In the womb he took his brother by the heel; and in his manhood he contended with God.
World English Bible
This verse is examined in more than one Scripture Analysis section. Each lens is shown on its own terms, in the section's own words; GEBible reaches no verdict of its own.
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WEB World English Bible Public Domain ✓
In the womb he took his brother by the heel; and in his manhood he contended with God.
World English Bible
Questions where the Bible appears to say two different things, with the passages on each side set together.
Genesis 32 has Jacob wrestling "a man" at the Jabbok, after which Jacob insists he has "seen God face to face" and names the place Peniel. Hosea 12:4 reaches back to the same episode and calls the opponent an angel.
Critical scholarship: Leans toward reconciliation.
The proposed answers and sources for each reading are on the question page.
Each section sets the viewpoints side by side; you weigh the evidence. Here, "critical scholarship" means academic study, not a value judgment. How this is built →
Within each section, grouped by shared field or question type — not a cross-section comparison.
This citation refers to this GEBible page — the verse and the analysis gathered here. To cite the underlying scholarship, cite those sources directly.
"Hosea 12:3 — Scripture Analysis" GEBible, https://gebible.app/analysis/verse/hosea/12/3?version=WEB (retrieved 26 August 2026).