Jacob called the name of the place Peniel; for he said, “I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.”
Parallel Translations
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Jacob called the name of the place Peniel; for he said, “I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.”
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And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.
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(32-31) And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: 'for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.'
Examined in Scripture Analysis
Contradictions (2)
Questions where the Bible appears to say two different things, with the passages on each side set together.
Cross-references (22)
Passages linked to Genesis 32:30 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Exodus 24:10-11 They saw the God of Israel. Under his feet was like a paved work of sapphire stone, like the skies for clearness. He didn’t lay his hand on the nobles of the children of Israel. They saw God, and ate and drank.
- Numbers 12:8 With him, I will speak mouth to mouth, even plainly, and not in riddles; and he shall see Yahweh’s form. Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant, against Moses?”
- Isaiah 6:5 Then I said, “Woe is me! For I am undone, because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell among a people of unclean lips: for my eyes have seen the King, Yahweh of Armies!”
- Genesis 16:13 She called the name of Yahweh who spoke to her, “You are a God who sees,” for she said, “Have I even stayed alive after seeing him?”
- Deuteronomy 5:24 and you said, “Behold, Yahweh our God has shown us his glory and his greatness, and we have heard his voice out of the middle of the fire. We have seen today that God does speak with man, and he lives.
- Exodus 33:19-23 He said, “I will make all my goodness pass before you, and will proclaim Yahweh’s name before you. I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy.” He said, “You cannot see my face, for man may not see me and live.” Yahweh also said, “Behold, there is a place by me, and you shall stand on the rock. It will happen, while my glory passes by, that I will put you in a cleft of the rock, and will cover you with my hand until I have passed by; then I will take away my hand, and you will see my back; but my face shall not be seen.”
- John 1:18 No one has seen God at any time. The one and only Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, has declared him.
- Exodus 33:14 He said, “My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”
- Ephesians 1:17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him,
- 2 Timothy 1:10 but has now been revealed by the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who abolished death, and brought life and immortality to light through the Good News.
- Hebrews 11:27 By faith, he left Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for he endured, as seeing him who is invisible.
- Genesis 28:19 He called the name of that place Bethel, but the name of the city was Luz at the first.
- Deuteronomy 34:10 Since then, there has not arisen a prophet in Israel like Moses, whom Yahweh knew face to face,
- Judges 6:22-23 Gideon saw that he was Yahweh’s angel; and Gideon said, “Alas, Lord Yahweh! Because I have seen Yahweh’s angel face to face!” Yahweh said to him, “Peace be to you! Don’t be afraid. You shall not die.”
- Judges 8:8 He went up there to Penuel, and spoke to them in the same way; and the men of Penuel answered him as the men of Succoth had answered.
- Judges 8:17 He broke down the tower of Penuel, and killed the men of the city.
- Judges 13:21-22 But Yahweh’s angel didn’t appear to Manoah or to his wife any more. Then Manoah knew that he was Yahweh’s angel. Manoah said to his wife, “We shall surely die, because we have seen God.”
- 1 Kings 12:25 Then Jeroboam built Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim, and lived in it; and he went out from there, and built Penuel.
- 2 Corinthians 3:18 But we all, with unveiled face seeing the glory of the Lord as in a mirror, are transformed into the same image from glory to glory, even as from the Lord, the Spirit.
- 2 Corinthians 4:6 seeing it is God who said, “Light will shine out of darkness,” who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
- Galatians 1:6 I marvel that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ to a different “good news”,
- Colossians 1:15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (12 sources)
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain 30. And Jacob called the name of the place…
30. And Jacob called the name of the place The gratitude of our father Jacob is again commended, because he took diligent care that the memory of God’s grace should never perish. He therefore leaves a monument to posterity, from which they might know that God had appeared there; for this was not a private vision, but had reference to the whole Church. Moreover, Jacob not only declares that he has seen the face of God, but also gives thanks that he has been snatched from death. This language frequently occurs in the Scriptures, and was common among the ancient people; and not without reason; for, if the earth trembles at the presence of God, if the mountains melt, if darkness overspreads the heavens, what must happen to miserable men! Nay, since the immense majesty of God cannot be comprehended even by angels, but rather absorbs them; were his glory to shine on us it would destroy us, and reduce us to nothing, unless he sustained and protected us. So long as we do not perceive God to be present, we proudly please ourselves; and this is the imaginary life which the flesh foolishly arrogates to itself when it inclines towards the earth. But the faithful, when God reveals himself to them, feel themselves to be more evanescent than any smoke. Finally; would we bring down the pride of the flesh, we must draw near to God. So Jacob confesses that, by the special indulgence of God, he had been rescued from destruction when he saw God. It may however be asked, “Why, when he had obtained so slight a taste only of God’s glory, he should boast that he had seen him, face to face?” I answer, it is in no way absurd that Jacob highly celebrates this vision above all others, in which the Lord had not so plainly appeared unto him; and yet, if it be compared with the splendor of the gospel, or even of the law, it will appear like sparks, or obscure rays. The simple meaning then is, that he saw God in an unwonted and extraordinary manner. Now, if Jacob so greatly exults and congratulates himself in that slender measure of knowledge; what ought we to do at this day, to whom Christ, the living image of God, is evidently set before our eyes in the mirror of the gospel! Let us therefore learn to open our eyes, lest we be blind at noonday, as Paul exhorts us in 2 Corinthians 3:1-4:1.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain Or, my soul is delivered.
Or, my soul is delivered.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Gen 32:30 And Jacob called the name of the…
Gen 32:30 And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.
Ver. 30. I have seen God face to face.] Christ would not tell Jacob his name, to lift up his mind above what he saw of him, and to insinuate that his name was "Wonderful," his essence incomprehensible. {Jdg 13:17-18} And whereas Jacob said here, he had "seen God face to face": he means only, praesens praesentem, as Moses spake with God "mouth to mouth". {Num 12:8} He saw not God’s majesty and essence; for he is a God "that hides himself," {Isa 8:17} and "dwells in the light unapproachable". {1Ti 6:16} But he saw him more apparently and manifestly than ever he had done before. We can see but his "back parts" {Exo 33:23} and live; we need see no more, that we may live. God that fills all, saith Nazianzen, though he lighten the mind, yet flies before the beams thereof; still leaving it, as it is able, in sight to follow him; draws it by degrees to higher things; but ever interposeth between it and his incomparable essence, as many vails as were over the tabernacle. Some created shape, some glimpse of glory, Jacob saw; whereby God was pleased, for the present, to testify his more immediate presence; but not himself.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain I have seen God face to face; not in…
I have seen God face to face; not in his essence, for so no man ever saw God, Joh 1:18, nor yet in a dream or vision, but in a most evident, sensible, familiar, and friendly manifestation of himself.
My life is preserved; I am now well assured of my safety from Esau, whose approach threatened my life. Or he speaks of it with wonder, as others did, that he should see God, and not be struck dead by the glory of his presence. Compare Gen 16:13; Exo 20:19; Jdg 6:22,23; 13:22.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel,....…
And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel,.... In Gen 32:31; Penuel, which signifies the face of God, or God hath looked upon me, or hath had respect to me: there was afterwards a city built here, called by the same name; see Jdg 8:8; it is said (k) to be four miles from Mahanaim; the reason of it follows:
for I have seen God face to face: it may be observed, that in wrestling men are face to face, and in this position were Jacob and the man that wrestled with him; which he seems to have respect unto, as well as to the familiarity and intimate communion he was admitted to:
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and my life is preserved: though he had wrestled with one so vastly superior to himself, who could have easily crushed this worm Jacob to pieces, as he is sometimes called; and though he had had such a sight of God as face to faces referring, as is thought, to a notion that obtained early, even among good men, that upon sight of God a man instantly died; though we have no example of that kind: but perhaps he observed this for his encouragement; that whereas he had met with God himself, and wrestled with him in the form of a man, and yet was preserved, he doubted not that, when he should meet with his brother and debate matters with him, he should be safe and unhurt.
(k) Bunting's Travels, p. 72. 74.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain Peniel - That is, the face of God, because…
Peniel - That is, the face of God, because there he had seen the appearance of God, and obtained the favour of God.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain Phanuel. This word signifies the face of God, or…
Phanuel. This word signifies the face of God, or the sight, or seeing of God. (Challoner) --- Hebrew reads here Peni-el, though it has Phanuel in the next verse. Jacob thus returns thanks to God for the preservation of his life, after having seen God or his angel in a corporeal form, and not in a dream only. (Calmet)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 30, 31.
30, 31.
Peniel… Penuel — The two words mean the same thing, and differ only by the changing of the vowel-letter יinto ו. Elsewhere it is always written Penuel, and possibly the form Peniel is a corruption that has here crept into the text. The name means face or presence of God, and the deep and lasting impression made on Jacob, as having struggled face to face with God, made this a fitting name of the place. He had there a vision of God such as he had not before, and though now he halted upon his thigh, he was thankful for the preservation of his life.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 30. Peniel] R.V. marg. The face of God. In…
30. Peniel] R.V. marg. The face of God. In the Sam. version, Syr., and Lat., it is called “Penuel,” as in Gen_32:32. Popular tradition explained the etymology of the name of the place by the story of Jacob.
The face of God was to be seen in the Angel: he that looked on the Angel saw the Presence of Jehovah.
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I have seen God … preserved] The belief that to see God was to die prevailed amongst the Israelites; see Gen_16:13; Exo_19:21; Exo_24:10-11; Exo_33:20; Deu_5:24; Jdg_6:22; Jdg_13:22. Jacob has seen the Divine Being, Elohim, and lives.
Jacob, on his deathbed, refers to this event (Gen_48:16): “The Angel which redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads.”
face to face] See Exo_33:11; Deu_34:10
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (30) Peniel.—Elsewhere Penuel, and so probably it should be…
(30) Peniel.—Elsewhere Penuel, and so probably it should be read here. It means, “the face of God.” For the rest of the verse see Note on Gen_16:13.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel…
And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel (i.e. "the face of God." Its situation must have been close to the Jabbok. The reason given for its designation follows): for I have seen God (Elohim) face to face, and my life is preserved (cf. Gen_16:13; Exo_14:11; Jud_1:6:22 13:22; Isa_6:5)
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 32:30 Peniel (which means “face of God”): The name…
32:30 Peniel (which means “face of God”): The name shows that Jacob recognized the man as a manifestation of God (a theophany). • yet my life has been spared (or and I have been rescued): The saying probably meant that Jacob realized that his prayer to be rescued from Esau (32:11) had been answered, for if he could meet God like this and walk away, he had nothing to fear from Esau. The saying may also reflect an ancient understanding that no one could see God and live (see Exod 33:20).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.