What does Genesis 32:19 mean?
Esau and 400 men are on their way to Jacob, who has strategically separated into two camps (Genesis 32:6–8). After fervent prayer (Genesis 32:9–12), Jacob is sending out a large gift of five herds of animals to present to Esau before he arrives. He clearly hopes to quell Esau's anger over their difficult split, some twenty years prior (Genesis 27:30–35; 27:41–45).Jacob assumes that Esau's men will ask the servants what they're doing. In the previous verse, he told the servant who will be driving the first herd how to answer: These animals belong to "your servant Jacob." He is giving them to "my lord Esau" as a gift. He is coming behind us.
Now he says to those driving the second, third, fourth, and fifth herds to say the same thing. Jacob pictures each herd reaching Esau, one after the other, with the same message. Jacob clearly hopes to impress and overwhelm Esau with his generosity and make it increasingly difficult for Esau to want to kill him.
Genesis 32:1–21 describes Jacob's preparations to meet his brother Esau, who is coming his way with 400 men. This will be the first time Jacob and Esau have spoken since Jacob fled Esau's rage as described in Genesis 27. Jacob is terrified this approaching force is coming to kill him. He divides his company into two camps. He prays in humility and faith to God for deliverance. He prepares a large gift of 550 animals to be strategically delivered to Esau to appease his presumed anger.
As Jacob turns from Laban and returns to his own country, he must face another fearful potential conflict. His twin brother Esau is coming with 400 men. Jacob fears this group approaches to take revenge for cheating Esau out of the family blessing 20 years earlier. Jacob is so afraid that he splits his company into two camps, even as he prays for deliverance. He also prepares an enormous gift to appease Esau. Finally, while alone in the dark, Jacob is unexpectedly forced to wrestle a mysterious man, who turns out to be God Himself in some manifested form. In a profound moment of symbolism, God forces Jacob to state his own name, which God then changes to Israel.
