Jacob Wrestling with the Angel is a common biblical motif depicted in art. The story is described in chapter 32 of Genesis and chapter 12 of the Book of Hosea. Several sources credit the angel as being the Archangel Michael.^[1]

A number of artists have depicted it, including:

<gallery> Image:Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn 063.jpg|Rembrandt (1659) Image:Jacob-angel.jpg|Gustave Doré (1855) Image:Lutte de Jacob avec l'Ange.jpg|Eugène Delacroix (1861) Image:Leloir - Jacob Wrestling with the Angel.jpg|Alexander Louis Leloir (1865) Image:Paul Gauguin 137.jpg|Paul Gauguin (1888) </gallery>

It is mentioned in Dodie Smith's debut novel I Capture the Castle (1948).

It is mentioned in Margaret Laurence's "The Stone Angel."

It was referenced in the 1990 play Angels in America by Tony Kushner. The version depicted on-screen was the 1865 version by Alexander Louis Leloir.

The painting figures prominently in the 1997 film The Tango Lesson as a metaphor for dance and life.

Zadie Smith mentions it in her 2005 novel, On Beauty, specifically the version painted by Rembrandt (the specialty of her main character, Prof. Howard Belsey).

It is also a popular theme for contemporary angel-inspired art.

References

1. ↑ Targum pseudo-Jonathan to Genesis xxxii. 25; Pirke R. El. xxxvii.

External links

• List of additional illustrations
• Article about Genesis story
• Wrestling With Angels chabad.org

da:Jakobs kamp fr:La Lutte de Jacob avec l'Ange