Word of Encouragement (04/26/2022)

"Assemble and listen, O sons of Jacob, listen to Israel your father. ³ "Reuben, you are my firstborn, my might, and the firstfruits of my strength, preeminent in dignity and preeminent in power. ⁴ Unstable as water, you shall not have preeminence, because you went up to your father's bed; then you defiled it—he went up to my couch! (Gen. 49:2-4)

In his deathbed, Jacob prays for each of his sons. His prayers are a blend of benediction and prophecy (and even curse, in some cases): “Gather yourselves together, that I may tell you what shall happen to you in days to come” (49:1). We will go over each one in the coming days.

Jacob begins his prayers, “Assemble and listen, O sons of Jacob, listen to Israel your father.” Here, you see Jacob addressing himself both as Jacob and Israel. This is an interesting phenomenon, especially in comparison to what happened with Abraham and Sarah. God changed their names, too—from Abram to Abraham and from Sarai to Sarah. Once the names were changed, their old names were never used. But that is not true of Jacob, whose name was changed to Israel. Here, he refers to himself as both Jacob and Israel. God, too, addresses him as Jacob from time to time (Gen. 46:2, Ex. 3:15, etc.). This was after God told Jacob, “Your name is Jacob; no longer shall your name be called Jacob, but Israel shall be your name” (Gen. 35:10)!

As far as I can see, there is no definitive answer to this question while various theories abound. Some simply attribute this to different hypothetical sources, from which they believe the Genesis narratives were taken and (clumsily) pieced together. Some think that Jacob and Israel represent different character traits—Jacob more “compliant... easily swayed by stronger characters like his mother and Laban,” and Israel more decisive (Herbert Block, “Distinguishing Jacob and Israel”). Block concludes, “Genesis 49:1 has Jacob calling for his sons and Genesis 49:2 summons the sons of Jacob to listen to your father Israel, as if to say: follow Israel, that decisive part of your father.” Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz says that the sages of the Hassidic movement thought of the two names as “two emotional/spiritual attitudes that one must be prepared to have in dealing with forbidden desires.... One attitude requires a negotiation with these desires...—an attitude of Jacob. But sometimes a person needs to fight, to have faith in his ability to overcome his desires and not give up on his spiritual aspirations. This is the attitude of Israel” (“Two Names, Two Spiritual Attitudes”). These are interesting suggestions, but I don’t know whether we can arrive at a definitive answer.

One thing is for certain, I believe. When we read these two names, we cannot help but remember the grace God bestowed on Jacob by changing his name—from Jacob, which meant “one who takes by the heel or supplants” or even “a cheater” to Israel, which means “you have striven with God and with men, and have prevailed” (32:28). This shows that God is in the business of changing our lives from shame to honor, from sin to righteousness, from spiritual death to spiritual vitality, etc.

But can’t the same be said about Abraham’s name change? Then, why is his old name never mentioned? The only reason I can think of is this: whereas Abraham was delivered from a pagan family (Josh. 24:2), Jacob was born into a covenant family. Maybe the name Abram represents the our unbelieving past (our “old man” under the bondage of sin), from which we must make a decisive break, and therefore it is never mentioned again. On the other hand, the name Jacob represents God’s love for sinners like us and His power to make Israel out of Jacob; it represents all that God has given to us—our “natural” talents and capacities and abilities—which, through the redemptive and transformative work of the Holy Spirit, can be used for the advancement of God’s kingdom. The juxtaposition of the two names is a reminder of God’s love for our whole being, God’s plan to use the entirety of our lives for His glory. Let us give thanks to the Lord.