the sinew which shrank
Genesis 32:32
32:32 the sinew which shrank. This sentence is apparently an editorial insertion by Moses in Jacob’s toledoth, noting a custom by the Israelites commemorating the great experience of their founder. In order that Jacob should know forever that it was God who had actually allowed him to prevail, and not his own strength, a muscle in the ball-and-socket joint in the thigh, probably containing the sciatic nerve, shrunk, resulting in a permanent limp and perpetual reminder of the experience.