Reading for July 8th

 Read Genesis 43.16-34. In verse 23: Their brother Simeon had been detained in the first journey to Egypt (42.19, 24) He is now freed to return to his brothers. In verse 26: The prediction of Joseph's earlier dreams is fulfilled a second time when Joseph's brothers bowed to the ground be fore him (37.5-11, 42.6). In verse 29: Joseph and Benjamin were the only sons of their mother, Rachel. Thus they are full brothers. In verses 33-34: The order of honor is typically the first born as most honored and the youngest as least honored. But Benjamin as the youngest of the twelve brothers receives preferential treatment. This continues the important theme throughout Genesis of the favored younger son (20.10; 25.23; 37.3, 8). Comments and Questions.

Reading for July 7th

 Read Genesis 43.1-15. In 43.1-34: Joseph's brothers return to Egypt with Benjamin. In verses 8-9: Judah puts himself on the line and reassures his father Jacob concerning Benjamin's safe return. Judah 's word s prepare the reader for his later actions in 44.18-34. Comments or Questions..

Reading for July 6th

 Read Genesis 42.26-38. In 42.38: Sheol is a dusty pit under the earth where all the dead go. Jacob does not want to die an old man (my gray hair) consumed with sorrow, Comments or Questions..

Reading for July 5th

Read Genesis 42.1-25. In 42.1-25: Joseph's brothers seek food in Egypt.  In verse 4: Benjamin is the youngest of Jacob's sons.  He is the full brother that Joseph has since Benjamin and Joseph are the only children of Jacob's favored wife, Rachel. In verse 6: Joseph's brothers unknowingly fulfill the prediction in Joseph's earlier two dreams in 37.5-11: They bowed themselves before him. In verse 22: A reckoning for his blood assumes a moral order in which murder or other wrongful actions will bring inevitable punishment (4.10; 9-5). Comments or Questions..

Reading for July 4th

 Read Genesis 41.14-57. In verse 14: Joseph's change of clothes marks major transitions in is life throughout the story (37.23; 39.12; 41.2). In verse 32: Joseph explains why all of the dreams have been doubled throughout the story (37.5-11; 40.5-23; 41.1-36). The doubling demonstrates that God has predetermined the events that are soon to happen. In verse 42: Pharaoh's signet ring has Pharaoh's official stamp or "signature." He gives to Joseph as a sign of his elevation to power as Pharaoh's representative. Joseph's new garments of fine linen mark yet another transition in his life (see v. 14). In verses 51-52: The two names of Joseph's sons, Manasseh ("making to forget") and Ephraim ("to be truthful"), celebrate Joseph's elevation out of slavery and prison. In verse 57: The material benefits of providing food in the midst of famine throughout the world is another example of the fulfillment of the promise to Abraham that his family would be a a blessing "to all the families of the earth" (12.3). The verse also provides a transition to the famine in Canaan and explains why Joseph's brothers come to Egypt seeking food. Comments or Questions..

Reading for July 3rd

 Read Genesis 41.1- 13. In 41.1-57: Joseph interprets the dreams of Pharaoh. This story marks the key point of in Joseph's fortunes: his agility as a dream interpreter elevates him to second in command of all Egypt. In verses 1-7: This is the third of the three dream sequences in the Joseph story. The dreams again appear as a pair, one about the cows (vv. 2-4) and one about grain (vv. 5-7) The Nile River that runs through the otherwise dry landscape is Egypt's primary source of water fertility, and life (vv. 1-4). Comments and Questions..

Reading for July 2nd

 Read Genesis 40.1-23. In 40.1-23: Joseph interprets the dreams of two prisoners. In verse 5: This is the second of three dreams sequence in the Joseph narrative. (37.5-11; 40.5-23; 41.1-36). The dreams always occur in pairs, here with quite different futures predicted. Joseph shifts his role from the dreamer of dreams to an interpreter of other's dreams. In verse 13: The phrase Pharaoh will life up your head has a positive meaning of exaltation for the cupbearer. The same phrase in v.19 has a very negative meaning  of execution by hanging for the baker (vv. 20-22). Comments or Questions..

Reading for July 1st

 Read Genesis 39.1-23. In 39.1-23: Joseph and Potiphar's wife. The story of Joseph resumes after the interlude with Tamar and Judah. In verse 1: Pharaoh is the title for the king of Egypt. In verse 2: The refrain the Lord was with Joseph begins and concludes this episode (vv. 21, 23), In verses 7-20: Some parallels exist between this scene and an ancient Egyptian story entitled "A Tale of Two brothers." A man resists the sexual invitations of his brother's wife but then is falsely accused. Comments or Questions..

Reading for June 30th

 Read Genesis 38.12-30. In verse 14: In light of Tamar's deception and Judah's blindness to what is actually going on, the meanings of the place names are significant. Entrance to Enaim means "opening of the eyes." Timnah means "concealed." In verse 16: Let me come into you is a request to have sexual intercourse. In verse 18: The signet ring was a ring with a distinctive design or stamp which could be used as a personal signature on official or commercial documents. It was often tied to a cord or worn around the neck.. The stall was a walking stick, often with a distinctive family emblem carved on it, The modern day equivalent of your signet, cord, and staff would be your driver's license and all your credit cards. In verses 21-22: Judah's messenger asks for the temple prostitute ("kedeshah," literally "holy woman," v. 21). The story assumes the presence of prostitutes associated with febrility rituals at Canaan temples. The term "temple prostitute" is more dignified than the term for an ordinary prostitute ("zonah," v.22). In verses 28-30: The twin boys repeat the experience of the twins Jacob and Esau. The second born son comes out ahead of the first born son (25,22-24).The name Perez means "breach" or "breaking forth" out of the womb ahead of his older brother. Zerah means "brightness." perhaps in reference to the bright red or crimson thread. Perez is an ancestor of the great king David (Ruth 4.18-22). Like Perez, David was also the youngest among his brothers (1 Sam 16.1-13). Comments or Questions...

Reading for June 29th

 Read Genesis 38.1-11. In 38.1-30: Tamar and Judah. This story interrupts the Joseph narrative which runs from ch. 37 to ch. 50. However, some of its themes and images are related to the images and themes in the larger Joseph narrative. Examples include the function of the goat (37.31 and 38.17, 20), recognizing and deceiving with clothes (37.31-33 and 38.13-17, 26), and irregular sexual activity (38.14-18 and 39.7-18). The climax of the Tamar-Judah story is the birth of Perez and Zerah. Perez becomes the ancestor of Israel's greatest king David (Ruth 4.18-22). The long road of the divine promise to David included this irregular detour through Tamar and Judah. This irregularity ties in with the larger theme of the Joseph story as a whole: God manages to bless Joseph and his brothers in spite of and through the many detours of sibling rivalry, deception, slavery, imprisonment and famine. In verse 7: The story does not explain the way in which Er was wicked nor precisely how the Lord put him to death. The details are not necessary to the plot. In verse 8: The duty of a brother-in-law involves the custom of a levirate marriage. The levirate obligation requires the brother of a married man who has died childless to have sexual intercourse with the dead man's wife. The brother must do so until she becomes pregnant and has a child who will carry on the dead  man's name (Deut 25.5-10). In verses 9-10: Orian spilled his semen on the ground ... what he did was displeasing. This is not meant as a generalized judgement against masturbation or birth control. It violates only specialized case of failure to fulfill levirate obligation. In verse 11: Judah has no intention of allowing Shelah to perform the levirate duty of a brother-in-law with Tamar. He apparently assumes association with Tamar somehow caused the death of his other sons. He does not want the same to happen to is only remaining son, Shelah (v. 14). Comments or Questions..

Reading for June 28th

 Read Genesis 37.15-36. In verses 15-28: The changing of Joseph's clothes, here the stripping of his robe, will mark a major transition in his life throughout the story. Joseph moves from being a favored son to a hired slave. Joseph's brothers first plot to kill him, but Rueben (v. 12) and Judah (vv. 26-27) intervene to restrain them. Instead, they sell Joseph as a slave to some passing Midianite traders and Ishmaelites. Both of  these groups were descendants of Abraham and one of two women slaves, Hagar (16.15) and Keturah (25.1-4). Those whom Israel had formally enslaved turn around and enslave Joseph. In verse 33: The brothers show the bloodied robe to their father Jacob without explanation. Jacob himself draws the conclusion that a wild animal has devoured Joseph. In verse 34: Jacob tore his garments and wore course sackcloth, both traditional acts of anguish and mourning the dead (v. 29). In verse 35: Sheol is a dry, dusty  pit under the earth where the dead go at the end of their earthly existence. Comments or Questions..

Reading for June 27th

THE STORY OF JOSEPH 

Chs, 37-50: The story about Joseph, is the longest continuous narrative in Genesis. The story runs from ch. 37 to ch 50. It is interrupted by an inserted story about Judah and Tamar in ch. 38. Although even this story has a thematic connections to the Joseph narrative. This Joseph story provides a fitting conclusion to the Genesis ancestor stories as the family grows larger to become the people or nation of Israel. The story functions as a literary bridge to the events in Egypt in the book of Exodus. Joseph will be the first of the Israelites to be enslaved by Egypt and then rescued, a fate all Israel will eventually share. 

 Read Genesis 37.1-14. In 37.1-36: Joseph's dreams and his brothers schemes. In verse 2: This the story of the family of is a formula that literally reads in Hebrew, "These are the generations of." This formula occurs throughout Genesis as a heading for major new sections; examples include Gen 2.4; 6.9; 10.1;11.27; 25.19;. In verses 3-4: The favoring of one child over another and the conflict that results is an important theme in Genesis (4.4-5; 21.10-25.8). A long robe with sleeves, since it is impossible  to do manual labor while wearing it, suggests a life of leisure for Joseph, who seems prone to sleep and dressing (vv. 5, 9). In verses 5-11: Dreams will play a role throughout the Joseph story. Each of the three dream sequences (37.5-11; 40.5-23; 41.1-36) contains two paired dreams. The story assumes that these dreams allow one to know the future, which is part  of a divine plan. Jacob had some experience with dreams and divine plans in the episode at Bethel (28.10-22), so  he kept the matter in mind (v. 11). Binding sheaves refers to tying newly cut stalks of grain into bundles, these stand in the field for a time to dry (v. 7). Comments or Questions...

Reading for June 26th

 Read Genesis 36.1-43. In 36.1-43 Esau's descendants.  The list here of Esau's descendants and the list of Jacob's twelve sons in 35.22-26 represent a partial fulfillment of the promises of many descendants made to Abraham (15.5)),  Isaac (26.4), and Jacob (28.14). In verse 1; Jacob's brother Esau is the ancestor of the nation of Edom. Edom lies just southland east of Canaan. The land of Canaan will later become the nation of Israel, whose ancestor is Jacob (25.23,30). In verse 31: This list of kings who reigned in the land of Edom precedes the time of Israel's king David, who will conquered and ruled over Edom ( 2 Sam 8.13-14). Comments or Questions. 

Reading for June 25th

 Read Genesis: 35.16-29. In 35.16-29: Benjamin is born and Rachel dies. In verse 18: Nen-oni means "son of my sorrow, " reflecting Rachel's suffering in childbirth Jacob changes the name slightly to Benjamin, "son of the right hand." Sitting at the right hand of a ruler or elder is a position of honor. Benjamin is the son (see 42.36-38). In verse 22: Jacob's firstborn son Reuben had sexual relations with Bilhah his father's concubine, a grievous offense. Those incident is the reason Reuben's status as firstborn son will be diminished in Jacob's blessing of his twelve sons (49.3-4). In verses 27-29: The last days of Isaac provide an occasion for reconciliation between Jacob and his father (v. 27; see 27.35). the two sons, Esau and Jacob, join together in burying their father Isaac (v. 29), just as earlier the brother Isaac and Ishmael had joined together to bury their father, Abraham (25.9). Comments or Questions..

Reading for June 24th

 Read Genesis 35.1-15. In 35.1-15: Jacob returns to Bethel. After many years, Jacob returns to Bethel where God had first encountered and blessed Jacob when he was fleeing from his brother Esau (28.10-22). In verse 2:The foreign gods (that are among you probably included the household gods or idols that Rachel had stolen from her father Laban when they fled from him (31.19). In verse 7: El-bethel means "God or Bethel" or "God of the house of God." God had revealed himself to Jacob there at bethel in 28.10-22. In verse 14: as Else where in Genesis (28.18), setting up a pillar of stone and pouring oil on it marks the location as a holy site at which the deity was worshipped. In verse 15: Bethel means "house of God.". Comments or Questions..

Reading for June 23rd

 Read Genesis 34.1-31: In verses 2-3: The story reports that Shechem raped Dinah and then loved and spoke tenderly to her. Dinah's response of feelings are not given. In verse 15: To be circumcised involves cutting off the foreskin of the male penis. Circumcision was a physical sign of a male belonging to the covenant people of Israel (17.9-14). In verses 25-29. The violence of the revenge (Killing all the males, taking all their possessions, and capturing their wives and children seems excessive. That is especially true if the self-interests of the brothers rather than the interests of Dinah are being served. The story seems intentionally ambiguous raise in the narrative. In verse 26: The reader is suddenly aware that Dinah has been staying in Shechem's house. Was she there because she wanted to be there? or was she held there by force? Again, we do not know Dinah's feelings In verses 30-31: The ethical debate between Jacob (concerned with pragmatic realties) and his sons (concerned with moral principle) ends without resolution. Comments or Questions..

Reading for June 22nd

 Read Genesis 33.18-23. In 33.18-34.31: The rape of Jacob's daughter, Dinah. This story of rape and revenge is the first example of violence in the interaction of Israelite and Canaanites. Their relationship up to this point in Genesis have ben cordial and peaceful. In 33.18-19: Shechem is both the name of the city and the name of the son of Hamor, the "prince of the region" (34.2). In verse 20: El-EloheIsrael means "God, the God of Israel." The ancient divine name "El" appears elsewhere in Genesis, usually combined with another word: El Elyon (14.19), El Shaddi (17.1), El Olam (21.33), and El-bethel (35.7). Comments of Questions..

Reading for June 21st

 Read Genesis 33.1-17. In 33.1-17: Jacob reconciles with Esau. In verse 10: Jacob's words link his encounter with God in ch. 32 with his encounter with Esau: To see your face is like seeing the face of God (see 32.30) In verse 11: Jacob's offer of a gift ("beakah")to Esau in effect returns the "blessing" ("berakah") Jacob had stolen from Esau twenty years earlier (27.360. In verses 12-16: Although Jacob and Esau reconcile with one another, Jacob is still wary of his brother. Jacob tries diplomatically to keep a distance between himself and Esau, although Esau wants them to stay together. In verse 17: Succoth means "booths" and is a name of a town just across the Jordan River and east of Canaan (Josh 13.27). Comments or Questions..

Reading for June 20th

 Read Genesis 32.22- 32. In 32.22-32: Jacob wrestles with God. This is an ancient story that has played several roles in its long history. The story explained the reason for the place name, Peniel ("face of God" v. 30). It also explained the reason for the dietary law that the Israelites do not eat  the thigh muscle of any animal (v. 32) and the reason for the change of Jacob's name to Israel ( v. 28). Jacob's life as an individual becomes a portrait of Israel's life as a nation. Israel as a people will struggle with God and limp away with a blessing. In verse 24: The sudden unexplained appearance of a man in the night suggests a mysterious or supernatural figure. In verse 25: Jacob was winning the wrestling match until he was crippled by a wrestler's trick that dislocated his hip. In verse 28: The identity of the "man" is now revealed Jacob has striven with God. In verse 30: Jacob's experience is remarkable in light of a prevailing Older Testament tradition that no human can see God face to face and live (Ex 33.11-23; Judg 6.22-230. Comments or Questions..

Reading for June 19th

 Read Genesis 32.1-21. In 32.1-21: Jacob prepares to meet his brother Esau. After twenty years of separation, the reader recalls that the last words we heard from Esau were , "I will kill my brother Jacob" (27.41). Jacob's preparations to meet Esau exhibit great anxiety about whether Esau still carries this threat with him (v. 11) In verses 1-2: Angels of God again meet Jacob as he enters Canaan, just as the angels visited him when he left Canaan (28.12. Jacob names the place Mahanaim, "two camps," because it is God's camp. bethel, 'house of God," was the place name of the previous encounter with angels (28.19). In verses 3-8: Jacob sends gifts to appease his brother Esau. Jacob hears the ominous news, that Esau is coming meet him with an army of four hundred men (v. 6). Jacob has good reason to be greatly afraid and distressed (v. 7). Comments or Questions..

Reading for June 18th

 Read Genesis 31.22-55. In verse 32: Jacob unknowingly predicts what will happen to Rachel. She will soon die prematurely in childbirth (35.16-20). In verse 35: The way of women refers to her menstrual period. In verses 47-48: The site for the boundary covenant or agreement between Jacob and Laban has two names. One name, Jegar-sahadutha, means "the heap of witness "in Aramaic language spoken by Laban the Aramean (25.20). the other name for the same site, Galeed, also means "the heap of witness," but in the Hebrew language spoken by Jacob. The names refer to the heap of stones that mark the boundary between Laban's Arameans and Jacob's Israelites. In verse 49: Laban names the pillar Mizpah, meaning "watchpost." Comments or Questions..

Reading for June 17th

 Read Genesis 31.1- 21. In 31.1-1-55: Jacob flees from Laban with his family and flocks. In verses 1-2: Envy and conflict within the extended families of Jacob and Laban increase as Jacob's wealth and flocks increase. In verses 14-16: After having experienced conflict between themselves (30.1, 15), Leah nd Rachel are now untied in their negative feelings against their father Laban. In verse 19: The household gods were idols that were believed to carry with them power, prosperity, and the legal claim of the family's property. Comments or Questions..

Reading for June 16th

 Read Genesis 30.25-43. In 30.25-43: Jacob prospers and Laban loses. Laban promises to give Jacob all the sheep and goats that are spotted or black (vv. 32-34). But then Laban secretly removes all the spotted and black animals from the heard and sends them away so nothing is left for Jacob (vv. 35-36). Jacob places striped or spotted almond or popular branches in front of the strong sheep and goats as they mate. The assumption was that whatever the animals saw while they mated would determine whether their off spring would be a solid or a spotted color. An underlying biological fact is that even though the parent animals were both all white, they could carry recessive gene for black or a spotted color. As a result of his genetic engineering, Jacob grew exceedingly rich (v. 41). Comments or Questions..

Reading for June 15th

 Read Genesis 29.31-30.24. In 29.31-30.24: The birth of Jacob's eleven sons and one daughter. The  sons born to Jacob will becomes the ancestors of the twelve tribes of Israel. The birth of the twelfth and last son, Benjamin is  described in ch. 35.The relative status of the mother of each of the sons reflected the relative status of the corresponding tribe at some point in Israel's history. For example, the Joseph tribe was one of the most powerful tribes, a status reflected by his mother, the most favored wife (vv. 22-24; 29.30). Leah's children and the children of the maid would have been less favored or influential. each child's name has some meaning attached to it. In 30.14-16: As the favored wife, Rachel has the first rights of sleeping with Jacob. However, she barters that right away to Leah for a night in exchange for some mandrakes. Mandrakes are herbs thought to aid in fertility. The childless Rachel is apparently anxious to do what she can to have children with Jacob. Rachel eventually succeeds with God's help (30.22-24). Comments or Questions

Reading for June 14th

 Read Genesis 29.15-30. In verse 17: The Hebrew word for lovely is unclear and may also mean weak or unattractive. This may partly explain why Jacob preferred Rachel over Leah (v. 30). Comments or Questions..

Reading for June 13th

 Read Genesis 29.1-14. In 29.1-30: Jacob marries Leah and Rachel. Jacob the deceiver (ch 27) meets his match in his uncle Laban, who deceives Jacob (v. 25). Jacob agrees to work seven years in order to marry Rachel. Laban tricks Jacob into working for him twice as many years 914 years). Jacob also ends up marrying both of Laban's daughters instead of only Rachel, the wife he truly wanted. Comments or Questions..

Reading for June 12th

 Read Genesis 28.10-22. This story of Jacob's encounter with God and God's blessing as he leaves Canaan is the first of two such encounters. When Jacob returns to Canaan twenty years later, he will encounter angels or divine messengers a second time (32.1-2). He will also wrestle also wrestle with God and receive a blessing(32.22-32). In verses 13-15: God reaffirms the promise made to Abraham and Isaac as  belonging to Jacob (12.1-3; 26.2-5). In verse 17: The house of God ("beth'el") becomes the basis for the name of the place, Bethel (v. 19). In verse 18: Jacob's act of pouring oil on top of the stone pillar marked the location as a holy place. In verses 20-21: Jacob is always a tough negotiator for his own self-interest (25.29-34). true to his nature, Jacob vows to let God be my God on the condition that God cares for all his needs. Comments or Questions..

Reading for June 11th

Read Genesis 28.1- 9. In 28.1-5; Isaac instructs Jacob to return tot he original homeland of Abraham and of his mother Rebekah in Mesopotamia to obtain a wife as Isaac has done (ch. 24.;25.20). Comments or Questions.. 

Reading for June 10th

 Read Genesis 27.30-46. In 27.34-38: The grief and anger of Isaac and Esau presuppose that the words and power of a blessing cannot be taken back once they have been spoken. In verse 39: Esau can only receive the opposite of what Jacob already received. Jacob will receive of (the Hebrew preposition "min") the fatness of the earth (v. 28) while Esau will live away (the same preposition "min") the fatness of the earth. The land of Edom was not agriculturally rich area. In verse 41: I will kill my brother Jacob: These are the last words we hear from Esau concerning Jacob until they meet many years later in ch 33. In verse 46: Rebekah's excuse to Isaac for sending Jacob away is to avoid Jacob's marrying one of the Hittite or Canaanite women of the land as Esau had done (26.34-35). Her real reason is to stop Esau from murdering his brother Jacob (vv. 42-45). Comments or Questions..

Reading for June 9th

 Read Genesis 26.23-27.29. In 26.34-28.9: Jacob steals Esau's blessing. Jacob deceives his old and blind father Isaac. Jacob pretends to be his older brother Esau so that he can receive the blessing and inheritance that belong to the firstborn son. In 26.34-35: Esau marries two Hittite or native Canaanite women who bring trouble to the family. The comment places Esau in a negative light. Comments or Questions..