How could Jacob say he saw God face to face if no one can see God and live?
Jacob could say he saw God face to face because he encountered God the Son in a theophany, not the invisible triune Godhead. Scripture affirms no man has seen the Trinity and lived, yet God the Son appeared repeatedly in the Old Testament, as with Abraham and the burning bush. Jacob's life was preserved.
Les explains that Jacob, after asking the name and being blessed, called the place Phaneel, saying, "I have seen God face to face." Les points out that people object because the Bible says no man has seen God at any time and lived. That statement is true concerning the Trinity, the triune spirit part of God; no one has seen the invisible Godhead. But Les says they have seen God the Son throughout the Old Testament in theophanies. Abraham in chapter 18 ate with God the Son, and the burning bush was also God the Son. Therefore Jacob could speak of seeing God face to face while his life was preserved.