We are nearing the end of Jacob’s exile narrative, that occurred over the period of 20 years, and began back in chapter 28. On that day, Jacob, a greedy, deceitful, conniving man, fled empty-handed and alone from the promised land to the pagan land of Haran. On his way out, the LORD appeared to him at Beth-el with a promise to return him to the land. Upon receiving this blessing, Jacob vowed that the LORD would be his God.
And here, at the end of chapter 32, 20 years after Beth-el, Jacob camps mere miles away from the promised land, just across the Jordan River to the west, ready to return to his father’s land. Hours earlier, Jacob pursued peace with Esau, attempting to be reconciled with his estranged brother before he crossed the river. But the LORD has one more encounter in store for Jacob.
At Peniel, the LORD will teach Jacob to be a man of brazen dependence on the LORD for all good things, and in Jacob’s story, we learn to be people clinging to the LORD, fiercely and wholeheartedly, for only in Him do we find what we need and seek.
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