“Then the man said, ‘You shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with God and with humans and have prevailed.’” (Genesis 32:28)
It reads as if the two came to a draw,
As neither walked away leaving his foe
Defeated in the dust. The stranger asked
The name of Jacob and, for once, he set
Aside deception, telling truthfully,
“My name’s Deceiver; One Who’s Crooked; Bent.
I’ve tripped the heels of all ahead of me,
Yet still have found myself possessing nothing.”
To which his God responded, Child, you’ll learn
My blessing only comes upon the broken,
Upon the ones who’ve sought to bend my will
To theirs. They all leave marked, and sometimes bruised,
But always hobbling; so when they walk
With stuttered steps, they’ll learn to lean on me.