Hold On to God
At our school district’s championship wrestling match, children as young as eight grappled on gym mats, deploying clever holds to wrestle down their opponents and win. An ancient sport, wrestling demands a savvy combination of takedowns, escapes, pins, and other point-winning maneuvers to come out on top. One little third-grade girl—a crowd favorite—was simply faster than all her opponents, using swift moves that seemed to trick her rivals into defeat.
Jacob used tricky moves to get the best of his twin brother Esau, “wrestling” Esau out of his birthright to their father’s inheritance (Genesis 25:33) and life blessing (27:27-40). But stealing the blessing kept Jacob on the run, forcing him to flee his father’s household, depend on his cunning father-in-law, and live in fear of his brother’s wrath.
Later, he found himself alone, wrestling all night with a man who was God Himself. “Let me go,” the man told Jacob, “for it is daybreak” (32:26). But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me” (v. 26). Finally Jacob was seeking a blessing of his own, holding tight to God even until his name was changed to reflect his changed heart.
No tricky moves were needed to gain this rich blessing from God—only persistence. Jacob was learning to live in relationship with God. It’s a persistent and honest hold—a winning move God will reward.
By Patricia Raybon - Our Daily Bread Ministries
Genesis 32:22-28
Jacob Wrestles With God
22That night Jacob got up and took his two wives, his two female servants and his eleven sons and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. 23After he had sent them across the stream, he sent over all his possessions. 24So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak. 25When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man. 26Then the man said, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.”
But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.”
27The man asked him, “What is your name?”
“Jacob,” he answered.
28Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome.”
