Then the man said, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.” But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.”
Parallel translations
- WEB The man said, “Let me go, for the day breaks.” Jacob said, “I won’t let you go, unless you bless me.”
- KJV And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me.
- NKJV And He said, “Let Me go, for the day breaks.” But he said, “I will not let You go unless You bless me!”
- NASB Then he said, “Let me go, for the dawn is breaking.” But he said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.”
- NLT Then the man said, “Let me go, for the dawn is breaking!” But Jacob said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
As day breaks the man asks to be released, but Jacob refuses to let go unless he is blessed. Jacob clings in desperate, persistent faith.
Overview
Now lamed, Jacob can no longer wrestle but can only hold on, pleading for blessing. His refusal to let go shows faith that grasps God and will not be denied. This persevering, dependent prayer, born of weakness, is the very faith that prevails with God.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 17
- Hos 12:4Yes, he struggled with the angel and prevailed; he wept and sought His favor; he found Him at Bethel and spoke with Him there—
- Ps 115:12–13The LORD is mindful of us; He will bless us. He will bless the house of Israel; He will bless the house of Aaron;
- 2 Cor 12:8–9Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me.
- Ps 67:1For the choirmaster. With stringed instruments. A Psalm. A song. May God be gracious to us and bless us, and cause His face to shine upon us, Selah
- 1 Chr 4:10And Jabez called out to the God of Israel, “If only You would bless me and enlarge my territory! May Your hand be with me and keep me from harm, so that I will be free from pain.” And God granted the request of Jabez.
- Song 3:4I had just passed them when I found the one I love. I held him and would not let go until I had brought him to my mother’s house, to the chamber of the one who conceived me.
- Luke 24:28–29As they approached the village where they were headed, He seemed to be going farther.
- Luke 18:1–7Then Jesus told them a parable about their need to pray at all times and not lose heart:
- Rom 8:37No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.
- Exod 32:10Now leave Me alone, so that My anger may burn against them and consume them. Then I will make you into a great nation.”
- Isa 64:7No one calls on Your name or strives to take hold of You. For You have hidden Your face from us and delivered us into the hand of our iniquity.
- Heb 5:7During the days of Jesus’ earthly life, He offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the One who could save Him from death, and He was heard because of His reverence.
- Isa 45:11Thus says the LORD, the Holy One of Israel, and its Maker: “How dare you question Me about My sons, or instruct Me in the work of My hands?
- Deut 9:14Leave Me alone, so that I may destroy them and blot out their name from under heaven. Then I will make you into a nation mightier and greater than they are.”
- Ps 67:6–7The earth has yielded its harvest; God, our God, blesses us.
- Song 7:5Your head crowns you like Mount Carmel, the hair of your head like purple threads; the king is captured in your tresses.
- 1 Cor 15:58Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast and immovable. Always excel in the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
From the first promise that the seed of the woman would crush the serpent (3:15), through Abraham's blessing to all nations and Judah's coming ruler, Genesis sows every seed that flowers in Christ — the true offspring, the better Adam, the ram caught for Isaac.
How Genesis 32:26 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.