The Rock of Israel

Throughout the bible there have been many important figures such as Noah, Abraham, Moses, and Sampson. Every name in the bible has impacted the literature world in one way or another; and perhaps one of the most important figures that stem from the old testament of the Bible is Jacob, son of Isaac. Jacob is an important figure in the Bible due to what he offers as a key figure in the analytical and allegoric aspect of the Bible. One of the allegoric representations is how Jacob is compered to a stone. The bible is full of important lineages with interesting stories that are constantly showing up through the bible, and Jacob is no exception. Abraham is the father of Isaac, who is the father of Jacob, who goes on to become the father of Ruben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Dan, Naphtali, Gad, Asher, Issachar, Zebulon, his only daughter Dinah, Joseph, and Benjamin. Jacob was a twin brother to Esau, whom Jacob tricked out his birthright not once but twice. After being tricked twice by his brother Esau plotted to kill Jacob. The boys’ mother, Rebekah caught wind of Esau’s plot and instructed Jacob to flee to his Uncle Laban. On his way there God appeared to Jacob in a dream and told him of the promise he made to Abraham. God then made the same promise to Jacob. Once Jacob awoke from his dream he erected a stone pillar to dedicate to God, as long as God provided for him. While visiting his uncle Jacob met his cousin Rachel, whom he fell in love with. Laban tricked Jacob into working for him for seven years before he let him marry Rachel, but tricked him once again by wedding him to Leah, Rachel’s sister. Once Jacob found out he worked another seven years to finally earn Rachel’s hand in marriage and then ran away with the two of them. Before they could run away, Rachel stole her fathers’ idols, leading to Laban to chase Jacob for twenty years. After returning to his home he and Esau finally reunited, but only to be greeted by 400 men alongside Esau as he longed for vengeance. While Jacob sought to appease his brother with gifts, Jacob wrestled with a holy entity; being renamed Israel by God. Once reunited Jacob and Esau made amends with one another; thus the epic of Joseph begins.
The stone is a symbolic meaning in many cultures, making the Bible no exception. One of the most prominent allegories for Jacob being connected to stone is what happens to stone through the ages. Over time stones age and turn to dust, Jacob is the stone and as time goes on and he becomes dust that is scattered. The scattered dust is a representation of his descendants populating the earth, and more importantly the great nation that God had promised Abraham (Genesis 28:14). The entire Bible from this point on are about is descendants (1 Chronicles – 2 Chronicles). Jacob is like the stone because stone is often used as a foundation and his twelve sons would become them patriarchal foundation of the twelve tribes of the nation Israeli, which would be named after him.
Stones are a symbol of strength, endurance, and a good foundation. This relates to Jacob, as he was as sturdy as they came. Jacob endured the many trials and challenges that he overcame in order to claim his place in the world. Jacob had to endure a long time of servitude to his uncle Laban during that time period he endured whatever he had to do in order to earn his wife’s hand, including being tricked by his uncle into marrying Rachel’s sister Leah (Genesis 29 – Genesis 31). Jacob also demonstrated his endurance once again while being pursued by his uncle over a twenty-year period (Genesis 31:3). Jacob had the opportunity to give in to his uncle chasing him during that time period and end his constant nomadic life; yet, he had managed to become very prosperous in terms of what his flocks had become and he may not had fathered his 13 children.
The Bible is easily on of the most complex and interwoven books ever created. Through out the book of Genesis many patriarchs come and go. Like stone they too turn to dust and fade away into the pages of the bible, yet the dust left by the stone that is Jacob continues to tell it’s own story. If anything can be said about Jacob it is that he may not have been Jesus, Mosses, or King Solomon; yet Jacob has remained an incredibly strong factor through the entire Bible because of his story, his children, and what happens as the pages turn.