PENUEL* (Place)

Name given to the place near the Jabbok River where Jacob strove all night with God (Gn 32:31); alternately called Peniel in verse 30. During the period of the judges, Gideon destroyed the tower of Penuel and killed the men of the city for refusing to join him in war against the Midianites (Jgs 8:8-9, 17). Later, King Jeroboam rebuilt the town (1 Kgs 12:25). It was positioned near Succoth east of the Jordan River, though its exact location remains uncertain.