It was upon that victory that a very interesting conversation takes place between Yaakov and the אִישׁ. When he realizes that Yaakov has won at the break of dawn he asks to be sent away, to which Yaakov responds in pasuk 27, "לֹ֣א אֲשַֽׁלֵּחֲךָ֔ כִּ֖י אִם־בֵּרַכְתָּֽנִי." "I will not send you unless you bless me." What is Yaakov asking for here? Why does he need a blessing from the אִישׁ before he lets him go? Rashbam addresses this question by building on his initial interpretation relating to Yaakov's fear. In asking for a blessing from the אִישׁ, he is asking for a sign that would serve as an assurance of peace, that no further harm would come to him, nor would the אִישׁ seek vengeance for his defeat. In other words, rather than feeling heartened by his victory, his fear and uncertainty remained.

However, rather than giving him an immediate bracha, so that he could swiftly leave, the אִישׁ asked Yaakov for his name: "וַיֹּ֥אמֶר אֵלָ֖יו מַה־שְּׁמֶ֑ךָ. וַיֹּ֖אמֶר יַעֲקֹֽב" The אִישׁ then responded by "changing" Yaakov's name, to one that reflected his victory :

"לֹא יַעֲקֹב יֵאָמֵר עוֹד שִׁמְךָ כִּי אִם־יִשְׂרָאֵל כִּֽ־שָׂרִיתָ עִם־אֱלֹהִים וְעִם־אֲנָשִׁים וַתּוּכָל" - "It will no longer be said that your name is Yaakov, but Yisrael, because you struggled with the Divine and men and prevailed." The Torah does not tell us the nature of the bracha, which only begs the question: what is going on here with this name change? This question is further reinforced later in our parsha in perek 35 when G-d, Himself, changes Yaakov's name from Yaakov to Yisrael, in a manner similar to the way in which He changed Avraham's name from Avram to Avraham. In the language of the text

"שִׁמְךָ יַעֲקֹב, לֹֽא־יִקָּרֵא שִׁמְךָ עוֹד יַעֲקֹב כִּי אִם־יִשְׂרָאֵל יִהְיֶה שְׁמֶךָ" However, unlike with Avraham, G-d does not provide the reason for the name change at that time, presumably because the reason was already stated earlier by the אִישׁ. It is through this declaration - וַיִּקְרָא אֶת־שְׁמוֹ יִשְׂרָאֵל - that Yaakov's name change is made official. Which brings us back to the question of what is going on with the post-victory changing of Yaakov's name by the אִישׁ back in perek 32?

A key piece to answering this question is in the verbs used in the actual changing of the name. In his interpretation of G-d's changing of Yaakov's name, the Ohr Hachayim notes that a person's name describes the nature of a person's soul, their essence. It is not just a name, but a statement of character. In other words, a name is not something that can be wholly understood or perceived by others in its truest sense, rather, it is the bearer of the name him or herself that can find meaning in it, in the way that their name speaks to them and who they are. Their names become part of their personal story, or the story that they tell themselves. For Yaakov, his name carried the connotations of the struggles of his youth - the younger son who was born grabbing onto the heel of his older brother - and their tumultuous relationship as they grew up in their parents' house. It represented a name of instability, rather than peace. A name of uncertainty. And now that he was about to encounter Esav after so many years apart, after having fled from his brother's rage, Yaakov is reminded of that person; of the Yaakov that was.

Even after emerging victorious over the אִישׁ that he knew was not just any ordinary man, Yaakov still saw himself as the one who grabbed the heal of his brother, and was greatly afraid and distressed in anticipation of meeting him. When the אִישׁ asked Yaakov "מַה־שְּׁמֶךָ" it wasn't that he was asking after his name, but after who he perceived himself to be. And so, Yaakov answered the אִישׁ with the name of who he had been, and who he still perceived himself to be. In changing Yaakov's name to Yisrael, and explicitly stating the reason for the change, the אִישׁ is saying, "it will no longer be said - especially by you to yourself - that your name, your character, is Yaakov - 'לֹ֤א יַעֲקֹב יֵאָמֵר עוֹד שִׁמְךָ֔'. That can no longer be the story that you tell yourself about who you are. Rather, you are Yisrael - one who fights against the Divine and man and prevails. You have no need to fear or flee. Nor should you. You carry G-d's blessing." Perhaps that is part of the unwritten bracha that the אִישׁ gives to Yaakov- not only confirming his right to his father's blessing that was given to him before he left, as Rashi explains, but also confirming to him that he has changed, the blessing being that Yaakov, too, should come to understand that.  

When G-d later changes Yaakov’s name to Yisrael

(שִׁמְךָ יַעֲקֹב, לֹֽא־יִקָּרֵא שִׁמְךָ עוֹד יַעֲקֹב כִּי אִם־יִשְׂרָאֵל יִהְיֶה שְׁמֶךָ), He does not use the word

"יֵאָמֵר" but "יִקָּרֵא," the verb used when names are officially bestowed upon an individual. It is a name that represents leadership and nobility. But this new name is not meant to supplant the old one. It is still the case that "שִׁמְךָ יַעֲקֹב." After all, the stories of our lives are comprised of our past and our present. Who we were is part and parcel of who we are. G-d reminds Yaakov of that point by continuing to refer to him using both names over the course of the rest of his narrative in Sefer Bereishit and beyond. Perhaps it was only at that time that Yaakov was finally ready to internalize and appreciate the multi-dimensionality of who he is - his character and his essence, as both Yaakov and Yisrael. As Yaakov he demonstrated strength and determination, resilience and resolve, even before his struggle with the אִישׁ. However, it was only at that time that G-d could "call" Yaakov by the name of Yisrael, only once he was ready to accept it. It remains the primary name to which we refer to Yaakov when speaking about him as an individual and as one of our Avot. And it is a reminder to us as we continue to write and live our stories that we remember that who we are is more than just who we were, and to be proud of who we have become, even while appreciating the role that who we were played in getting us here.

Shabbat Shalom, 

Morah Karyn Spero