Jacob

Jacob ( Hebrew : ya Arabic : ya or = is a patriarch Bible and a great prophet who lived between the ^seventeenth and ^fifteenth centuries BC . BC He is the son of Isaac and Rebekah son and grandson of Abraham. It also receives the name of Israel after his fight with the angel ( Genesis 32. 28 ). The Qur'an is also called Israel. The Children of Israel in the Koran are the children of Jacob. The book of Genesis chapter 32 speaks of a mysterious "man" and the tradition saw an angel of God, sometimes identified with the angel Gabriel. Jacob's story is told in the book of Genesis and the Quran ^{According to} biblical tradition

Childhood

Jacob's name means "he heel" because he was born holding his twin firstborn Esau 's heel. Later, he bought a mess of pottage against the birthright of his brother Esau hungry ( Gen 25. 25-34 ).

Before his death, their father Isaac , who was blinded, Esau wants to restore his rights. Rebecca enjoys the blindness of her husband to make him give his blessing to Jacob. Esau was furious and decides to kill his brother after the death of Isaac. Rebecca discovers his intentions and ask Jacob to flee to his uncle Laban in Harran.

The dream of the ladder

During his trip to Haran , Jacob spent the night at Bethel and is the vision of a ladder reaching to heaven and God standing at the top of the scale 28 Gn. 10-15.

The Hebrews

Jacob fled from Laban , who has two daughters Leah and Rachel. Jacob first meets the youngest, Rachel , near a well close to Harran. He wants to marry her but refuses Laban as the eldest is married. Laban promises yet the hand of his daughter against seven years of his service. After seven years, Jacob is tricked by Laban, and he married the eldest daughter Leah. Laban Rachel finally granted him in exchange for another seven years in his service.

Leah gives her son in turn four, while Rachel remained barren. Consequently, Rachel invites Jacob to marry his maid Bilhah , which thus gives two son. Leah, meanwhile, also offers to Jacob her maid Zilpah , which also gives two son. Leah gives two more son and a daughter ( Dinah ). Finally, God takes pity on him and Rachel can bring forth the last two son of Jacob ( Genesis 29-31 ).

On incessant quarrels break out between the two sisters, and between Laban and Jacob. Seeing that Jacob had become rich, the son of Laban plot against Jacob. He chooses to flee with his family again and return to their country of origin. This also coincides with the arrival of the eleventh son of Jacob who is Joseph. Before leaving, Rachel stole the images of gods of the house of Laban, who act as title deeds, and hiding in the cushion of his seat. Jacob and his family crossed the Euphrates and marched towards Caan. Laban catches up, but fails to find the images of gods. Laban then concluded a pact with Jacob, who will take any woman outside of the daughters of Laban.

Israel or the one who wrestled with the angel

During this return journey, Jacob struggles all night against a stranger. In the morning the stranger refuses to give his name. Now, Jacob is called Israel , that is to say "he who wrestled with God" ( Gn 32. 28 ). Some traditions, influencing the painters who depicted the scene, consider that Jacob fought an angel indeed.

Return from exile

Jacob returned to Canaan after twenty years of exile and took the name of Israel. He reconciled with his brother Esau. By Jacob to Shechem where he acquired land bought from the son of Hamor. Her only daughter, Dinah, is raped by a son of Hamor who agrees to circumcise all the men of the city to allow the union of two children. In revenge, the brothers of Dinah, Simeon and Levi , killed by surprise all men of the city then they loot. Jacob and his family must go to Bethel , where God renews the alliance with Jacob. On the way to Bethlehem , Rachel dies in childbirth. His son is named Benjamin.

Old Jacob / Israel

Later, Joseph , the eldest of Rachel , is said to death because his jealous half-brothers have sold to vendors. Jacob, age, faces the heartache and starvation. Some of his son leave for Egypt during a drought. They found their brother Joseph sold several years ago and became viceroy of Egypt.

Joseph plays a role in the history of Israel, as told in the Bible. His story is all the end of the book of Genesis ( Gen 37-50 ). It is the prelude to the history of the Hebrews in Egypt , as told in the book of Exodus.

At his death, his son Jacob blesses all and is buried near Isaac and Abraham in the Cave of the Patriarchs.

The twelve are the ancestors son Namesake of the twelve tribes of Israel , with the exception of Levi, ancestor of the Levites, scattered in other tribes, and Joseph, split according to his son Ephraim and Manasseh.

The twelve son of Jacob

Patriarchs
Child: Isaac and Rebekah	Jacob first wife Leah , second wife Rachel , concubine Bilhah Rachel's maid, concubine Zilpah Leah's handmaid	Parent: Ruben of Lea Simeon of Lea Levi by Leah Judah by Leah Dan of Bilhah Naphtali of Bilhah Gad of Zilpah Asher of Zilpah Issachar by Leah Zebulun of Lea Dinah of Lea Joseph of Rachel Benjamin of Rachel

When the division into two kingdoms, the two tribes of Judah and Benjamin formed the kingdom of Judah , the other ten tribes formed the northern kingdom, the kingdom of Israel.

Prophet of Islam

For Muslims, Jacob () is the prophet Israel. So when God says the children of Israel are the children of Jacob. The Qur'an also called Jacob and Israel, but Muslim scholars attribute a different etymology to this name, according to them based on the Arabic word meaning sara travel at night ^, .