Jacob: Our Patriarch of Truthনমুনা

Jacob: Our Patriarch of Truth

The third and final patriarch of the Jewish Bible is Jacob. In one of the most famous Bible stories, Jacob dreamt of a ladder rooted on earth and reaching to heaven. When Jacob looked up, God said, “I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying” (Genesis 28:13).

Jacob completes the trilogy of Abraham and Isaac. Each patriarch’s attributes are planted in their descendants: Abraham, kindness; Isaac, strength; and as we’ll discover in this study, Jacob, truth.

But while Jacob is an equal member of the patriarchs, he also stands alone. God’s people are named after Jacob. Jacob was given a new name after he struggled with a stranger, identified in the Bible as “a man” (Genesis 32:24). After the struggle, Scripture tells us that the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel” (Genesis 32:28).

The Jewish people are not known as the children of Abraham, nor the children of Isaac. God’s people are the children of Israel.

And Jacob is the only patriarch who the nation of Israel can claim exclusively. Abraham was the father of Isaac, but also of Ishmael and the children he had with his second wife, Keturah. Although Isaac continued Abraham’s legacy, other nations claim Abraham as their father. Isaac was the father of Jacob, but also Esau. But Jacob fathered 12 sons who became leaders of the 12 tribes of the nation of Israel.

So let’s take a fresh look at the life of Jacob and his contribution to the nation of Israel. We will look at Jacob from a Jewish perspective and see why truthfulness is considered his prevailing characteristic. We will discover how Jacob fought to remain true to God’s will for his life. And together, let us grow in our understanding of the man from whom emerged a nation and a people, Israel, and of the enduring lessons his life has for Christians and Jews.