and he took them and led them over the river, and led over what he had.

24 And Jacob remained alone; and a man wrestled with him until the rising of the dawn.

25 And when he saw that he did not prevail against him, he touched the joint of his thigh; and the joint of Jacob's thigh was dislocated as he wrestled with him.

26 And he said, Let me go, for the dawn ariseth. And he said, I will not let thee go except thou bless me.

27 And he said to him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob.

28 And he said, Thy name shall not henceforth be called Jacob, but Israel; for thou hast wrestled with God, and with men, and hast prevailed.

29 And Jacob asked and said, Tell [me], I pray thee, thy name. And he said, How is it that thou askest after my name? And he blessed him there.

30 And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel -- For I have seen God face to face, and my life has been preserved.

31 And as he passed over Peniel, the sun rose upon him; and he limped upon his hip.

32 Therefore the children of Israel do not eat of the sinew that is over the joint of the thigh, to this day; because he touched the joint of Jacob's thigh -- the sinew.

   

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Exploring the Meaning of Genesis 32

Napsal(a) New Christian Bible Study Staff

Here is an excerpt from Swedenborg's "Arcana Coelestia" that helps explain the inner meaning of this chapter:

AC 4232. The subject here treated of in the internal sense is the inversion of state in the natural, in order that good may be in the first place, and truth in the second. The implantation of truth in good is treated of (verses 1 to 23); and the wrestlings of the temptations which are then to be sustained (verses 24 to 32). At the same time the Jewish nation is also treated of, because although that nation could receive nothing of the church, it nevertheless represented the things of the church.

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Arcana Coelestia # 4232

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4232. Genesis 32

1. And Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met him.

2. And Jacob said when he saw them, This is God's camp. And he called the name of that place Mahanaim.

3. And Jacob sent messengers ahead of him to his brother Esau, to the land of Seir, the field of Edom.

4. And he commanded them, saying, Thus shall you say to my lord Esau, Thus says your servant Jacob, With Laban I have sojourned, and have stayed until now.

5. And I have oxen and asses, flocks and men servants and women servants; and I am sending to tell my lord, so as to find favour in your eyes.

6. And the messengers returned to Jacob, saying, We came to your brother, to Esau, and he also is coming to meet you, and four hundred men with him.

7. And Jacob was exceedingly afraid, and was distressed; and he split up the people who were with him, and the flocks and herds and camels, into two camps.

8. And he said, If Esau comes towards one camp and smites it, the camp that is left will escape.

9. And Jacob said, O God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac, O Jehovah, who says to me, Return to your land, and to the place of your nativity, and I will deal well with you,

10. I am not worthy of all the mercies and of all the truth which You have shown to Your servant, for with just my staff I passed over this Jordan, and now I have become two camps.

11. Deliver me, I pray, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau; for I fear him, lest he comes and smites me, the mother with the children. 1

12. And You have said, I will certainly deal well with you and I will make your seed like the sand of the sea which cannot be counted for multitude.

13. And he spent that night there, and took from what came into his hand a gift for Esau his brother:

14. Two hundred she-goats and twenty he-goats; two hundred sheep and twenty rams;

15. Thirty milking camels and their colts; forty young cows and ten young bulls; twenty she-asses and ten foals

16. And he gave them into the hand of his servants, drove by drove separately; and he said to his servants, Pass over in front of me and put a space between drove and drove.

17. And he commanded the first, saying, When Esau my brother meets you and asks you, saying, To whom do you belong; and where are you going; and whose are these in front of you?

18. Then you shall say, They belong to your servant Jacob; it is a gift sent to my lord Esau; and behold, he also is behind us.

19. And he commanded the second also, the third also, and all also following the droves, saying, In this manner 2 shall you speak to Esau when you find him.

20. And you shall also say, Behold, your servant Jacob is behind us. For he said, I will appease him with the gift that is going in front of me, and after that I will see his face; perhaps he will accept me.

21. And the gift passed over in front of him, and he spent that night in the camp.

22. And he rose up that night, and took his two wives (femina), and his two servant-girls, and his eleven sons, and passed over at the passage of Jabbok.

23. And he took them and made them pass over the river, and made all that he had pass over.

24. And Jacob remained alone; and a man wrestled with him until dawn came up.

25. And he 3 saw that he did not prevail against him, and he touched the hollow of his thigh, and the hollow of Jacob's thigh was out of joint as he wrestled with him.

26. And he 3 said, Let me go, for the dawn is coming up. And he said, I will not let you go unless you bless me.

27. And he 3 said to him, What is your name? And he said, Jacob.

28. And he' said, Your name will no longer be called Jacob, but Israel, for as a prince you have contended with God and with men, and have prevailed.

29. And Jacob asked and said, Tell me, I pray, your name. And he said, Why is it that you ask my name? And he blessed him there.

30. And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel, [saying,] For I have seen God face to face, and my soul is delivered.

31. And the sun rose on him as he passed over Penuel, and he was limping on his thigh.

32. Therefore the children of Israel do not eat the sinew of that which was displaced, which is on the hollow of the thigh, even to this day, because he touched, in the hollow of Jacob's thigh, the sinew of that which was displaced.

CONTENTS

The subject now in the internal sense is a turning round of the state within the Natural, so that good comes to occupy the first place and truth the second. The implanting of truth within good is dealt with in verses 1-23, and the wrestlings involved in the temptations which have to be endured then, in verses 24-32. At the same time the subject is the Jewish nation - how even though it was incapable of receiving anything of the Church, that nation did nevertheless represent things of the Church.

Poznámky pod čarou:

1. literally, mother over children (or sons)

2. literally, According to this word

3. i.e. the man

  
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Thanks to the Swedenborg Society for the permission to use this translation.