Your name will no longer be Jacob, the man told him. It is now Israel, because you have struggled with both God and men and have won. In one significant evening, Jacob the grabber became Israel, who struggled with God and men and won. There is a Jacob of grabbing and deceit within all of us. Someday, we must all face our own wrestling match with God.
Confession is the necessary first step toward divine change and reconciliation.
The former coward who hid behind his family now limps ahead to face his brother and four hundred armed men alone. But Jacob wasn t the only one who changed. As he approached his brother, he bowed low seven times before him. Then Esau ran to meet him and embraced him affectionately and kissed him. Both of them were in tears.