Israel Wrestles with God

Jacob returns to the land of his father and is fearfully facing confrontation with his brother and mortal enemy, Esau, who has threatened to kill him. Jacob wrestles with an angel of the LORD who we later see is God, and Jacob holds on until he is blessed. Jacob walks away limping. Jacob undergoes a name change from Jacob meaning "supplanter", to "Israel" meaning "he who strives with God". The coupled New Covenant portion is Mathew 26:36-46: Yeshua in the garden of Gethsemane is sorrowful and troubled as he faces the impending suffering of the crucifixion and the confrontation with the Enemy, Satan. We compare and contrast Jacob's wrestling with God, his demand for a blessing and his struggling with God, and prideful disposition after the encounter. In contrast, Yeshua in the garden facing a fearful future, lays down his will completely and submits with total surrender to God's will. Math26:39 "My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will." As in Heb 12:2 "looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God." Math 26:41 "The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak."