Seventh-day Adventist Bible CommentaryGenesis 33

Bowed himself. This Oriental custom is attested in the Amarna Letters of the 14th century B.C., in which Palestinian princes wrote an Egyptian king that they fell down before Pharaoh’s feet, either “seven times,” or “seven times and another seven times,” or possibly “seven times seven times.” Seven bows before a superior seem to have been considered a sign of perfect humility and unqualified submission. By this manifestation of deference, Jacob hoped to win the heart of his brother. It represented complete abandonment of any claim to special privileges previously secured by treachery.

Esau embraced him. At the sight of his twin brother, Esau was carried away by natural feelings of brotherly affection. Even if there had still been malice in Esau’s heart, it was overcome by Jacob’s humility. Realizing that he had nothing to fear from Jacob, he allowed free rein to the natural emotions of his heart.

Saw the women and the children. During the silent embrace of the long-separated brothers, Jacob’s 4 wives and 12 children had come near.

All this drove. Though he knew quite well the purpose of the several droves (ch. 32:18), Esau nevertheless inquired concerning them. With obvious Oriental courtesy, he refused to accept them until urgently persuaded to do so. The “roving life” which so well suited his nature had procured for him such wealth and power that his own earthly possessions were no doubt equal to those of his brother. Esau was friendly enough toward Jacob, but there was nothing in his manner comparable to the humility of his brother. Jacob addressed Esau as “my lord,” while Esau answered him as “my brother.”

I have seen thy face. Esau’s friendly greeting called to mind the divine promise so recently accorded Jacob, and in Esau’s face he could read its gracious fulfillment. These words of Jacob reflect his profound gratitude for the obvious Presence that attended him on his way (see ch. 32:30). How happy the man who recognized Providence at his side day by day (Job 33:26; Ps. 11:7)!

My blessing. These words were well chosen and forceful. Can they have been an allusion to the blessing Jacob had snatched from Esau 20 years before? It was most important to Jacob that Esau accept his present, for in so doing Esau, according to the custom of the time, would express his acceptance of that which the present represented— the apology of Jacob. In the Orient a present received by a superior assures to the giver the friendship and assistance of the recipient. If it is rejected, he has everything to fear.

Let us go. Esau assumed that Jacob would proceed immediately to Hebron (ch. 35:27), the abode of their father Isaac, and proposed to accompany Jacob on his way. But Jacob politely declined both this offer and the escort later suggested. The latter was unnecessary; the former would mean an intolerably slow pace for Esau. This refusal did not spring from any feeling of distrust; the reasons given were no mere pretext. He needed no military guard, for he knew that he was defended by the hosts of God, and he could not travel as fast as Esau would want to go. Furthermore, he would be free to camp wherever he might choose and remain there until ready to move on. He would thus enjoy complete freedom of action.

Until I come. Not that Jacob intended to go directly to Seir, but rather an expression of his desire to see Esau again and to continue on friendly terms with him. Certainly this was not a willful deception for the purpose of getting rid of Esau. Jacob’s destination was not the land of Seir, but Canaan, probably Hebron, where his father Isaac then lived. Thence he may have thought of paying Esau a visit, but whether he ever did so we do not know. The brothers next met, as friends, at their father’s funeral (ch. 35:29).

Succoth. Meaning “booths” or “folds” made of twigs woven together. Succoth, in the valley of the Jordan (Joshua 13:27), was later allotted to the tribe of Gad. It has been tentatively identified with the hill Deir‘alla, near the mouth of the river Jabbok. How long Jacob remained in Succoth is not known. The fact that he erected a “house,” which none of the earlier patriarchs seem to have done, suggests that he must have lived there for several years. His reasons for doing so are likewise unknown to us. Good pasture and a sparse population may have influenced him in this decision.

Commissioned by God to return to the land of his fathers (ch. 31:3), Jacob most likely found an early opportunity to visit his aged father. At that time he may also have paid a visit to his brother in Seir, as he had promised.

Jacob came to Shalem. In considering shalem a place name the KJV follows the LXX, the Vulgate, and other later versions. The word is, however, an adverb signifying “peacefully” or “safely,” and is equivalent to the phrase “in peace” of ch. 28:21, to which it seems to be an allusion. What Jacob had requested as he made his vow at Bethel 20 years before was now fulfilled (PP 204). He had returned to the land of his nativity. A city of Shechem. If shalem is taken as the name of a place, then Shechem would refer to the person of v. 19 and ch. 34:2, the son of Hamor the Hivite. But if shalem means “whole,” or “safe and sound,” the clause should be rendered, “Jacob came safely [safe and sound] to the city of Shechem.” It is not necessary to assume that Shechem received its name from Shechem, the son of Hamor, since it was already in existence as a town in Abraham’s time (ch. 12:6). An Egyptian inscription describes a military campaign against the city in the 19th century B.C. It is more likely that Shechem, the son of Hamor, was named after the city.

Shechem. Hamor is here referred to as Shechem’s father in anticipation of subsequent events involving both of them. It was on the “parcel of a field” purchased from the Shechemites that Jacob dug the well where the memorable conversation took place between Jesus and the Samaritan woman (John 4:6). An hundred pieces of money. The qeśitah is a monetary unit mentioned elsewhere only in Joshua 24:32 and Job 42:11. Apparently, it fell into disuse soon after the conquest of Canaan by the Israelites, for it is never mentioned in the later books of the Bible. Some commentators have suggested that it may have had the value of ten shekels, but this is only a guess. Its value is unknown. By this purchase Jacob demonstrated his faith in the promise that Canaan was to be his home. Appropriately, this piece of land later fell to the lot of the descendants of his favorite son, Joseph, whose bones were buried here (Joshua 24:32). According to tradition, this piece of land was on the plain that extends from the southeastern opening of the valley of Shechem. Here Jacob’s well (John 4:6) is still pointed out, and Joseph’s tomb a little to the north of it. The latter structure is of Mohammedan origin, as are the traditions concerning it.

An altar. Like his father Abraham, Jacob here erected his own first altar upon entering the land of Canaan (ch. 12:7). It was probably with that former altar in mind that Jacob selected this site. El-elohe-Israel. It has been suggested that this name means “[dedicated] to the God of Israel,” taking the first two letters of the Hebrew to be the preposition ’al, “to.” Since ancient times, however, it has been interpreted, “The [mighty] God, [is] the God of Israel.” This would set the altar apart as a memorial to the mercy and the prospering hand of the Lord in returning him safely to the land of his fathers after more than 20 years’ absence.