How did Jacob get two wives and twelve kids?
Well, it wasn’t easy. He worked for seven years for a woman he fell in love with—Rachel. But Rachel’s father, Laben, tricked Jacob and gave him his other daughter instead, Leah. So Jacob married both women and worked fourteen years altogether for his wives. The two wives were deeply jealous of each other and so Leah had many children to earn Jacob’s love, and Rachel tried to have kids, but couldn’t so she gave him her slave to have children with, so Leah gave Jacob her slave to have children with… well, it was a mess. But Jacob got a lot of kids out of it.
Why did Jacob call Esau “lord”?
Esau was showing his power, by meeting his brother with an army, and Jacob was scared to death. The prophecy said that Esau would serve Jacob. But Jacob is using his words to turn the tables, so that Esau would feel that Jacob was serving him. Jacob was being very humble, so that Esau would not be angry with him for stealing the blessing of their father. It seemed to work, but Jacob wasn’t so sure. By the way, the word Jacob used for “lord” wasn’t calling Esau “god”. He was calling him “master”, as a slave would speak to his master.
Why did Jacob wrestle with an angel?
This is a much disputed passage, and there are many difficulties in interpreting it. Most scholars, however, think that Jacob was really wrestling the angel over Esau, and over Esau’s nation, Edom. He is a powerful spirit, one that would be called a “god” in other parts of the Bible. So when Jacob was wrestling, he was actually fighting for his survival in his meeting with Esau. If he won the angel’s blessing, then he would be successful in his meeting with Esau. Some passages say that Jacob wrestled with “God”—but it was really a god—Esau’s spiritual power— he was wrestling with.
Why did Jacob have his name changed?
“Jacob” means deceiver or trickster. This wasn’t a great name for the father of a great and powerful nation. The angel Jacob wrestled with gave him the name “Israel” which means “God strives” or “Striving with god”. This is talking about two things—on the one hand it means that God would work hard for this people. Secondly, it means that the people Israel will be fighting against gods, doing spiritual warfare. A much more honorable name than “Jacob.” Yahweh confirmed this name when Jacob finally met him at Bethel. Interestingly, though, throughout the rest of Genesis, Jacob is called by his original name, not Israel. Israel is sometimes, but not all the time, used in reference to the nation, not the person.
How did Esau treat Jacob? Why did Jacob run away from him?
Actually, Esau treated Jacob pretty well. He hugged and kissed him, giving him the idea that he was forgiven. And he tried to refuse the gifts. However, this may have been all a show. If he truly forgave him, Jacob surely thought, he would have insisted on giving the gifts back. And Esau accepted Jacob calling him “lord” and didn’t place Jacob on an equal level. So this could mean that Esau was planning on making Jacob a true servant of his. Jacob didn’t want to have anything to do with that, so he ran away in the opposite direction.
Why did Levi and Simeon kill the whole town?
Levi and Simeon were concerned about their own honor. They felt that unless they got full, complete revenge against the town they would have to live with their shame. If they only killed the prince, others of the town would come after them. So it was kill everyone or live with their shame. Jacob thought this was ridiculous, and he gave Levi and Simeon less honor than their brothers because of their unrighteous anger.
Did Jacob’s family worship other gods?
Yes they did. We don’t know which gods, but we know that Rachel and Leah worshipped other gods from their land. Other slaves had their own gods as well. But when Jacob went to Bethel, he kept his promise and insisted that everyone in his household worship Yahweh alone. This is the turning point in Jacob’s life, where he focuses on God’s plan, and not his own.
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