JACOB’S TWELVE SONS: ISRAEL
It was not till he was 100 years old that Abraham’s wife Sarah gave birth to the ‘son of promise’ through whom God would continue the seed of the woman: “And God said, Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac: and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him”, Genesis 17:19. Three generations were included in the promise. The promises of God were made only to the ‘faithful sons’, Isaac and his son Jacob.
If we refer to Genesis 25:20, we read how the twins: Jacob and Esau were different in their character. Esau was a ‘man of the field’ (a hunter) and Jacob was a ‘plain man’ (ie a shepherd). It is significant that the angel of the LORD then changed Jacob’s name to ‘Israel’ which means: ‘a prince with God,’ Genesis 32:24-28
“Israel” fathers twelve sons who become the ‘twelve tribes of Israel’. This is a wonderful section of the Bible and provides important background detail to help better understand the history and valuable insight.
Of particular benefit is the story about Joseph, as recorded in Genesis 37 – 50. By tracing the history of Jacob’s family, we can understand how they came to be in Egypt and see many significant types and lessons to connect the scriptures.