在我們學區的摔跤錦標賽中，年僅八歲的孩子們在體育館的墊子上對戰，運用各種技巧制服對手，爭取勝利。摔跤是古老的競技運動，必須靈活地結合逃脫、壓制、摔倒對手等各種得分動作，才能脫穎而出。一位三年級的小女孩是全場觀眾最喜愛的選手，她速度奇快，常用迅速靈巧的招式騙過對手，使對方敗下陣來。

雅各也曾用詭計哄騙孿生哥哥以掃，奪走以掃身為長子的名分（創世記25章33節），以及父親的祝福（27章27-40節）。但雅各騙取祝福之後，卻不得不開始逃亡。他逃離家鄉，投靠狡猾的舅舅（後來成為他的岳父），長年因懼怕哥哥會展開報復而惶恐不安。

多年後，雅各返鄉途中的某個夜晚，獨自與另一「人」（其實是上帝）整夜摔跤。那人對雅各說：「天黎明了，容我去吧！」（32章26節）但雅各說：「祢不給我祝福，我就不容祢去」（26節）。這一次，雅各誠心求上帝祝福，緊緊抓住上帝，直到上帝改了他的名字，這名字也反映他內心的轉變。

這從上帝得到的豐盛祝福，不再需要詭計，只需要堅持不懈，雅各正學習與上帝建立真實的關係。真誠地緊緊抓住上帝，才是蒙福的致勝之道。

At our school district’s championship wrestling match, children as young as eight grappled on gym mats, deploying clever holds to wrestle down their opponents and win. An ancient sport, wrestling demands a savvy combination of takedowns, escapes, pins, and other point-winning maneuvers to come out on top. One little third-grade girl—a crowd favorite—was simply faster than all her opponents, using swift moves that seemed to trick her rivals into defeat.

Jacob used tricky moves to get the best of his twin brother Esau, “wrestling” Esau out of his birthright to their father’s inheritance (Genesis 25:33) and life blessing (27:27-40). But stealing the blessing kept Jacob on the run, forcing him to flee his father’s household, depend on his cunning father-in-law, and live in fear of his brother’s wrath.

Later, he found himself alone, wrestling all night with a man who was God Himself. “Let me go,” the man told Jacob, “for it is daybreak” (32:26). But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me” (v. 26). Finally Jacob was seeking a blessing of his own, holding tight to God even until his name was changed to reflect his changed heart.

No tricky moves were needed to gain this rich blessing from God—only persistence. Jacob was learning to live in relationship with God. It’s a persistent and honest hold—a winning move God will reward.