John Trapp on Hosea 12:4

Verſe 4. Yea, he had power over the Angel.] that Angel of the Covenant, Mal. 3.1. the Angel of the great Council, as the Seventy render, Eſay 9.6. the Lord Chriſt, [non-Latin text not transcribed] who redeemed Jacob from all evil, Gen. 48.16. and is called Elohim in the former verſe[illegible: 2 letters] Iacob is reproved for asking his name, an argument of his Majeſtie. God as he ſurmounteth all creatures, and hath no parallel, ſo he ſurpaſſeth all notion, and is above all name.Plutarch. lib. de Iſ[illegible: 1 letter]d. & Of[illegible: 1 letter]id The Africanes call him Amon, that is Heus, tu, quis et? Our beſt eloquence of him, [illegible: 2 letters] an humble filence: Or if we ſay any thing, to ſay as in the next verſe following, Iehovah, God of heaſts, Jehovah is his momoriall.

and prevailed[illegible: 1 letter] ] Sept. [non-Latin text not transcribed]. He had power, or got the better, Chriſt yeelding himſelf overdome by the prayers of the Patriarch: for the effectuall ſervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much, ſaith St. James: there is a kinde of omnipotency in it, ſaith Luther, of whom alſo that ſaying paſſed amongſt his friends, Iſte vir pot uit, apud De[illegible: 2 letters]s qnod vol[illegible: 1 letter]it, That man could do what he would with God. The reaſon whereof is given by St. Hierom, in theſe words, Deus ipſe qui nulliscontra ſe viribu[illegible: 1 letter]ſuperari poteſt, precibus viucitur, that is God himſelf, who is otherwiſe inſuperable, may be overcome by prayers: provided that men perſevere in prayer as Jacob did,Invictum vincunt vota pre [illegible: 1 letter]eſ que Deum. holding out till the morning-light, and growing more reſolute toward the later end then he had been before.

He wept and made ſupplication.] Jacob did. (not the Angel, as Mercer and Druſrus would carry it) His wreſtling was by weeping, and his prevayling by praying. Verbum, preces, & lachryma, Miſera arma ſunt Eccleſia. We read not till this Text, of his weeping for the bleſſing, (no more we do of the earthquake in Hezekiah's dayes, till Amos 1. and Zach. 14.) But this we know, that ardent prayer is a pouring out of the ſoul to God, not without a ſhower of tears, or at leaſt a ſtorm of ſighes. And as muſick upon the water ſounds farther, and more harmoniouſly then upon the land: ſo prayers with tears are more pleaſing to God, and prevalent with him. Chriſt could not but look back to thoſe weeping women that followed him to the croſſe, and comfort them. Tears of compaſſion, and of compunction, when men love and weep, as Mary Magdalen did, are very acceptable to God, who puts them into his bottle as precious. There are tears of another ſort, lachrimae nequitiae, tears of wickedneſſe, expreſſed either by hypocriſie or a deſire of revenge: ſuch were Eſau's tears for the bleſſing too, Gen. 27.38. but he went without it, becauſe a profane hypocrite: he cried out of diſcontent, and threatened his brother Iacob: he complained of his fathers ſtore, (Haſt thou but one bleſſing) of his brothers ſubtilty, (was he not rightly called Iacob?) but not a word of his own wickedneſſe. He roared for the diſquietneſſe of his heart, but he did not, as Iacob, weep and make ſupplication to his Judge,Hithchame[illegible: 1 letter]. deploring his own wants, and imploring the ſupplies of his grace, quam unicè expetijt, as the main thing he deſired.

he found him in Bethel,] that is the Lord found Iacob there, Gen. 28.18. but eſpecially, Gen. 35.14. confirming his promiſes to him and all his poſterity.

there he ſpake with us,] who were then in Iacobs loyns, and promiſed that God ſhould be our God: but we have falſified with him, and turned Bethel into Bethaven: abuſing that place to idolatry and calf-worſhip, where we, in our forefathers, had ſo many manifeſtations of divine mercy. Oh better he had never ſpoken with us there. then that we ſhould have ſo ſlighted his promiſes, caſt his words behinde our backs, and wickedly departed from our God. Is this Iacob-like, &c. There hee ſpake with us. What he ſpake with Iacob, he ſpake with us: and wee are to hold our ſelves no leſſe concerned therein then he was. See a like expreſſion. Pſal. 66.6. See likewiſe, R[illegible: 1 letter]m. 15.4. and Heb. 13.5. what God ſpake to Ioſhua, chap. 1.5. he ſpake to all Beleevers And that which he ſpake to his afflicted; Pſal. 102. He will regard the prayer of the deſtitute, and not deſpiſe their prayer, that he ſpake to us: for verſe 18. This ſhall be written for the generations to [illegible: 1 letter]ome. The Hebrews have a proverb; Quae patribus a ciderunt ſignum ſunt filijs, What things befell the fathers, thoſe were a ſigne to their children: and thence it is, that the deeds of the fathers are oft attributed to the children. Let us labour to ſee our own names written upon every promiſe: and ſecure our intereſt by ſearching for the conditions whereunto the promiſes are annexed; and then put them in ſuit by faithfull prayer, ſaying with David, Remember thy word unto thy ſervant, whereupon thou haſt cauſed me to truſt.