Article May 30, 1983 Issue

Jacob at Peniel: a lesson in perseverance

LINDA BUMPUS

Jacob had had a remarkable experience. Referring to it, he said, "I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved."^{ Gen. 32:30.} As a result, his nature was transformed and his name changed from Jacob (understood by the Bible writers to mean "supplanter") to Israel (thought to mean "he strives with God").^{ See Henry Snyder Gehman, ed., The New Westminster Dictionary of the Bible (Philadelphia: The Westminister Press, 1970), pp. 431, 439 .}

What happened to Jacob?

When we picture a patriarch in prayer, we may imagine a venerable, serene figure on bended knee, with shafts of light from heaven illuminating his face. But the Bible says Jacob wrestled until the break of day.

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