Sacred Texts
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About Calling
Jacob as Israel
As attributed
to Ka`b Al-Ahbâr [the head master of rabbis for jews] in a long speech
that Jacob was called Israel because he was serving in the temple in Jerusalem
and he was the first to get in and the last to get out and used to light
up the lamps, but one day he saw them turned off so he stayed for one night
in the temple and then he saw a demon that turns off the lamps and so then
he captivated him by a pillar that were in the temple, and when the people
woke up in the morning they saw a capticated person, and the demon's name
was Eel, and so Jacob was called Israel for this [meaning that Isra means
"captured", and so the name would mean "he captured Eel"], but as attributed
from Al-Sâdiq (PUH) that he said: Jacob and Esau were twins, and
Esau was born first then Jacob, and for this he was called Jacob, because
he got out after his brother [Arabic: Jacob = Ya`qoob, `Aqab = to come
after] and Jacob is Israel and it means "the slave of God" because "Isra"
means "slave" and "El" means "God" in Hebrew, and in another tale "Isra"
means "power" and so the name would mean "Power of God."
Next: The Punishment of God for
His Viceroys