Genesis 35–37; Psalm 12; Mark 14

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Genesis 35–37

God Blesses and Renames Jacob

God said to Jacob, Arise, go up to bBethel and dwell there. Make an altar there to the God who appeared to you cwhen you fled from your brother Esau. So Jacob said to his dhousehold and to all who were with him, Put away ethe foreign gods that are among you and fpurify yourselves and change your garments. Then let us arise and go up to Bethel, so that I may make there an altar to the God gwho answers me in the day of my distress and hhas been with me wherever I have gone. So they gave to Jacob all the foreign gods that they had, and the rings that were in their ears. Jacob hid them under ithe terebinth tree that was near Shechem.

And as they journeyed, a terror from God fell upon the cities that were around them, so that they did not pursue the sons of Jacob. And Jacob came to jLuz (that is, Bethel), which is in the land of Canaan, he and all the people who were with him, and there he built an altar and called the place El-bethel,1 because kthere God had revealed himself to him when he fled from his brother. And lDeborah, Rebekah’s nurse, died, and she was buried under an oak below Bethel. So he called its name Allon-bacuth.2

God appeared3 to Jacob again, when he came from Paddan-aram, and blessed him. 10 And God said to him, Your name is Jacob; mno longer shall your name be called Jacob, but nIsrael shall be your name. So he called his name Israel. 11 And God said to him, oI am God Almighty:4 be pfruitful and multiply. qA nation and a company of nations shall come from you, and kings shall come from your own body.5 12 rThe land that I gave to Abraham and Isaac I will give to you, and I will give the land to your offspring after you. 13 Then God swent up from him in the place where he had spoken with him. 14 And Jacob tset up a pillar in the place where he had spoken with him, a pillar of stone. He poured out a drink offering on it and poured oil on it. 15 So Jacob called the name of the place where God had spoken with him uBethel.

The Deaths of Rachel and Isaac

16 Then they journeyed from Bethel. When they were still some distance6 from Ephrath, Rachel went into labor, and she had hard labor. 17 And when her labor was at its hardest, the midwife said to her, Do not fear, for vyou have another son. 18 And as her soul was departing (for she was dying), she called his name Ben-oni;7 wbut his father called him Benjamin.8 19 So xRachel died, and she was buried on the way to yEphrath (that is, Bethlehem), 20 and Jacob set up a pillar over her tomb. It is zthe pillar of Rachel’s tomb, which is there to this day. 21 Israel journeyed on and pitched his tent beyond the tower of Eder.

22 While Israel lived in that land, Reuben went and alay with Bilhah his father’s concubine. And Israel heard of it.

Now the sons of Jacob were twelve. 23 The sons of Leah: bReuben (Jacob’s firstborn), Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun. 24 The sons of Rachel: Joseph and Benjamin. 25 The sons of Bilhah, Rachel’s servant: Dan and Naphtali. 26 The sons of Zilpah, Leah’s servant: Gad and Asher. These were the sons of Jacob who were born to him in Paddan-aram.

27 And Jacob came to his father Isaac at cMamre, or dKiriath-arba (that is, Hebron), where Abraham and Isaac had sojourned. 28 Now the days of Isaac were 180 years. 29 And Isaac breathed his last, and he died eand was gathered to his people, old and full of days. And fhis sons Esau and Jacob buried him.

Esau’s Descendants

These are the generations of Esau (that is, gEdom). Esau htook his wives from the Canaanites: Adah the daughter of Elon the Hittite, iOholibamah the daughter of Anah the daughter9 of Zibeon the Hivite, and jBasemath, Ishmael’s daughter, the sister of Nebaioth. And Adah bore to Esau, kEliphaz; Basemath bore Reuel; and Oholibamah bore Jeush, Jalam, and Korah. These are the sons of Esau who were born to him in the land of Canaan.

Then Esau took his wives, his sons, his daughters, and all the members of his household, his livestock, all his beasts, and all his property that he had acquired in the land of Canaan. He went into a land away from his brother Jacob. lFor their possessions were too great for them to dwell together. mThe land of their sojournings could not support them because of their livestock. So Esau settled in nthe hill country of Seir. (oEsau is Edom.)

These are the generations of Esau the father of pthe Edomites in the hill country of Seir. 10 These are the names of Esau’s sons: qEliphaz the son of Adah the wife of Esau, Reuel the son of Basemath the wife of Esau. 11 The sons of Eliphaz were Teman, Omar, Zepho, Gatam, and Kenaz. 12 (Timna was a concubine of Eliphaz, Esau’s son; she bore rAmalek to Eliphaz.) These are the sons of Adah, Esau’s wife. 13 These are the sons of Reuel: Nahath, Zerah, Shammah, and Mizzah. These are the sons of Basemath, Esau’s wife. 14 These are the sons of sOholibamah the daughter of Anah the daughter of Zibeon, Esau’s wife: she bore to Esau Jeush, Jalam, and Korah.

15 These are tthe chiefs of the sons of Esau. uThe sons of Eliphaz the firstborn of Esau: the chiefs Teman, Omar, Zepho, Kenaz, 16 Korah, Gatam, and Amalek; these are the chiefs of Eliphaz in the land of Edom; these are the sons of Adah. 17 These are the sons of vReuel, Esau’s son: the chiefs Nahath, Zerah, Shammah, and Mizzah; these are the chiefs of Reuel in the land of Edom; these are the sons of Basemath, Esau’s wife. 18 These are the sons of wOholibamah, Esau’s wife: the chiefs Jeush, Jalam, and Korah; these are the chiefs born of Oholibamah the daughter of Anah, Esau’s wife. 19 These are the sons of Esau (xthat is, Edom), and these are their chiefs.

20 yThese are the sons of zSeir the Horite, the inhabitants of the land: Lotan, Shobal, Zibeon, Anah, 21 Dishon, Ezer, and Dishan; these are the chiefs of the Horites, the sons of Seir in the land of Edom. 22 The sons of Lotan were Hori and Hemam; and Lotan’s sister was Timna. 23 These are the sons of Shobal: Alvan, Manahath, Ebal, Shepho, and Onam. 24 These are the sons of Zibeon: Aiah and Anah; he is the Anah who found the hot springs in the wilderness, as he pastured the donkeys of Zibeon his father. 25 These are the children of Anah: Dishon and aOholibamah the daughter of Anah. 26 These are the sons of Dishon: Hemdan, Eshban, Ithran, and Cheran. 27 These are the sons of Ezer: Bilhan, Zaavan, and Akan. 28 These are the sons of Dishan: Uz and Aran. 29 These are the chiefs of the Horites: the bchiefs Lotan, Shobal, Zibeon, Anah, 30 Dishon, Ezer, and Dishan; these are the chiefs of the Horites, chief by chief in the land of Seir.

31 cThese are the kings who reigned in the land of Edom, before any king reigned over the Israelites. 32 Bela the son of Beor reigned in Edom, the name of his city being Dinhabah. 33 Bela died, and Jobab the son of Zerah of Bozrah reigned in his place. 34 Jobab died, and Husham of the land of the Temanites reigned in his place. 35 Husham died, and Hadad the son of Bedad, who defeated Midian in the country of Moab, reigned in his place, the name of his city being Avith. 36 Hadad died, and Samlah of Masrekah reigned in his place. 37 Samlah died, and Shaul of dRehoboth on the Euphrates10 reigned in his place. 38 Shaul died, and Baal-hanan the son of Achbor reigned in his place. 39 Baal-hanan the son of Achbor died, and Hadar reigned in his place, the name of his city being Pau; his wife’s name was Mehetabel, the daughter of Matred, daughter of Mezahab.

40 These are the names of the chiefs of Esau, according to their clans and their dwelling places, by their names: the chiefs Timna, Alvah, Jetheth, 41 Oholibamah, Elah, ePinon, 42 Kenaz, Teman, Mibzar, 43 Magdiel, and Iram; these are the chiefs of Edom (that is, Esau, the father of fEdom), according to their dwelling places in the land of their possession.

Joseph’s Dreams

Jacob lived in gthe land of his father’s sojournings, in the land of Canaan.

These are the generations of Jacob.

Joseph, being seventeen years old, was pasturing the flock with his brothers. He was a boy with the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah, his father’s wives. And Joseph brought ha bad report of them to their father. Now Israel loved Joseph more than any other of his sons, because he was ithe son of his old age. And he made him ja robe of many colors.11 But when his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they hated him and could not speak peacefully to him.

Now Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers they hated him even more. He said to them, Hear this dream that I have dreamed: Behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and behold, kmy sheaf arose and stood upright. And behold, your sheaves gathered around it and lbowed down to my sheaf. His brothers said to him, Are you indeed to reign over us? Or are you indeed to rule over us? So they hated him even more for his dreams and for his words.

Then he dreamed another dream and told it to his brothers and said, Behold, I have dreamed another dream. Behold, the sun, the moon, and eleven stars were bowing down to me. 10 But when he told it to his father and to his brothers, his father rebuked him and said to him, What is this dream that you have dreamed? Shall I and myour mother and your brothers indeed come nto bow ourselves to the ground before you? 11 And ohis brothers were jealous of him, pbut his father kept the saying in mind.

Joseph Sold by His Brothers

12 Now his brothers went to pasture their father’s flock near qShechem. 13 And Israel said to Joseph, Are not your brothers pasturing the flock at Shechem? Come, I will send you to them. And he said to him, Here I am. 14 So he said to him, Go now, see if it is well with your brothers and with the flock, and bring me word. So he sent him from the Valley of rHebron, and he came to Shechem. 15 And a man found him wandering in the fields. And the man asked him, What are you seeking? 16 I am seeking my brothers, he said. Tell me, please, where they are pasturing the flock. 17 And the man said, They have gone away, for I heard them say, Let us go to sDothan. So Joseph went after his brothers and found them at sDothan.

18 They saw him from afar, and before he came near to them tthey conspired against him to kill him. 19 They said to one another, Here comes this dreamer. 20 Come now, ulet us kill him and throw him into one of the pits.12 Then we will say that a fierce animal has devoured him, and we will see what will become of his dreams. 21 But when vReuben heard it, he rescued him out of their hands, saying, Let us not take his life. 22 And Reuben said to them, Shed no blood; throw him into this pit here in the wilderness, but do not lay a hand on himwthat he might rescue him out of their hand to restore him to his father. 23 So when Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped him of his robe, xthe robe of many colors that he wore. 24 And they took him and ythrew him into a pit. The pit was empty; there was no water in it.

25 Then they sat down to eat. And looking up they saw a zcaravan of aIshmaelites coming from Gilead, with their camels bearing bgum, balm, and myrrh, on their way to carry it down to Egypt. 26 Then Judah said to his brothers, What profit is it cif we kill our brother and conceal his blood? 27 Come, let us sell him to the Ishmaelites, and dlet not our hand be upon him, for he is our brother, our own flesh. And his brothers listened to him. 28 Then eMidianite traders passed by. And they drew Joseph up and lifted him out of the pit, and fsold him to the Ishmaelites for twenty shekels13 of silver. They took Joseph to Egypt.

29 When Reuben returned to the pit and saw that Joseph was not in the pit, he gtore his clothes 30 and returned to his brothers and said, The boy his gone, and I, where shall I go? 31 Then they took iJoseph’s robe and slaughtered a goat and dipped the robe in the blood. 32 And they sent the robe of many colors and brought it to their father and said, This we have found; please identify whether it is your son’s robe or not. 33 And he identified it and said, It is my son’s robe. jA fierce animal has devoured him. Joseph is without doubt torn to pieces. 34 Then Jacob tore his garments and put sackcloth on his loins and mourned for his son many days. 35 All his sons and all his daughters krose up to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted and said, No, lI shall go down to Sheol to my son, mourning. Thus his father wept for him. 36 Meanwhile mthe Midianites had sold him in Egypt to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, nthe captain of the guard.


Psalm 12

The Faithful Have Vanished

To the choirmaster: according to The Sheminith.1 A Psalm of David.

Save, O Lord, for mthe godly one is gone;

for the faithful have vanished from among the children of man.

Everyone nutters lies to his neighbor;

with oflattering lips and pa double heart they speak.

May the Lord cut off all oflattering lips,

the tongue that makes qgreat boasts,

those who say, With our tongue we will prevail,

our lips are with us; who is master over us?

Because rthe poor are plundered, because the needy groan,

sI will now arise, says the Lord;

I will place him in the tsafety for which he longs.

uThe words of the Lord are pure words,

like silver refined in a furnace on the ground,

purified seven times.

You, O Lord, will keep them;

you will guard us2 from this generation forever.

On every side the wicked prowl,

as vileness is exalted among the children of man.


Mark 14

The Plot to Kill Jesus

xIt was now two days before ythe Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread. And the chief priests and the scribes zwere seeking how to arrest him by stealth and kill him, for they said, Not during the feast, alest there be an uproar from the people.

Jesus Anointed at Bethany

bAnd while he was at cBethany in the house of Simon the leper,1 as he was reclining at table, a woman came with an alabaster flask of ointment of pure nard, very costly, and she broke the flask and poured it over his head. There were some who said to themselves indignantly, Why was the ointment wasted like that? For this ointment could have been sold for more than three hundred denarii2 and dgiven to the poor. And they escolded her. But Jesus said, Leave her alone. Why do you trouble her? She has done a beautiful thing to me. For fyou always have the poor with you, and whenever gyou want, you can do good for them. But hyou will not always have me. iShe has done what she could; she has anointed my body beforehand jfor burial. And truly, I say to you, wherever kthe gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will be told lin memory of her.

Judas to Betray Jesus

10 mThen nJudas Iscariot, who was one of the twelve, nwent to the chief priests in order to betray him to them. 11 And when they heard it, they were glad and promised to give him money. And he sought an opportunity to obetray him.

The Passover with the Disciples

12 pAnd on qthe first day of Unleavened Bread, when they rsacrificed the Passover lamb, his disciples said to him, Where will you have us go and prepare for you to eat the Passover? 13 And he sent stwo of his disciples and said to them, Go into the city, and a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him, 14 and wherever he enters, say to the master of the house, tThe Teacher says, Where is umy guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples? 15 And he will show you va large upper room furnished and ready; there prepare for us. 16 And the disciples set out and went to the city and found it just as he had told them, and they prepared the Passover.

17 wAnd when it was evening, he came with the twelve. 18 And as they were reclining at table and eating, xJesus said, Truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me, yone who is eating with me. 19 They began to be sorrowful and to say to him one after another, Is it I? 20 He said to them, It is zone of the twelve, yone who is dipping bread into the dish with me. 21 For the Son of Man goes aas it is written of him, but bwoe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! cIt would have been better for that man if he had not been born.

Institution of the Lord’s Supper

22 dAnd as they were eating, he took bread, and after eblessing it broke it and gave it to them, and said, Take; fthis is my body. 23 And he took a cup, and when he had ggiven thanks he gave it to them, and they all drank of it. 24 And he said to them, fThis is my hblood of the3 covenant, which is poured out for imany. 25 Truly, I say to you, I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.

Jesus Foretells Peter’s Denial

26 jAnd when they had sung a hymn, kthey went out to lthe Mount of Olives. 27 And Jesus said to them, You will all fall away, for it is written, I will mstrike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered. 28 But after I am raised up, nI will go before you to Galilee. 29 oPeter said to him, Even though they all fall away, I will not. 30 And pJesus said to him, Truly, I tell you, this very night, before qthe rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times. 31 But rhe said emphatically, If I must die with you, I will not deny you. And they all said the same.

Jesus Prays in Gethsemane

32 sAnd they went kto a place called Gethsemane. And he said to his disciples, Sit here while I pray. 33 And he took with him tPeter and James and John, and began uto be greatly distressed and troubled. 34 And he said to them, vMy soul is very sorrowful, even to death. Remain here and wwatch.4 35 And going a little farther, he fell on the ground xand prayed that, if it were possible, ythe hour might pass from him. 36 And he said, zAbba, Father, aall things are possible for you. Remove bthis cup from me. cYet not what I will, but what you will. 37 And he came and found them sleeping, and he said to Peter, Simon, are you asleep? Could you not watch one hour? 38 wWatch and dpray that you may not eenter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. 39 And again he went away and prayed, fsaying the same words. 40 And again he came and found them sleeping, for gtheir eyes were very heavy, and hthey did not know what to answer him. 41 And he came the third time and said to them, Are you still sleeping and taking your rest? iIt is enough; jthe hour has come. kThe Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. 42 Rise, let us be going; see, my betrayer is at hand.

Betrayal and Arrest of Jesus

43 lAnd immediately, while he was still speaking, mJudas came, one of the twelve, and with him a crowd with swords and clubs, from the chief priests and the scribes and the elders. 44 Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, The one I will kiss is the man. Seize him and lead him away under guard. 45 And when he came, he went up to him at once and said, nRabbi! And he okissed him. 46 And they laid hands on him and seized him. 47 But one of those who stood by drew his psword and struck the servant5 of the high priest and cut off his ear. 48 And Jesus said to them, Have you come out as against a robber, with swords and clubs to capture me? 49 qDay after day I was with you in the temple rteaching, and you did not seize me. But slet the Scriptures be fulfilled. 50 tAnd they all left him and fled.

A Young Man Flees

51 And a young man followed him, with nothing but ua linen cloth about his body. And they seized him, 52 but he left the linen cloth and ran away naked.

Jesus Before the Council

53 vAnd wthey led Jesus to the high priest. And all the chief priests and the elders and the scribes came together. 54 wAnd xPeter had followed him at a distance, yright into zthe courtyard of the high priest. And he was sitting with athe guards and bwarming himself at the fire. 55 Now the chief priests and the whole council6 were seeking testimony against Jesus to put him to death, but they found none. 56 cFor many bore false witness against him, but their testimony ddid not agree. 57 And some stood up and bore false witness against him, saying, 58 eWe heard him say, fI will destroy this temple gthat is made with hands, and in three days I will build another, hnot made with hands. 59 Yet even about this their testimony did not agree. 60 And the high priest stood up in the midst and asked Jesus, Have you no answer to make? What is it that these men testify against you?7 61 But ihe remained silent and made no answer. jAgain the high priest asked him, Are you kthe Christ, the Son of lthe Blessed? 62 And Jesus said, I am, and myou will see the Son of Man nseated at the right hand of Power, and mcoming with the clouds of heaven. 63 And the high priest otore his garments and said, What further witnesses do we need? 64 You have heard phis blasphemy. What is your decision? And they qall condemned him as rdeserving death. 65 sAnd some began tto spit on him and uto cover his face and to strike him, saying to him, Prophesy! And the guards received him vwith blows.

Peter Denies Jesus

66 wAnd as Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the servant girls of the high priest came, 67 and seeing Peter xwarming himself, she looked at him and said, You also were with the Nazarene, Jesus. 68 But he denied it, saying, I neither know nor understand what you mean. And he went out into the gateway8 and ythe rooster crowed.9 69 And the servant girl saw him and began again to say to the bystanders, This man is one of them. 70 But again he denied it. And after a little while the bystanders again said to Peter, Certainly you are one of them, for you are a Galilean. 71 But he began to invoke a curse on himself and to swear, I do not know this man of whom you speak. 72 And immediately the rooster crowed za second time. And Peter remembered how Jesus had said to him, aBefore the rooster crows twice, you will bdeny me three times. And he broke down and wept.10