GENESIS 42

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Joseph’s Brothers Go to Egypt  42:1 When Jacob learned that there was grain for sale in Egypt, he said to his sons, “Why do you look at one another?” 2 And he said, “Behold, I have heard that there is grain for sale in Egypt. Go down and buy grain for us there, that we may live and not die.” 3 So ten of Joseph’s brothers went down to buy grain in Egypt. 4 But Jacob did not send Benjamin, Joseph’s brother, with his brothers, for he feared that harm might happen to him. 5 Thus the sons of Israel came to buy among the others who came, for the famine was in the land of Canaan.
    6 Now Joseph was governor over the land. He was the one who sold to all the people of the land. And Joseph’s brothers came and bowed themselves before him with their faces to the ground. 7 Joseph saw his brothers and recognized them, but he treated them like strangers and spoke roughly to them. “Where do you come from?” he said. They said, “From the land of Canaan, to buy food.” 8 And Joseph recognized his brothers, but they did not recognize him. 9 And Joseph remembered the dreams that he had dreamed of them. And he said to them, “You are spies; you have come to see the nakedness of the land.” 10 They said to him, “No, my lord, your servants have come to buy food. 11 We are all sons of one man. We are honest men. Your servants have never been spies.”
    12 He said to them, “No, it is the nakedness of the land that you have come to see.” 13 And they said, “We, your servants, are twelve brothers, the sons of one man in the land of Canaan, and behold, the youngest is this day with our father, and one is no more.” 14 But Joseph said to them, “It is as I said to you. You are spies. 15 By this you shall be tested: by the life of Pharaoh, you shall not go from this place unless your youngest brother comes here. 16 Send one of you, and let him bring your brother, while you remain confined, that your words may be tested, whether there is truth in you. Or else, by the life of Pharaoh, surely you are spies.” 17 And he put them all together in custody for three days.
    18 On the third day Joseph said to them, “Do this and you will live, for I fear God: 19 if you are honest men, let one of your brothers remain confined where you are in custody, and let the rest go and carry grain for the famine of your households, 20 and bring your youngest brother to me. So your words will be verified, and you shall not die.” And they did so. 21 Then they said to one another, “In truth we are guilty concerning our brother, in that we saw the distress of his soul, when he begged us and we did not listen. That is why this distress has come upon us.” 22 And Reuben answered them, “Did I not tell you not to sin against the boy? But you did not listen. So now there comes a reckoning for his blood.” 23 They did not know that Joseph understood them, for there was an interpreter between them. 24 Then he turned away from them and wept. And he returned to them and spoke to them. And he took Simeon from them and bound him before their eyes. 25 And Joseph gave orders to fill their bags with grain, and to replace every man’s money in his sack, and to give them provisions for the journey. This was done for them.
    26 Then they loaded their donkeys with their grain and departed. 27 And as one of them opened his sack to give his donkey fodder at the lodging place, he saw his money in the mouth of his sack. 28 He said to his brothers, “My money has been put back; here it is in the mouth of my sack!” At this their hearts failed them, and they turned trembling to one another, saying, “What is this that God has done to us?”
    29 When they came to Jacob their father in the land of Canaan, they told him all that had happened to them, saying, 30 “The man, the lord of the land, spoke roughly to us and took us to be spies of the land. 31 But we said to him, ‘We are honest men; we have never been spies. 32 We are twelve brothers, sons of our father. One is no more, and the youngest is this day with our father in the land of Canaan.’ 33 Then the man, the lord of the land, said to us, ‘By this I shall know that you are honest men: leave one of your brothers with me, and take grain for the famine of your households, and go your way. 34 Bring your youngest brother to me. Then I shall know that you are not spies but honest men, and I will deliver your brother to you, and you shall trade in the land.’”
    35 As they emptied their sacks, behold, every man’s bundle of money was in his sack. And when they and their father saw their bundles of money, they were afraid. 36 And Jacob their father said to them, “You have bereaved me of my children: Joseph is no more, and Simeon is no more, and now you would take Benjamin. All this has come against me.” 37 Then Reuben said to his father, “Kill my two sons if I do not bring him back to you. Put him in my hands, and I will bring him back to you.” 38 But he said, “My son shall not go down with you, for his brother is dead, and he is the only one left. If harm should happen to him on the journey that you are to make, you would bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to Sheol.”

PSALM 17

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In the Shadow of Your WingsA Prayer of David.
17:1

Hear a just cause, O Lord; attend to my cry!

Give ear to my prayer from lips free of deceit! 2

From your presence let my vindication come!

Let your eyes behold the right!
3

You have tried my heart, you have visited me by night,

you have tested me, and you will find nothing;

I have purposed that my mouth will not transgress. 4

With regard to the works of man, by the word of your lips

I have avoided the ways of the violent. 5

My steps have held fast to your paths;

my feet have not slipped.
6

I call upon you, for you will answer me, O God;

incline your ear to me; hear my words. 7

Wondrously show your steadfast love,

O Savior of those who seek refuge

from their adversaries at your right hand.
8

Keep me as the apple of your eye;

hide me in the shadow of your wings, 9

from the wicked who do me violence,

my deadly enemies who surround me.
10

They close their hearts to pity;

with their mouths they speak arrogantly. 11

They have now surrounded our steps;

they set their eyes to cast us to the ground. 12

He is like a lion eager to tear,

as a young lion lurking in ambush.
13

Arise, O Lord! Confront him, subdue him!

Deliver my soul from the wicked by your sword, 14

from men by your hand, O Lord,

from men of the world whose portion is in this life.

You fill their womb with treasure;

they are satisfied with children,

and they leave their abundance to their infants.
15

As for me, I shall behold your face in righteousness;

when I awake, I shall be satisfied with your likeness.

PSALM 18

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The Lord Is My Rock and My FortressTo the choirmaster. A Psalm of David, the servant of the Lord, who addressed the words of this song to the Lord on the day when the Lord delivered him from the hand of all his enemies, and from the hand of Saul. He said:
18:1

I love you, O Lord, my strength. 2

The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer,

my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge,

my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. 3

I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised,

and I am saved from my enemies.
4

The cords of death encompassed me;

the torrents of destruction assailed me; 5

the cords of Sheol entangled me;

the snares of death confronted me.
6

In my distress I called upon the Lord;

to my God I cried for help.

From his temple he heard my voice,

and my cry to him reached his ears.
7

Then the earth reeled and rocked;

the foundations also of the mountains trembled

and quaked, because he was angry. 8

Smoke went up from his nostrils,

and devouring fire from his mouth;

glowing coals flamed forth from him. 9

He bowed the heavens and came down;

thick darkness was under his feet. 10

He rode on a cherub and flew;

he came swiftly on the wings of the wind. 11

He made darkness his covering, his canopy around him,

thick clouds dark with water. 12

Out of the brightness before him

hailstones and coals of fire broke through his clouds.
13

The Lord also thundered in the heavens,

and the Most High uttered his voice,

hailstones and coals of fire. 14

And he sent out his arrows and scattered them;

he flashed forth lightnings and routed them. 15

Then the channels of the sea were seen,

and the foundations of the world were laid bare

at your rebuke, O Lord,

at the blast of the breath of your nostrils.
16

He sent from on high, he took me;

he drew me out of many waters. 17

He rescued me from my strong enemy

and from those who hated me,

for they were too mighty for me. 18

They confronted me in the day of my calamity,

but the Lord was my support. 19

He brought me out into a broad place;

he rescued me, because he delighted in me.
20

The Lord dealt with me according to my righteousness;

according to the cleanness of my hands he rewarded me. 21

For I have kept the ways of the Lord,

and have not wickedly departed from my God. 22

For all his rules were before me,

and his statutes I did not put away from me. 23

I was blameless before him,

and I kept myself from my guilt. 24

So the Lord has rewarded me according to my righteousness,

according to the cleanness of my hands in his sight.
25

With the merciful you show yourself merciful;

with the blameless man you show yourself blameless; 26

with the purified you show yourself pure;

and with the crooked you make yourself seem tortuous. 27

For you save a humble people,

but the haughty eyes you bring down. 28

For it is you who light my lamp;

the Lord my God lightens my darkness. 29

For by you I can run against a troop,

and by my God I can leap over a wall. 30

This God—his way is perfect;

the word of the Lord proves true;

he is a shield for all those who take refuge in him.
31

For who is God, but the Lord?

And who is a rock, except our God?— 32

the God who equipped me with strength

and made my way blameless. 33

He made my feet like the feet of a deer

and set me secure on the heights. 34

He trains my hands for war,

so that my arms can bend a bow of bronze. 35

You have given me the shield of your salvation,

and your right hand supported me,

and your gentleness made me great. 36

You gave a wide place for my steps under me,

and my feet did not slip. 37

I pursued my enemies and overtook them,

and did not turn back till they were consumed. 38

I thrust them through, so that they were not able to rise;

they fell under my feet. 39

For you equipped me with strength for the battle;

you made those who rise against me sink under me. 40

You made my enemies turn their backs to me,

and those who hated me I destroyed. 41

They cried for help, but there was none to save;

they cried to the Lord, but he did not answer them. 42

I beat them fine as dust before the wind;

I cast them out like the mire of the streets.
43

You delivered me from strife with the people;

you made me the head of the nations;

people whom I had not known served me. 44

As soon as they heard of me they obeyed me;

foreigners came cringing to me. 45

Foreigners lost heart

and came trembling out of their fortresses.
46

The Lord lives, and blessed be my rock,

and exalted be the God of my salvation— 47

the God who gave me vengeance

and subdued peoples under me, 48

who rescued me from my enemies;

yes, you exalted me above those who rose against me;

you delivered me from the man of violence.
49

For this I will praise you, O Lord, among the nations,

and sing to your name. 50

Great salvation he brings to his king,

and shows steadfast love to his anointed,

to David and his offspring forever.

PROVERBS 13

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13:1

A wise son hears his father’s instruction,

but a scoffer does not listen to rebuke. 2

From the fruit of his mouth a man eats what is good,

but the desire of the treacherous is for violence. 3

Whoever guards his mouth preserves his life;

he who opens wide his lips comes to ruin. 4

The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing,

while the soul of the diligent is richly supplied. 5

The righteous hates falsehood,

but the wicked brings shame and disgrace. 6

Righteousness guards him whose way is blameless,

but sin overthrows the wicked. 7

One pretends to be rich, yet has nothing;

another pretends to be poor, yet has great wealth. 8

The ransom of a man’s life is his wealth,

but a poor man hears no threat. 9

The light of the righteous rejoices,

but the lamp of the wicked will be put out. 10

By insolence comes nothing but strife,

but with those who take advice is wisdom. 11

Wealth gained hastily will dwindle,

but whoever gathers little by little will increase it. 12

Hope deferred makes the heart sick,

but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life. 13

Whoever despises the word brings destruction on himself,

but he who reveres the commandment will be rewarded. 14

The teaching of the wise is a fountain of life,

that one may turn away from the snares of death. 15

Good sense wins favor,

but the way of the treacherous is their ruin. 16

Every prudent man acts with knowledge,

but a fool flaunts his folly. 17

A wicked messenger falls into trouble,

but a faithful envoy brings healing. 18

Poverty and disgrace come to him who ignores instruction,

but whoever heeds reproof is honored. 19

A desire fulfilled is sweet to the soul,

but to turn away from evil is an abomination to fools. 20

Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise,

but the companion of fools will suffer harm. 21

Disaster pursues sinners,

but the righteous are rewarded with good. 22

A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children,

but the sinner’s wealth is laid up for the righteous. 23

The fallow ground of the poor would yield much food,

but it is swept away through injustice. 24

Whoever spares the rod hates his son,

but he who loves him is diligent to discipline him. 25

The righteous has enough to satisfy his appetite,

but the belly of the wicked suffers want.