Genesis 32:12

Gen 32:12 And thou saidst, I will surely do thee good, and make thy seed as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude.

Ver. 12. And thou saidst, I will surely do thee good.] So Jacob interprets that promise, "I will be with thee": {Gen 28:15} which, indeed, hath in it whatsoever heart can wish, or need require. This promise was so sweet to the patriarch, that he repeats and ruminates it, rolling it as sugar in his mouth, and hiding it under his tongue. God "spake it once, he heard it twice"; as David, {Psa 62:11} in another case. "He sucks, and is satisfied with these breasts of consolation"; he presseth and oppresseth them - such a metaphor there is in that text, {Isa 66:11} - as a rich man doth the poor man, till he hath gotten out of him all that he hath. A fly can make little of a flower; but a bee will not off till he hath the sweet thyme out of it. The promises are precious spices, which, being beaten to the smell, by the preaching of the Word, yield a heavenly and supernatural scent in the souls of God’s people. Oh! it is a sweet time with them, when Christ "brings them into his banqueting house" of the Holy Scriptures, and there "stays them with flagons" of divine consolations, and bolsters them up "with apples" of heavenly doctrines. When these, by the Spirit, are applied to the love sick soul, then is Christ’s left hand under their head, and his right hand - which "teacheth him terrible things" - doth {Psa 14:5} embrace them. All in Christ, is for their support and succour: his love also is displayed over them, as a banner. And this doth so fully satisfy their souls, and transport them with joy, that now they are content to wait God’s leisure for deliverance; and would not have their "Beloved wakened, until he please." See all this, Son 2:4-7.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Verse 12. Make thy seed as the sand] Having come to the promise by which the covenant was ratified both to Abraham and Isaac, he ceased, his faith having gained strong confirmation in a promise which he knew could not fail, and which he found was made over to him, as it had been to his father and grandfather.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

12. thou saidst] See Gen_28:14.

as the sand of the sea] See Gen_13:16, Gen_22:17, and cf. Gen_16:10.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And thou saidst, I will surely do thee good,.... All kind of good, most certainly and constantly; so Jacob rightly interpreted the promise, "I will be with thee", Gen 31:3; for the promise of God's presence includes and secures all needful good to his people; and from this general promise Jacob draws an argument for a special and particular good, the preservation of him and his family, he was now pleading for; and the rather he might hope to succeed, since the following promise was also made him:

and make thy seed as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude; which could not be fulfilled, if he and his family were cut off at once, as he feared; but God is faithful who has promised.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Thou saidst, I will surely do thee good - The best we can say to God in prayer is, what he hath said to us. God's promises as they are the surest guide of our desires in prayer, and furnish us with the best petitions, so they are the firmest ground of our hopes, and furnish us with the best pleas. Thou saidst, I will do thee good - Lord, do me good in this matter. He pleads also a particular promise, that of the multiplying of his seed. Lord, what will become of that promise, if they be all cut off?

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

"For I am in fear of him, that (פּן ne) he come and smite me, mother with children." בּנים על אם is a proverbial expression for unsparing cruelty, taken from the bird which covers its young to protect them (Deu 22:6, cf. Hos 10:14). על super, una cum, as in Exo 35:22.

Keil & Delitzsch — Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament (1861–1891) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API. (Old Testament only.)

מיד אחי מיד עשו FROM THE HAND OF MY BROTHER, FROM THE HAND OF ESAU — from the hand of my brother who does not treat me as a brother should, but as Esau, the wicked.

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.

AND HE SMITE ME, THE MOTHER WITH THE CHILDREN. Commentators have explained it as meaning. “And he smite me and smite the mother with the children.” There are many similar verses.

Ramban (Nachmanides) on the Tanakh — English translation: “Commentary on the Torah by Ramban (Nachmanides). Translated and annotated by Charles B. Chavel. New York, Shilo Pub. House, 1971-1976” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.

Mother and children alike. Literally, “he will strike me, mother with sons” — i.e. he would deal Yaakov a devastating blow by killing his family, even if he himself escaped.

Sforno on the Tanakh — English translation: “Yalkut, Sifsei Chachomim Chumash, Metsudah Publications, 2009” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.

הצילני...אם על בנים. The word על in this line substitutes for the word עם, “with.” It is used in a similar sense in Hoseah 10,14 אם על בנים רטשה, “mothers and children were dashed to pieces.”

Radak on the Tanakh — English translations: “Sefaria Community Translation” (CC0 1.0 (public-domain dedication)); “Eliyahu Munk, HaChut Hameshulash” (CC BY 4.0); “Rabbi Mike Feuer, Jerusalem Anthology” (CC BY 4.0); and “R. David Kimhi on the first book of Psalms, Translated by R.G. Finch, London, 1919” (public domain). Text via Sefaria.