Genesis 25:24

Hebrew Bible

23 and the Lord said to her, “Two nations are in your womb, and two peoples will be separated from within you. One people will be stronger than the other, and the older will serve the younger.” 24 When the time came for Rebekah to give birth, there were twins in her womb. 25 The first came out reddish all over, like a hairy garment, so they named him Esau. 26 When his brother came out with his hand clutching Esau’s heel, they named him Jacob. Isaac was sixty years old when they were born.

Genesis 32:25

Hebrew Bible

24 So Jacob was left alone. Then a man wrestled with him until daybreak. 25 When the man saw that he could not defeat Jacob, he struck the socket of his hip so the socket of Jacob’s hip was dislocated while he wrestled with him. 26 Then the man said, “Let me go, for the dawn is breaking.” “I will not let you go,” Jacob replied, “unless you bless me.”

Hosea 12:4

Hebrew Bible

2 The Lord also has a covenant lawsuit against Judah; he will punish Jacob according to his ways and repay him according to his deeds. 3 In the womb he attacked his brother; in his manly vigor he struggled with God. 4 He struggled with an angel and prevailed; he wept and begged for his favor. He found God at Bethel, and there he spoke with him! 5 As for the Lord God Almighty, the Lord is the name by which he is remembered!

 Notes and References

"... Hosea, meanwhile, when speaking about Jacob and Esau, cites only J and E, but nothing of the P version of those events: In the womb he “heeled” his brother, and by his might he fought with God, and he fought with an angel and was able; he cried, and he was gracious to him. He found him at Beth-E1, and there He spoke with him. (Hosea 12:4-5) The connection between the womb and the grabbing of his brother’s heel is well known from J (Genesis 25:24-26). The fighting with God and being “able” connects to an equally well-known passage from E (Genesis 32:25-31). The reference to finding him at Beth-El and especially referring to speaking “with” (Hebrew ‘im) him calls to mind the J version of the story of the revelation to Jacob (Genesis 28:13-16, 19) ..."

Friedman, Richard Elliott The Bible with Sources Revealed: A New View Into the Five Books of Moses (pp. 16-17) Harper San Francisco, 2005

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