Tag: wrestle

The Angel’s Name

Posted on by jovial_cynic

Jacob said, “Please tell me your name.”
But he replied, “Why do you ask my name?” Then he blessed him there.
Genesis 32:29

Then Manoah inquired of the angel of the Lord, “What is your name, so that we may honor you when your word comes true?”
He replied, “Why do you ask my name? It is beyond understanding.
Judges 13:17-18

There are two times in the Bible where people ask an unidentified angel for their names, and in both instances, the angel replies “why are you asking me about my name?” And then they don’t give their names.

Do they not have names? Are they hiding their names? Is this the SAME angel in both instances?

Another odd fact: the angel(s) are “detained” in both stories.

Very strange.

Dusty

Posted on by jovial_cynic
In an earlier thread, I walked through different interpretations of the man who wrestled with Jacob in Genesis 32. One idea is that Jacob is wrestling with an accusation against him: he has, in fact, taken his brother’s blessing – Esau is rightfully angry.

The word translated as “wrestled” in Hebrew here is a word linked to “dust.” It means “to get dusty.”

And what is Adam, but a man made of the dust? That’s how Adam is introduced. Interestingly, this word “wrestled” (אָבַק) is ONLY used in this section of the Bible; it’s not a common biblical word.

I think we are being shown that Jacob is wrestling with this internal turmoil of how to deal rightly with his wicked brother, who he harmed, and who he believes wishes to harm him in return.

Theophany

Posted on by jovial_cynic
When Jacob wrestled with a man in Genesis 32, he says, “I have seen the face of God and lived!”

On the one hand, no he didn’t.

But on the other hand, Jacob thinks he did, and this isn’t theologically problematic. The narrator doesn’t rush in to correct Jacob. Jacob seems to move through life as though he did meet God face to face and is in awe, and we just wonder, “who was that man? How did he rename Jacob to Israel?”

I’m wrestling w/ this text from a Jewish lens, and from a Christian lens. There are so many ways to read this.