It’s the story of Jacob, our patriarch, and it's a story that the rabbis in Bereshit Rabbah, that great collection of Genesis interpretations, unpack with fascinating detail.
We all know the story: Jacob, on his way to reconcile with his brother Esau, finds himself alone and is confronted by a mysterious figure. They wrestle until dawn. But what was really going on in this epic struggle? The rabbis in Bereshit Rabbah 78 delve deep into the conversation between Jacob and this angelic being.
The angel, desperate to be released as dawn approaches, pleads with Jacob, "Release me, for the time for my lauding, to laud the Holy One blessed be He, has arrived!" He needs to join the celestial chorus.
Jacob, however, isn’t buying it. "Let your colleagues laud Him," he retorts.
But the angel insists, "I cannot, as the next day I will come to laud, and they will say to me, just as you did not laud yesterday, so you will not laud today." Apparently, celestial punctuality is a serious matter!
Jacob, ever the bargainer, sees an opportunity. "If you complete your task, you receive your reward," he declares, "I will not release you unless you bless me!" It’s a bold move, demanding a blessing from a divine messenger.
Jacob even throws the angel's own kind under the bus. "Those angels who came to Abraham," Jacob argues, "they took their leave from him only with a blessing!" (referring to Genesis 18). The angel counters that those angels were specifically sent to bless Abraham, while he was not. "They were sent only for that purpose, but I was not sent for that purpose," he explains.
The stakes get even higher. Rabbi Levi, in the name of Rabbi Shmuel bar Naḥman, adds a layer of complexity: The angel fears divine punishment. The ministering angels, we’re told, were banished from their celestial posts for 138 years for revealing secrets of the Holy One, blessed be He. (This refers to when they revealed to Lot that Sodom was to be destroyed.) If this angel heeds Jacob’s request and blesses him, he too might face banishment.
Again, Jacob is unmoved: "If you complete your task, you receive your reward – ‘I will not release you unless you bless me.’"
Finally, Rav Huna tells us, the angel relents, deciding that he’ll reveal the blessing. He rationalizes that if God questions him, he will argue, "Master of the universe, your prophets issue decrees, and you do not abrogate their decrees; would I be able to abrogate their decree?" It's a fascinating argument – essentially, the angel suggests that revealing the future blessing is in line with God's own actions.
The angel then reveals that God is destined to reveal Himself to Jacob in Beit El (Bethel) and change his name to Israel. "That is what is written," the angel says, quoting Hosea 12:5, "'In Beit El he found him, and there he will speak with us.'" Note the subtle but significant point – "with us," not "with you." The angel implies he will be present at that future encounter.
What does this all mean? What are we to make of Jacob’s tenacity, his willingness to wrestle with the divine, to hold on until he receives a blessing? Perhaps it speaks to the importance of persistence in our own spiritual journeys. Jacob’s story reminds us that engaging with the divine isn't always passive. Sometimes, it requires us to wrestle, to question, to demand a blessing. It’s a beautiful, challenging, and ultimately inspiring message.