When the Deceiver Gets Deceived

The Actions of Laban and Jacob’s Sons in Genesis

This post is for paid subscribers. If you’d like to have complete and unending access to the huge archive of biblical theology articles, consider supporting the work that goes into this site.

Abraham had Isaac, Isaac had Jacob, and Jacob’s name means “supplanter” or one who “grasps the heel.” This name was given because of something that took place at Jacob’s birth. When his mother Rebekah was pregnant, she was pregnant with both Jacob and Esau. The time came for birth, and Esau emerged first (Gen. 25:25). “Afterward his brother came out with his hand holding Esau’s heel, so his name was called Jacob” (25:26).

A supplanter, or heel-grasper, is a crafty notion, associated with deception. Jacob’s name, then, is sometimes explained as “deceiver.”