This peculiar narrative prompts several questions. Wrestling even till "the break of day" did not cure Jacob the supplanter, whatever the severer course of the touch, and the sinew that shrank in the hollow of the thigh, may have done with him individually. English Revised Version Therefore the children of Israel eat not the sinew of the hip which is upon the hollow of the thigh, unto this day: because he touched the hollow of Jacob's thigh in . The Sinew That Shrank: Part 1 (#86984) - Bible Truth Library To underscore this matter, G-d sent an angel to stage a battle with Jacob at this moment of his vulnerability. Geneva Study BibleTherefore the children of Israel eat not of the sinew which shrank, which is upon the hollow of the thigh, unto this day: because he touched the hollow of Jacob's thigh in the sinew that shrank. Genesis 32 seems to me the correction of this forwardness of the flesh by the wrestling of the angel which it records. (32) The sinew which shrank. in Genesis, and therefore as a rule, perhaps is pre-Sinaitic. God Himself can come in and take His own . Therefore to this day the Israelites do not eat the thigh muscle that is on the hip socket, because he struck Jacob on the hip socket at the thigh muscle. His first lessons were when the sun was set, and he tarried all night in a certain place, in the day that he fled away from Esau to Laban, at the advice of Rebekah. We Are About Caring For Each Other Despite Differences, In Bereshit 32:23-33, after Jacob leaves his brother Esau, we are told a rather curious tale: And he [Jacob] rose up that night and he took his two wives and his two woman servants and his eleven sons.And he took them and sent them over the brook.And Jacob was left alone. Suddenly, a man wrestled with him until daybreak. All the lessons which Jacob had to learn touching "the birthright," as well as the order of "the blessing" (apart from the venison and the mess of pottage), are now well gone over with God, and learnt. What could Jacob do in the presence of such grace? Which was contracted by the touch of the angel, and by which it was weakened and benumbed; or the sinew of the part that was out of joint, the sinew or tendon that keeps the thigh bone in the socket, together with the flesh that covered it, or the muscle in which it is; or that sinew, others, that contracts itself and gives motion to the thigh bone to work itself: of this the Israelites eat not: which is upon the hollow of the thigh; or the cap of it: unto this day; when Moses wrote this history: because he the angel touched the hollow of Jacob's thigh, in the sinew that shrank; and very superstitiously do they abstain from it unto this day: they have a whole chapter in one of their treatises in the Misnah (l), giving rules concerning it; where it is forbidden to eat of it, whether in the land of Israel or out of it; whether in common food or sacrifices, even in burnt offerings it was to be taken out; and whether in cattle of the house or of the field; and both in the right and left thigh, but not in fowls, because they have no hollow, and butchers are not to be trusted; and whoever eats of it to the quantity of an olive is to be beaten with forty stripes; and because the Jews are more ignorant of this nerve, as Mercer observes, therefore they abstain from all nerves in the posteriors of animals. 17. In figurative language the neck of the obstinate is compared to an "iron sinew" (Isaiah 48:4). therefore the sons of Israel do not eat the sinew which shrank, which [is] on the hollow of the thigh, unto this day, because He came against the hollow of Jacob's thigh, against the sinew which shrank. 1 Samuel 5:5 Therefore neither the priests of Dagon, nor any that come into Dagon's house, tread on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod unto this day. Nothing requires more vigour and unceasing exertion than wrestling. ). It becomes those whom God honours, to admire his grace towards them. The reason of this name is assigned in the sentence, "I have seen God face to face." ", He gives God the right place now; for even the altar is no longer to be commemorative of Jacob and Bethel; but it is henceforth to bear the name of El-bethel, or the God of Bethel, as its great and distinguishing character. The prohibition of the so-called sinew of the thigh Therefore the children of Israel cat not of the sinew which shrank, which is upon the hollow of the thigh, unto this day, si vel nullo cogna-tionis gradu Jacobum attingat. Which was contracted by the touch of the angel, and by which it was weakened and benumbed; or the sinew of the part that was out of joint, the sinew or tendon that keeps the thigh bone in the socket, together with the flesh that covered it, or the muscle in . It seems to me that the ladder, whilst it allows of communication between parties at the top and at the bottom, yet marks as plainly the distance which it maintained. At sunrise, as he left Penuel, Jacob limped along because of his hip. Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary32:24-32 A great while before day, Jacob being alone, more fully spread his fears before God in prayer. So he turns again to the presents and gifts which he designs to employ in order to pacify Esau. - , -; , -. Refreshing it is to the heart that knows anything of itself and of the ways of God to find Him take all out of our meddlesome hands into His own. Genesis 32:32 - NET - That is why to this day the Israelites do not eat 3. p. 91. But even Jacob was wounded. This is our Penuel; and when we by faith in communion with the Father's love pass over (like Jacob in his day), our sun rises upon us, and "we all looking on the glory of the Lord with unveiled face, are transformed according to the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Lord the Spirit.". Jacob signifies a supplanter. And even then, and only then, will his method of teaching and dealing with people be clearly and fully understood. c. 7. sect. All rights reserved. Jacob gives a new name to the place. Access 50+ premium resources. It is an emblem of the true spirit of faith and prayer. Genesis 32:32 - Therefore the children of Israel eat not of the sinew which shrank, which is upon the hollow of the thigh, unto this day: because he touched the hollow of Jacob's thigh in the sinew that shrank. It was in the weakness of their own flesh and when so intimate with such a One that they broke down, and denied Him in thy hour of His own danger and death! the sinew which shrank Genesis 32:32. of Genesis 32:22-32 describes the fight Jacob was not expecting. Not to eat the sinew of the thigh-vein which shrank, as it is said, ".the children of Israel eat not of the sinew which shrank" (Gen. 32:33). the sinew which shrankthe nerve that fastens the thigh bone in its socket. Genesis 32:32. The effort to remove this sinew is a nuisance "They journeyed from Bethel; and there was but a little way to come to Ephrath: and Rachel travailed" in birth with her son. And even then, and only then, will his method of teaching and dealing with people be clearly and fully understood. The wrenching of the tendons and muscles was mercifully healed, so as to leave a permanent monument, in Jacob's halting gait, that God had overcome his self-will. 32:32 the sinew which shrank.This sentence is apparently an editorial insertion by Moses in Jacob's toledoth, noting a custom by the Israelites commemorating the great experience of their founder.In order that Jacob should know forever that it was God who had actually allowed him to prevail, and not his own strength, a muscle in the ball-and-socket joint . Rebekah's counsel at the first, and the clever contrivances of Jacob, have been made foolish and contemptible, as all ours will surely be too; for God catcheth the wise in their own craftiness. " Therefore the children of Israel eat not of the sinew which shrank, which is upon the hollow of the thigh, unto this day: because he touched the hollow of Jacob's thigh in the sinew that shrank .". c. 7. sect. And many "shall come from the east, and the west, and sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob," and drink wine new with their Messiah, and great shall be the peace of His people. (Even today the people of Israel dont eat the tendon near the hip socket because of what happened that night when the man strained the tendon of Jacobs hip.). The first is in Gen. 28, called "Jacob's vision at Bethel; " the next in Gen. 32, where "an angel wrestles with him;" and the third in Gen. 35, when "Jacob is again summoned to Bethel. You may unsubscribe from Bible Gateways emails at any time. All is now as it should be, without let or hindrance; "and God went up from him in the place where He talked with him," without ladder or angels on His part, and in the absence of all terror and fear about person or the place on Jacob's, for the distance that produced both is gone. Alas for us, if we see clearly the mote that is in our brother's eye, and discover not (nor remove) the beam that is in our own eye! In the poetical description of Behemoth (hippopotamus) it is said: "He moveth his tail like a cedar: the sinews of his thighs are knit together" (Job 40:17). There may be a measure of faith in all this; but the stipulation is for God to be with Jacob in the way that, Genesis 32 seems to me the correction of this forwardness of the flesh by the wrestling of the angel which it records. 32:30 Peniel - That is, the face of God, because there he had seen the appearance of God, and obtained the favour of God.32:31 He halted on his thigh - And some think he continued to do so to his dying day. These would have been as much out of place morally in Gods intimacy with His friend, and with the head of the family of faith (who bound his only son Isaac upon the altar, in the day when God taught Abraham), as they were consistent and in keeping with Jacob, the supplanter and schemer. He proceeds from the known to the unknown, from the simple to the complex, from the material to the spiritual, from the sensible to the super-sensible. The sinew is carefully extracted; and where there are no persons skilled enough for that operation, they do not make use of the hind legs at all. View Chapter . The angel tells Jacob, You have struggled with G-d and with men and you have prevailed (Bereshit 32:29). (Therefore, even today the people of Israel do not eat the muscle of the thigh attached to the hip socket because God touched the socket of Jacobs hip at the muscle of the thigh.). 32 Therefore the children of Israel eat not of the sinew which shrank, which is upon the hollow of the thigh, unto this day: because he touched the hollow of Jacob's thigh in the sinew that shrank. "And he halted upon his thigh." Therefore the children of Israel eat not the sinew of the hip which is upon the hollow of the thigh, unto this day: because he touched the hollow of Jacobs thigh in the sinew of the hip. SINEW. So "God appeared to Jacob again, when he came out of Padan-aram, and blessed him; and said, Thy name shall not be called any more Jacob, but Israel shall be thy name." His first lessons were when "the sun was set, and he tarried all night in a certain place," in the day that he fled away from Esau to Laban, at the advice of Rebekah. So must he do, until he have to deal with a world of philosophers. Amnos, Septuagint and Onkelos. KJ21. God Himself can come in and take His own place now that the wrestling is over, and has perfected its work. Start your free trial today! The sun rose on Jacob: it is sun-rise with that soul, which has had communion with God.Barnes' Notes on the BiblePeniel - the face of God. - - - - , - , , : - , . They dont eat it to this day. Jacob might "halt upon his thigh" all the days of his life, and Paul might come from paradise with "a thorn in the flesh," the messenger of Satan to buffet him, lest he should be exalted above measure; but the flesh in each was flesh still. Using his varied interests and experiences, he has authored dozens of papers in medical and academic journals, and authored "Legal Friction: Law, Narrative, and Identity Politics in Biblical Israel." Does the Bible Condemn Using Tarot Cards? Thigh Anatomy, Diagram & Pictures | Body Maps - Healthline He calls it Peniel, the face of God, because there he had seen the appearance of God, and obtained the favour of God. Bible Verses About Thigh - 19 passages - King James Version (KJV) - Sarata and is not the moral distance of the ladder confirmed by what follows? (m) History of the Rites, Customs, &c. of the Jews, part 2. c. 7. sect. Bible. A Man in Christ: Part 4, the Believer's Relationship with. Therefore the children of Israel eat not [of] the sinew which shrank, which [is] upon the hollow of the thigh, unto this day: because he touched the hollow of Jacob's thigh in the sinew that shrank.