Annotatio CXI

”And behold, a man wrestled with him until morning.” — Genesis 32:24

Theodore, Bishop of Heraclea — as appears from the Greek Catena of Oecumenius — elucidating the present passage, asserts that Jacob fought against the angel in the embrace of a true and bodily wrestling,¹ [an angel] who, a manly form being assumed for the time, provoked the patriarch himself to the wrestling. Although almost all the Hebrew, Greek, and Latin expositors follow this opinion, Jerome nevertheless seems to have disapproved [it] in the third book of the commentaries on the Epistle to the Ephesians, where, explaining that [saying], “Our wrestling is not against flesh and blood, but against the spiritual wickednesses in the heavenly places,”² he indicated that Jacob did not fight bodily against him who appeared to him in [the form of] a man, but rather contended spiritually with the help of him who appeared to him in a man — not against human temptations, but against the greatest and superhuman temptations of the wicked demon, which Paul called “wrestlings not against flesh and blood, but against the spiritual wickednesses in the heavenly places.” And he expressed this sense in these words: “These things we have brought forward, that we may beat back the opinion of those who think that all vices are of flesh and blood, and that the demons have no power to incite us to sin. Such a wrestling we think Jacob’s also to have been — namely, that he contended not against flesh and blood, when he remained alone, and a man wrestled with him, helping and strengthening him against another struggling with excessive sweat. And at the same time see, lest perhaps those be ridiculous who think that Jacob wrestled the whole night in the manner of wrestlers. For what is there great, if — as they say — while wrestling he either overcame or was overcome? But according to a reasonable wrestling befitting the patriarch, it must be believed that his struggle was such as they have who can say, ‘Our wrestling is not against flesh and blood, but against the spiritual wickednesses in the heavenly places.’”

Thus far the words of Jerome, who in this part follows the judgment of Origen — who earlier had written thus on the same matter in the third [book] On First Principles: “Whence also the Angel is said to have wrestled with Jacob. Which we do not so understand, as that it be the same [to say] that the Angel wrestled with Jacob and [that it was] against Jacob; but that he who was present to him for the sake of [his] salvation, and imposed on him the name Israel, that same one wrestles with him — that is, is with him in the contest, and helps him in the struggle — since without doubt there was another against whom he fought, and against whom the contest was waged for him. And indeed Paul too did not say that we have a wrestling with the principalities and powers, but against the principalities and powers. Whence, if Jacob wrestled, without doubt he wrestled against some of these powers, which Paul declares to be especially adverse to the human race and to the saints, and to stir up contests. Therefore Scripture finally says of Jacob that he wrestled with the Angel and prevailed unto God — so that, if there be indeed a contest of the struggle, [Scripture], sustained by the Angel’s help, may lead the victor, by the palm of perfection, unto God.” Procopius of Gaza, in the commentaries on this chapter, says: “Some — as we have received from a certain learned man — profess that the Devil, in the appearance of Esau, contended with Jacob, wishing to overcome him; but that an auxiliary Angel stood by Jacob, by whose help the Devil could effect nothing. Therefore, lest Jacob should think that he had vanquished the adversary by his own strength — [rather than] helped by the Angel’s strength — the sinew was touched for him, and lameness followed.”