Never Trust a Man Who Doesn't Limp

As in Old Testament Jacob’s case, prior to his developing a “limp”, could he be trusted?  Ask his dad, Isaac.  Better still, ask his brother, Esau.  The real clincher is to ask his father-in-law, Laban.  In this latter case Laban just about outdid Jacob in deceitfulness, but Jacob finally “did a number” on Laban.

After an unpleasant separation experience from Laban, Jacob takes his family and acquired wealth and heads back to the land of Canaan.  Critical to Jacob’s return is a face-off with his brother Esau whom he cheated out of his birthright twenty years previous.  In anticipation of this meeting Jacob is desperate, employing every stratagem at his command in hopes of appeasing the supposed anger of Esau.

Never mind a recent word of assurance of the Lord’s continuance with Jacob, “Then the Lord said to Jacob, ‘Return to the land of your fathers and your kindred, and I will be with you’” (Genesis 31:3).  In all this we would say Jacob “was beside himself”, desperate, knowing Esau is coming toward him with four-hundred men.  What was he to do that he had not done?

This anxiety sets the scene for something historic to happen.  Where Abraham, Jacob’s grandfather had his defining experience with Isaac on the mount of sacrifice, assuring his place as the “father of the faithful” and the “father of many nations”, Jacob will have a defining moment with God every bit as critical.

So, what will Jacob do?  He will pray.  He will pray as never before.  He will pray mightily. He will pray all night and veritably wrestle with the angel of the Lord.  Out of this most notable wrestling match came a changed man.  That which had been latent in Jacob’s character; that something (of divine origin – see Genesis 25:23) which caused him to conspire with his mother to cheat his twin brother out of his birthright; all this rushed to the fore causing him to cry out in the wrestling match, “I will not let You [the angel of the Lord] go unless You bless me” (Genesis 32:26b)!

The response:  “Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel: for you have struggled with God and with men, and have prevailed” (Genesis 32:28).

Once he was “Jacob”, a “heel-grabber”, a “deceiver”; now he is “Israel”, a “Prince with God”.  In a moment Jacob’s character was changed and a nation was born, a nation at its best whose “chief house”, the Temple, “shall be called a house of prayer for all nations” (Isaiah 56:7b). 

Basic to this whole "prayer process" was Jacob having his hip put out of joint so he walked then on with a limp. Jacob’s experience demonstrates the critical need for all God’s servants to be “dealt with”, or, in a manner of speaking, their hip being “put out of joint”.  If they don’t "limp" they haven’t been dealt with and cannot be trusted.  Do you have a noticeable limp?

Afterward.  What of Esau?  The meeting between the brothers came shortly after the wrestling match and proved of no consequence.