1Ephraim feeds on wind,
and chases the east wind.
He continually multiplies lies and desolation.
They make a covenant with Assyria,
and oil is carried into Egypt.
2Yahweh also has a controversy with Judah,
and will punish Jacob according to his ways;
according to his deeds he will repay him.
3In the womb he took his brother by the heel,
and in his manhood he contended with God.
4Indeed, he struggled with the angel, and prevailed;
he wept, and made supplication to him.
He found him at Bethel, and there he spoke with us—
5even Yahweh, the God of Armies.
Yahweh is his name of renown!
6Therefore turn to your God.
Keep kindness and justice,
and wait continually for your God.
7A merchant has dishonest scales in his hand.
He loves to defraud.
8Ephraim said, “Surely I have become rich.
I have found myself wealth.
In all my wealth they won’t find in me any iniquity that is sin.”
9“But I am Yahweh your God from the land of Egypt.
I will yet again make you dwell in tents,
as in the days of the solemn feast.
10I have also spoken to the prophets,
and I have multiplied visions;
and by the ministry of the prophets I have used parables.
11If Gilead is wicked,
surely they are worthless.
In Gilgal they sacrifice bulls.
Indeed, their altars are like heaps in the furrows of the field.
12Jacob fled into the country of Aram.
Israel served to get a wife.
For a wife he tended flocks and herds.
13By a prophet Yahweh brought Israel up out of Egypt,
and by a prophet he was preserved.
14Ephraim has bitterly provoked anger.
Therefore his blood will be left on him,
and his Lord will repay his contempt.
Jacob was the son of Isaac and Rebekah, born immediately after Esau, and Abraham was his grandfather. He achieved the right of the firstborn by trickery, in offering his older brother, Esau, food in exchange for the birthright, who cared little for this position. He also received the blessing of firstborn from his father Jacob before his death by cunning, and with the assistance of his mother Rebekah.
After his deception of Esau, receiving the blessing from his father, Jacob escaped to his uncle Laban, who in turn deceived Jacob into working for fourteen years for the marriage of Jacob to Leah, and then his beloved Rachel. Laban also sought to deceive Jacob of wages, but God intervened to ensure he would prosper. In a time of trial, when he feared the wrath of Esau, upon returning to the land of Canaan, Jacob had an encounter with God, and his name was changed to Israel, the one who wrestles with God. Even though his early life was characterized by deception, God worked through the situation to ensure that Jacob would be the one in the line of the patriarchs, to create a great nation and ultimately fulfill His purposes in the earth, especially through the future Messiah. The Messiah would guarantee the promise of the land to Abram and a person who would rule over Abraham's descendants, but also He would bring blessings to all the people of the earth (Gen 12:1-3).
In spite of Jacob's early failure by deception, God worked through him, and finally, Jacob became a different type of man after his struggle with God. As one has said,
"Despite Jacob’s faults, God chose him to be the leader of a great nation that still bears his name today. But for this, it is unlikely that we would know much about Jacob, who appears to be in the middle of events while the key players are those around him. There is no great wisdom or bravery in Jacob to speak of, and we are tempted to see him as little more than God’s passive instrument. If we are tempted to think that, because we aren’t in the spotlight performing great acts for God, we are unimportant to Him, then we should consider the life of Jacob and know that, in spite of our failings, God can and will still use us in His plan."
For more on Jacob, see "Who was Jacob in the Bible?", https://www.gotquestions.org/life-Jacob.html