Genesis 49 - 50 - Legacy Standard Bible

Genesis 49 - 50

Jacob Assembles His Sons

Then Jacob summoned his sons and said, “Gather together that I may tell you what will befall you in the last days. 2

Assemble together and hear, O sons of Jacob;

And listen to Israel your father.

“Reuben, you are my firstborn;

My might and the beginning of my vigor,

Preeminent in dignity and preeminent in strength.

Uncontrolled as water, you shall not have preeminence,

Because you went up to your father’s bed;

Then you defiled it—he went up to my couch.

“Simeon and Levi are brothers;

Their swords are implements of violence.

Let my soul not enter into their council;

Let not my glory be united with their assembly;

Because in their anger they killed men,

And in their self‑will they hamstrung oxen.

Cursed be their anger, for it is strong;

And their wrath, for it is cruel.

I will divide them amongst Jacob,

And scatter them in Israel.

“Judah, as for you, your brothers shall praise you;

Your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies;

Your father’s sons shall bow down to you.

Judah is a lion’s whelp;

From the prey, my son, you have gone up.

He crouches, he lies down as a lion,

And as a lioness, who dares rouse him up?

The scepter shall not depart from Judah,

Nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet,

Until Shiloh comes,

And to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.

He ties his foal to the vine,

And his donkey’s colt to the choice vine;

He washes his garments in wine,

And his robes in the blood of grapes.

His eyes are dark from wine,

And his teeth white from milk.

“Zebulun will dwell at the seashore;

And he shall be a shore for ships,

And his flank shall be toward Sidon.

“Issachar is a strong donkey,

Lying down between the sheepfolds.

And he saw that a resting place was good

And that the land was pleasant,

So he bowed his shoulder to bear burdens,

And became a slave at forced labor.

“Dan shall render justice to his people,

As one of the tribes of Israel.

Dan shall be a serpent in the way,

A horned snake in the path,

That bites the horse’s heels,

So that his rider falls backward.

For Your salvation I hope, O Yahweh.

“As for Gad, raiders shall raid him,

But he will raid at their heels.

“As for Asher, his food shall be rich,

And he will yield royal dainties.

“Naphtali is a doe let loose,

He gives beautiful words.

“Joseph is a fruitful bough,

A fruitful bough by a spring;

Its branches run over a wall.

And the archers bitterly attacked him and shot at him,

And they bore a grudge against him;

But his bow remained firm,

And his arms were agile,

From the hands of the Mighty One of Jacob,

From there is the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel,

From the God of your father who helps you,

And by the Almighty who blesses you

With blessings of heaven above,

Blessings of the deep that lies beneath,

Blessings of the breasts and of the womb.

The blessings of your father

Have surpassed the blessings of my ancestors

Up to the utmost bound of the everlasting hills;

May they be on the head of Joseph,

And on the top of the head of the one distinguished among his brothers.

“Benjamin is a ravenous wolf;

In the morning he devours the prey,

And in the evening he divides the spoil.”

Jacob Breathes His Last

28 All these are the twelve tribes of Israel, and this is what their father spoke to them. So he blessed them. He blessed them, every one with the blessing appropriate to him. 29 Then he commanded them and said to them, “I am about to be gathered to my people; bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite, 30 in the cave that is in the field of Machpelah, which is before Mamre, in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought along with the field from Ephron the Hittite as a possession for a burial site. 31 There they buried Abraham and his wife Sarah, there they buried Isaac and his wife Rebekah, and there I buried Leah— 32 the field and the cave that is in it, purchased from the sons of Heth.” 33 So Jacob finished commanding his sons. And he drew his feet into the bed and breathed his last and was gathered to his people.

Then Joseph fell on his father’s face and wept over him and kissed him. 2 And Joseph commanded his servants the physicians to embalm his father. So the physicians embalmed Israel. 3 Then the forty days to do this were fulfilled, because in this manner the days of embalming are fulfilled. And the Egyptians wept for him seventy days. 4 Then the days of weeping for him were past, and Joseph spoke to the household of Pharaoh, saying, “If now I have found favor in your sight, please speak in the ears of Pharaoh, saying, 5 ‘My father made me swear, saying, “Behold, I am about to die; in my grave which I dug for myself in the land of Canaan, there you shall bury me.” So now, please let me go up and bury my father; then I will return.’” 6 And Pharaoh said, “Go up and bury your father, as he made you swear.” 7 So Joseph went up to bury his father, and with him went up all the servants of Pharaoh, the elders of his household, and all the elders of the land of Egypt, 8 and all the household of Joseph and his brothers and his father’s household; they left only their little ones and their flocks and their herds in the land of Goshen. 9 There also went up with him both chariots and horsemen; and it was a very immense camp. 10 And they came to the threshing floor of Atad, which is beyond the Jordan, and they lamented there with a very great and immense lamentation; and he observed seven days of mourning for his father. 11 Now the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites, saw the mourning at the threshing floor of Atad, and they said, “This is an immense mourning for the Egyptians.” Therefore it was named Abel-mizraim, which is beyond the Jordan.

Jacob’s Burial at Machpelah

12 Thus his sons did for him as he had commanded them. 13 Indeed, his sons carried him to the land of Canaan and buried him in the cave of the field of Machpelah before Mamre, which Abraham had bought along with the field for his possession as a burial site from Ephron the Hittite. 14 After he had buried his father, Joseph returned to Egypt, he and his brothers, and all who had gone up with him to bury his father. 15 Then Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, and they said, “What if Joseph bears a grudge against us and returns back to us all the evil which we dealt against him!” 16 So they sent a message to Joseph, saying, “Your father commanded before he died, saying, 17 ‘Thus you shall say to Joseph, “Please forgive, I beg you, the transgression of your brothers and their sin, for they dealt evil against you.”’ So now, please forgive the transgression of the slaves of the God of your father.” And Joseph wept when they spoke to him. 18 Then his brothers also came and fell down before him and said, “Behold, we are your slaves.” 19 But Joseph said to them, “Do not be afraid, for am I in God’s place? 20 As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to do what has happened on this day, to keep many people alive. 21 So now, do not be afraid; I will provide for you and your little ones.” And he comforted them and spoke to their heart.

The Death of Joseph

22 Now Joseph stayed in Egypt, he and his father’s household, and Joseph lived 110 years. 23 And Joseph saw the third generation of Ephraim’s sons; also the sons of Machir, the son of Manasseh, were born on Joseph’s knees. 24 And Joseph said to his brothers, “I am about to die, but God will surely take care of you and bring you up from this land to the land which He swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.” 25 Then Joseph made the sons of Israel swear, saying, “God will surely take care of you, and you shall carry my bones up from here.” 26 So Joseph died at the age of 110 years; and they embalmed him, and he was placed in a coffin in Egypt.

Mark 9:1 - 10:16

The Transfiguration

And Jesus was saying to them, “Truly I say to you, there are some of those who are standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God having come in power.” 2 And six days later, Jesus *took with Him Peter and James and John, and *brought them up on a high mountain alone by themselves. And He was transfigured before them; 3 and His garments were shining intensely white, as no launderer on earth can whiten them. 4 And Elijah appeared to them along with Moses and they were conversing with Jesus. 5 And Peter answered and *said to Jesus, “Rabbi, it is good for us to be here; let us make three booths, one for You, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” 6 For he did not know what to answer; for they became terrified. 7 Then a cloud formed, overshadowing them, and a voice came out of the cloud, “This is My beloved Son, listen to Him!” 8 And all at once when they looked around, they saw no one with them anymore, except Jesus alone. 9 And as they were coming down from the mountain, He gave them orders not to recount to anyone what they had seen, until the Son of Man rose from the dead. 10 And they seized upon that statement, arguing with one another what rising from the dead meant. 11 And they began asking Him, saying, “Why is it that the scribes say that Elijah must come first?” 12 And He said to them, “Elijah does first come and restore all things. And yet how is it written of the Son of Man that He will suffer many things and be treated with contempt? 13 But I say to you that Elijah has indeed come, and they did to him whatever they wished, just as it is written of him.”

I Believe, Help My Unbelief

14 And when they came back to the disciples, they saw a large crowd around them, and scribes arguing with them. 15 And immediately, when the entire crowd saw Him, they were amazed. And as they ran up, they were greeting Him. 16 And He asked them, “What are you arguing with them?” 17 And one of the crowd answered Him, “Teacher, I brought You my son, possessed with a spirit which makes him mute; 18 and whenever it seizes him, it slams him to the ground and he foams at the mouth, and grinds his teeth and becomes rigid. I told Your disciples to cast it out, and they could not do it.” 19 And He *answered them and *said, “O unbelieving generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring him to Me!” 20 And they brought the boy to Him. When he saw Him, immediately the spirit threw him into a convulsion, and falling to the ground, he began rolling around, foaming at the mouth. 21 And He asked his father, “How long has this been happening to him?” And he said, “From childhood. 22 And it has often thrown him both into the fire and into the water to destroy him. But if You can do anything, take pity on us and help us!” 23 And Jesus said to him, “‘If You can?’ All things are possible to him who believes.” 24 Immediately the boy’s father cried out and was saying, “I do believe; help my unbelief.” 25 Now when Jesus saw that a crowd was rapidly gathering, He rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, “You mute and deaf spirit, I command you, come out of him and do not enter him again.” 26 And after crying out and throwing him into terrible convulsions, it came out; and the boy became so much like a corpse that most of them said, “He is dead!” 27 But Jesus took him by the hand and raised him; and he stood up. 28 And when He came into the house, His disciples began questioning Him privately, “Why could we not cast it out?” 29 And He said to them, “This kind cannot come out by anything but prayer.”

Jesus Foretells His Death and Resurrection

30 From there they went out and were going through Galilee, and He was not wanting anyone to know about it. 31 For He was teaching His disciples and telling them, “The Son of Man is to be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill Him; and when He has been killed, He will rise again three days later.” 32 But they did not understand this statement, and they were afraid to ask Him. 33 And they came to Capernaum; and when He was in the house, He began to question them, “What were you discussing on the way?” 34 But they kept silent, for on the way they had discussed with one another which of them was the greatest. 35 And sitting down, He called the twelve and *said to them, “If anyone wants to be first, he shall be last of all and servant of all.” 36 And taking a child, He set him before them. And taking him in His arms, He said to them, 37 “Whoever receives one child like this in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me does not receive Me, but Him who sent Me.”

Warnings About Discipleship

38 John said to Him, “Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in Your name, and we tried to hinder him because he was not following us.” 39 But Jesus said, “Do not hinder him, for there is no one who will perform a miracle in My name, and be able soon afterward to speak evil of Me. 40 For he who is not against us is for us. 41 For whoever gives you a cup of water to drink in My name because you are of Christ, truly I say to you, he will not lose his reward. 42 “And whoever causes one of these little ones who believe to stumble, it would be better for him if, with a heavy millstone hung around his neck, he had been cast into the sea. 43 And if your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life crippled, than, having your two hands, to go into hell, into the unquenchable fire, 44 [and where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.] 45 And if your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life lame, than, having your two feet, to be cast into hell, 46 [and where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.] 47 And if your eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out; it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye, than, having two eyes, to be cast into hell, 48 where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched. 49 “For everyone will be salted with fire. 50 Salt is good; but if the salt becomes unsalty, with what will you make it salty again? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another.”

Teaching About Divorce

And standing up, He *went from there to the region of Judea and beyond the Jordan; crowds *gathered around Him again, and, according to His custom, He once more began to teach them. 2 And some Pharisees came up to Jesus, testing Him, and began to question Him whether it was lawful for a man to divorce a wife. 3 And He answered and said to them, “What did Moses command you?” 4 And they said, “Moses permitted a man to write a certificate of divorce and send her away.” 5 But Jesus said to them, “Because of your hardness of heart he wrote for you this commandment. 6 But from the beginning of creation, God made them male and female. 7 For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother, 8 and the two shall become one flesh; so they are no longer two, but one flesh. 9 What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate.” 10 And in the house the disciples began questioning Him about this again. 11 And He *said to them, “Whoever divorces his wife and marries another woman commits adultery against her; 12 and if she herself divorces her husband and marries another man, she is committing adultery.”

Jesus Blesses Little Children

13 And they were bringing children to Him so that He might touch them; but the disciples rebuked them. 14 But when Jesus saw this, He was indignant and said to them, “Permit the children to come to Me; do not hinder them; for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. 15 Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it at all.” 16 And He took them in His arms and began blessing them, laying His hands on them.

Psalm 26

Give Justice to Me, O Yahweh

Of David.

Give justice to me, O Yahweh, for I have walked in my integrity,

And I have trusted in Yahweh; I will not waver.

Test me, O Yahweh, and try me;

Refine my mind and my heart.

For Your lovingkindness is before my eyes,

And I have walked in Your truth.

I do not sit with worthless men,

And I will not go with pretenders.

I hate the assembly of evildoers,

And I will not sit with the wicked.

I shall wash my hands in innocence,

So I will go around Your altar, O Yahweh,

In order to proclaim with the voice of thanksgiving

And to recount all Your wondrous deeds.

O Yahweh, I love the habitation of Your house

And the place where Your glory dwells.

Do not take my soul away along with sinners,

Nor my life with men of bloodshed,

In whose hands is a wicked scheme,

And whose right hand is full of bribes.

But as for me, I shall walk in my integrity;

Redeem me, and be gracious to me.

My foot stands on level ground;

In the congregations I shall bless Yahweh.