Pertanyaan: 71. Kapan terjadinya perubahan dalam sifat spiritual Jacob?
Dimulai di Betel tetapi perubahan di sana sangatlah kecil. Yakub menganggap penglihatannya di sana sebagai suatu perjanjian bisnis. Jika Allah mau membantunya dan memberinya roti untuk dimakan serta membawanya kembali dengan selamat, maka Allah akan menjadi Allahnya dan ia akan memberikan sepuluh persen dari segalanya. Di Yabok, krisisnya jauh lebih luas. Di sana ia menyadari bahaya dan kebutuhannya akan berkat. Ia tidak lagi bernegosiasi dengan Allah, ia melihat bahwa kekuatannya sendiri tidak berarti, ia menjadi seorang yang rendah hati memohon kasih Allah. Mulai malam itu, ia menjadi seorang yang berbeda, tidak sempurna, tetapi jauh lebih baik daripada sebelumnya.
Question: 71. When Did the Change in Jacob's Spiritual Nature Occur?
It began at Bethel but the change there was extremely slight. Jacob regarded his vision there very much as a business arrangement. If God would help him and give him bread to eat and bring him back safe, then God should be his God and he would give him a tenth of all. At Jabbok the crisis was much more far-reaching. He realized there his danger and his need of a blessing. He no longer bargained with God, he saw that his own strength was futile, he was a humble suppliant for God's favor. From that night on he was a different man, by no means perfect, but far better than before.
