We Who Wrestle with God: Perceptions of the Divine

We Who Wrestle With God by Jordan B. Peterson is an examination of biblical narratives through the lens of psychology, philosophy, and theology. Peterson, a professor and psychologist with a wide following as a cultural commentator, explores the lessons that these stories offer about the human condition, morality, and the pursuit of a meaningful life, presenting them as universal, enduring guides for personal and societal development. The book surveys nine different episodes from the Old Testament (the Hebrew scriptures), with a special focus on how the characters in the stories grapple with life’s challenges and develop a distinctive spiritual and ethical worldview. 

This guide refers to the 2024 Portfolio/Penguin edition.

Content Warning: The source material and guide feature depictions of death, child death, and gender and transgender discrimination.

Summary

The Introduction, “Foreshadowing: The Still Small Voice,” sets out the book’s main ideas and themes. Peterson presents the biblical prophets Elijah and Moses as emblematic of the transformative development that every human being—in his view—must undergo, a development that brings us close to the divine. Access to the divine happens by means of the voice of conscience and is enacted through stories such as those found in the Bible. God appears in these stories as the divine character who leads human beings up, inviting them to “wrestle” with him by engaging with the deepest questions.

In Part 1, “In the Beginning,” Peterson examines the account of creation in the book of Genesis. Here, God is portrayed as the “creative spirit” and lawgiver who gives Adam and Eve, the first human beings, the “highest place” in the order of creation because they bear the divine image—a fact that establishes human beings’ inalienable dignity.

Part 2, “Adam, Eve, Pride, Self-Consciousness, and the Fall,” more deeply explores the story of the first man and woman: their happy life in paradise (the Garden of Eden) and their subsequent temptation and fall into sin by eating forbidden fruit. This tragic event sets the pattern for human sin and unhappiness as well as establishing the necessity to pursue spiritual growth through sacrifice and work.

The latter themes become central in Part 3, “Cain, Abel, and Sacrifice.” The two brothers stand for the warring principles of good and evil in human beings, with Peterson defining “good” as the principle of devoted, sacrificial work and “evil” as selfishness, anger, and resentment, which are destructive toward the self and others.

In Part 4, “Noah: God as the Call to Prepare,” Peterson sees Noah (the most ancient Hebrew prophet) as continuing the righteousness of Abel by heeding God’s call. God calls Noah to preserve a remnant of creation in a wooden ark so as to withstand the great deluge, emblematic of God’s anger at the sinfulness of the rest of humanity. Noah’s obedience pleases God and brings about a peaceful new covenant.

Evil again gains the upper hand in Part 5, “The Tower of Babel: God Versus Tyranny and Pride.” Cain’s descendants use newfound technology to assert their vaulting pride in the form of a ziggurat, or a tower reaching to the sky. Babylon, the site of the tower, becomes the far-reaching prototype for “arrogant empire” and political tyranny. As a fitting punishment, the hubris of Babel results in linguistic confusion.

Part 6, “Abraham: God as Spirited Call to Adventure,” introduces a pivotal patriarch. Abraham listens to God’s call to become “the father to nations” (243), and as he migrates to a new land along with his wife, Sarah, and nephew Lot, he maintains a faith in God that is ready to sacrifice everything. Abraham thus symbolizes the adventuresome spirit that accepts new challenges while becoming morally mature.

Parts 7 and 8 deal with one of the most revered Old Testament figures, Moses. In Part 7, “Moses I: God as Dreadful Spirit of Freedom,” Peterson analyzes Moses’ beginnings and rise as leader of the Israelites during their enslavement in Egypt. This narrative reveals God as being on the side of freedom and the oppressed, culminating in the provision of the Ten Commandments as the Israelites journey through the desert on the way to the promised land. Part 8, “Moses II: Hedonism and Infantile Temptation,” picks up Moses’ story as he leads the Israelites through the desert and fights against their tendency toward materialism, idolatry, and moral backsliding.

Section 9, “Jonah and the Eternal Abyss,” depicts the prophet Jonah’s call to convert the city of Nineveh, his resistance to this call, and his redemptive turnaround. For Peterson, Jonah’s story illustrates the dangers of silence in the face of evil.

Peterson summarizes the nine biblical stories and their lessons in the Conclusion, reiterating the eternal call to “wrestle” with God, which is especially urgent in the rapidly changing world of today.