Cornelius a Lapide
Table of Contents
Synopsis of the Chapter
Jacob by his submission and gifts appeases and wins over his brother Esau. Second, verse 17, he dwells in Succoth and in Salem, and erects an altar to God his deliverer.
Vulgate Text: Genesis 33:1-20
1. And Jacob lifting up his eyes, saw Esau coming, and with him four hundred men: and he divided the children of Leah and Rachel, and of both handmaids; 2. and he put both handmaids, and their children foremost: and Leah and her children in the second place: and Rachel and Joseph last. 3. And he himself going forward bowed down with his face to the ground seven times, until his brother came near. 4. Then Esau running to meet his brother, embraced him: and clasping him round the neck, and kissing him, wept. 5. And lifting up his eyes, he saw the women and their children, and said: What mean these? And do they belong to you? He answered: They are the children, whom God has given to your servant. 6. And the handmaids and their children came near and bowed down. 7. Leah also came near with her children: and when they had similarly bowed down, last of all Joseph and Rachel bowed down. 8. And Esau said: What are those droves which I met? He answered: That I might find grace before my lord. 9. But he said: I have plenty, my brother, keep what is yours. 10. And Jacob said: Do not so, I beseech you, but if I have found grace in your eyes, receive a little present at my hands: for so I have seen your face, as if I should see the countenance of God: be gracious to me, 11. and take the blessing which I have brought to you, and which God bestowing all things has given to me. He took it scarce at his brother's pressing, 12. and said: Let us go on together, and I will accompany you on your journey. 13. And Jacob said: You know, my lord, that I have tender children, and sheep and cattle with young with me; which if I should cause to be overdriven in one day, all the flocks will die. 14. May it please my lord to go before his servant: and I will follow softly after him, as I shall see my little ones are able, until I come to my lord in Seir. 15. Esau answered: I beseech you, that some of the people who are with me may at least stay to accompany you on the way. There is no need, said he: I want only this one thing, to find grace in your sight, my lord. 16. So Esau returned that day the way he came to Seir. 17. And Jacob came to Succoth, where having built a house and pitched tents, he called the name of that place Succoth, that is, tents. 18. And he passed over to Salem, a city of the Shechemites, which is in the land of Canaan, after he returned from Mesopotamia of Syria: and he dwelt beside the town. 19. And he bought the part of a field in which he had pitched his tents, from the children of Hamor the father of Shechem, for a hundred lambs. 20. And erecting an altar there, he called upon it the most mighty God of Israel.
Verse 3: He Himself Going Forward
3. HE HIMSELF GOING FORWARD. In Hebrew it is: vehu abar lipnehem, "and he himself passed over" or "went forward before them"; from which it is clear that Jacob, after the first drove of cattle and servants, went forward as a father and leader before the second group of wives and children, offering himself to danger and death for them.
Verse 3: He Bowed Down Seven Times
HE BOWED DOWN WITH HIS FACE TO THE GROUND — not to God, as some would have it, but to his brother Esau. Jacob therefore bowed down, that is, he showed reverence — not sacred, nor divine, but human and civil — to his brother, inclining himself to the ground before him seven times, at short intervals, until he reached his brother. Learn here that the pride and anger of the powerful and fierce is broken by nothing more effectively than by humble submission, namely:
"It is enough for the great-hearted lion to have laid bodies low. The fight has its end when the enemy lies fallen." — Ovid.
See St. Chrysostom, Homily 58.
Thus that holy Bishop, says Sophronius in the Spiritual Meadow, chapter 210, overcame another Bishop who was gravely offended against him and his people, when "he fell at his feet with all his clergy saying: Forgive us, Lord, we are your servants; for that man, astonished and moved by such humility of the Bishop, held his feet, saying: You are my lord and father. And that humble man said to his clergy: Have we not conquered by the grace of Christ? And so when you have an enemy, do likewise, and you will be victors." A similar example is found in the last chapter and another in the penultimate chapter. Therefore a soft, gentle and humble response breaks anger, as the Wise Man says.
Allegorically, St. Cyril in the Glaphyra, book 5: Jacob is Christ: He is first reconciled with Laban, that is with the Gentiles, then with Esau, that is with the Jews; for when the fullness of the Gentiles has entered, then all Israel will be converted to Christ, and will be saved.
Seven times. Why seven times? St. Ambrose answers allegorically, book 2 On Jacob, chapter 6, because he looked toward Christ, "who commanded that forgiveness be granted to a brother not only up to seven times, but even seventy times seven, Matthew 18. So that Esau, met by this contemplation of Him, would forgive his brother the injury which he thought he had received, and though injured would return to favor, because for this reason the Lord Jesus was going to take on flesh and come to earth, that He might grant us multiplied forgiveness of sins."
Verse 8: That I Might Find Grace
8. THAT I MIGHT FIND GRACE — that is to say, I sent these ahead to you as a gift, as to a most beloved and most honored brother, that I might earn your favor, so that you would be well-disposed toward me and forget all past things.
DO NOT SO — refuse what I offer.
Verse 10: A Little Present
10. A LITTLE PRESENT. In Hebrew it is mincha, that is, a gift which is offered to God or to a prince, as a testimony of subjection and to attest his excellence.
Verse 10: I Have Seen Your Face as the Face of God
FOR SO I HAVE SEEN YOUR FACE, AS IF I SHOULD SEE THE COUNTENANCE OF GOD — that is to say, to me, timid and anxious, the unexpected clemency and sweetness of your countenance, joined with such dignity and excellence, was so pleasant and venerable as the face of God, or of an angel, showing his help and presence by some sign; which is commonly called: "God appearing from the machine." So Abulensis; and St. Chrysostom, Homily 58: "With as much joy, he says, I saw your face, as one would see the face of God." For thus the Septuagint translates it. Because in Hebrew Elohim signifies both God and an angel.
By this art Taxiles, the wise king of India, charmed Alexander the Great and turned him from enemy into friend; for greeting Alexander he said: "What need is there of wars between us, when you have not come to take from us our water or our necessary sustenance? For these alone do reasonable men need to fight. If I am richer in other resources, I will gladly share with you; but if poorer, I do not refuse to accept a favor from you with a grateful heart. Pleased by that speech, Alexander embraced him and said: Do you think to escape a contest by such courtesy? You are mistaken; for I will contend with you in kindnesses, lest you surpass me in generosity. And having received many gifts, and given even more, he finally pledged him a thousand talents of coined silver," says Plutarch in his Life of Alexander.
The same Alexander was clement and generous toward the wife and daughters of Darius, whom he had captured in war; whence Darius, defeated, asked the gods to restore his empire to him, so that he might repay this kindness to Alexander; or, if it seemed good to them to end the Persian empire, that they would transfer it to none other than Alexander: so testifies the same Plutarch.
Behold, says St. Chrysostom, with what gentle and noble words Jacob soothes his brother's fierce spirit: "For nothing, he says, is more powerful than meekness. For just as water thrown upon a pyre, when it blazes fiercely, extinguishes it: so also a word spoken with gentleness extinguishes a spirit burning more fiercely than a furnace. And a double profit accrues to us from this, both that we demonstrate meekness, and that we cause our brother's indignation to cease, and free his mind from disturbance. Fire cannot be extinguished by fire, nor can fury be soothed by fury; but what water is to fire, gentleness and mildness is to anger." Thus Esther to Ahasuerus, chapter 15, verse 16: "I saw you, Lord, as an angel of God"; and Mephibosheth to David: "But you, my lord the king, are as an angel of God."
Verse 10: Be Gracious to Me
BE GRACIOUS TO ME. From this I will conclude that you are well-disposed and gracious to me, if you do not disdain my blessing and the honorarium which I offer you.
On the Hebrew Word "Blessing" for Gift
Note: The Hebrews call a gift or present a "blessing," which they have received from God, and by which they bless others, that is, they do good by their giving. See what was said at 2 Corinthians 9:5-6.
Verse 12: Let Us Go On Together
12. LET US GO ON TOGETHER — at least as far as my region of Idumaea.
Verse 13: With Young
13. WITH YOUNG — that is, nursing.
ALL — that is, many, most. It is a hyperbole.
Verse 14: To My Lord in Seir
14. TO MY LORD IN SEIR. Thus Jacob now proposed to do, but afterward changed his mind, fearing that Esau, aroused by his presence, revolving old matters again, would renew his former complaints and resume his anger; especially if he, receiving his arriving brother with hospitality and a meal, became heated with wine. So St. Augustine, Question 106.
Verse 17: Succoth
17. SUCCOTH. This place was not yet, but afterward called Succoth, from the tents which Jacob pitched there, and there afterward a city was built also called Succoth, which is situated in the tribe of Gad, near the Jabbok and Scythopolis. So St. Jerome in Places of Hebrew Names.
HOUSE — that is, a tent or hut.
Verse 18: Salem, a City of the Shechemites
18. AND HE PASSED OVER TO SALEM, A CITY OF THE SHECHEMITES. The Chaldee, Cajetan and Oleaster take "Salem" not as a proper noun but as an appellative, and translate: he arrived safe and sound (for this is what Salem means) in Shechem. But both the Septuagint and our Vulgate take "Salem" as a proper place name. For Salem is the city which was formerly called Shechem, and corruptly Sychar, John 4:5. The Hebrews say it was called Salem because Jacob was cured there of his limping, as I said at chapter 32, verse 25.
Verse 18: He Dwelt Beside the Town
HE DWELT BESIDE THE TOWN. Jacob seems to have dwelt here for about nine years: for Simeon and Levi, when they came here from Mesopotamia, were about 11 years old, and they later destroyed Shechem on account of the violation of Dinah, in the next chapter. They were therefore at that time easily about 20 years old.
Verse 19: From the Children of Hamor
19. FROM THE CHILDREN OF HAMOR. Hamor was the prince of the Shechemites, whence the Shechemites are called his sons, that is, his subjects; for a true prince is a father to his people. Thus the servants of Naaman call their master "father," 4 Kings 5:43. But since Hamor is here called the father of Shechem, and was properly his father, as is clear from the next chapter, verse 2, hence it is better understood properly: you will here understand the sons of Hamor as named, namely the brothers of Shechem.
THE FATHER OF SHECHEM. You will say: Acts 7:16 says "son of Shechem." I answer, perhaps there "son" should be replaced with "father of Shechem," as it stands here; and thus St. Jerome seems to have read, writing to Pammachius. Or certainly, as Bede would have it, there were two Shechems: one the father of Hamor, the other the son of Hamor. Whence the Greek indifferently has tou Sychem: which however is usually taken and explained as referring to the son Shechem. Add that St. Stephen in Acts 7 names Abraham, and therefore seems to be speaking not of Jacob's purchase here, but of Abraham's purchase made in Genesis 23:36. On which matter I will say more at Acts 7.
Verse 19: A Hundred Lambs
A HUNDRED LAMBS. For "lambs" the Hebrew is keshitah, which more recent scholars translate as coins. But St. Jerome, the Chaldee, Lyranus, Pagninus, Vatablus, Oleaster, and Aben Ezra translate it as lambs. Whence also the Septuagint translates amnon: for which Eugubinus erroneously reads mnan, that is, minas, or coins.
You will say: keshitah in Arabic means a coin, therefore it means the same in Hebrew.
I answer: I deny the consequence; for the Rabbis err when they seek and borrow the meanings of Hebrew words from the Arabic language, as Oleaster rightly noted.
You will say second: St. Stephen, Acts 7:16, says this field was bought not for a hundred lambs, but for a price of silver.
I answer: "for a price of silver," that is, for a just price; for by the name of silver or money, we signify all wealth, which formerly consisted in sheep and cattle. Whence also pecunia (money) is derived from pecus (cattle) or pecu; hence also the first bronze coin was stamped with the image of livestock — a sheep, pig, and ox — as Plutarch testifies in his Life of Publicola, and Pliny, book 33, chapter 3. Therefore by the name of money (says Hermogenianus, law pecunia, Digest, on the signification of words) are contained not only coins, that is, counted money, but all things both solid and movable, and both physical objects and legal rights.
I answer second, it is possible, with Pineda, that by a hundred lambs or sheep one may understand 100 coins, which are called lambs or sheep because they had the image of a sheep stamped on them, as I have already said — if indeed the coining of money is that ancient: for it is established that the ancients used unstamped currency. Add that St. Stephen is speaking not of this purchase by Jacob, but of another purchase by Abraham, as I said.
You will say third: Genesis 48, at the end, says Jacob took this field by his sword and his bow.
St. Jerome answers that the weapons of this peaceful man were this payment, that is, the price of a hundred lambs; and beautifully in Hebrew kesheth, that is "bow," alludes to keshitah, that is "lamb." But I will discuss this passage at Genesis 48.
Verse 20: He Called upon the Most Mighty God of Israel
20. AND HE CALLED UPON IT THE MOST MIGHTY GOD OF ISRAEL. In Hebrew it is vayikra lo el elohe Yisrael, which can be translated in two ways, and signifies two things, both of which Jacob did. First, "and he called upon (the Chaldee translates: he sacrificed) upon it the most mighty God of Israel": for thus the Septuagint, the Chaldee, and our Vulgate translate it: for altars are properly erected for sacrifice and invocation. Second, "and he called it (the altar) the Mighty God of Israel," for this is what the Hebrew lo properly signifies. Whence it is clear that Jacob not only worshipped and sacrificed at this altar, but also dedicated, consecrated and inscribed it to God. Therefore Jacob inscribed this title on the altar: El Elohe Yisrael, that is "God most mighty of Israel," or "to the most mighty God of Israel" — not that the altar itself was God, says Cajetan, but that it was dedicated and inscribed to the mighty God of Israel: for Jacob calls God El, on account of His strength; and Elohim, on account of His providence, governance, and just protection shown to him by God against Esau, Laban and other enemies.
Jacob gave and inscribed a similar title on the altar at Bethel, Genesis 35:7. Thus the Reubenites called their altar "a testimony among us that the Lord Himself is God," Joshua 22, last verse. Thus Gideon called his altar "The Lord is Peace," Judges 6:24. Thus also the Gentiles dedicated and inscribed altars to Jupiter the Victor, to Minerva the Savior, to Aesculapius the Deliverer, etc. In the same way Jacob here erects and inscribes an altar in thanksgiving to God his liberator, guide and leader.
THE GOD OF ISRAEL — the God of Jacob, who was called Israel. Second, the God of Jacob's descendants, namely the Israelites, among whom He Himself, as El, that is the Most Mighty, and as Elohim, that is judge and avenger, would rule, protecting and avenging them from the Canaanites, Philistines, and other enemies, just as He protected and avenged Jacob. This God is God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit; but especially God the Son, who was to be born from Jacob, and was to become man, and thus to reign in the house of Jacob forever, Luke 1:33; for His name among others is El, that is Mighty, Isaiah 9:6.
Moral Lesson: Why God Tries His Saints with Tribulation
Morally, from this chapter, and indeed from the whole life of Jacob, Joseph, Abraham and Isaac, it is clear that God exercises His servants and friends with various tribulations and persecutions, so that He may advance them to the glory of virtue and honor, for what fire is to gold, the file to iron, the winnowing fan to wheat, lye to cloth, salt to meat: this tribulation is to just men. The cautery seems to be a wound, but it is really the remedy for the wound: thus affliction seems to be an evil, but it is really the remedy for evils, and of divine grace. On this account the Lord answered Paul: My grace is sufficient for you; for strength is made perfect in weakness.
Hence let the faithful learn, first, that tribulations are signs not of God's hatred, but of His love. For they are symbols of election and divine filiation. For this is what Zechariah himself says, 13:9: "I will burn them as silver is burned, and I will test them as gold is tested"; and Revelation 3:19: "Those whom I love, I rebuke and chastise"; and the Apostle, Hebrews 12:6: "Whom God loves He chastises; and He scourges every son whom He receives"; and Wisdom 3:6: "As gold in the furnace He tested them, and as a sacrificial holocaust He accepted them."
Let them learn second, that tribulations do not harm, but purify and perfect those who are tried. Hence Job 23:10: "He has tested me, he says, as gold that passes through fire." And David, Psalm 16:3: "You have tested my heart, and visited me by night; You have examined me by fire, and iniquity has not been found in me." And Ecclesiasticus 26:6: "The furnace, he says, tests the potter's vessels, and the testing of tribulation tests just men."
Truly therefore Blessed Antiochus, Homily 78: "Just as wax, he says, unless it is reheated or softened beforehand, does not easily receive the impression of a seal: so also a man, unless he is tested by the exercise of labors and manifold infirmity, will by no means allow himself to be marked with the seal of divine grace; through it we are taught to love better things, "lest the traveler heading for his homeland love the inn instead of home," says St. Augustine in the Sentences, sentence 186.
Let them learn third, that calamities destroy those who reject endurance; but protect those who embrace it. For tribulation patiently endured is the gate of heaven. Hence of Christ it is said, Luke 24:26: "It was necessary for Christ to suffer, and thus to enter into His glory." Paul and Barnabas, Acts 14:21: "Through many tribulations, they say, we must enter the kingdom of God." On the contrary, the prosperity and happiness of this life is the gate of hell. For this reason God gives it to the wicked; but He exercises the pious and those strong in virtue through various crosses, and leads them through the bitter straits of calamities to immortal life; for this is what they themselves say, Psalm 65:10: "You have tested us, O God, You have examined us by fire, as silver is examined." And Christ, Matthew 5:5: "Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted"; and: "Blessed are those who suffer persecution for the sake of justice, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." Thus the Patriarchs, thus the Maccabees, thus the martyrs and other heroes of the faith, exercised by persecutions, prisons, blows, racks, martyrdoms, and fires, emerged purer, stronger and more illustrious, and consecrated their name to heaven and immortality.