Nathan’s Commentary on Parashat Vayishalach Genesis 32:4–36:43

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Genesis 32

Genesis 32:10, I am not worthy/I have been diminished [Heb. kato-n’tey]. “In some Bible versions, in the word kato-n’tey ,the letter tet is written smaller or diminished to show the utter humility and sense of unworthiness Jacob felt toward YHVH as he prayed for mercy and protection from Esau (The Wisdom in the Hebrew Alphabet, p. 123 by Michael Munk).

Genesis 32:13–15, Present for Esau his brother. This was a generous gift of great value. Possibly, Jacob out of righteousness, felt the need to make restitution to his brother for having “stolen” the birthright. This demonstrates the need for saintly people to right their wrongs in order to maintain a good witness to their unsaved or heathen neighbors. Of course, Jacob’s motives were not totally based on making restitution for past wrong. He was also trying “to save his skin,” so to speak, by appeasing his brother who wanted to murder him (v. 20).

Genesis 32:28, Israel. 

The Meaning of the Name “Israel”

According to the top Hebrew lexicons, the words making up the name Israel can have several meanings:

  • He rule (as) El (God).
  • He contends with El.
  • El persists, perseveres.
  • Let El persist or contend
  • To prevail or have power with El.
  • The name Israel is comprised of two Hebrew words: sarah and el.
  • Sarah (is a primitive verb root meaning “to prevail.”
  • El means “God” and is the short form of the word Elohim (God).

Interestingly, the name Israel contains a couple of other Hebrew words although the lexicons do not indicate any lexical connection between them and the name Israel. These words are:

  • Yashar meaning “straight or upright.
  • Sar meaning “a head person, captain, ruler, chief, master or prince.” Sar is used in the famous Prince of Peace passage in Isaiah 9:6—a notable prophetic reference to Yeshua the Messiah.

Because of the similarities between the Hebrew words Israel and yashar and sar, some Bible students have taken the liberty to see within the name Israel some other meanings that the lexicons do not recognize. It is interesting to note these similarities, but whether there is a lexical connection between these words or not, we let the Hebrew language experts debate this issue.

Genesis 32:24–32, Jacob wrestling with the Messenger of YHVH.

Who Did Jacob Wrestle With? An Angel or the Pre-Incarnate Yeshua?

It is one of the classic Old Testament Bible stories. Along with Noah’s ark, David and Goliath, Jonah and the big fish, every Sunday school student has heard of the story of the patriarch Jacob wrestling all night with an “angel.”  But who was this heavenly being? Was he actually a stereotypical angel as the text in Genesis 32 suggests, are is there more to this story? This is where Christians and Jews differ in their conclusions. Let’s explore this classic Old Testament story a little deeper. The truth may astound you and will likely help to deepen your faith!

And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled with a man [Heb. iysh] or heavenly messenger [i.e., Heb. malak]. (KJV; cp. Hos 12:4)

In the following passages, we see that this man was Elohim. 

You have power with Elohim and with men, and have prevailed. (verse 28, based on the KJV)

…for you have striven with the Divine [lit. Elohim] and with man and have overcome. (verse 28, The ArtScroll Stone Edition Tanach and Chumash)

Then Jacob says that he has “seen [Elohim] face to face” (KJV, CJB and The Soncino Edition Pentateuch, second edition). The two standard Orthodox Jewish versions of the Torah, The ArtScroll Stone Edition Tanach and The ArtScroll Stone Edition Chumash, and Samson Raphael Hirsch’s Torah commentary The Pentateuch (by Judaica Press)all read, “For I have seen the Divine face to face.” Here they have incorrectly translated the Hebrew word Elohim as “the Divine”(OHBP OHVKT/Elohim panim).

Which translation of the word Elohim is the correct one? Before resorting to human sources to solve this dilemma, let’s allow the Word of Elohim itself to interpret this passage, thus giving us clarity as to its exact meaning. Hosea 12:2–5 is the Bible passage that sheds light on this issue.

[YHVH] hath also a controversy with Judah, and will punish Jacob according to his ways; according to his doings will he reward him. He took his brother by the heel in the womb, and by his strength he had strove with [Elohim]. He strove with an angel [Heb. malak or heavenly messenger in many instances referring to YHVH himself, as noted elsewhere in this work] and prevailed: he wept, and made supplication to him; he found him in Beth-El, and there he spoke with us; and [YHVH Elohim] of hosts; [YHVH] is his name. (based on the KJV)

The Stone Edition Tanach renders this passage as follows (starting in verse four):

In the womb he seized his brother’s heal, and with his strength he struggled with [an angel of] God; he struggled with an angel and prevailed; [the angel] wept and beseeched him: ‘In Beth-el He will find us and there He will speak with us.’ HASHEM is the God of Legions; HASHEM is His remembrance. (bracketed supplied word are in the original)

So which translation is correct? The first one indicates Jacob was wrestling with a Heavenly Messenger, who was none other than YHVH Elohim, while the second translation is cast in such a light as to imply that Jacob was wrestling merely with an angel. 

The Hebrew word Elohim does not mean “the Divine.”  Rather it means “God.” It is interesting to note that in the Authorised Version (or KJV) the word Elohim appears 2606 times in the Tanakh. It is translated as God 2346 times, god 244 times and as several other words less than five times each (e.g., judge, goddess, great, mighty, angels). As in all cases with a word which can have several meanings, the context of the Scripture passage will determine a word’s meaning and its subsequent translation from the original language into English. The word divine was not employed in the 1611 (KJV) Authorized Version in reference to Elohim anywhere in the Tanakh, since the word had a pejorative connotation (as in divination or one who divines the future). This is not the case in our modern parlance as the modern Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary defines divine in its primary definition as “relating to, or proceeding directly from God, being a deity, directed to deity.” All standard English (Christian ) versions (e.g., NKJV, NAS, NIV, NRSV) translate this passage as “God face to face” and none use the term “the Divine face.” The New Brown-Driver-Briggs-Gesinius Hebrew-English Lexicon defines Elohim (in those Scripture passages where it is a clear reference to deity, as opposed to a goddess or a human judge) as “the true God, Yahweh is (the) God.” Never does this Hebrew lexicon define Elohim as “the Divine.” Similarly, nowhere does the The TWOT in defining the word Elohim suggest that the Divine could be an appropriate substitute for the title of YHVH. So we must ask, why do the two Jewish translations of this passage (noted above) run cross grain to a plethora of other translations, both Jewish and Christian, as well as to noted lexicographers to translate it as they do? This likely a case of translation bias, where translating Elohim panim as Elohim face to face as so many other translators do would be a tacit admission that Elohim can appear as a man, hence giving credence to the Christian assertion that Yeshua was Elohim in the flesh. But before jumping to conclusions, let us examine other passages in the Tanakh where Elohim and man come face to face. Let’s see how the non-Yeshua believing Jewish translators treat these passages, and discover how their commentaries explain these difficult passages.

The following are what some leading rabbinic Jewish commentaries say about these passages where Elohim appears in humanesque form.

The Stone Edition Chumash (pages 176–177): This commentary states that the man with whom Jacob wrestled was an angel (no doubt based on the passage found in Hosea 12:4), yet the fact that the malak was an angel in the common meaning of the word, is an assumption, since, as we have already noted, malak literally means “messenger,”and in this context heavenly messenger meaning “angel”is but one type of heavenly messenger. Furthermore, the Chumash defines the word malak as “Divine.” What is the terminology here supposed to imply, based on the meaning of the word divine? Was the angel deity or not? At the very least, the reasons given for explaining away the idea that Jacob was wrestling with Elohim are ambiguous if not totally misleading or even deceptive.

The Soncino Edition Pentateuch (p. 124) commenting on Genesis 32:29 and Hosea 12:4 states, “We have here another instance of ‘God’ interchanging with ‘angel of God’, as in [Genesis] 16:7 [and] 31:11.” On verse 31 other Jewish commentators states, The Targum (the Aramaic translation of the Pentateuch made in the second-century) “was in response to the spread of Christianity, when proponents of the new religion began to interpret certain passages to accord with their own doctrines” (The Encyclopedia of the Jewish Religion, p. 376). This then supposedly gives justification to why the modern Jewish scholars understand these verses to mean “I have seen angels of God face to face” (The Soncino Edition Pentateuch, p. 124). One can only wonder if the Targum’s translation of this passage and the subsequent rabbinic interpretations of the same is not an example of these translators and commentators redacting these Bible passage in an attempt to steer their readers away from the fact that YHVH appeared to Jacob in the form of a man (as a plain reading of the text indicates)—a conclusion that could then pave the way for the Christian belief that Yeshua the Messiah was YHVH incarnate (in the flesh) as per John 1:1 and 14 (and other both Old and New Testament passages).

The ArtScroll Bereishis/Genesis commentary postulates a total different explanation as to who Jacob wrestled with. Was it Elohim, an angel or something else. These commentators state, “The ‘man’ who struggled with Jacob was not a human being, nor was he an ordinary angel. As Rashi comments, the ‘man’ was Samael, the guardian angel of Esau” (p. 1397) who was the angel of evil (ibid.p. 1437). The commentary goes on to say that not all Jewish sages agreed with Rashi’s assertion. Tanchuma suggests that this was the angel Michael, while R. Bachya “perceives this as symbolizing the righteous person’s inner struggle against the forces of evil.” Rambam “regards this incident as a prophetic vision (just as he regards Abraham’s vision of the three angels in [Genesis] 18:2f). Ramban…challenges this vigorously, posing many questions (for example: If Jacob’s wrestling was only a vision, why did he limp when he awoke? Abarbanel cites Ralbag who in defense of Rambam, holds that Jacob’s hip injury might have been caused by autosuggestion, an aftermath of the prophetic vision” (ibid.). And the debate between the rabbinic Jewish scholars continues on and on without any resolution as to the nature of the angel with whom Jacob wrestled, when the plain meaning of the literal words of the text clear state that Jacob wrestled with Elohim!

As these quotes have been provided (and there are more to come) to show the reader that there are some things that the Jewish sages, for all their learning, brilliance, respectability and passion for Torah, simply cannot figure out. Some will even contrive fantastical scenarios and explanations in an attempt to explain a passage in a certain way, while leaving out some of the more obvious conclusions. 

To the sages’ credit, they have in mind the passage in Exodus 33:20, which states that, “You cannot see my face, for no man shall see me and live.” This, the reader will recall, is the occasion where Moses requested to see the glory (or splendor) of YHVH Elohim (verse 18). Indeed, it is obvious that no man can look into the glorious face of the One who made the Sun, which is the smallest of billions of stars, and expect to live. Yet is it possible for the same YHVH to place all his glory “on the proverbial shelf,” so to speak, and to appear to man without his full glory? Obviously, YHVH being all powerful, can do anything he pleases. If this is possible, then can Jacob have seen the face of Elohim temporarily without his glory and Exodus 33:20 still be valid? After all, the sages have numerous reasons, and some very creative ones, to explain why Elohim is actually an angel in Genesis 32, when a simple explanation, based on the literal meaning of the text, could easily suffice to explain why the Being Jacob encountered really was Elohim, as the Scriptures so plainly states.

Rashi (Shelomoh Yitzhaki, 1040–1105), considered by some to be the most notable Orthodox Jewish Torah commentary of the modern era, should have some notable comments on verses 28 and 30 (The Sapirstein Edition Rashi, The Torah) regarding Jacob’s the nature of the being with whom Jacob was wrestling. Was it Elohim, an angel, or something else? In fact, he has no comments at all in his venerable commentary (pp. 371–372). It must be noted at this point that not only can one learn much from what the Jewish sages say, but one can learn as much by what they do not say—especially when they comment voluminously on the Biblical passages preceding and proceeding a certain troublesome verse, but say little or nothing on a particular, especially controversial, passage. 

As noted above, Rashi does cite certain rabbinic traditions equating the man Jacob wrestled with to the ministering angel of Esau (p. 370). He also notes, as further discussed below, that the phrase in verse 24, “a man wrestled” can mean, “and a man became dusted” because, according to the meaning of the Hebrew words, this phrase can literally mean, “because they raised dust with their feet through their movement” as they wrestled (p. 370).

Let us now turn our attention to the comments of noted nineteenth-century German rabbinic scholar and founder of neo-Orthodoxy, Samson Raphael Hirsch (1808–1888). On verse 30, Hirsch admits that “Jacob recognized in his opponent, something divine, something justified, appointed by God.” Then Hirsch pens a fictional conversation that Jacob and the Heavenly Messenger might have had where the Messenger states that he is a Messenger of God, created of Elohim, yet neither an ordinary angel nor deity (The Pentateuch—Genesis, vol. 1,p. 507). This idea is similar to that expressed by other rabbinic writers that this was Samael, the guardian angel of Esau, “a man who climaxed the Patriarchal tradition” (The ArtScroll Bereishis/Genesis commentary, p. 1397)

What does another eminent Jewish Torah scholar state in his commentary regarding who Jacob wrestled with in Genesis 32? Let us now analyze what Jacob ben Asher (c. 1270–c. 1343), who is known as Baal HaTurim (The Davis Edition Baal HaTurim Chumash—Bereishis), says in his commentary. Virtually nothing! He simply refers to the man with whom Jacob wrestled as “the angel” and fails to comment on the fact as stated in verses 28 and 30 that this individual was Elohim in human form (p. 307). Again, we can learn much from the silence of the rabbinic Jewish sages.

Baal HaTurim does have some interesting comments on verse 24 which says, “And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day.” Here Baal HaTurim says that the gematria (the letter-number valuation of the Hebrew letters) of the phrase, “a man wrestled” is 118, which equals that of the phrase, “the throne of glory” (The Talmud, Challin 91a). The phrase “a man wrestled” can also mean “he covered with dust” or “he raised dust” in reference to the fact that during the wrestling match the two men stirred the dust of the ground as they entangled. Baal HaTurim gives a fanciful explanation of this wording. He states that as they wrestled they raised dust heavenward to the throne of glory (ibid., p. 305). This must have been quite the dual!

So regarding the rabbinic Jewish commentary regarding the identity of the individual with whom Jacob wrestled, what is the bottom line? Simply this. They refuse to admit that Jacob was wrestling with Elohim, even though the Torah clear states otherwise. Moreover, and even worse is that these Jewish scholars are prone to concoct fanciful, non-biblical explanations as to why this being was not Elohim. They state that he was an angel, some divine being, no ordinary angel, or Samael, the demon-guardian angel of Esau. They debate and argue and sometimes contradict each other and themselves as to who this Being was. There is much confusion and uncertainty. But one thing about which they can all agree: he was not Elohim in human form. On this point the honest inquirer is compelled to ask, “Why?” Is it because the sages refuse to admit what the Christians have been saying all along, that the Being with whom Jacob wrestled was a preincarante appearance of Yeshua the Messiah?

Now consider this. As noted above from the Jewish sages’ own writings, the meaning of the Hebrew text, “a man wrestled” (verse 24) can signify “a man covered with dust” or “raised dust to the throne of glory.” If Jacob saw the “face of Elohim” as verse 30 states, and Yeshua in the Gospels clearly declares that no one has seen the face of the Father (John 1:18), then how do we reconcile these two passages without breaking the Scriptures (John 10:35)? Was Jacob indeed wrestling with Yeshua in his preincarnate state? Is this preposterous? The sages have no clear answers to this difficult passage—only numerous reasons why it cannot be so, when all they lack is one good reason why it could be so, especially when confronted with the plain meaning of the Scriptures, which states that Jacob was wrestling with Elohim. 

If this was Yeshua in his preincarnate state, could the rabbinical “covered-in-dust” actually be a cryptic metaphor for Elohim being clothed in humanity—a concept that confirms the New Testament’s claims about the incarnation of Yeshua, as well as the Christian belief that  the pre-incarnate Yeshua appeared on a number of occasions in the Tanakh in human form (called theophanies or christophanies)? Could this not be a picture of Elohim condescending himself to come to earth in human form from the throne of glory covered in the clay dust of human flesh (see Phil 2:5–8) wrestling with the carnal, prideful and devious nature (of which Jacob, the heel snatcher or supplanter, was a type), breaking the stubborn will of man, wounding the flesh (Jacob left the dual wounded in the hip), and left with a new name and identity (Israel meaning “prince, power, strength and prevailer of El”)?  We believe so.

In the end, Jacob left this spiritual encounter with YHVH a new, changed, humbled and wounded-in-the-flesh man ready to encounter Edom (representing the spiritual enemies that the saint will face as he treks through the wilderness of life before entering the “Promised Land” of YHVH’s kingdom) and overcome his enemies no longer in his own human strength, but with the spiritual power and blessing of YHVH at work in his life. Jacob was now ready to enter Beth-el (House of El) of the Promised Land as a spiritually resurrected new man in Yeshua the resurrected God-man.

Genesis 32:24–32, A Man.This is the account of Jacob wrestling with someone, but who? In verse 24, who does it say Jacob wrestled with? Let’s read Hosea 12:3–4 for a fuller comprehension of who this divine individual was. Hosea the prophet informs us that the “angel” with whom Jacob strove was none other than Elohim himself. The Hebrew word for angel is malak, which means “messenger” whether human, angelic or divine. Thus by definition, an “angel” in the Bible can be the stereotypical angel, a human messenger or a member of the actual Godhead acting as a divine messenger to humans. In Genesis 32:30, Jacob names the spot where he wrestled with the “angel” Beth-El or House of El. Obviously, in Jacob’s mind, he had encountered Eohim, not your stereotypical angel. 

So why does Scripture use a term for the Being with whom Jacob wrestled that can mean “a man, a messenger and Elohim”? Isn’t this ambiguous or confusing? Or, on the other hand, is there Someone that the Bible reveals who fits all three of these definitions, or stated otherwise, Who is the only One in all of Scripture that fits all three of these descriptions? So with whom did Jacob really wrestle? Who is the One who blessed Jacob and made covenants with him and with his father and grandfather? We find the answer turn in Isaiah chapter 53, which is the chapter that speaks about the Suffering Servant Messiah who would come to redeem man from his sins through his atoning death. Of the Messiah, in verse one we read, 

Who hath given credence to that which we heard? And the arm of Jehovah, On whom hath it been revealed?

Who is the “arm of YHVH” that now sits at the right hand of YHVH in heaven (1 Pet 3:22)? If you are still not sure, read the rest of Isaiah 53 for the answer. It is none other than Yeshua the Messiah! He is the same One who led the children of Israel through the wilderness (for further proof see Acts 7:37–38 and 1 Cor 10:4 cp. John 8:58).

Genesis 32:24, Wrestled with him. Why did Elohim wrestle all night with Jacob? Why not just wound him early on and save the time and trouble? This teach us much about the long-suffering nature of Elohim, who will continue to strive with us and our carnal weaknesses and self-reliances, until we finally submit to him and recognize that only through him can we have real strength and victory, though we might end up physically lame in the process. Why the wrestling all night“till the breaking of the day”? Biblically night and breaking of day can metaphorically represent the struggles, trials and difficulties that humans often experience in their lives. Jacob’s night-long struggle teaches us much about faith, the struggles of this life and about not giving up until the very end when the blessings and dawning of a new day are about to break forth. Jacob’s struggle is an inspiring example about prevailing faith in Elohim and not giving up despite the spiritual darkness that surrounds us and the struggles that we face in life.

At the end of his struggle, Jacob received the new name of Israel (verse 28). Through this struggle, he took a quantum leap spiritually and became a new man with a new identity. Has this ever happened to you? Don’t we progress spiritually only out of crisis? “There is no gain where there is no pain,” as the saying goes. 

What were the positive results of Jacob’s struggle? Verse 32 says of Jacob, “as he passed over Penuel the sun rose upon him, and he limped upon his thigh.” The Hebrew word penuel means “faces of El.” Taking a little poetic license (at the drash, allegorical or third level of Hebraic biblical interpretation) here, we could paraphrase this verse as follows: “As Jacob emerged out of the darkness of self-reliance, the face of Elohim shined favorably upon him as he no longer relied on the flesh.” Pause to reflect on this for a moment and take quick stock of your own spiritual walk in the light of these words.

Who are some other notable Biblical characters besides Jacob who struggled with trying to achieve their divine mission through human means? The most notable example is the patriarch Abraham who tried to fulfill YHVH’s will through his sexual relations with his mistress Hagar. Moses attempted to deliver his fellow Israelites from the hands of their enslavers when he murdered the Egyptian. Peter when he cut off the ear of the high priest’s servant in an attempt to deliver Yeshua from the hands of his captors. What did these biblical figures learn from their mistakes about walking in the Spirit versus walking in the flesh? 

Now consider your own life. Have you ever struggled between doing your will versus submitting to the will and ways of Elohim? How did it go? What lessons did you learn? 

Sadly most people clueless about the spiritual battle that is occurring in their lives; they just live their lives reacting impulsively to life’s situations without considering the consequences of their actions or critiquing themselves with an eye on self improvement. This is because they are unaware that there is a higher way to walk instead of simply following the natural impulses of their human nature, which is a downward spiraling slippery slope. 

The only way to know that there is higher way is to walk in the Spirit of Elohim through a spiritual relationship with Yeshua the Messiah, and to learn about the heart, mind and will of the Creator. How do we accomplish this? Like Jacob, by acknowledging the fact that our ways haven’t worked out so well for us and that we need help from above. This involves repenting of our sin (i.e., going against the ways of Elohim), receiving Yeshua as our Lord and Savior, and then studying the words, ways and will of Elohim in the Bible, and by studying the lives and examples, both the failure and successes, of the people written about therein, and then by conforming our lives to the truth of the Bible. In this manner, we will begin to emerge from the darkness of sin and carnality and will become a child of the light (1 Thess 5:1–5) of YHVH’s Truth with a new awareness, a new identity as an overcomer, a conqueror, and child or prince of El, like Jacob becoming Israel.

Genesis 32:28, Jacob but Israel. Jacob/Ya’acov means “heel snatcher/holder or supplanter,”while Israel/Yisra’el means “Prince of El or El Prevails/Prevailer with El.” What can we learn about the change of Jacob’s character as reflected in the changing of his name? Who is the focal point of the name and the initiator of the action in the first name…in the second name? Now apply these principles to your own life as you learn from the lessons of Jacob’s life

Genesis 32:32, The muscle that shrank. Please notice that the sinew, representing the strength of Jacob’s, flesh only shrank. It was not removed. What does this signify spiritually with regard to the redeemed man’s old sin nature? Simply this. At the point in one’s spiritual journey when one is regenerated by the Spirit of Elohim, a person doesn’t lose their identity, personality or soul (i.e., his mind, will and emotions). Rather, they become a new man with a new spiritual identity and a new upward orientation.

In the process of dying to oneself, what then happens to a person’s soul? It must be transformed and renewed by the Spirit of Elohim to be conformed to YHVH’s perfect will (Rom 12:2). One’s soul (their mind, will and emotions or personality) will still try to assert dominance over their personal spirit that resides inside of them, but one must learn to submit their soul and spirit to the Spirit of Elohim, that is, to the mind, will, ways and Word of Elohim, their Creator. 

Paul discusses the struggle between the soul and the spirit in ­Romans 7:14–25. This is the same struggle that Jacob faced in his dark night of the soul when wrestled not only with his own carnal limitations, but with the preincarnate Yeshua the Messiah. There he died to his own will and finally submitted totally to that of his Heavenly King. There Yeshua not only became his Savior but also his Lord and Master. Jacob’s struggle is the same struggle that each of us faces. Will we overcome and become a new person with a new spiritual identity and receive heaven’s blessing, or will we hang on to our old ways and keep beating our heads aimlessly and pointlessly against the wall of our own limitations? The choice is ours.

Genesis 33

To be continued…

 

Elim Fellowship Online Weekly Shabbat Gathering Invitation

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Many Hebraic Christians are having difficulty finding a local fellowship to attend of like-minded believers in Yeshua and his Torah-Truth. It’s a spiritual wilderness out there! For those who YHVH is calling to walk the more biblically aligned, upward-focused Spirit and Truth path (John 4:23–24), it is a niche market, so to speak. That is, there are few people who are willing to leave the comfort zones of traditional Christianity or even a low-level Hebraic, Torah-centric walk. If you are wanting more as you are attempting to fly higher in your spiritual trajectory, but can’t find meaningful fellowship, or deep, Spirit-filled and led, meaty biblical teachings, then perhaps Elim Fellowship Online is the place for you.

For the past four years, we have been meeting online via Zoom (a free app) that is accessible via any WiFi connected device (e.g., home computer, tablet or smartphone). We meet weekly on the seventh day Sabbath (on Saturdays) and on the biblical feasts at 2:30 PM US East Coast Time (or Eastern Standard Time). Yeshua and Torah-lovers from many US states and several other countries join us weekly. We pray together, midrash, sing, share biblical insights and do formal teachings each week.

If YHVH is speaking to you about the need (and the biblical command) to assemble on his divine appointments (i.e., the weekly Sabbath and biblical feasts, Lev 23:2–3; Her 10:25–25), then please send Nathan Lawrence an email at hoshanarabbah@earthlink.net or hoshana.blog@gmail.com. Please state your name, where you are from, plus a brief testimony of how you came to Yeshua (your salvation testimony) and your interest in and involvement with the Hebraic, pro-Torah roots of our Christian faith. We will then go from there with additional details on how to connect.

 

Nathan’s Commentary on Parashat Vayetzei Genesis 28:10–32:3

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Genesis 28

Genesis 28:11, 16, 17, 19, That place…this place. Heb. hamakom. Explained above in verse 11. 

Genesis 28:19, Bethel. In Hebrew Bethel means “house of El.” Although there were at least two towns by this name in the land of Israel, this is not the name of a town, but rather a prophetic designation for Mount Moriah as “the house of El,” which is where the future Solomon’s temple or House of El (as it came to be known, see 2 Chron 3:3; 4:11, etc.) was eventually built on the present Temple Mount in Jerusalem. That this location was in Jerusalem and near Bethlehem (or Ephrath, as it is also known, which is only five miles south of Jerusalem) is suggested in Genesis 35:16 and 19. Bethel was also a city 12 miles northeast of Jerusalem, which may be referenced in Genesis 12:8 and 13:3. Christian scholars believe this to be the spot where Jacob had his ladder to heaven dream (Gen 28), while Jewish tradition places the spot of Jacob’s dream on the present Temple Mount. Another Bethel (or possibly the Bethul of Josh 19:4) or Bethuel (1 Chron 4:30) was located in the territory of Simeon (1 Sam 30:27).

Genesis 28:22, I will surely give the tenth. To whom would Jacob ultimately tithe? We don’t know, but Jacob may have been making a prophecy about his descendants bringing their tithes and offerings to the house of El or the temple that would eventually be built on that exact spot.

Jacob’s dream in Genesis 28 was his first, life-changing personal encounter with the Elohim of his fathers (Gen 28:10ff). What was his response? It was to serve YHVH and to worship him by giving him one-tenth (a tithe) of his increase (verse 22). What prompted this response on Jacob’s part? Why was such a response appropriate? Let’s answer this question with a question. When did you have your first encounter with your Heavenly Father and Master? In following the example of Jacob, have you faithfully used the first fruits of your increase to honor, worship and express your gratitude to him ever since? If not, why not? Scripture calls not tithing “robbing Elohim” and that as a result a curse may be on one’s finances (see Mal 3:8–11). Proverbs 3:9 lays out a solid truth about how tithing is a form of worshipping the Creator. “Honour [glorify] YHVH with thy substance, and with the first fruits of all thine increase, so shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst out with new wine.”

The Scriptures reveal the importance of the spiritual law of reciprocity; namely, you reap what you sow (Gen 8:22; Gal 6:7–9). If you don’t sow you will not reap. If you sow evil or good you will reap the same. Jacob had to learn this law the hard way. In Job 4:8 we read, “Even as I have seen, they that plow iniquity, and sow wickedness, reap the same.” Jacob gained the birthright through posing as Esau (a deception) and Laban in turn deceives Jacob by putting Leah under the veil posing as Rachel in Jacob’s marriage bed. It is very easy to see the principle of reaping and sowing in others’ lives, but it is extremely difficult to see this principle at work on our lives. We are prone to concoct every excuse and argument imaginable to justify our sinful actions and then blame the results on others. In psychological terms this is known as projection. Prayerfully take a long and hard look at your life, examine hardships and trials, and then honestly ask yourself the question: Am I reaping what I have sown? It is never too late to repent and make a course correction—to bring your life into agreement with YHVH’s Word and will, so you can start reaping Elohim’s blessings.

Honesty, patience and submission to authority are fruits of righteousness. What did YHVH have to teach Jacob about these fruits of the Spirit? Jacob was impatient in submitting to YHVH’s will and waiting for the birthright to come to him in a righteous way. How did YHVH use Laban to correct these character flaws in Jacob? Jacob had to go into the Babylonian world for a season in order to be refined before being ready to be a patriarch worthy of honor and an example of righteousness as the father of the twelve tribes of Israel. What is YHVH allowing you to go through to refine you of character flaws and defects to prepare you for the future mission he has for you? Are you submitting to his refining fires that are burning the wood, hay and stubble out of your life (1 Cor 3:12–15), or are you resisting him thereby forcing him to “turn up the heat” of his discipline to help you “to get the point” and learn your lesson? (Read Heb 12:5–15.)

Jacob was forced to go east (toward Babylon) as a form of exile and punishment for his sins. After serving as almost a bondservant to Laban for 20 years, he returned westward to Canaan, the land of promise. This eastward-westward movement was a pattern followed by Jacob’s descendants later on several occasions. Even Abraham left Babylon and went west to Canaan. What are the prophetic implications of this in the end times when YHVH is calling his people to “come out” of spiritual Babylon (Rev 18:4)? Yes, YHVH is calling his people to leave the Babylon of this world and spiritually to cross over the Jordan River and back into his holy land of righteousness and obedience to him, so that his blessings can flow in our direction.

While in Babylonia, Jacob builds a complete family in “exile” consisting of twelve tribal leaders. To return to the Promised Land of Canaan, he had to encounter Esau (or Edom), who is the father of many of the modern day Arab peoples. This is this a prophetic picture of what? Indeed, history repeated itself hundreds of years later when the Jewish exilic remnant again encountered Esau’s descendants when they come back from Babylon under Ezra and Nehemiah. Is this not happening again in our time as the exiled Jews return to Israel—their ancestral and Elohim-given homeland? Who currently is opposing their return and is openly vowing to annihilate them? Yes! The modern spiritual and biological descendants of Edom! Consider Edom’s opposition to Jacob past, present and future. What (or who) is really behind this opposition to Israel’s (Jacob’s) inheriting his birthright that includes a land inheritance whose borders are from Egypt to the Euphrates River in modern Iraq?

Jacob vowing to tithe to Elohim was his acknowledging his submission to Elohim and to his will—that Elohim was the Lord over his life. Complete submission to Elohim came hard for Jacob. The same is true for us, and when we tithe, this is an act of worship of Elohim and acknowledgement that we have come to a higher place of surrender in our lives and are back living in his holy land, so to speak.

Genesis 28:1–22 and 29:1, Jacob’s journeys. Jacob was fleeing from his spiritual home, Beth-el or House of El, and was heading east some 500 miles on foot as a lone traveler and fugitive en route to Babylonia (definitely not the House of El). What is the spiritual and prophetic significance of this? What is there for us to learn? As prodigals, when we stray from Elohim, sometimes we, like Jacob, have to spend a season in bondage in the pig pen Babylon of this world. Once we have been disciplined, learned a few hard lessons and come to our senses, our loving Father in heaven will bring us back to our spiritual roots and back into relationship with him as Jacob learned the hard way. Today we refer to this process as “learning via the school of hard knocks.”

Elsewhere the Scriptures refer prophetically to Babylon as “the habitation of devils and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird” (Rev 18:2). Through his own human effort, Jacob had connived to procure the birthright blessing and in so doing had stepped out of the will of YHVH by trusting in himself instead of having faith in divine Providence to bring about YHVH’s perfect and blessed will for his life. Out of the YHVH’s perfect will, Jacob, like the prodigal son, found himself in spiritual filth and pig pen of Babylon. But YHVH is gracious and often blesses us in spite of our human foibles and weaknesses. For example, YHVH had been gracious to Isaac earlier when he stepped out of YHVH’s perfect will for his life in attempting to flee Canaan for Egypt. YHVH graciously comforted him and redirected his steps back to a more favorable spot (Gen 26:1–6). Likewise, YHVH met the lonely Jacob and encouraged him at the outset of his long journey, for in Genesis 29:1 we read, “Jacob lifted up his feet and came into the land of the people of the east” (KJV, marginal reference). 

What can we learn about the ways of YHVH from these examples? May we learn to be in tune with YHVH’s methods of operation in our lives. The more we study the word of YHVH, and the examples of the lives of those showcased therein, the more we will learn about our own lives. So study the recorded events about the lives of YHVH’s servants of old to learn wisdom for your daily life and spiritual walk. In so doing, we will learn how to stay in YHVH’s perfect will for our life, and when we happen to stray off of his path, if we open our eyes and hearts, we will see him mercifully and graciously attempting to redirect us back to him.

Genesis 29–30

The meanings of the names of the 12 patriarchs of the 12 tribes of Israel are instructive and pregnant with prophetic meaning.

Genesis 29:32–35:18, The birth of the Jacob’s twelve sons and the meaning of their names. The Scriptures record that the gospel message was preached not only to the first century believers in Yeshua the Messiah, but also to ancient Israel (Heb 4:2), and to the Patriarchs (Gal 3:8). Before us is yet another example of this in the meanings of the names of the twelve sons of Jacob. His twelve sons were Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Dan, Naphtali, Gad, Asher, Issachar, Zebulun, Joseph and Benjamin (who was not born until Gen 35:18). The meanings of their names and the statements the Bible attaches to those meanings reveal YHVH’s glorious plan of salvation for mankind. The Scriptures call this message “the good news” or “gospel.”

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Jacob’s Ladder: YHVH’s Plan of Salvation From Genesis to the Book of Revelation—The BIG Picture!

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Introduction to the Study of Genesis 28:10–22

Jacob’s vision of a ladder to heaven is one of those enigmatic scriptural passages which has befuddled the
keen intellects of many Bible scholars down through the ages. Perhaps the deeper elucidations of Jacob’s
vision has escaped the reader as well. If so, you are not alone, for even well-known Christian commentators such as Matthew Henry and Adam Clarke struggled to find the deeper meaning of this allegorical dream but fell short of an adequate explanation. They realized that it had something to do with the Person of Yeshua the Messiah and his heaven-ordained ministry to reconcile earth’s inhabitants to their Heavenly Father and Creator but had little more to say on the matter. Keil and Delitzsch don’t even connect Jacob’s dream to the Person of Yeshua. Other than vague explanations as to the dream’s interpretations, these esteemed scholars have nothing more to proffer the reader. Little if anything is said of the allegorical meaning of the ladder, the dust, the stones (plural) becoming a stone (singular) or of the significance of “the place.” Even the unusually insightful biblical scholar Arthur W. Pink in his book, Gleanings In Genesis,though he draws 101 parallels between Joseph and Yeshua the Messiah, gives the reader no more insights into the spiritual and prophetic implications of Jacob’s ladder than do Henry and Clarke. This is some of the best that Christian scholars have to offer on this subject. As we are about to discover, below the tip of this gigantic biblical iceberg there is a vast revelation of truth in Jacob’s prophetic and allegorical dream that is waiting to be explored.

But before delving into the prophetic and symbolic significance of Jacob’s ladder dream, perhaps Jewish Torah scholars have something to offer us. It goes without saying that the traditional Jewish interpretations will be devoid of any references to Yeshua the Messiah, but otherwise, perhaps we glean some pearls of understanding from them anyway. After all, these sages have been studying this passage for more than 3800 years! Curiously, Shlomo Yitzchaki known by his rabbinic acronym as Rashi and viewed by many Jews as the greatest Torah expositor of the last 1000 years, has little to add to our understanding as does Samson Raphael Hirsch, the great nineteenth-century rabbinic Torah scholar. The Baal HaTurim in his Torah commentary adds some interesting insights relating to the subsurface or hidden meaning of some of the Hebrew words used in the text that not only confirm the simple or plain meaning of the text, but add depth to it as well on an allegorical or prophetic level. We will cite a number of other Jewish scholars who between them contribute greatly to our understanding of the text. But for all their collective wisdom, these Jewish scholars, not surprisingly, fail to connect the meaning of the ladder to YHVH’s plan of redemption and salvation for Israel and ultimately for all of mankind. They fail to see the big picture and master plan involving the Messiah, the Living Word of Elohim, sent from heaven to redeem lost mankind. Yet as we will discover, this revelation and much more besides is to be found in this dream that takes up only one verse in the Bible!

Both the Christian scholars and the Jewish sages are blind in part to the truth behind Jacob’s dream, since both have rejected half of the key to unlocking the full depth and panoramic understanding of this vision. The former has, to one degree or another, rejected its Jewish or Hebraic roots and the relevance of YHVH’s written Torah, while the latter has rejected Yeshua, Living Word or Living Torah sent from Heaven to give us wisdom, understanding, redemption and salvation. Each side is spiritually blind in part to one-half of YHVH’s truth (Rom 11:25). Both have stumbled over the stone of stumbling and the rock of offence (Isa 8:14). The Christians have rejected much of the truth of the written Torah, while the Jews have rejected the spirit of prophecy and YHVH’s plan of salvation as revealed through Yeshua, the Living Torah (Rev 19:20). To understand the heart of the Father as revealed in his written word, Yeshua said that it would take both spirit and truth (John 4:23–24). With these realities in mind, let us proceed to understand the vision of Jacob in its full spirit and truth, panoramic scope.

The Text 

Let’s now read the text in Genesis 28:10–22 pertaining to Jacob and his dream of the ladder to heaven. The bolded words are defined below under the “Word Definitions” section of this teaching.

10 And Jacob went out from Beersheba, and went toward Haran.

11 And he encountered/interceded/prayed at the place, and spent the night there, because the sun had set; and he took of the stones of the place which he arranged around his head, and lay down in the place to sleep.

12 And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up earthward/on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of Elohim ascending and descending on it.

13 And, behold, YHVH stood above it, and said, I am YHVH, Elohim of Abraham your father, and the Elohim of Isaac: the ground upon which you are lying, to you will I give it, and to your seed/descendants;

14 And your seed/descendants shall be as the dust of the earth, and you shall spread out powerfully to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in you and in your seed/descendants shall all the families of the earth be blessed.

15 And, behold, I am with you, and will guard you in all places wherever you go, and will bring you again into this land; for I will not forsake you, until I have done what I have spoken about you.

16 And Jacob awoke out of his sleep, and he said, Surely YHVH is in this place; and I knew it not.

17 And he was afraid, and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other but the house of Elohim, and this is the gate of heaven.

18 And Jacob rose up early in the morning, and took the stone that he placed around his head, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil upon the top of it.

19 And he called the name of the place Bethel: but the name of that city was called Luz originally.

20 And Jacob vowed a vow, saying, “If Elohim will be with me, and will guard me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and clothes to wear, 

21 So that I come again to my father’s house in peace; then shall YHVH be my Elohim: 

22 And this stone, which I have set for a pillar, shall become a house of Elohim: and whatever you give me I shall repeatedly give a tenth/tithe to you.” (emphasis added)

Word Definitions

To understand this passage properly and to discover the deep spiritual mysteries contained therein, we must first define some of the words from a biblical, Hebraic perspective.

Verse 11, The place [haMakom]. In Jewish understanding, this Hebrew word is a reference to Mount Moriah, that is, the “Temple Mount” (The ArtScroll Stone Edition Chumash, p. 144, commentary on verse 11) where Isaac was “sacrificed” and the Jerusalem temple was eventually built. The imminent Jewish Torah scholar, Rashi (Solomon Yitzhaki, 1040–1105) in his definitive Torah commentary also identifies the place mentioned in this verse with Mount Moriah. In The ArtScroll Bereishis, quoting Rashi,we read, “The Torah does not tell us which place. Instead it uses the definite article in the place, implying that the identity of the place was so well known that it need not be specified. This indicates that it refers to the site referred to elsewhere by the designation the place: Mount Moriah, of which it is said [in Gen 22:4 (see also Deut 16:16)]: ‘he saw the place from afar’” (p. 1219). The same commentary continues, “It cannot refer to any place other than Mount Moriah since the Torah itself refers to that holy site as makom, the place, in several places [Gen 22:4; and as Ralbag notes, the future Temple site on Mount Moria is also obliquely referred to in the Torah as the ‘place’ Hashem [YHVH] shall select (Deut 16:16 and frequently)] Accordingly, by its reference to place here, the allusion to Moriah is clear (Mizrachi)” (ibid.). Baal Ha Turim notes in his Torah commentary that in verse 11 the term the place appears three times “which is an allusion to the three pilgrimage [aliyot] festivals [i.e., Pesach/Passover and Chag haMatzot/the Feast of Unleavened Bread, Chag haShavuot/the Feast of Weeks or Pentecost and Chag haSukkot/the Feast of Tabernacles] at which times Jacob’s descendants would ascend to this place [i.e., the temple in Jerusalem].”

Verse 11, Encountered, interceded, prayed [Heb. paga]. According to The ArtScroll Bereishis Commentary, the Jewish sages interprets the word paga, as used here and in Genesis 23:8 and Jeremiah 7:16 to denote prayer and intercession (p. 1219). If we realize that this place was Mount Moriah where the future temple would be built (explained below), then Jacob’s praying at this spot is symbolic and prophetic, since the temple was to be known later as a house of prayer (Isa 56:7; Matt 21:13; Mark 11:17; Luke 19:46), and became the place on earth where YHVH would hear the prayers of his people (2 Sam 7:27; 1 Kgs 8:29; 2 Chr 6:20, 29; 7:12).

Verses 11, 18, 22, Stone(s) is the Hebrew word ehben meaning “stone through the meaning to build” (from banah [meaning “to build, builder”]).

Examples of the usage of the word ehben elsewhere in the Tanakh (Old Testament) include the following:

  • Refers to the 10 Words (“Commandments”) on tablets of stone (ehben) (Deut 4:13; 5:22; Exod 24:12; 34:1, 4).
  • Refers to the Messiah who was the Stone (ehben) the builders (banah) rejected that eventually became the head of the corner (Ps 118:22).
  • Refers to the Messiah who was to become a stone (ehben) of stumbling and a rock of offence to both the houses of Israel (Isa 8:14).
  • Refers to the Messiah when YHVH through Isaiah prophesied, “Behold I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone [ehben], a tried stone [ehben], a sure foundation” (Isa 28:16).
  • A title for Elohim: the Stone (ehben) of Israel (Gen 49:24).

Verse 12, Ladder is the Hebrew word sulam meaning “staircase”(from salal [meaning “cast up, lift up, exalt”and according to The Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament (The TWOT) probably means “a highway or literally a road that is higher than the adjacent terrain.” The TWOT notes that this word is used by the prophets in the sense of “God’s [spiritual] highway” from which Israel had departed to follow false bypaths (Isa 57:14; 62:10]).

In Jewish mystical literature, this ladder is equivalent to a tree (Heb. etz)(e.g., as in the sephirotic tree in later Jewish mystical thought) and a tzelon Elohim; (i.e., a supernatural image of Elohim; Messiah Vol. 3, p. 149; by Avi Ben Mordechai).

On verse 12, Jewish sage Ya’acov Baal Ha Turim (born ca. AD 1269) in his Torah commentary notes several interesting facts about the word ladder (Heb. sulam). First he states that the word sulam is spelled defectively (with the kubutz vowel point replacing the vav after the letter samech). Therefore, sulam is spelled samech, lamed, mem or okx instead of samech, vav, lamed, mem or okux. What is the significance of this occurrence in the Torah? According to Michael Munk in his book, The Wisdom In the Hebrew Alphabet (pp.100–103) defective spelling of words occurs occasionally in other words in the Torah such as shalom/o`uKA(peace, well being) and owr/r~ut (light). When a word is spelled defectively, it signifies that the word should be understood to take on a diminished or defective meaning as opposed to the full expression of the word at its highest spiritual level. For example, in the first chapter of Genesis prior to verse 14 (when the physical luminaries were created) the light that shown prior to the fourth day was a supernatural or spiritual light emanating from Elohim himself, and therefore the Hebrew word for light, owr/r~ut,is spelled complete with the vav (r~ut) whereas the light that shone from the physical luminaries after the creation on the fourth day was a physical or low level of light, and therefore the word light is spelled defectively, without the vav (r~t). This occurs in the Tanakh with the word shalom/o`uKA as well. Spelled defectively (i.e., o`K{A) it refers to a physical, man-made peace, whereas spelled complete it represents the spiritual peace which comes only from Elohim. So what is the significance of the defective spelling of the word sulam (ladder) in our text? Hold this question in abeyance for the time being, for we shall answer it below.

Baal HaTurim also notes that the gematria (or numerical valuation of the Hebrew letters) for sulam is the same as that for the words wealth or money and poverty as well as for the words sound or voice. Keep this in mind also. Understanding these concepts are all part of unravelling the mystery of what (or who) the ladder represents!

Finally, Baal HaTurim has one other observation to make about the word sulam. The letters or consonants (S-L-M; Hebrew words generally consists of only consonants) are the same as the word for idol (S-M-L, pronounced seh-mehl). Based on this association, Baal HaTurim suggests that Elohim was showing Jacob a prophecy that his descendants would eventually fall into idolatry. We shall explore some other implications of the similarity between these two words later on.

Verse 12, Set up is the Hebrew word natsab meaning “to set up, put, place, stand firmly, fix, establish, to be planted”(Judg 9:6). Examples of usage of the word natsab elsewhere in the Tanakh include:

“YHVH stands in his congregation.” (Ps 82:1)

“I saw YHVH standing upon the altar.” (Amos 9:1)

Verse 12, Earthis the Hebrew word eretz or artzah meaning “to be firm, the earth, a land, country, ground, world.” Eretz throughout Scripture and in modern Hebrew is a colloquial expression denoting “the land of Israel.”

Verse 12, Topis the Hebrew word rosh meaning “head, beginning, captain, chief, first, height, highest part, summit or foremost.” Examples of the usage of the word rosh as found elsewhere in the Tanakh include:

  • The stone which the builders refused is become the head of the corner [i.e., the Messiah, Ps 118:22)
  • Matthew 21:42 quoting Psalm 118:22 referring to Yeshua.
  • Other Hebrew-speaking Jewish authors of the Testimony of Yeshua (New Testament) carry this same idea into their writings:
  • First Peter 2:7–8 speaks of the stone which the builder disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner, a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense which stumble at the Word or Torah of Elohim (i.e., Yeshua, who is the Living Torah).
  • The saints are the house [Heb. bethel] of YHVH and are built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Yeshua the Messiah himself being the chief cornerstone in whom all the building fitly framed together grows into a set-apart [Heb. kadosh] temple in YHVH in whom you are also built together for a habitation of YHVH through the Spirit (Eph 2:20–27).

Baal Ha Turim in his Torah commentary on this verse notes that the numerical values of the words “a ladder set up or standing”is equivalent to the ramp leading up to the altar of the temple and the concept of the ladder “set up on the earth or earthward”is an allusion to the altar which in Exodus 20:24 is described as an “altar of earth.”  The expression its “top or head reaching heavenward”is an allusion to the fragrance of the offerings, which ascended heavenward as a sweet savor to YHVH (Exod 29:18; 29:25; etc.). Below we will learn the spiritual significance of this to the redeemed believer in Yeshua.

Verse 14, Dust is the Hebrew word aphar meaning “pulverized earth, clay, dry, loose earth.” On the phrase in this verse, “Your descendants shall be as the dust of the earth,” The ArtScroll Bereishis Commentary states that  Sforno (a notable sixteenth-century Italian Jewish philosopher and Bible exegete) connects this phrase with the following one, rendering: Only after your offspring shall have become as degraded as the dust of the earth (see Isa 51:23) shall they spread out powerfully to the west, east, north, and south. For, as the Sages have taught, God’s future salvation [or, the Final Redemption which is to occur prior to and during the Messianic Age (or Millennial Age) will come only after Israel has experienced much degradation. R. Bachya (a late eleventh-century Jewish philosopher and moralist) interprets  this word similarly. He notes that Elohim compared Israel to the dust of the earth rather than to the stars in heaven (as he did when he blessed Isaac in Gen 26:4) to intimate that Israel will become like dust in ways other than abundance. Dust has the connotation of lowliness inasmuch as Israel would be downtrodden like the dust while in exile. Also, like dust, however, they would endure everything and prevail, just as the earth survives all those who tread on it. As Isaiah foretold (Isa 26:5): He brings it to the dust, yet it is from the dust that Israel will be redeemed, as it is written (ibid. 52:2): Shake yourself from the dust, arise…O Jerusalem” (p. 1231). Here are several examples  in the Tanakh of the Israelites being likened to dust trampled under the feet of the heathen:

YHVH to Abram: I will make your seed as the dust of the earth… (Gen 13:16)

Who can count the dust of Jacob, and the number of the fourth part of Israel? (Num 23:10)

Now, O YHVH Elohim, let thy promise unto David my father be established: for thou has made me king over a people like the dust of the earth in multitude. (2 Chron 1:9, emphasis added on all)

Verse 17, Gate (of heaven) is the Hebrew word shah-ar meaning “opening, gate, door.” According to The TWOT, the root idea of this word is “to split open, to break through.” The term gate in Scripture can sometimes be used as a metonymy where the gate represents the whole of the city (e.g., Gen 22:17; 24:60). In Genesis 28:17, it is a symbol of the means of access to heaven (ibid.). The ArtScroll Bereishis Commentary says, “It is the gate through which prayers and sacrifices ascend to heaven [according to the Jewish sages, Rashi and Ramban]” (p. 1238).

This heavenly gate is literally a portal into the spirit or heavenly world beyond.This spot where the future temple was built was a portal or a gateway to heaven. Down through the ages, spiritist-type people are often looking for sacred spots where they believe portals exist in an effort to connect to the spirit world beyond in order to receive secret knowledge or to seek wisdom and understanding about the meaning of life. The wonderful thing for the saints is that Yeshua promised that his disciples would receive the Holy Spirit, who would live within them and through their human or personal spirit would connect them to the divine. Christians do not need sacred spots or portals, relics, magic rituals, incantations or psychotropic drugs to bring us into the throne room of the Creator. For the redeemed believer, Yeshua the Messiah is our portal, our gate to heaven, our way to the Father in heaven, the way, the truth and the life. If Yeshua is your Lord and Savior, rejoice, child of the Most High Elohim, for you are the temple of the Spirit of Elohim, who now lives in you because of your personal relationship with Yeshua the Messiah! Savor, treasure and abide in this divine Truth!

Verse 19, Beth El means “house of El.” Beth Elwas formerly Luz meaning “almond (tree), turn aside, depart.”

Jacob’s Dream Explained

Now that we have defined our terms, it is time to start putting the pieces of this allegorical and prophetic puzzle together. The Jewish sages know that this dream is prophetic when they state, “In general, the expositors [of the Torah] agree that the vision was a disclosure of the future of the Jewish nation” (The ArtScroll Bereishis Commentary, vol. 1(b), p. 1224). 

Classical Christian commentator, Adam Clarke, in his commentary on Genesis, in grasping to comprehend the meaning of the dream, suppositions that the ladder “was probably a type of [Messiah], in whom both worlds meet, and in whom the divine and human nature are conjoined. The ladder was set up on the earth, was manifested in the flesh, and in him [Messiah Yeshua] dwelt all the fullness of the Godhead bodily. Nothing could be a more expressive emblem of the incarnation and its effects; [Yeshua the Messiah] is the grand connecting medium between heaven and earth, between God and man. By him God comes down to man, through him man ascends to God” (Clarkes Commentary, vol. 1, p. 176). 

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Genesis 32:1–32 “Jacob’s Trouble” Explained

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Esau (Edom) and Jacob (Israel)

Genesis 32

The phrase “Jacob’s trouble” is a curious code term found buried deep in the prophetic writings of the ancient Jewish prophet Jeremiah who lived in the sixth century BC. Many Bible commentators have recognized that this phrase has end time prophetic implications and have attempted to decode this perplexing prophecy. Many have offered novel explanations as to its meaning. But most have fallen short. Why is this? Because unless one takes into consideration the greater contextual backdrop of this phrase, any explanation will wildly miss the target. Once the veil of mystery is lifted, this prophecy along with its Genesis 32 historical context, suddenly opens a huge panoramic window of understanding that explains the current conflict in the Middle East between the Jews and the Muslims, between the country of Israel and its surrounding neighbors as well as the tension between Islam and Christianity, plus explosive eruption of the current rise of anti-Semitism and anti-Israel sentiments worldwide. 

 Moreover, a failure to understand the meaning of “Jacob’s trouble” explains the current animus in some of the most unexpected places including among some so-called contemporary American Christian social media influencers and news commentators such as Tucker Carlson, Candace Owens and Nick Fuentes to name a few. If these misguided and uninformed media personalities were to understand the true biblical end time implications of Jacob’s trouble, they en masse would be stunned into silence, put a hand over their mouths, and immediately shut off their microphones for a long moment of reflection and repentance. They would quickly realize that they are on the wrong side of history, the truth and YHVH Elohim, the God of the Bible. In fact, they are taking the position of the spirit of antichrist! This may seem like a wild assertion on the part of  this author, but once the facts are revealed, the pieces of the puzzle will suddenly and easily fall into a place and a huge picture of undeniable truth will form and the silly, childish babbling of the foolish Israel-haters will be once and for all silenced. 

Woe be to anyone who finds themselves on the side of the enemies of the God of Israel. The Pharaoh of Egypt, the Babylonians, the Persians, the Greeks, the Romans, the Muslims, the Catholic Church, the Russian Tsar,  the British Empire, Hitler, the Palestinian Authority, the Muslim Brotherhood, the United Nations, the International Criminal Court, Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran, Yemen and many more have attempted or are attempting in vain to squelch or even extinguish Jacob’s descendents from fulfilling their God-mandated Abrahamic Covenantal promises in one way or the other, and all have failed and are to this day still failing.

Now let’s learn what the phrase “Jacob’s trouble” means, and may the veil of ignorance be lifted and the scales fall off the eyes of the unbelievers and skeptics, and may the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their descendants along with the timeless truth of the Bible be vindicated(!)—sadly as if this should even be necessary.

“Jacob’s Trouble”—His Dark Night of the Soul in End Times Prophecy and YOU!

Jacob meeting Esau

You have probably heard the saying that the night is the darkest just before the dawn. Metaphorically speaking, when circumstances conspire against you and the outcome looks the bleakest, that is often when the rays of hope begin to shine through the darkest darkness and the outcome suddenly reveals itself. A way forward unexpectedly manifests itself out of the obscure gloom of apparent defeat and hopelessness. People of faith can more easily relate to such a scenario. This was exactly the place in which the patriarch Jacob found himself when returning to the land of Canaan—the future Promised Land. He had reached the pinnacles of success in his earthly endeavors, and now circumstances beyond his control in front of and behind him were conspiring to take everything away including his very life This is not only the story of his life, but each of us has likely found ourselves in similar spots as well. Deliverance and victory often emerge out of the darkest and bleakest periods of life. This is a test of our faith that, if we are to progress to the next level in our spiritual growth, we must pass.

Genesis 32 is the story of Jacob’s return to Canaan after having been exiled from his homeland for 20 years. His exile occurred after he obtained his divinely promised birthright through shrewd and somewhat unscrupulous means from his brother Esau resulting in his having to flee Canaan for fear of his life due to his brothers desire lust for vengeance. Jacob took refuge in the region of Babylonia at his Uncle Laban’s home, where he married Laban’s two daughters, Leah and Rachel. After twenty years working for the greedy and treacherous Laban, Jacob had to flee Babylon with is father-in-law in angry pursuit. As if that were not enough, while Jacob and his family were returning to Canaan, they encountered Jacob’s angry brother Esau who was still angry two decades later of being cheated out of his inheritance. Esau along with a small army not only stood in Jacob’s way from entering the land of his promised inheritance, but also wanted to kill Jacob. 

This account of Jacob’s personal, spiritual struggles also has prophetic, end times implications relating to the regathering out of exile of the twelve tribes of Israel (the Jews and the Christians) and their return to the Promised Land in Israel under Yeshua the Messiah at his second coming. The Scriptures refer to this time period as “Jacob’s Trouble.” This Bible verse is found in Jeremiah where we read,

Alas! For that day is great, so that none is like it; and it is the time of Jacob’s trouble, but he shall be saved out of it. (Jer 30:7)

The ancient Jewish sages believe that the encounter between Jacob and Esau (no doubt informed by Jeremiah’s prophecy) is prophetic in nature and will happen again in the end times, but this time on a much larger scale involving the numerous descendants of both Israel (or Jacob) and Esau (also called Edom). That is to say, the Israelites of the end times will be attempting to return to their ancestral homeland, while the modern descendants of Esau (the forces of Antichrist as represented by the antichrist religion of Islam and their Elohim-hating allies) will be blocking their way. As we proceed in this study, we will see whether this prophecy is beginning to come to pass in these last days.

Relating to Jacob’s descendants coming into the Promised Land, the ancient Jewish sages speak of two major redemptions in Israel’s long history. The first redemption occurred when YHVH delivered the oppressed and enslaved children of Israel out of Egypt at the exodus. History will then repeat itself in what the Jewish sages refer to as “the second or final redemption,” which will occur at the end of this present era when the Messiah will regather and then lead his exiled and scattered Israelite people back to the Promised Land in fulfillment of numerous biblical prophecies. 

Rolling the time line backwards a little in the present story of Jacob, not only had Laban chased his son-in-law out of the area of Babylon, but Jacob was also being blocked from entering Canaan by his murderous brother Esau (or Edom). This is reminiscent of Pharaoh pursuing the Israelites as they were exodusing Egypt only to find their escape route blocked by the Red Sea. Pharaoh was the first Edom, if you will, or, stated otherwise, Edom is the second Pharaoh. In both instances, YHVH’s people were or will be forced to rely totally on him for deliverance from their enemies who were both in front of and behind them.

Initially, Jacob dealt with his crisis in a typically human way—by scheming and conniving “to save his own skin,” so to speak, instead of having faith in YHVH “to work things out.” He figured that by bribing his angry and bloodthirsty brother with wave after wave of gifts, he might appease and assuage Esau’s desire for murderous revenge (Gen 32:13–20).

Yet Jacob’s bifurcated response to this present danger by resorting to both appeasement and prayer was not acceptable to YHVH, who wanted Jacob to be a man of unmitigated faith, that is, to solely trust in him. Or as Job put it, though you slay me, yet will I trust you (Job 13:15).To bring Jacob to this point, a part of Jacob had to die: his prideful self-reliance and his inclination toward extricating himself from difficult situations through his own cunning ingenuity. This innate tendency of his, not unlike our own, was based on fear of death, and not on faith in YHVH. The Bible tells us that where there is fear, there is no love (1 John 4:18), and that YHVH has not given his people a spirit of fear, but of love, power and a sound mind (2 Tim 1:7). For Jacob to mature spiritually, YHVH wanted him to leave the fear and faithless aspect of his human nature on the east side of the Jordan where Babylon (a spiritual metaphor for the old carnal and sinful man and the ungodly ways of this world) was located. In its place, a faith-filled man who would totally trust YHVH in all things had to rise up. Jacob could no longer trust in his soul man (i.e., his mind, will and emotions) to determine his actions; rather, he had to rely on the Spirit of Elohim to lead him as it informed his inner man or personal spirit, which would, in turn, lead his soul forward in the walk of faith. Only a man of faith, who is mighty in the Spirit and obedient to YHVH, will be deemed worthy to enter the Promised Land (see Ezek 20:33–38, especially note vv. 37–38). The children of Israel learned this lesson the hard way too. The carcasses of older generation that lacked faith in and obedience to YHVH littered the wilderness en route to the Promised Land. 

For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it…Since therefore it remains that some must enter it, and those to whom it was first preached did not enter because of disobedience…(Heb 4:2, 6)

Like Jacob’s descendants later learned, he too had to discover that his old man, who lacked faith, had to die just before entering the Promised Land. But this was a difficult process. This is because Jacob had to come to grips with his own limitations and overcome the ugly side of his innate human nature that was directed by his mind, will and emotions and not by the Spirit of Elohim. This internal battle between the soul and the spirit occurred during a “dark-night-of-the-soul-encounter” when Jacob wrestled all night with the Messenger of Elohim (Gen 32:22–32). 

The result was that in this struggle Jacob became permanently lame in his hip (Gen 32:32). He became physically injured, but more importantly, he became humbled in his heart. His soul man (i.e., his mind, will and emotions) became subservient to his spirit man (under the leading of the Spirit of Elohim). Out of his wrestling match, he gained a new identity, a new heart and a new name. Jacob the “heal catcher” became Israel “the prince of El [God]” or “the prevailer with El.” By wrestling with and overcoming his own soulish or carnal limitations, that is, his own pride, self-reliance on his mind to figure things out instead of trusting Elohim by walking in the faith and in the Spirit, he became a broken and changed man. By trusting in YHVH, he became a vessel that the Creator could use to further his plan of redemption as promised to Abraham, the father of our faith, for it was through Jacob that the birth of birth the nation of Israel was to occur.

Through events leading up to Jacob’s dark night of the soul, he learned a vital spiritual lesson: his carnal attempts at appeasing Esau gained him nothing except a slimmer net worth via the loss of material possessions. On the other hand, his wrestling with and surrendering to the Messenger of Elohim—who was, in reality, the preincarnate Yeshua—gained him and his descendants not only a nation and the Promised Land, but ultimately the whole world, through Yeshua the Messiah, and a place in YHVH’s eternal kingdom.

Interestingly and as part of a larger picture that would latter play out prophetically in the Bible’s pages, as a gambit to save his own skin from his vengeful brother, Jacob divided his family into two camps in the hopes that if Esau killed one group, the other would survive and vice versa. This was another one of his schemes that failed to work, but which has tremendous end-time prophetic implications. Genesis 32:2 records that Jacob called the name of the place where he split his family into two camps Mahanaim, which is a Hebrew word meaning “two camps” and is the plural of the root word machanah meaning “encampment, camp, camp of armed host, army camp, company or body of people.”This spot is near the River Jabok, which is a tributary to the Jordan River and is located on the east side of that river in the modern country of Jordan.During the time of the nation of ancient Israel, it was located in the Gilead region on either the border between Gad and Reuben or Gad and Ephraim. The Song of Solomon makes reference to mahanaim in chapter 6:13 where we read,

Return, return, O Shulamite; return, return, that we may look upon you. What will you see in the Shulamite? As it were the company [Heb. m’kolah] of two armies [Heb. mahanah].

The Hebrew word m’kolah means “dance.” I see a correlation between Song 6:13 and Genesis 32:2, since mahanaim in ­Genesis and machneh or “two armies” in the Song of Solomon are the same word; the former is the plural and the latter is the root word.

What is the prophetic connection between these two biblical passages? It appears that Genesis 32 is a prophetic shadow-picture of just how Jacob’s descendants will come back into the land of their inheritance prior to Yeshua’s return. This prophetic scenario is confirmed in the Jeremiah 30:7—the Jacob’s trouble prophecy. In Jeremiah’s prophecy, the context is Jacob’s end time descendants (i.e., the Christians and the Jews) returning from their captivity and exile in the nations of the world. 

“For behold, the days are coming,” says YHVH, “that I will bring back from captivity My people Israel [the house of Israel who would become the Christians] and Judah [the Jews],” says YHVH. “And I will cause them to return to the land that I gave to their fathers, and they shall possess it…Alas! For that day is great, so that none is like it; and it is the time of Jacob’s trouble, but he shall be saved out of it. For it shall come to pass in that day,” says YHVH of hosts, “That I will break his yoke from your neck, and will burst your bonds; foreigners shall no more enslave them. But they shall serve YHVH their Elohim, and David their king, whom I will raise up for them. (Jer 30:3, 7–10)

Obviously, this prophecy along with a resurrected King David to rule over a regathered and reunited Israel (i.e., Christians and Jews) hasn’t occurred yet. This will happen at Yeshua the Messiah’s second coming. The corollary to this prophetic passage is Ezekiel’s Two Sticks Prophecy where, again in the end times, the two camps or houses of Israel are regathered and reunited with King David ruling over them in the sight of the Messiah (Ezek 37:13–27).

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Are YOU in the Battle? Overcoming Satan & His Demons the Biblical Way

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Yeshua gave his disciples power and authority over ALL the powers of Satan (Luke 10:19). Moreover, Yeshua has commissioned his followers to confront demons and to cast them out while preaching the gospel (Mark 16:17). Paul says that Christians are spiritual warriors who are in a spiritual battle against satanic strongholds and are to be wrestling with the powers of Satan (Eph 6:12). Sadly, as demonic forces are increasingly emboldened as they are taking over our culture, too many Christians are AWOL (absent without leave) from Yeshua’s army. It’s time to get back into the battle to be a profitable and obedient servant of our Lord and Master, and to experience the power of the resurrected Yeshua in our lives by helping those around us get set free. This video shows you how.

This and other videos by Nathan are available as podcasts on Spotify and Apple podcast under “Hoshana Rabbah.”

If this message has been a blessing to you, please consider showing your appreciation by making a donation to Hoshana Rabbah at http://hoshanarabbah.org/blog/. Thank you!

 

Islam Vs Jews & Christians—The Biblical Roots of the Conflict

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Why has Islam been in a perpetual, murderous war against Jews and Christians since its founding in the sixth century AD? Actually, this conflict is a spiritual one going back to the biblical patriarchs, and, on the larger scale, goes back to the snake in the tree in the Garden of Eden as this video reveals. The key to understanding the present conflict between these religious and ethnic groups involves understanding the past cycles of history and why Islam is intent on conquering the Christian West and the present Jewish state or nation of Israel.

This and other videos by Nathan are available as podcasts on Spotify and Apple podcast under “Hoshana Rabbah.”

If this message has been a blessing to you, please consider showing your appreciation by making a donation to Hoshana Rabbah at http://hoshanarabbah.org/blog/. Thank you!