Genesis 32:6

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4 And he commanded them, saying, ^a“Speak thus to my lord Esau, ‘Thus your servant Jacob says: “I have dwelt with Laban and stayed there until now.

5 ^aI have oxen, donkeys, flocks, and male and female servants; and I have sent to tell my lord, that ^bI may find favor in your sight.” ’ ”

6 Then the messengers returned to Jacob, saying, “We came to your brother Esau, and ^ahe also is coming to meet you, and four hundred men are with him.”

7 So Jacob was greatly afraid and ^adistressed; and he divided the people that were with him, and the flocks and herds and camels, into two companies.

8 And he said, “If Esau comes to the one company and¹ attacks it, then the other company which is left will escape.”

9 ^aThen Jacob said, ^b“O God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac, the Lord ^cwho said to me, ‘Return to your country and to your family, and I will deal well with you’:

10 I am not worthy of the least of all the ^amercies and of all the truth which You have shown Your servant; for I crossed over this Jordan with ^bmy staff, and now I have become two companies.

11 ^aDeliver me, I pray, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau; for I fear him, lest he come and¹ attack me and ^bthe mother with the children.

12 For ^aYou said, ‘I will surely treat you well, and make your descendants as the ^bsand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude.’ ”

13 So he lodged there that same night, and took what¹ came to his hand as ^aa present for Esau his brother:

Commentaries:

Adam Clarke

<< Genesis 32:5

Genesis 32:7 >>

Genesis 32:6

Esau - cometh - and four hundred men with him - Jacob, conscious that he had injured his brother, was now apprehensive that he was coming with hostile intentions, and that he had every evil to fear from his displeasure. Conscience is a terrible accuser. It was a fine saying of a heathen,

Hic murus aheneus esto,

Nil conscire sibi, nulla pallescere culpa.

Hor. Ep., l. i., E. i., v. 60.

Be this thy brazen bulwark of defense,

Still to preserve thy conscious innocence,

Nor e' er turn pale with guilt.

Francis.

In other words, He that has a good conscience has a brazen wall for his defense; for a guilty conscience needs no accuser; sooner or later it will tell the truth, and not only make the man turn pale who has it, but also cause him to tremble even while his guilt is known only to himself and God.

It does not appear that Esau in this meeting had any hostile intention, but was really coming with a part of his servants or tribe to do his brother honor. If he had had any contrary intention, God had removed it; and the angelic host which Jacob met with before might have inspired him with sufficient confidence in God' s protection. But we find that when he needed faith most, he appears to have derived but little benefit from its influence, partly from the sense he had of the injury he had done to his brother, and partly from not attending sufficiently to the assurance which God had given him of his gracious protection.

Other Adam Clarke entries containing Genesis 32:6:

Genesis 31:3
Genesis 32:3

<< Genesis 32:5

Genesis 32:7 >>

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