CHAPTER XVIII
JACOB RETURNS TO CANAAN
Genesis 32 to 35
Interpretation. Note the significant contrast between Jacob's leaving Canaan and his return. When he left, he was nominally and in his own esteem the possessor of the birthright and the blessing, which he had secured through his own effort and which he thought entitled him to possession of Canaan and the preeminence over Esau. Actually, however, he had gained nothing, and was a fugitive before Esau and an exile from the land. On his return, he makes no demands whatever, acknowledges Esau as sovereign, is ready to pay him tribute and to placate him with gifts, and prays to God only for deliverance from Esau's vengeance. And yet we find him at the end of this episode, by reason of his victory over Shechem and of Esau's departure to Seir, in actual possession of the Promised Land and a recognized ruler of a now important clan.
Before entering on his more illustrious destiny, however, he must be put to the test and atone for the desertion of his mission in his flight from the land in consequence of his efforts to wrest the birthright and the blessing from Esau. This test is indicated by his struggle with the angel on the very border of the Promised Land, a struggle from which he does not escape unscathed. Just what the Biblical author wished to express by this struggle of Jacob with the angel it is difficult to say. It is sometimes interpreted by teachers and preachers as an allegorical representation of a purely subjective struggle in Jacob's heart, but such an explanation is extremely far-fetched. The episode suggests comparison with the incident recorded in Exodus 4. 24-26 and seems to imply that consecration to any high task involves exposing oneself to danger, if, in any way, one is not thoroughly qualified for the task. So long as Moses has not taken upon himself the task of leading the children of Israel from Egypt his failure to circumcize his children can be overlooked, but once he has assumed that task, he is threatened with death for his failure to do so. Similarly, when Jacob is about to enter into the land promised in his father's blessing and confirmed in the vision at Beth El, he too finds himself face to face with a divinely commissioned opponent. His victory over the angel is symbolic of his success in finally qualifying for his mission as is implied in the change of his name to Israel with the explanation of its significance, "For thou hast striven with God and with men and hast prevailed". Inasmuch as there is not mentioned here any struggle with "men", the thought is suggested that this victory is an omen of the future success of the chosen people, while the shrinking of Jacob's thigh sinew suggests that this success is not to be won without suffering and sacrifice, an interpretation frequently found in the Midrash. This representation of the experience of a nation in terms of that of an individual who is the nation's founder is much more in keeping with the spirit of Biblical literature than the allegorical representation of abstract truths in terms of historic or biographical events. Note in this connection Hosea 12. 3-5; "The Lord hath also a controversy with Judah, and will punish Jacob according to his ways, according to his doings will He recompense him. In the womb he took his brother by the heel, and by his strength he strove with a god-like being; so he strove with an angel, and prevailed; he wept, and made supplication unto him: At Beth El he would find him and there he would speak with us". The meaning of these verses is obscure but it is evident that the prophet makes Jacob's experience typical of Israel's as a people.
Aim. There is in this lesson, as in almost all those that deal with the patriarchs, a remote aim and an immediate one. The remote aim is the impression which the incidents recorded will make upon the pupil when they are brought back to his mind in later years. The moral of the story in this connection is that the election of Israel is not determined by the inherent superiority of our people, but by God's purpose with regard to them and mankind, which purpose He accomplishes by so shaping their history that it instructs and disciplines them through struggle and achievement and reveals His will with regard to them and their place in the world. But this moral is too abstract and complex for the child and must only be kept in mind by the teacher in order that he should not teach the lesson in such a way as would later becloud the true meaning of the story, as, for example, would be the case if he made Jacob throughout his whole life the ideal religious hero. The immediate lesson that the child can be taught to derive from the story is that humble trust in God and obedience to His will can achieve for us what a cunning that does not scruple at deceit cannot achieve.
Suggestions to the teacher. Begin this lesson by reminding the class of the promise God had made to Jacob at Beth El. Then announce that you are going to tell how God kept this promise. But before doing so, question the children further as to why Jacob had to flee from Canaan if God wanted him to return and rule over it. Question until you bring out the point that Jacob had not used the proper means to get the birthright and blessing. Illustrate by analogy with the child's own experience the idea that, because Jacob had attempted to secure the birthright and blessing by wrong means, he had to be deprived of them until he finally learned the proper means on which to rely, namely faith in God. This thought might be illustrated as follows:
Suppose a teacher promised a reward to a child if he would write a composition about something the class had been taught in its lesson, and this child copied his composition from a book, thinking that in this way he would get the reward without having to work for it. What would the teacher do, accept the composition? No, she would make him write it again in his own words, and then, perhaps, if he had done it in the right way, the teacher might give the reward to him. So God had indeed promised that Isaac's son would one day become the father of a great people in the land of Canaan, and he meant Jacob to become such, but because Jacob tried to bring this about in the wrong way, by deceiving his father and Esau, he could not at once be made the head of this people in Canaan. So Jacob had to leave the land that had been promised to him and work hard those twenty years that he was with Laban, and suffer from Laban's meanness to him in order that he might learn that if he wanted God's blessing he must be patient and obedient and work honestly and then God would give him His blessing.
Then tell the story, emphasizing Jacob's submission to Esau and the humility of his prayer to God. The latter can best be brought out by quoting the prayer in the language of the Bible. (Genesis 32. 10 to 13.) In describing Jacob's wrestling with the angel do not read a far-fetched moral into it. Merely explain that God sent an angel to wrestle with Jacob and that if Jacob could make the angel bless him that would be the sign that he was strong enough and great enough and good enough to be the father of the Jewish people. The blessing of the angel should be given in direct discourse. In teaching the change of name from Jacob to Israel, call attention to the fact that we Jews are sometimes called Children of Israel or Israelites because we are all descended from Israel.
Do not fail to record Esau's departure to Mount Seir, leaving Jacob in possession of the promised land, and Jacob's fulfillment of his vow at Beth El. Whenever recalling anything from a previous lesson as in this instance Jacob's vow, try to get the children to tell it to you rather than tell it yourself. Say for example, "So we have seen how God kept His promise to Jacob to be with him when he was away from his land, and to bring him back home in safety, and to give to him and to his descendants the land of Canaan, but do any of you remember the promise that Jacob made when he awoke after that wonderful dream?" etc.