Crossing the Read Sea

James 1:13-18

The Father Gives Perfect Gifts

13 And remember, when you are being tempted, do not say, “God is tempting me.” God is never tempted to do wrong, and he never tempts anyone else. 14 Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away. 15 These desires give birth to sinful actions. And when sin is allowed to grow, it gives birth to death.

16 So don’t be misled, my dear brothers and sisters. 17 Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting shadow. 18 He chose to give birth to us by giving us his true word. And we, out of all creation, became his prized possession.

Bereshit (Genesis) Chapter 37

1 Jacob settled in Hebron, the region where his father had lived, which is in Canaan.

2 The following narrative is the chronicle of the descendants of Jacob: Joseph was 17 years old and was pasturing the flocks with his brothers. He acted like a young, immature boy. He spent time with the sons of his father’s wives Bilhah and Zilpah. Joseph brought their father evil reports about them.

3 Israel loved Joseph more than any of his other sons, because he was the son of his old age. Israel made him a robe of fine wool.

4 His brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, so they hated him and could not speak with him peaceably.

5 Then Joseph had a dream and told it to his brothers, and because of this dream, they hated him even more.

6 He said to them, “Please listen to this dream I had.

7 There we were, binding sheaves in the midst of the field, when my sheaf stood up and remained upright. Then your sheaves formed a circle around my sheaf and prostrated themselves before it.”

8 His brothers said to him, “Would you really seek to reign over us? Would you really seek to rule over us?” They now hated him even more, because of his dreams and because of his talk.

9 He had another dream and told it to his brothers. He said, “Look, I had another dream, and there were the sun, the moon, and 11 stars prostrating themselves before me.”

10 He re-told the dream to his father in his brothers’ presence. His father chided him. He said to him, “What nonsense is this dream that you had! Will I, your mother, and your brothers indeed come and prostrate ourselves on the ground before you?!”

11 Joseph’s brothers remained jealous of him. But his father waited expectantly for the matter to unfold.

Matthew 6:24-34

The Father Cares for Our Needs

24 “No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and be enslaved to money.

25 “That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn’t life more than food, and your body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren’t you far more valuable to him than they are? 27 Can all your worries add a single moment to your life?

28 “And why worry about your clothing? Look at the lilies of the field and how they grow. They don’t work or make their clothing, 29 yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are. 30 And if God cares so wonderfully for wildflowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith?

31 “So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ 32 These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. 33 Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.

34 “So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today.

Bereshit (Genesis) Chapter 37

12 His brothers left to pasture their father’s flocks in Shechem.

13 Israel said to Joseph, “Now your brothers are pasturing in Shechem. Come, I will send you to check up on them.” Joseph replied to him, “Here I am.”

14 Israel said to him, “Please go and see how your brothers and the flocks are faring, and bring me back a report.” He thus sent him on the journey that would fulfill the profound vision of Abraham, who was interred in Hebron. Joseph arrived in Shechem.

15 A man found him wandering in the fields. The man questioned him, saying, “What are you looking for?”

16 He replied, “It is my brothers that I am looking for. Please tell me where they are pasturing.”

17 The man answered, “They have distanced themselves from such brotherly sentiments, for I heard them say, ‘Let us go to Dotan [“legalities”],’ seeking some legal pretext to kill you!” Joseph followed his brothers and found them in Dotan.

18 They saw him from afar, and before he reached them, they conspired against him to put him to death.

19 Simeon said to his brother Levi, “Look, here comes that dreamer!

20 So now let us go and kill him and throw him into one of the pits, and we will say, ‘A wild beast devoured him.’” But God said, “We will see which succeeds: your plans or his (i.e., Joseph’s) dreams!”

21 Reuben heard his brothers’ plan and rescued him from their hands, as follows: He said, “Let us not strike him a mortal blow!”

22 Reuben said to them, “Do not shed blood. Throw him into this pit here in the desert, but do not lay a hand on him!” Reuben suggested this in order to rescue him from their hands and bring him back later to his father.

Psalm 110

A psalm of David.

1 
The Lord said to my Lord,
    “Sit in the place of honor at my right hand
until I humble your enemies,

    making them a footstool under your feet.”

2 
The Lord will extend your powerful kingdom from Jerusalem;

    you will rule over your enemies.

3 
When you go to war,

    your people will serve you willingly.
You are arrayed in holy garments,

    and your strength will be renewed each day like the morning dew.

4 
The Lord has taken an oath and will not break his vow:

    “You are a priest forever in the order of Melchizedek.”

5 
The Lord stands at your right hand to protect you.

    He will strike down many kings when his anger erupts.

6 
He will punish the nations

    and fill their lands with corpses;

    he will shatter heads over the whole earth.

7 
But he himself will be refreshed from brooks along the way.

    He will be victorious.

Bereshit (Genesis) Chapter 37

23 So when Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped him of his shirt and of the fine woolen robe that he was wearing.

24They took him, and threw him into the pit. The pit was empty in that there was no water in it.

25 The brothers sat down to a meal. They raised their eyes and saw that there was a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead. Their camels were carrying spices, stacte, and lotus, on their way to take them down to Egypt.

26 Judah said to his brothers, “What is to be gained if we kill our brother and conceal his death from our father?

27 Come, let us sell him to the Ishmaelites, but let our hand not strike him, for he is our brother, our own flesh.” His brothers heeded him.

28 A caravan of Midianite merchants also passed by. The brothers hauled Joseph up from the pit and sold Joseph to the Ishmaelites for 20 pieces of silver. The Ishmaelites sold Joseph to the Midianites, and they brought Joseph to Egypt.

29 The next day, Reuben returned. When Reuben went back to the pit and saw that Joseph was not in the pit, he rent his clothes.

30 He returned to his brothers and said, “The boy is gone! And I—where can I go to avoid witnessing our father’s grief?”

31They took Joseph’s robe, slaughtered a young goat, and dipped the robe in the blood.

32 They sent off the fine woolen robe via an emissary and thus brought it to their father. They said, via their emissary, “We found this; please identify it. Is it your son’s robe or not?”

33 He recognized it and said, “It is my son’s robe! A wild beast has devoured him! Joseph has been torn to pieces!”

34 Jacob rent his clothes, put on sackcloth around his waist as a symbol of mourning, and mourned for his son for many days.

35 All his sons and daughters attempted to console him, but he refused to be comforted, saying, “No, I will go down to the grave in mourning for my son.” Jacob’s father Isaac wept for him.

36 Meanwhile, the Medanites (i.e., Midianites) had sold Joseph to the government of Egypt, specifically, to Potiphar, a courtier of Pharaoh and chief of his butchers.

Romans 5:1-11

Faith Brings Joy

5 Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us. 2 Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of undeserved privilege where we now stand, and we confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God’s glory.

3 We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. 4 And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. 5 And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.

6 When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. 7 Now, most people would not be willing to die for an upright person, though someone might perhaps be willing to die for a person who is especially good. 8 But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. 9 And since we have been made right in God’s sight by the blood of Christ, he will certainly save us from God’s condemnation. 10 For since our friendship with God was restored by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be saved through the life of his Son. 11 So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God because our Lord Jesus Christ has made us friends of God.

Bereshit (Genesis) Chapter 38

1 Judah stepped down from his position of leadership over his brothers at that time. He moved away from them and entered into a business partnership with a man from Adulam by the name of Chirah.

2 Judah saw the daughter of a certain merchant there named Shu’a; he married her and engaged in marital relations with her.

3 She conceived and gave birth to a son, and Judah named him Er.

4 She again conceived and gave birth to another son, and she named him Onan.

5 Once more she gave birth to a son, and she named him Shelah. When she gave birth to this child, Judah was in Keziv.

6 Judah took a wife for Er his firstborn, and her name was Tamar.

7 Er, Judah’s firstborn, was evil in God’s eyes, so God made him die.

8 Judah said to Onan, “Marry and engage in marital relations with your brother’s wife and thus fulfill the duty of the brother of a deceased husband to her. In this way, you will produce offspring for your brother.”

9 Onan knew that the offspring would not be considered his, so when he engaged in marital relations with his late brother’s wife, he let his seed go to waste on the ground, so as not to produce offspring for his brother.

10 What Onan did was evil in the eyes of God. God made him also die.

11 Judah said to his daughter-in-law Tamar, “Remain a widow in your father’s house for another year, until my son Shelah grows up,” for he thought, “If he marries her, he, too, might die like his brothers did.” So Tamar went to live in her father’s house.

12 Many days, i.e., a year or so, passed, and Shu’a’s daughter, Judah’s wife, died. After Judah was consoled, he went up, together with Chirah, his Adulamite friend, to Timnah to supervise the shearers of his flock.

13 Tamar was then told as follows, “Your father-in-law is now going up to Timnah to shear his flock.”

14 So she took off her widow’s garb, covered herself with a veil, wrapping it also around her face so she would not be recognizable, and sat at the crossroads on the way up to Timnah, for she saw that Shelah had grown up and yet she had not been given to him as a wife.

15 When Judah saw her he mistook her for a prostitute, because she had covered her face.

16 He turned aside to her, going over to the road where she was sitting, and said, “If you consent, please prepare yourself, and I will come to you,” for he did not realize that she was his daughter-in-law. She replied, “What will you give me as payment if you come to me?”

17 He said, “I will send you a kid-goat from the flock,” and she replied, “Provided you give me a pledge for security until you send it.”

18 He asked, “What pledge should I give you?” and she answered, “Your signet-ring, your cloak, and the staff that is in your hand.” He gave them to her and engaged in carnal relations with her, and she conceived from him.

19 She arose and left, took off her veil, and donned her widow’s garb.

20 Judah sent the kid-goat with his friend the Adulamite in order to get the security pledge back from the woman, but he could not find her.

21 He questioned the people of her area, saying, “Where is that prostitute who was at the crossroads by the wayside?” They replied, “There was no prostitute here.”

22 He returned to Judah and said, “I did not find her, and even the local people said, ‘There was no prostitute here.’”

23 So Judah said, “Let her keep what I gave her as a pledge, lest we become the object of public scorn. Look, I did send her this kid-goat, but you did not find her.”

24 Some three months went by, and Judah was informed as follows: “Your daughter-in-law Tamar is guilty of licentiousness, the proof being that she is even visibly pregnant from it.” Judah said, “Bring her forth and have her burned.”

25 As she was being brought to be burned, she sent word to her father-in-law as follows: “I am pregnant by the man to whom these belong.” And she added, “Whose signet-ring, cloak, and staff are these? Please acknowledge that you are the father.”

26 Judah recognized these items as being his. He said, “She is correct; she is pregnant by me. She was justified in contriving to conceive by me, since I did not give her in marriage to my son Shelah as I had promised.” He was never again intimate with her.

27 As Tamar was giving birth, the midwife saw that there were twins in her womb.

28 While she was in labor, one of the babies stuck out his hand from the womb. The midwife took a scarlet thread and tied it on his hand to signify, “This one emerged first.”

29 But as soon as he withdrew his hand, his brother emerged, and his mother said, “With what vigor have you pushed yourself ahead!” So Judah named him Peretz [“breaking through”].

30 Then his brother, who had the scarlet thread on his hand, emerged, and Judah named him Zerach [“shining”], after the scarlet thread.

John 3:14-21

Christ Offers Eternal Life

14 And as Moses lifted up the bronze snake on a pole in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, 15 so that everyone who believes in him will have eternal life.

16 “For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. 17 God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him.

18 “There is no judgment against anyone who believes in him. But anyone who does not believe in him has already been judged for not believing in God’s one and only Son. 19 And the judgment is based on this fact: God’s light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil. 20 All who do evil hate the light and refuse to go near it for fear their sins will be exposed. 21 But those who do what is right come to the light so others can see that they are doing what God wants.”

Bereshit (Genesis) Chapter 39

1 Joseph had been taken down to Egypt, and Potiphar—a courtier of Pharaoh and chief of his butchers, a prominent Egyptian—had bought him from the Midianites, who had in turn bought him from the Ishmaelites and had brought him down there.

2 God was with Joseph and thus he became a successful man, and he lived in the house of his Egyptian master.

3 Joseph’s master saw that God was with him, that God granted Joseph success in everything he did.

4 Joseph thus gained favor with him and became his attendant. His master put him in charge of his household, entrusting all that he owned into his care.

5 As soon as he had put him in charge of his household and all that he owned, God blessed the Egyptian’s household in Joseph’s merit. God’s blessing was evident in everything his master had, both in the house and in the field.

6 He left everything he had in Joseph’s care, and did not concern himself with any of his own affairs other than “the bread he ate”—a euphemism for his wife. Although he knew his father was mourning for him, Joseph was fixated on his beautiful facial form and complexion.

John 10:9-16

Christ Cares for the Sheep

9 Yes, I am the gate. Those who come in through me will be saved. They will come and go freely and will find good pastures. 10 The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.

11 “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd sacrifices his life for the sheep. 12 A hired hand will run when he sees a wolf coming. He will abandon the sheep because they don’t belong to him and he isn’t their shepherd. And so the wolf attacks them and scatters the flock. 13 The hired hand runs away because he’s working only for the money and doesn’t really care about the sheep.

14 “I am the good shepherd; I know my own sheep, and they know me, 15 just as my Father knows me and I know the Father. So I sacrifice my life for the sheep. 16 I have other sheep, too, that are not in this sheepfold. I must bring them also. They will listen to my voice, and there will be one flock with one shepherd.

Bereshit (Genesis) Chapter 39

7 God articulated His intention to correct Joseph’s insensitivity. After these words, Joseph’s master’s wife cast her eyes on Joseph. She approached Joseph and said, “Sleep with me.”

8 He refused, and said to his master’s wife, “Look, my master does not concern himself with what I do in the house, and all that he owns he has entrusted to my care.

9 There is no one in this house having more authority than I, and he has withheld nothing from me except yourself, since you are his wife—so how could I commit such a great wrong as betraying his trust, and at the same time also sin before God?”

10 Although she spoke to Joseph day after day, he did not listen to her, not even agreeing to lie next to her; Joseph knew that having relations with her would require that he be with her in Purgatory to be cleansed for having thus defiled himself.

11 On a certain day, Joseph came into the house to do his work; none of the members of the household were present in the house except for his master’s wife.

12 She caught hold of him by his garment and said, “Sleep with me!” He left his garment in her hand and fled, and went outside.

13 When she saw that he had left his garment in her hand and had fled outside,

14 she called the members of her household and said to them as follows, “See! My husband brought us a Hebrew man to mock us! He came to me to lie with me, but I cried out loudly!

15 So when he heard how I raised my voice and screamed, he left his garment with me and fled, and went outside!”

16 She kept his garment with her until Joseph’s master came home,

17 and spoke to him along these lines, saying, “The Hebrew servant whom you brought us came to me to mock me by trying to seduce me!

18 Then, when I screamed at the top of my voice, he left his garment with me and fled outside!”

19 When his master heard the words that his wife spoke to him, saying, “Your servant did these kinds of things to me,” he was furious.

20 Joseph’s master took hold of him and placed him in the prison where the king’s prisoners were incarcerated, and he remained in that prison.

21 God was with Joseph and made him well-liked among the inmates. He also made the warden of the prison favor him.

22 The warden of the prison placed all the prisoners who were in the prison in Joseph’s charge, and whatever was done there was done under Joseph’s direction.

23 The warden of the prison could not find fault in anything that was under Joseph’s charge, for God was with him, and God granted him success in whatever he did.

Isaiah 9:3-7

Welcome the Davidic Heir

3
You will enlarge the nation of Israel,

    and its people will rejoice.
They will rejoice before you

    as people rejoice at the harvest

    and like warriors dividing the plunder.

4 
For you will break the yoke of their slavery

    and lift the heavy burden from their shoulders.

You will break the oppressor’s rod,

    just as you did when you destroyed the army of Midian.

5 
The boots of the warrior

    and the uniforms bloodstained by war
will all be burned.

    They will be fuel for the fire.

6 
For a child is born to us,

    a son is given to us.

The government will rest on his shoulders.

    And he will be called:
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,

    Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

7 
His government and its peace

    will never end.

He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David

    for all eternity.

The passionate commitment of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies

    will make this happen!

Bereshit (Genesis) Chapter 40

1 Soon after Joseph became the subject of everyone’s conversations, the Egyptian king’s cupbearer and baker offended their master, the king of Egypt.

2 Pharaoh was incensed with his two courtiers, the chief cupbearer and the chief baker,

3 and he had them imprisoned in the prison adjoining the house of the chief butcher, which was the same prison in which Joseph was incarcerated.

4 The chief butcher assigned Joseph to be in charge of them, so he attended them. They were in prison for a year.

5 One night, the two of them—the Egyptian king’s cupbearer and baker who were confined in the prison—each had a dream that accorded with its interpretation.

6 When Joseph came to them in the morning, it was clear that they were in a melancholy mood.

7 He asked Pharaoh’s courtiers who were with him in custody in his master’s house, saying, “Why are your faces so downcast today?”

8 They answered him, “We each had a dream, but there is no one to interpret it.” So Joseph said to them, “Surely interpretations belong to God! Please tell me your dreams.”

9 The cupbearer related his dream to Joseph. He said to him, “In my dream there was a vine before me.

10 And on the vine there were three branches. It seemed to be budding, then it blossomed, and its clusters ripened into grapes.

11 Pharaoh’s cup was in my hand. I took the grapes and squeezed their juice into Pharaoh’s cup; then I placed the cup in Pharaoh’s hand.”

12 Joseph said to him, “This is its interpretation: The three branches symbolize three days.

13 In three days’ time, Pharaoh will take due account of you and restore you to your position. You will place Pharaoh’s cup in his hand, just as you used to do when you served him his drinks.

14 So if you keep me in mind when things go well for you, please do me the kindness of mentioning me to Pharaoh, and thus you will get me out of this prison-building.

15 For in fact I was kidnapped from the land of the Hebrews, and here, too, I did nothing to warrant them putting me in the dungeon.”

16 When the chief baker saw that Joseph had interpreted well, he said to Joseph, “In my dream, likewise, there were three wicker baskets on my head.

17 In the top basket there were all kinds of baked goods that Pharaoh eats, and birds were eating them from the basket above my head.”

18 Joseph replied as follows, “This is its interpretation: The three baskets symbolize three days.

19 In three days’ time, Pharaoh will decapitate you and hang your corpse on a gallows, and the birds will eat your flesh.”

20 On the third day, which was Pharaoh’s birthday, he held a feast for all his servants, and counted the chief cupbearer and the chief baker among his servants.

21 He restored the chief cupbearer to his position of serving drinks, and he placed the cup in Pharaoh’s hand.

22 The chief baker, however, he hanged, just as Joseph had interpreted for them.

23 The chief cupbearer did not remember Joseph, but forgot about him.

Amos Chapter 2

6 So said the Lord: For three transgressions of Israel, yea for four, I will not return them; For selling an innocent man for money, and a poor man in order to lock [the fields].

7 Who aspire on the dust of the earth concerning the head of the poor, and they pervert the way of the humble, and a man and his father go to the maid, in order to profane My Holy Name.

8 And they recline on pledged garments beside every altar, and the wine of the fined ones they drink in the house of their gods.

9 And I destroyed the Amorites from before them, whose height is as the height of the cedar trees, and they are as strong as oaks, and I destroyed his fruit from above and his roots from below.

10 And I brought you up from the land of Egypt, and I led you in the desert for forty years, to inherit the land of the Amorites.

11 And I raised up some of your sons as prophets and some of your young men as Nazirites; is this not so, O children of Israel? says the Lord.

12 And you gave the Nazirites to drink wine, and you commanded the prophets saying, "Do not prophesy."

13 Behold, I will oppress your dwelling place, as a wagon full of sheaves is oppressed.

14 And escape shall be lost to the swift, and the strong shall not gain strength, nor shall the mighty man deliver himself.

15 And he who holds the bow shall not stand, and the fleetfooted shall not deliver, and the rider of the horse shall not deliver himself.

16 And the stout-hearted among the mighty shall flee naked on that day, says the Lord.

Amos Chapter 3

1 Hearken to this word which the Lord spoke about you, O children of Israel, about the entire family which I brought up from the land of Egypt, saying:

2 Only you did I love above all the families of the earth; therefore, I will visit upon you all your iniquities.

3 Will two walk together unless they agreed?

4 Will a lion roar in the forest if he has no prey? Will a young lion let out a cry from his den unless he has taken something?

5 Will a bird fall on a net upon the ground unless it has a snare? Will a net ascend from the ground and have taken nothing?

6 Will a shophar be sounded in the city and the people not quake? Will there be evil in the city if the Lord has not done it?

7 For the Lord God does nothing unless He has revealed His secret to His servants, the prophets.

8 A lion has roared; who will not fear? The Lord God has spoken; who will not prophesy?