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Jacob wrestling with the angel

Jacob wrestling with the angel is described in the Book of Genesis (chapter 32:22–32; also referenced in the Book of Hosea, chapter 12:3–5).[1] The "angel" in question is referred to as "man" (אִישׁ: Ish) and "God" (אֵל: El) in Genesis, while Hosea references an "angel" (מַלְאָךְ: Malakh).[1][2] The account includes the renaming of Jacob as Israel (etymologized as "contends-with-God").[1]

In the Genesis patriarchal narrative, Jacob spent the night alone on a riverside during his journey back to Canaan.[1] He encounters a "man" who proceeds to wrestle with him until dawn.[1] In the end, Jacob is given the name Israel and blessed, while the "man" refuses to give his own name. Jacob then names the place where they wrestled Penuel (פְּנוּאֵל: "face of God" or "facing God"[3]).

In arts[edit]

Visual arts[edit]

One of the oldest visual depictions is in the illustrated manuscript the Vienna Genesis.[32] Many artists have depicted the scene, considering it as a paradigm of artistic creation.[33] In sculpture Jacob Wrestling with the Angel is the subject of a 1940 sculpture by Sir Jacob Epstein on display at the Tate Britain.[34] Paintings include:

Angel of the Lord

Jacob's ladder

Theophany

List of angels in theology

Geller, Stephen A. (1982). (PDF). Journal of the Ancient Near Eastern Society. 14 (1). New Jork City: Columbia University: 37–60. Retrieved January 6, 2019. {{cite journal}}: External link in |format= (help) Also in: Geller, Stephen A. (2014) [1996]. "2. The Struggle at the Jabbok. The uses of enigma in biblical religion (pp. 9ff.)". Sacred Enigmas. Literary Religion in the Hebrew Bible. London: Routledge. ISBN 978-1-31779901-6. [I]n the context of the wrestling bout, the name implies that Jacob won this supremacy, linked to that of God's, by a kind of theomachy. [...] By prevailing over God, he has won the name 'God rules' (p. 22).

"The Struggle at the Jabbok: the Uses of Enigma in a Biblical Narrative"

Links to images of Jacob Wrestling with the Angel

(archived 20 June 2004)

Jacob's Wrestling Match: Was It an Angel or Esau?

– chabad.org

Wrestling with Angels