Bible Readings for January 12, 2019

Today our passages are Genesis 26:17–27:46; Matthew 9:1-17; Psalm 10:16-18; and Proverbs 3:9-10. The readings are the Contemporary English Version. If you find these readings helpful, please consider sending an offering directly to Cove Presbyterian Church, 3404 Main Street, Weirton, West Virginia or through PayPal by using the link below.

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Genesis 26:17-27:46 (Contemporary English Version)

¹⁷Isaac left and settled in Gerar Valley, ¹⁸where he cleaned out those wells that the Philistines had stopped up. Isaac also gave each of the wells the same name ^{a<="" value="[a]" >[]} that Abraham had given to them. ¹⁹While his servants were digging in the valley, they found a spring-fed well. ²⁰But the shepherds of Gerar Valley quarreled with Isaac's shepherds and claimed the water belonged to them. So the well was named "Quarrel," because they had quarreled with Isaac. ²¹Isaac's servants dug another well, and the shepherds also quarreled about it. So that well was named "Jealous." ²²Finally, they dug one more well. There was no quarreling this time, and the well was named "Lots of Room," because the LORD had given them room and would make them very successful.
    ²³Isaac went on to Beersheba, ²⁴where the LORD appeared to him that night and told him, "Don't be afraid! I am the God who was worshiped by your father Abraham, my servant. I will be with you and bless you, and because of Abraham I will give you many descendants." ²⁵Isaac built an altar there and worshiped the LORD. Then he set up camp, and his servants started digging a well.
    ²⁶Meanwhile, Abimelech had left Gerar and was taking his advisor Ahuzzath and his army commander Phicol to see Isaac. ²⁷When they arrived, Isaac asked, "Why are you here? Didn't you send me away because you hated me?"
    ²⁸They answered, "We now know for certain that the LORD is with you, and we have decided there needs to be a peace treaty between you and us. So let's make a solemn agreement ²⁹not to harm each other. Remember, we have never hurt you, and when we sent you away, we let you go in peace. The LORD has truly blessed you."
    ³⁰Isaac gave a big feast for them, and everyone ate and drank. ³¹Early the next morning Isaac and the others made a solemn agreement, then he let them go in peace.
    ³²Later that same day Isaac's servants came and said, "We've struck water!" ³³So Isaac named the well Shibah, ^[b<="">] and the town is still called Beersheba. ^[c<="">] 

Esau's Foreign Wives

 ³⁴When Esau was forty, he married Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite and Basemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite. ³⁵But these two women brought a lot of grief to his parents Isaac and Rebekah.     

Genesis 27

Isaac Blesses Jacob

 ¹After Isaac had become old and almost blind, he called in his first-born son Esau, who asked him, "Father, what can I do for you?"     ²Isaac replied, "I am old and might die at any time. ³So take your bow and arrows, then go out in the fields, and kill a wild animal. ⁴Cook some of that tasty food that I love so much and bring it to me. I want to eat it once more and give you my blessing before I die."
    ⁵Rebekah had been listening, and as soon as Esau left to go hunting, ⁶she said to Jacob, "I heard your father tell Esau ⁷to kill a wild animal and cook some tasty food for your father before he dies. Your father said this because he wants to bless your brother with the LORD as his witness. ⁸Now, my son, listen carefully to what I want you to do. ⁹Go and kill two of your best young goats and bring them to me. I'll cook the tasty food that your father loves so much. ¹⁰Then you can take it to him, so he can eat it and give you his blessing before he dies."
    ¹¹"My brother Esau is a hairy man," Jacob reminded her. "And I am not. ¹²If my father touches me and realizes I am trying to trick him, he will put a curse on me instead of giving me a blessing."
    ¹³Rebekah insisted, "Let his curse fall on me! Just do what I say and bring me the meat." ¹⁴So Jacob brought the meat to his mother, and she cooked the tasty food that his father liked. ¹⁵Then she took Esau's best clothes and put them on Jacob. ¹⁶She also covered the smooth part of his hands and neck with goatskins ¹⁷and gave him some bread and the tasty food she had cooked.
    ¹⁸Jacob went to his father and said, "Father, here I am."
   "Which one of my sons are you?" his father asked.
    ¹⁹Jacob replied, "I am Esau, your first-born, and I have done what you told me. Please sit up and eat the meat I have brought. Then you can give me your blessing."
    ²⁰Isaac asked, "My son, how did you find an animal so quickly?"
   "The LORD your God was kind to me," Jacob answered.
    ²¹"My son," Isaac said, "come closer, where I can touch you and find out if you really are Esau." ²²Jacob went closer. His father touched him and said, "You sound like Jacob, but your hands feel hairy like Esau's." ²³And so Isaac blessed Jacob, thinking he was Esau.
    ²⁴Isaac asked, "Are you really my son Esau?"
   "Yes, I am," Jacob answered.
    ²⁵So Isaac told him, "Serve me the wild meat, and I can give you my blessing."
   Jacob gave him some meat, and he ate it. He also gave him some wine, and he drank it. ²⁶Then Isaac said, "Son, come over here and kiss me." ²⁷While Jacob was kissing him, Isaac caught the smell of his clothes and said:
   "The smell of my son
   is like a field
   the LORD has blessed.
    ²⁸God will bless you, my son,
   with dew from heaven
   and with fertile fields,
   rich with grain and grapes.
    ²⁹Nations will be your servants
   and bow down to you.
   You will rule over your brothers,
   and they will kneel
   at your feet.
   Anyone who curses you
   will be cursed;
   anyone who blesses you
   will be blessed."
    ³⁰Right after Isaac had given Jacob his blessing and Jacob had gone, Esau came back from hunting. ³¹He cooked the tasty food, brought it to his father, and said, "Father, please sit up and eat the meat I have brought you, so you can give me your blessing."
    ³²"Who are you?" Isaac asked.
   "I am Esau, your first-born son."
    ³³Isaac started trembling and said, "Then who brought me some wild meat right before you came in? I ate it and gave him a blessing that cannot be taken back."
    ³⁴Esau cried loudly and begged, "Father, give me a blessing too!"
    ³⁵Isaac answered, "Your brother tricked me and stole your blessing."
    ³⁶Esau replied, "My brother deserves the name Jacob, ^[d<="">] because he has already cheated me twice. The first time he cheated me out of my rights as the first-born son, and now he has cheated me out of my blessing." Then Esau asked his father, "Don't you still have any blessing left for me?" ³⁷"My son," Isaac answered, "I have made Jacob the ruler over you and your brothers, and all of you will be his servants. I have also promised him all the grain and grapes that he needs. There's nothing left that I can do for you."
    ³⁸"Father," Esau asked, "don't you have more than one blessing? You can surely give me a blessing too!" Then Esau started crying again.
    ³⁹So his father said:
   "Your home will be far
   from that fertile land,
   where dew comes down
   from the heavens.
    ⁴⁰You will live by the power
   of your sword
   and be your brother's slave.
   But when you decide to be free,
   you will break loose."
    ⁴¹Esau hated his brother Jacob because he had stolen the blessing that was supposed to be his. So he said to himself, "Just as soon as my father dies, I'll kill Jacob."
    ⁴²When Rebekah found out what Esau planned to do, she sent for Jacob and told him, "Son, your brother Esau is just waiting for the time when he can kill you. ⁴³Now listen carefully and do what I say. Go to the home of my brother Laban in Haran ⁴⁴and stay with him for a while. When Esau stops being angry ⁴⁵and forgets what you have done to him, I'll send for you to come home. Why should I lose both of my sons on the same day?" ^[e<="">] 46Rebekah later told Isaac, "Those Hittite wives of Esau are making my life miserable! If Jacob marries a Hittite woman, I'd be better off dead."
    

Footnotes:

1. Genesis 26:18 gave. . . same name: By doing this Isaac claimed ownership of the wells.
2. Genesis 26:33 Shibah: In Hebrew "Shibah" sounds something like "good luck" and "promise."
3. Genesis 26:33 Beersheba: Meaning "Well of Good Fortune" or "Peace Treaty Well."
4. Genesis 27:36 Jacob: In Hebrew "Jacob" sounds like "cheat."
5. Genesis 27:45 lose. . . day: Esau would be hunted down as a murderer if he killed Jacob, and so Rebekah would lose both of her sons.

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Matthew 9:1-17 (Contemporary English Version)

Matthew 9

Jesus Heals a Crippled Man

(Mark 2.1-12; Luke 5.17-26)

 ¹Jesus got into a boat and crossed back over to the town where he lived. ^{a<="" value="[a]" >[] 2}Some people soon brought to him a crippled man lying on a mat. When Jesus saw how much faith they had, he said to the crippled man, "My friend, don't worry! Your sins are forgiven." ³Some teachers of the Law of Moses said to themselves, "Jesus must think he is God!"     ⁴But Jesus knew what was in their minds, and he said, "Why are you thinking such evil things? ⁵Is it easier for me to tell this crippled man that his sins are forgiven or to tell him to get up and walk? ⁶But I will show you that the Son of Man has the right to forgive sins here on earth." So Jesus said to the man, "Get up! Pick up your mat and go on home." ⁷The man got up and went home. ⁸When the crowds saw this, they were afraid ^[b<="">] and praised God for giving such authority to people. 

Jesus Chooses Matthew

(Mark 2.13-17; Luke 5.27-32)

 ⁹As Jesus was leaving, he saw a tax collector ^[c<="">] named Matthew sitting at the place for paying taxes. Jesus said to him, "Come with me." Matthew got up and went with him. ¹⁰Later, Jesus and his disciples were having dinner at Matthew's house. ^[d<="">] Many tax collectors and other sinners were also there. ¹¹Some Pharisees asked Jesus' disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and other sinners?" ¹²Jesus heard them and answered, "Healthy people don't need a doctor, but sick people do. ¹³Go and learn what the Scriptures mean when they say, `Instead of offering sacrifices to me, I want you to be merciful to others.' I didn't come to invite good people to be my followers. I came to invite sinners."     

People Ask about Going without Eating

(Mark 2.18-22; Luke 5.33-39)

 ¹⁴One day some followers of John the Baptist came and asked Jesus, "Why do we and the Pharisees often go without eating, ^[e<="">] while your disciples never do?" ¹⁵Jesus answered:    The friends of a bridegroom don't go without eating while he is still with them. But the time will come when he will be taken from them. Then they will go without eating.
    ¹⁶No one uses a new piece of cloth to patch old clothes. The patch would shrink and tear a bigger hole.
    ¹⁷No one pours new wine into old wineskins. The wine would swell and burst the old skins. ^[f<="">] Then the wine would be lost, and the skins would be ruined. New wine must be put into new wineskins. Both the skins and the wine will then be safe. 

Footnotes:

1. Matthew 9:1 where he lived: Capernaum (see 4.13).
2. Matthew 9:8 afraid: Some manuscripts have "amazed."
3. Matthew 9:9 tax collector: See the note at 5.46.
4. Matthew 9:10 Matthew's house: Or "Jesus' house."
5. Matthew 9:14 without eating: See the note at 4.2.
6. Matthew 9:17 swell and burst the old skins: While the juice from grapes was becoming wine, it would swell and stretch the skins in which it had been stored. If the skins were old and stiff, they would burst.

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Psalm 10:16-18 (Contemporary English Version)

¹⁶Our LORD, you will always rule,
   but nations will vanish
   from the earth.
    ¹⁷You listen to the longings
   of those who suffer.
   You offer them hope,
   and you pay attention
   to their cries for help.
    ¹⁸You defend orphans
   and everyone else in need,
   so that no one on earth
   can terrify others again.

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Proverbs 3:9-10 (Contemporary English Version)

⁹Honor the LORD by giving him
   your money
   and the first part
   of all your crops.
    ¹⁰Then you will have
   more grain and grapes
   than you will ever need.

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Verse of the Day

“All of you are God's children because of your faith in Christ Jesus. And when you were baptized, it was as though you had put on Christ in the same way you put on new clothes. Faith in Christ Jesus is what makes each of you equal with each other, whether you are a Jew or a Greek, a slave or a free person, a man or a woman.” - Galatians 3:26-28 

Today's passage is from the Contemporary English Version.

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Thought for the Day

British bishop, biblical scholar and theologian, serving as Bishop of Durham from 1890 until his death, Brooke Foss Westcott wrote, “Great occasions do not make heroes or cowards; they simply unveil them to the eyes of men. Silently and imperceptibly, as we wake or sleep, we grow strong or weak; and at last some crisis shows what we have become.”

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A Joke for Today

Adam and Eve said, 'Lord when we were in the garden, you walked with us every day. Now we do not see you anymore. We are lonesome here, and it is difficult for us to remember how much you love us.'

And God said, 'I will create a companion for you that will be with you and who will be a reflection of my love for you so that you will love me even when you cannot see me.'

Regardless of how selfish or childish or unlovable, you may be, this new companion will accept you as you are and will love you as I do, in spite of yourselves.

And God created a new animal to be a companion for Adam and Eve. And it was a good animal and God was pleased.

And the new animal was pleased to be with Adam and Eve and he wagged his tail.

And Adam said, 'Lord, I have already named all the animals in the Kingdom and I cannot think of a name for this new animal.'

And God said, 'I have created this new animal to be a reflection of my love for you, his name will be a reflection of my own name, and you will call him DOG.

And Dog lived with Adam and Eve and was a companion to them and loved them.

And they were comforted.

And God was pleased.

And Dog was content and wagged his tail.

After a while, it came to pass that an angel came to the Lord and said, 'Lord, Adam and Eve have become filled with pride. They strut and preen like peacocks and they believe they are worthy of adoration. Dog has indeed taught them that they are loved, but perhaps too well.'

And God said, 'I will create for them a companion who will be with them and who will see them as they are. The companion will remind them of their limitations, so they will know that they are not always worthy of adoration.'

And God created CAT to be a companion to Adam and Eve.

And Cat would not obey them. And when Adam and Eve gazed into Cat's eyes, they were reminded that they were not the Supreme Beings.

And Adam and Eve learned humility. And they were greatly improved.

And God was pleased.

And Dog was happy.

And the Cat didn't care one way or the other.......