#God renames Jacob Israel

[beatrice-otter]

I recently reblogged a post about Jewish survival and resilience and pride, and immediately got an ask by someone saying that there was a dogwhistle in that post calling for the destruction of Palestine, and did I support genocide or had I just not noticed? The ask was not anonymous, so I was able to respond privately, that I didn't see any dogwhistles so could they please point specifically to what they meant? They didn't respond, so I can't say with absolute certainty what they thought was a dog whistle, but I'm pretty darn sure it's the last line, which I have seen accused of being a dog whistle before, and is absolutely NOT: "Am Yisrael Chai"

Now! I am a gentile, so I could certainly get things wrong here, and please correct me if I do. But for those who may not know what Am Yisrael Chai means, here's my understanding of it.

First, let's take "Yisrael." For a lot of modern people, "Israel" means first and foremost the modern nation of Israel. But that is only one thing that "Israel" means, and collapsing all of those meanings into one is a major problem. For one thing, it's why American Evangelicals are so hot to support Israel and are vocally clamoring for Israel to wipe out all Palestinians: they have confused the passages in the Bible that turn the ancient kingdom of Israel into a metaphor with the modern nation, and assert that the ancient kingdom, the Christian metaphor later made of it, and the modern nation are all one and the same. (Then they take that and sprinkle crazy sauce all over it.)

So what are the meanings of Israel? First and most importantly, "Israel/Yisrael" is a name for the mythical ancestor of Jews. According to the mythology recorded in the Bible*, the family line (so we are told) goes back to the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Jacob wrestled with a divine being and was renamed Yisrael/Israel; he was also the father of the 12 men who became the ancestors of the 12 tribes--each one got a tribe named after him.

*All of the stories that take place before the time of King David are ... at best, many generations removed from the actual events, and were quite obviously reshaped multiple times over those centuries before being written down. There are many things that just flat out could not have happened as recorded--at best they're exaggerated. I tend to believe that there are core truths in each story, and it's fascinating to speculate on what really happened, but as with any culture, the stories we tell about our history often do more to shape our identity than the literal factual truth.

So, Israel, the great ancestor, got a lot of things named after him. His descendants called themselves Israelites, the children of Israel, the people of Israel, and often, just "Israel." So that's the second meaning of "Israel." It means the people who count Israel as their ancestor. And quite often, especially in religious contexts, they don't specify. It's not "The Israelites" did something or "the people of Israel" did something. Israel did it. And they were the people of Israel (so their stories go) before they came to the land that came to be called Israel because it was where the people of Israel lived.

So, for example, one of the most important parts of the Bible for Jews is what they call the Shema, which originates in Deuteronomy 6:4: "Sh'ma Yisrael: Adonai eloheinu, Adonai echad." ("Hear, O [people of] Israel: the LORD is our God, the LORD is one")

Historical note: according to the mythology as recorded in the Bible, the people of Israel came from what is now Iraq, wandered around the Levant for a while, then went to Egypt and became enslaved, then were freed by God and led back to the Levant, where they conquered it and slaughtered the people living there. Whatever happened, it was absolutely not that. If there was a group that came from Egypt, they were small, they didn't conquer anything, and they adapted immediately to the culture around them. The Levant is one of the best-studied regions in the world, archaeologically, in no small part because of Christians trying to prove the historicity of the Bible and failing. If lots of people were killed and a whole new group of people moved in, there would be some sign of it in the archaeological record. Cities being destroyed or falling to ruin, new styles of pottery and building, etc. No such evidence exists. From what we can tell, there were a lot of different tribes living in the area, and over time some of them became allied and shared religious rites and practices, and eventually coalesced into two nations sometime around 1,000BCE (Israel and Judah), telling stories of mythic ancestors that they all shared to bind them together. There was fighting, sure, but just the regular tribal warfare endemic to the period.

One of those two nations came to be called "Israel" because it was the nation where the people of Israel lived. And this is where language comes into play. In English, we have different word forms for the land vs. the people who live there. England is inhabited by the English, Norway by Norwegians, China by Chinese, etc. Ancient Hebrew did not make this distinction; I don't know if modern Hebrew does. In the Hebrew that the Bible is written in, and which many Jews still use today for ritual purposes and have used for at least 3,000 years, the same word is used for a place and the people of that place. This is heightened by a literary tradition that often personifies both locations and nations.

("Jew" by the way, comes from the word "Judah," the name for the second and smaller of the two kingdoms inhabited by people who claimed descent from Jacob/Israel. Judah was one of Jacob/Israel's son's according to the Bible, and Judah can also be a reference to the person, the people descended from him, and the land they lived in, and you have to tell from context which is meant in any given situation.)

So for the last three thousand years at least, "Israel" has meant at least four things: it can be the name of the mythical ancestor Jacob who became Israel; it can be the name of the people descended from him; it can be the kingdom that existed from around 1000BCE-720BCE; it can be the personification of the people of Israel. All of these meanings are regularly present in Jewish culture and religious ritual, and an important part of it.

And for at least 2/3 of that time, for at least two of those three thousand years, the Jews have been a persecuted minority living in hostile lands. They have been enslaved, harassed, pressured by the dominant culture, kicked out, and killed. A lot of them have died. But their people and culture have survived, which is kind of miraculous. And the traditional response to the repeated genocide over those 2,000 years? "The People of Israel Live." In Hebrew, "Am Yisrael Chai."

When Biblical Hebrew wants to ensure that you know "Israel" means "the people of Israel" in a particular context, you can specify: you add "am" which means "people". So "Am Yisrael" means "the people of Israel." And for 2,300 years, the nation of Israel did not exist for there to be citizens of it. "Am Yisrael" meant, therefore, the people of Israel in the sense of all the people who were part of the community that claimed descent from Jacob/Israel and were part of the culture that the empires of the world wanted to destroy. "Chai" means life. The people of Israel live--everyone from the Romans to the Russians to the French to the Spanish to the English to the Germans to the Ukrainians to the [insert nationality here] has tried to kill them, has tried to destroy their culture, has tried to erase them from the world, and they still live, and their culture and religion lives with them.

Am Yisrael Chai--they have been saying that for two thousand years at least, to celebrate their continued survival, and all the ways they survive despite the oppression of others. The People of Israel Live--not just their bodies but their language and culture and religion and everything that makes them who they are. Am Yisrael Chai.

Which brings us to the modern nation of Israel. Many members of the people of Israel are part of the modern nation of Israel, but "Israeli" and "Am Yisrael" are not the same. Israeli means "citizen of the modern nation of Israel." There are Jewish Israelis, of course, who are both citizens of the nation of Israel and part of the People of Israel (Am Yisrael) but there are also Muslim and Christian Israelis, Samaritan Israelis, Druze Israelis, and others, who are not part of Am Yisrael. You do not have to be part of "Am Yisrael" to be an Israeli, and you definitely do not have to be an Israeli to be part of "Am Yisrael." The name of the modern nation is Yisrael in Hebrew, so when you see "Yisrael" or "Israel" that is a fifth thing that could be meant by the word. But the earlier meanings are still in common usage in Jewish circles (and in Christian ones, too, or anywhere else you want to talk about anything related to the Bible or Jewish or Christian religion and history).

It is a talking point, in pro-Palestine circles, that "Am Yisrael Chai" is secretly calling for the destruction of Palestine. But that is an antisemitic lie made up by the same people who say they're not antisemitic--while assuming that all Jews are genocidal monsters unless the Jew in question immediately grovels about how awful Jews are to "prove" they're "not one of the bad ones."

I believe Palestine and the Palestinian people should be free and able to live in peace. I believe there should be justice and accountability for the violence that has been done against them--and also for the violence that they have done. I also believe that antisemitism is absolutely wrong, and that includes when pro-Palestinian advocates do it.

Am Yisrael Chai is not an anti-Palestinian dog whistle, and if you think it is, you are either ignorant or actively malicious.

[artandthebible]

The Marriage of Jacob and Rachel

Artist: Workshop of Pietro da Cortona (Italian, 1596-1669)

Date: 1670's

Medium: Oil on canvas

Collection: The John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art, Sarasota, Florida, United States

The Story of Jacob, Leah and Rachel

The complicated story of Jacob, Leah, and Rachel comprises one of the larger sections of Genesis and includes much information relevant to the history of the Jewish people. Jacob, the son of Isaac and grandson of Abraham, fled to his mother’s brother Laban. At the time, Jacob feared his twin brother, Esau, would kill him (Genesis 27:41–46). It was at Laban’s that Jacob met Leah and Rachel.

Laban offered his nephew Jacob a place to stay. Jacob soon fell in love with Laban’s younger daughter, Rachel, and agreed to work for Laban seven years in exchange for marriage to her (Genesis 29:16–20).

Laban agreed, but after seven years, he deceived Jacob. On the night that Jacob and Rachel were to be married, Laban gave Rachel’s older sister, Leah, to him as a wife instead. Jacob protested, but Laban argued that it wasn’t the custom to give the younger daughter in marriage first. So it was official: Jacob and Leah were to stay married. Laban then said Jacob could still have Rachel in exchange for another seven years of work (Genesis 29:21–30). In an ironic twist, the deceiver Jacob had himself been deceived. In exchange for fourteen years of labor, Jacob had two wives, Leah and Rachel.

Jacob showed favoritism to Rachael and loved her more than Leah. God compensated for the lack of love Leah received by enabling her to have children and closing Rachel’s womb for a time (Genesis 29:31). There developed an intense rivalry between the two wives. In fact, at one time the wives bartered over the right to sleep with Jacob. Genesis 30:16 says, “When Jacob came from the field in the evening, Leah went out to meet him and said, ‘You must come in to me, for I have hired you with my son’s mandrakes.’ So he lay with her that night,” and Leah became pregnant. In the end, Jacob fathered twelve sons and a daughter. Jacob and Leah had six sons and a daughter; Zilpah, Leah’s maidservant, bore Jacob two sons; Jacob and Rachel had two sons together; and Bilhah, Rachel’s maidservant, bore Jacob another two sons (Genesis 35:23–36).

After twenty years with Laban, Jacob and Leah and Rachel, now very wealthy, moved their family back to Canaan. As they were leaving Laban’s house, Rachel stole her father’s teraphim and lied about having them (Genesis 31). As he drew closer home, Jacob knew that he would have to face Esau again. He still feared Esau’s anger, and he sent gifts to satisfy him before he arrived. The night before Jacob crossed the Jabbok River, he “wrestled with God” and was given the name “Israel” along with God’s blessing.

The story of Jacob and Rachel ended tragically, as Rachel died giving birth to her second child, Benjamin. Rachel named him Ben-Oni (“son of my trouble”), but Jacob renamed him Benjamin (“son of my right hand”). Rachel “was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem). Over her tomb Jacob set up a pillar, and to this day that pillar marks Rachel’s tomb” (Genesis 35:19–20).

Jacob and Leah’s marriage lasted longer, but eventually Leah, too, died in Canaan and was buried in the same tomb as Abraham and Sarah and Isaac and Rebekah (Genesis 49:30–32). Jacob and his son Joseph would later be buried in this tomb as well (Genesis 50).

[hiswordsarekisses]

Everybody wants the finished product of a surrendered life, but no one wants the process, the painful shattering, the revelation of the end of themselves... And yet it is only by means of affliction that the “outer shell of the seed” is broken so that new life can burst forth: "I tell you the solemn truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains by itself alone. But if it dies, it produces much grain" (John 12:24). If the seed does not fall to the ground and die, αὐτὸς μόνος μένει - it remains alone - by itself...

Since we will not surrender without struggle, God must intervene and save us from ourselves. Each of us must “go to Peniel” to wrestle with the Angel; each of us must be renamed from Ya'akov ("a supplanter") to Israel ("a prince with God"). Like Jacob, we will prevail with God when we give up the fight and accept our brokenness. We win by surrendering.

It's been said that we can never know that God is all we need until God is all we have left (John 15:5). Therefore "blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven; blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted; blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled..."(Matt. 5:3-6).

[ Hebrew for Christians ]

[idreamiteverynight]

The modern State of Israel, founded in 1948 by the British, is not the Israel of the Bible.

The Israel of the Old and New Testament refers to the ancient figure Jacob, son of Isaac and grandson of Abraham, whom God renamed "Israel" (יִשְׂרָאֵל) after Jacob wrestled with an angel. The Hebrew word "יִשְׂרָאֵל" literally translates to "he who wrestles with God".

Jacob's descendents are thus called "the 12 tribes of Israel". While it's true that these tribes are the early Jews who form the foundation of the Jewish religious and cultural identity, it is more theologically consistent to interpret the word "Israel" in Scripture as a metaphorical descriptor of God's people in general. This becomes more obvious when considering that throughout the New and especially the Old Testament, Jewish mythology as well as various allegories, analogies and metaphors are the most common way of imparting divine wisdom unto the reader. Very few aspects of Scripture are to be read at face-value or taken absolutely literally. Many of the metaphorical descriptors used in Scripture read as quite archaic, simplistic, outdated or even violent to a modern person.

To someone who reads the Bible in its entirety from a culturally and historically informed perspective, "Israel" - semantically and in theological context - does not elevate a specific race, tribe, ethnicity or nationality over other human beings.

Citizens of the modern State of Israel are not "God's chosen people" any more than other believers are. Galatians 3:28 tells us that "there is neither Jew nor Gentile". And as Romans 2:11 states, "God does not show favouritism".

(All of this to say, most inhabitants of the modern State of Israel are not even directly related to the twelve tribes of Israel mentioned in the Bible.)

It is not a stretch to say that the word "Israel" simply refers to "those who wrestle with God".

[queerprayers]

do you have any advice on picking a good new name for oneself? i don't feel connected to my current one and would like a more spiritual one but i don't know how to pick the "right" one

Hi, beloved! You asked this ages ago so it's very possible this is no longer relevant to you. If you have one—congratulations on the new name! Either way, I'll answer, hoping I can help you or perhaps someone else who's thinking about this!

Name changing happens often in the Bible—it's usually symbolic in some way, and often very dependent on the meaning of the name. Abraham (formerly Abram) and Israel (formerly Jacob) both have their names changed in an encounter with God and an angel(? debatable), respectively; Jesus renames Simon "Cephas/Peter," which means "rock;" Saul starts being addressed as Paul (the Latinized version of his Hebrew name) as he becomes more active in Christian communities and leaves Judaism further behind. People entering monasteries/convents often pick a new name, and Catholics traditionally choose a saint's name for their confirmation. You have lots of holy company, is what I'm trying to say!

Finding a name in the Bible could be your place to start—I love the figure in Luke's gospel I'm named after, and her calling as a myrrh-bearer inspires me immensely. If there's a figure that's close to your heart, who mirrors your journey, who you aspire to follow, you could choose their name, especially if you connect with its meaning! This website lists Biblical names/origins—it doesn't seem to include sources, so I can't verify every single one (maybe check another source to be sure about something), but from skimming it it looks useful/accurate!

As I mentioned, choosing a saint name is also very common—and there are tons to choose from! Even if you're not Catholic and whatever your theology about saints, people who Christian communities remember and honor can give you inspiration and meaning. Catholic.org and Wikipedia both have pretty exhaustive lists—you could narrow it down by thinking about time periods, patronage, location, tradition, or anything else that's meaningful/relevant to you.

Naming a child with a family/cultural name is obviously common, and that could be something you do for yourself as well! Connecting with your ancestors/communities could help you feel more connected to yourself. 

I've mentioned it, but a lot of people think about the meanings of names. There's tons of iffy information out there, so I would recommend looking at multiple sources (I know this because I used to use baby name websites to name fictional characters, and some of them were just completely contradictory!). There are biblical concepts, like Sophia/Wisdom, but you could think about any concept/value/theology you connect with and go from there. 

Any decision can be spiritual when we approach it purposefully, and I think any name could be spiritual if you find meaning in it. I can't promise there's one "right" name—the people I know who found new names took time and tried some out along the way. It might be more of a choice, a mindful acceptance, rather than a lightning bolt out of the sky moment of resurrection. You also don't have to have a deep connection with a name—you've said you want one, so of course I support that, but it's not, like, wrong to just… have a name. (If you're reading this and you've never thought about your name/its meaning in your life, I support you.) However it works out, I wish you (and anyone else thinking about this) courage and curiosity as you seek out a new identity. 

The thought I leave you with is this (if you'd like it): God calls us by name—sometimes that's the moment we see Them fully. What name do you want God to call, what name would wake you from sleep and cause you to genuinely respond with, "Here I am; you called me"? 

<3 Johanna

P.S. I found two prayer rituals for renaming while looking around, and I thought I'd link them—one of them is specifically for gender transition, but parts of it could be meaningful for anyone!

Unitarian Universalist Transgender Renaming Ceremony

Episcopal Service of Renaming from The Book of Occasional Services (pg. 120)

[an-unanonymous-messenger]

Remember when Jesus asked His disciples what the people were calling Him? They gave many answers: John the Baptist back from the dead, the foretold Elijah, and some other prophets they could count. Then when He asked them what they say He is, Peter spoke up, saying: "You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God." The He was blessed with the new name - Peter (the rock) - and with the keys of the Kingdom of the Heavens. We've seen some instances where God renamed people for a special purpose, like Abram to Abraham and Jacob to Israel; and we see what great purposes were planned out for them. How about you? Did you find your great purpose yet? Have you sought God with your whole self to find it? If so, then you're doing well. Don't stop. God is already working on you for the great purpose you're called for. It may not seem like you're qualified for it yet (like many who were called), but God is helping you get to it. You may not see the change, but it is happening. May this be a good reminder for you not to give up, but to push through the obstacles to get to where you're called by God to be. Bless you in the Name of Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour! Amen.

[theprayerfulword]

August 09

Joshua 24:15 And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.

‭‭2 Timothy‬ ‭1:9‬ ‭ Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began,

Romans 12:19 Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is Mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord.

Ephesians 6:14 Stand therefore [hold your ground], having tightened the belt of truth around your loins and having put on the breastplate of integrity {and} of moral rectitude {and} right standing with God,

1 Peter 2:13-14 Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake; whether it be the king, as supreme, 14 or unto governors, as unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers, and for the praise of them that do well.

John 1:12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name,

May you humble yourself before God before setting out on the spiritual journey God has for you, asking for His help in getting you safely to His destination. Ezra 8

May those who tremble at the Word of God gather round you in self-abasement, repentance and sorrow at the sin of the leaders, and of the people. Ezra 9

May you trust God to judge those outside the church, even as He gives you wisdom to rightly judge those within the church. 1 Corinthians 5

My child, be not prideful of the work I accomplish in you. It is by My grace that My image is formed within you; the Word that is made life within your heart and mind is given by My Spirit; the anointing that brings authoritative answers to your prayers is poured out upon you from above. What do you have that has not been given by My hand? The refiner's fire, fierce enough to melt the precious portion, does not destroy but causes separation, division between the soul and the spirit, the valued and the worthless, lest the “good,” the tin, the copper, the lead, become alloyed with the “best” and diminish the value of the purity of the holiness I am bringing you into. Do not be like Esau, who gave up the covenant blessing for a mess of pottage, despising My promise and not trusting My provision. I provide a way of escape for you, My precious one, from the temptation to step aside from the hard path I offer, as did Esau, whom I rejected. I am the One who leads you into the fiery trial that refines and purifies you, as I did Jacob whom I loved and blessed, renaming him 'Israel.' Pray not to escape from the furnace, My sweltering one, but seek My face that My presence may comfort you and walk with you in the flame. Then you will be able to endure to the end, and you can release that of the soul and the flesh which must go, the pride and the desire, and be sanctified wholly unto Me.

May you take refuge in the Lord, for He will never put you to shame, but deliver you in His righteousness. Psalm 31

May you commit your spirit into the hands of the Lord, the God of truth, who redeems you and frees you from the trap set for you since He is your rock and fortress, for He will lead and guide you for the sake of His Name. Psalm 31

May you be glad and rejoice in the love of the One you trust, having no intimate fellowship with those who cling to worthless idols, for He saw your affliction and knew the anguish of your soul and, rather than hand you over to the enemy, has set your feet in a spacious place. Psalm 31

[eretzyisrael]

Parashat Vayishlach

(And He Sent)

In this Torah portion, God tells Jacob to return home. Worried that his brother Esau will kill him, Jacob divides his clan into two camps, so at least some will survive in case of a fight. Jacob sleeps alone in the desert and is awoken by an angel who wrestles him through the night. Jacob survives and is blessed by the angel and renamed Israel. Jacob meets his brother and, surprisingly, they embrace. Dinah, Jacob’s daughter, is raped by Shekhem, who then proposes to Jacob that he marry her. Shimeon and Levi brutally murder Shekhem and his clan. Rachel has another child, whom she and Jacob name Benjamin.

FULL SUMMARY HAFTARAH SUMMARY

TORAH READING

Genesis 32:4 - 36:43

[mariacallous]

(JTA) — This past week we entered the Hebrew month of Kislev, the month here in the Northern Hemisphere when we often experience the longest, darkest nights of the year. As the light contracts each day, I experience a tightening in my gut, an anxious fluttering of the heart. Time feels compressed, as if there aren’t enough hours in a day to do everything that needs doing. When the light fades at the end of these foreshortened days, I draw the blinds and turn on the lamps, wanting to make my home into an island of warmth and light in the face of the encroaching darkness.

My trepidation at the onset of night echoes the primal fear of the dark ascribed to the first mythic humans, Adam and Eve. A talmudic tale, found in Avodah Zarah 8a, imagines the two of them becoming frantic as darkness falls at the close of the first day of their lives. They’ve disobeyed God by eating from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil and now they’re terror stricken. “Woe is me,” Adam wails, “that because I’ve sinned, the world is darkening around me! The world will return to chaos and emptiness; this is heaven’s death sentence upon me!”

In this midrash, Adam experiences the arrival of darkness as punishment. His words conjure up the kind of existential shudder that can overtake a person in the dark, as the familiar shapes and colors of the daytime world dissolve into the trackless night. No wonder that darkness is often a metaphor for the scariest of times, times like the present, when awash in grief, fear and anger, we bear witness to the atrocities of war, to hatred unleashed and suffering magnified, to shattered dreams and dampened hopes. “These are dark times,” we tell one another.

Perhaps it’s only natural that humans try to beat back the dark with our hearths, campfires and brilliant winter light displays. We Jews do this beginning on the 25th of Kislev, when we kindle Hanukkah candles in remembrance of the Hasmoneans’ military victory over the Seleucid Greeks and the rededication of the Jerusalem Temple. But on a more primal level, we do this to remind ourselves that even a tiny flame instantly dispels the deepest dark, offering hope, a light at the end of the tunnel.

And yet it strikes me that many of our tradition’s most transformational and transcendent moments unfold in the dark, in a dream space rich with spiritual potency. In Toldot, this week’s Torah portion, for instance, we meet Jacob, whose journey toward self-realization is bookended by two stirring night episodes. Fleeing from his wrathful brother, he has a prophetic dream in which angels ascend and descend a ladder stretching between heaven and earth while God looms over him, promising protection. Returning home some 20 years later, he engages in an all-night wrestling match with a mysterious being, perhaps his own shadow self, who ultimately blesses him as the dawn breaks, renaming him Israel, the one who strives with God and prevails.

Despite the anguish that darkness evokes, the dark times offer unique opportunities. They slow us down, inviting us to rest in the moment. Sometimes they force us to face painful truths. They challenge us to deepen our prayer life, strengthen our faith and resolve, and discover inner resources and possibilities for transformation we might not know we possess.

Years ago, I practiced walking in the woods at night without a flashlight and discovered that when I could breathe deeply and relax into the darkness, over time my eyes would adjust and I could see much more than I thought possible. Not just my eyes, but my whole body began to see in the dark in ways that I couldn’t in the light of day. I could find my way.

Adam and Eve, so the story goes, sat across from one another on that first traumatic night, fasting and weeping. When the dawn finally broke, they realized that the freshly created world was not coming to an end and that the alternation of light and dark, day and night, was simply the way of the world. Had they not felt so guilty and terrified they might have been able to look around with curiosity as the light waned, noticing how their eyes were primed to pick up many subtle shades of gray, the palette of darkness. Their vision might have gradually adjusted to the dark and, in the subtle glow of starlight, they might have been able to pick out the familiar, reassuring features of the other’s face and been calmed and comforted, even in the midst of their distress.

Could it be that in our yearning for the resurgence of the light, we fail to recognize and fully receive the gifts of darkness? That in drawing my blinds against the terrors of the night, I also shut out the vastness of the cosmos, the glimmering pinpoints of distant stars, the radiant winter moon, and the intimate, enveloping quiet of the dark?

[babsbabbles]

Can you tell me about your post about Jacob? Does thinking about him bring you comfort? How? I have a friend who was in a bad car accident recently and is struggling with trusting God.

Firstly, I'm sorry for the slow reply. I wanted to make sure I spent the time to truly collect my thoughts on Jacob and what his story means to me. I don't know how universal they will be in application - in fact I know they wouldn't be comforting to most people, because they hinge on ideas that people tend to find distressing.

I have chronic illnesses that will never heal. They got bad quick after laying dormant in my body for decades. There are no cures. I will never run again because it is extremely damaging. I pay for the weather changing. I pay for the things I eat or do not eat. I pay for staying still. I pay for moving. I will constantly have to barter with a body that is weak and tired in ways few can comprehend to do the things my mind loves. There are people who would call this suffering. Most people would pity me the things I have endured. Most people would hate to become me.

God allowed this suffering to happen to me. God has absolute sovereignty over the universe and he allows it to groan with pains, sin cursed as it is. There is illness and pain in this world because he allows it. He may have built me perfectly, knew me in my mothers womb perfectly, but he has allowed what has happened to do so.

When I finally had awareness of what happened, I was distraught, I was furious. I had done nothing wrong and God had allowed this? Didn't he care? I had worked so hard and fought for so much, I wanted the most of life and I did everything in my power to get it - to show myself approved the way my father always prayed for me - and now even sitting upright puts a pain in my skull that clouds my vision and my thoughts. I demanded the blessings my mother claimed that had been given me when I was young. Where were they? I railed at God about it all.

Jacob was the same. His name was "heel, deceit, supplanting". His story in the bible is full of him lying and being lied to, stealing and being stolen from, manipulating and being manipulated. He followed God where he was lead, and was constantly looking for better. When he left to go face his brother for the first time after stealing everything from him, he ran from his father-in-law with everything that was his, and he sent all his family and possessions ahead of him, and he was alone when God came to him.

Jacob fought God all night. He held tight to God until he was wounded. He wrestled with God until he was blessed and renamed for his efforts.

Jacob became Israel and he was crippled: he limped for the rest of his days. He could no longer run from the consequences of all he had done, but God provided for him, and blessed him, and was there for him anyway.

The gifts God gave him were nothing he could do of his own power, and he could never claim that they were.

So. Even when I was furious and exhausted and full of sorrow over all I had lost and all I could still come to lose because of the things that had happened to me, even when I doubted God could ever have a plan for my life, even when I wrestled God nightly, I could still take comfort in him. The God of the Universe, the Author of Reality, had let this happen to me, but he had never left. If I was wrestling with God, he was still there, still listening, still holding on to me; I was still worth something. If I am still worth something when I am browbeating my own Creator because I think I know better, or I cannot drag myself out of bed from pain, or I am crawling across the floor because dizziness refusing to allow me upright, or am weeping for hours over something that was never mine, or am exhausted beyond my own mortal ken, or yes, when my hips or my fingers go out of joint, know that I don't need to be strong, or fast, or capable, or anything at all. God has me in his hands. He has met me face to face. I have struck him.

He hasn't let go.

[eclecticelectriceccentric]

Gimmie an angel fact pls

sure yeah. hmm Jacob (of Jacob-and-Esau) wrestled with an Angel from night until daybreak. At daybreak the Angel broke Jacob’s hip by touching it, and Jacob like. Kept wrestling with him, demanded to get blessed. The Angel renamed Jacob יִשְׂרָאֵל Israel, cuz he “[has] striven with God and with men, and [has] prevailed.” Jacob asks the angel’s name, Angel refuses and blesses him, Jacob names the place Penuel, face-of-god.

and now Jews don’t eat the sinew of the thigh that is on the hip socket.

some people also think the Angel was God. Like. G-d.

also all the paintings about it are really homoerotic.

[abasilence-ministries]

Praying for Israel, 2023

This situation that is going on with Israel is serious, so much so, that I did not want to pray my own will. I wanted my prayer to be effectual and fervent, and this required that I first spend time seeking God about the root of the situation. For Israel.

… is no small feat. It is not to be taken lightly or done haphazardly. Regarding Jacob (whom God renamed Israel), this is what God spoke to Laban, his father-in-law in a dream, So this is not something that I am taking lightly at all. I need a moment to get still before the Lord. I need a moment to reflect first. Here is why: There was so much going on around me yesterday (Saturday, October 7,…

[artandthebible]

Jacob with Leah And Rachel

Artist: Andrea Appiani the Elder

The Story of Jacob with Leah and Rachel

The complicated story of Jacob, Leah, and Rachel comprises one of the larger sections of Genesis and includes much information relevant to the history of the Jewish people. Jacob, the son of Isaac and grandson of Abraham, fled to his mother’s brother Laban. At the time, Jacob feared his twin brother, Esau, would kill him (Genesis 27:41–46). It was at Laban’s that Jacob met Leah and Rachel.

Laban offered his nephew Jacob a place to stay. Jacob soon fell in love with Laban’s younger daughter, Rachel, and agreed to work for Laban seven years in exchange for marriage to her (Genesis 29:16–20).

Laban agreed, but after seven years, he deceived Jacob. On the night that Jacob and Rachel were to be married, Laban gave Rachel’s older sister, Leah, to him as a wife instead. Jacob protested, but Laban argued that it wasn’t the custom to give the younger daughter in marriage first. So it was official: Jacob and Leah were to stay married. Laban then said Jacob could still have Rachel in exchange for another seven years of work (Genesis 29:21–30). In an ironic twist, the deceiver Jacob had himself been deceived. In exchange for fourteen years of labor, Jacob had two wives, Leah and Rachel.

Jacob showed favoritism to Rachael and loved her more than Leah. God compensated for the lack of love Leah received by enabling her to have children and closing Rachel’s womb for a time (Genesis 29:31). There developed an intense rivalry between the two wives. In fact, at one time the wives bartered over the right to sleep with Jacob. Genesis 30:16 says, “When Jacob came from the field in the evening, Leah went out to meet him and said, ‘You must come in to me, for I have hired you with my son’s mandrakes.’ So he lay with her that night,” and Leah became pregnant. In the end, Jacob fathered twelve sons and a daughter. Jacob and Leah had six sons and a daughter; Zilpah, Leah’s maidservant, bore Jacob two sons; Jacob and Rachel had two sons together; and Bilhah, Rachel’s maidservant, bore Jacob another two sons (Genesis 35:23–36).

After twenty years with Laban, Jacob and Leah and Rachel, now very wealthy, moved their family back to Canaan. As they were leaving Laban’s house, Rachel stole her father’s teraphim and lied about having them (Genesis 31). As he drew closer home, Jacob knew that he would have to face Esau again. He still feared Esau’s anger, and he sent gifts to satisfy him before he arrived. The night before Jacob crossed the Jabbok River, he “wrestled with God” and was given the name “Israel” along with God’s blessing.

The story of Jacob and Rachel ended tragically, as Rachel died giving birth to her second child, Benjamin. Rachel named him Ben-Oni (“son of my trouble”), but Jacob renamed him Benjamin (“son of my right hand”). Rachel “was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem). Over her tomb Jacob set up a pillar, and to this day that pillar marks Rachel’s tomb” (Genesis 35:19–20).

Jacob and Leah’s marriage lasted longer, but eventually Leah, too, died in Canaan and was buried in the same tomb as Abraham and Sarah and Isaac and Rebekah (Genesis 49:30–32). Jacob and his son Joseph would later be buried in this tomb as well (Genesis 50).

The story of Jacob, Leah, and Rachel is filled with much difficulty, yet God used these people greatly to impact history. Their twelve sons were the leaders of the twelve tribes that became the nation of Israel. Through their family, God blessed the entire world, as Jesus Christ was born from the tribe of Judah and offers salvation to all (John 3:16; Luke 2:10).

[lorddeathofmurdermountain]

That last one is chronologically confused but Jacob literally squared up with God and after they wrestled God renamed him Israel. So yes. God absolutely will come down and throw hands if he wants to.

[madewithonerib]

slow or contemplative living is very freeing once we get it through our thick skull that GOD is not impeded by us since nothing stands in HIS way. And the main way HE does this is by stripping away every false saviour we have tucked away, carefully hidden in the closet of our own making, the same way Rachel tried to keep her father's idols out of sight when she moved out into the world with Jacob.

We do this stupidly despite the fact these idols came with the curse of untimely death, this is precisely what we see happen to Rachel during the birth of Benjamin; so deny as we might, we still have to allow GOD to remove what we've accumulated in our heads, these various ways we assume will earn GOD's favour & delight.

It is not much of a leap to say we all also tend to behave like Pete Campbell of Mad Men, who comes with a silver spoon in his mouth. Entitled with everything he needed to succeed in life, as he was bestowed with varying talents/intellect/outward beauty, albeit diminishing; at any rate, we turn around to use our GOD given gifts as a means to exhaust every possible chance we get to make a name for ourselves & to a lesser degree GOD, if at all.

As a result, we're nevermore exhausted when it is time for rest, due to this gnawing sense we still remain unworthy since this wealth only ever serves to be mistaken as this need to prove we deserve to bear the family name JESUS already offers us freely. But this much needed inner peace & equanimity is ours once GOD breaks down all our walls & false selves, then & only then will we be free to make statements as bold as BL above.. who was able to enjoy the rest that GOD provides as HE accomplishes & carries us to greater oneness & #harmony with HIM.

Philippians 2:13 Shining as Stars

she named him Ben-oni The name "Ben-oni" means "son of my sorrow" or "son of my trouble," reflecting Rachel's anguish and the circumstances of his birth. Naming in the Bible often carries prophetic or symbolic significance, and Rachel's choice underscores the pain and loss she experiences. This moment connects to the broader biblical theme of names reflecting personal or divine encounters, as seen with Jacob's own name change to Israel.

But his father called him Benjamin Jacob's decision to rename his son "Benjamin," meaning "son of the right hand" or "son of the south," signifies a shift from sorrow to strength and favor. The right hand is often associated with power and blessing in biblical literature, as seen in Psalm 110:1. This renaming reflects Jacob's authority and hope for his son's future, aligning with the patriarchal tradition of bestowing names that convey destiny and identity. Benjamin's tribe later plays a significant role in Israel's history, producing notable figures like King Saul and the Apostle Paul.

Cultural and Historical Background: Benjamin was the twelfth and youngest son of Jacob, born to his beloved wife Rachel. His birth is recorded in Genesis 35:16-18, where Rachel names him Ben-Oni ("son of my sorrow") as she dies in childbirth, but Jacob renames him Benjamin. The tribe of Benjamin played a significant role in Israel's history, providing the first king, Saul, and later aligning with the tribe of Judah during the divided kingdom period. The tribe's territory was strategically located between the northern and southern kingdoms, which often placed it at the center of political and military events.

[agapewizard]

➝ A Short History Of The US Flag 🧩

The people of the world have been herded into manageable corrals. The ancient land of Canaan was occupied by the Philistines (today’s Palestinians) before it was conquered by the Hebrews who renamed the land “Israel” and divided it into 12 tribal districts.

By 69AD, the Roman soldiers destroyed the Hebrew Temple of Solomon, burned Jerusalem to the ground, gave the land back to the Philistines and renamed Israel “Palestine”. The 12 Hebrew tribes fled and dispersed from the land.

vikings Where did the Hebrews go?

The Hebrew tribe of Dan adopted the symbols of a dragon and a snake and emblazoned them on their red and white flag together with the crest of an eagle. The carvings of snakes and dragons on their ships, the red and white stripes on their sails and archeological relics reveal that the tribe of Dan became the dreaded Vikings.

The Tribe of Dan settled in Greece along the River DANube and became a ferocious force of brutal seafaring pirates. They named themselves after their ancestral Hyksos Kings (Habirus-Hebrews) who had ruled Egypt as the 15th Dynasty.

VI Kings = 6 Kings = VIKINGS

They pirated their way along the Mediterranean and sailed up the coast of Europe marking their migration trail by naming mountains, towns and rivers after themselves. The river Danube and the Jordan River. Denmark literally means, “the mark of Dan”. Since the original Hebrew language had interchangeable vowels, the name of Dan can also be spelled Din, Den, Dun or Don. ScanDINavia, LonDON, SweDEN and DENmark are all marked by Dan.

Like rabid beasts, the Vikings plundered, robbed and slaughtered on their reign of terror throughout the British Isles accumulating massive amounts of wealth.

Cnut British Israel

By 1017 AD, the King of the Vikings, King Canute, was crowned King of England, Denmark, Norway and Sweden. King Canute was known as Knud in Denmark and Knut in Norway.

Irish annals and history describe this “Tribe of Dan” as the “Tuatha de Danaans. Ireland has a harp on its Coat of Arms associated with King David of Judah and Israel. England and Wales have a dragon on their flag.

flags The United States is symbolized by the eagle which symbolized the Hebrew Tribe of Dan. The U.S. flag imitates the 13 red and white stripes found on the sail of the Viking (Tribe of Dan) ships and also found on the British East India Company flag. The U.S. flag replaced the Union Jack (Union of Jacob) with sprinkled pentagrams.

The British Empire’s wealth was built on piracy, the black slave trade and opium (heroin) trafficking. Opium profits were sent to the Elector of Hesse via Mayer Amschel Rothschild to hire 16,800 Hessian troops to fight the American rebels.

Drug traffic and the Rothschilds played a pivotal role in American history – but these facts have been deleted from the history books.

flag The United Kingdom (of Israel)

More than a thousand years after the Romans chased the Hebrew tribes out of ‘Israel’ (Canaan), the tribes reunited in a new land under a new flag called the “Union Jack”. The Union Jack stands for the Union of Jacob (Jakhuber) who is the patriarch of the Jews.

The United Kingdom is the RE-UNITED Kingdom of the Hebrew tribes of Israel and their modern day monarch is Queen Elizabeth II. Gad (Goths), Dan (Danes), Napthali (Norwegians). Judah (Jutes) was symbolized by the lion. It is now the emblem of today’s British heraldry.

Our “Viking” Days Of The Week

The English words for four of our days of the week are named for Viking gods or royal figures. Tuesday is named for the Viking god of war and justice, Tyr or Tiw, Tuesday being literally “Tiw’s day”. Wednesday is named for Woden, the first great god-king of the Norse in ScanDINavia. Thursday is named for his son, Thor, and Friday after his wife and Queen, Frigg or Freyja.

Sunday is named after the Egyptian SUN god “RA”. Monday is named after the Egyptian MOON goddess ISIS. Saturday is named after the planet Saturn (Satan).

The word “Britain” means “land of the covenant”. The word “British” means “man of the covenant”. A covenant is a “promise”. It is described in the Bible’s Book of Genesis (Gene of ISIS). It is God’s covenant with Abraham promising the land of Isis-Ra-El (ISRAEL) to God’s chosen race of people – the Hebrews.

British National Anthem

Anyone with an ounce of knowledge about British history knows that the British Monarchs have beheaded, colonized, tortured and pillaged. They have built their wealth on drug and slave trafficking. The words “gracious” and “noble” do not apply.

God save our gracious Queen, Long live our noble Queen, Long to reign over us; God save the Queen!

The question is “What God?” and “Who’s God?”. Moloch, the god of War? Mammon, the god of Money?

Israel’s National Anthem

With eyes turned toward the East, looking toward Zion, the two-thousand-year-old hope – will not be lost: To be a free people in our (Palestinian) land The land of Zion and Jerusalem

The British royal families are descendants of Israel’s Tribe of Dan and Judah. Their ultimate goal is to reclaim the land of Israel, rebuild Solomon’s temple and erect an eternal “world throne” in Jerusalem under their chosen World King – Prince william.

Those in doubt need only verify the hymn called “Jerusalem” that was featured at the gathering of the “Hebrew” royals at Westminster Abbey for Prince William’s wedding-of-the-century. The Hymn describes the war that is being fought to reclaim and rebuild Jerusalem.

And was Jerusalem builded here Among those dark satanic mills? Bring me my bow of burning gold! Bring me my arrows of desire! Bring me my spear! O clouds, unfold! Bring me my chariot of fire! I will not cease from mental fight, Nor shall my sword sleep in my hand, Till we have built Jerusalem In England’s green and pleasant land.