GENESIS 33
Jacob had seen God and been given a new name, but the benefits of his experience didn’t appear immediately. Sometimes he acted like Jacob (“the heel-catcher”) and sometimes like Israel (“the prince with God”). Many of God’s people fail to live up to their new life in Christ because they don’t claim what they have by faith. God had to give Jacob a limp to encourage him to walk by faith.
In his attempt to appease Esau, the old schemer used several devices: bowing (vv. 1–7), bribery (vv.
One mistake often leads to another. Jacob ceased to be a pilgrim, purchased the land he was already given by God, built a house, and settled down. He built an altar and called on “God, the God of Israel” (note the new name); but that didn’t prevent him from getting into trouble with the neighbors. Far better had he pressed on to Bethel.