And Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met him.
When he saw them, Jacob said, “This is God’s camp.” He called the name of that place Mahanaim.
And Jacob sent messengers ahead of him to Esau his brother in the land of Seir, the country of Edom.
He commanded them, saying, “This is what you are to say to my lord Esau: This is what your servant Jacob says: ‘I have been living as a foreigner with Laban and remained there until now.
I have oxen, donkeys, flocks, male servants, and female servants. I have sent to tell my lord, that I may find favor in your eyes.’”
The messengers returned to Jacob, saying, “We came to your brother Esau, and furthermore, he is coming to meet you and there are 400 men with him.”
Then Jacob was greatly afraid and was distressed. And he divided the people who were with him, and the flocks and the herds and the camels, into two camps.
And he said, “If Esau comes to the one camp and attacks it, then the camp that is left will escape.”
And Jacob said, “God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac, O Yahweh who said to me, ‘Return to your land and to your relatives, and I will do you good,’
I am not worthy of the least of all the faithfulness and of all the truth that you have shown to your servant, for with just my staff I passed over this Jordan, and now I have become two camps.
Please deliver me from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau. For I am afraid of him, lest he come and strike me, and the mothers with the children.
But you yourself said, ‘I will surely do you good, and make your seed as the sand of the sea, which cannot be counted because there are so many.’”
And he stayed there that night, and from what he had with him he took a present for Esau his brother:
200 female goats and 20 male goats, 200 ewes and 20 rams,
30 milk camels and their colts, 40 cows, ten bulls, 20 female donkeys and ten foals.
He delivered them into the hands of his servants, every herd by itself, and said to his servants, “Cross over ahead of me and put a space between herd and herd.”
And he commanded the first group, 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 before you?’
then you are to say, ‘They are your servant Jacob’s. It is a present sent to my lord, to Esau, and behold, he himself is also behind us.‘”
And he also commanded the second and the third and all that followed the herds, saying, “This is how you are to speak to Esau when you come upon him,
and you are to say, ‘Furthermore, look, your servant Jacob is behind us.’” For he said, “I will appease his face with the present that goes ahead of my face; and afterward I will see his face. Perhaps he will accept me.”
So the present crossed the Jabbok River over ahead of his face, whereas he himself spent the night in the camp.
Jacob Wrestles with God
He arose during that night and took his two wives, and his two female slaves, and his 11 sons, and crossed over the ford of the Jabbok.
He took them and sent them across the stream, and sent across whatever he had.
And Jacob was left alone. And a man wrestled with him until the breaking of the day.
And when he saw that he did not prevail against him, he touched the hollow of his thigh, and the hollow of Jacob’s thigh was strained as he wrestled with him.
The man said, “Let me go, for the dawn is breaking.” Jacob said, “I won’t let you go unless you bless me.”
And he said to him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Jacob.”
And he said, “Your name will no longer be called Jacob, but Israel, because you have fought with God and with men, and have prevailed.”
Jacob asked him, “Please tell me your name.” But he said, “Why is it that you ask what my name is?” And he blessed him there.
Jacob called the name of the place Peniel, for he said, “I have seen God face to face and yet my life has been spared.”
The sun rose on him as he passed by Peniel, and he limped because of his thigh.
Therefore the children of Israel do not eat the tendon of the hip that is on the hollow of the thigh to this day, because he touched the hollow of Jacob’s thigh near the tendon of the hip.