Friday, 25 Kislev 5784 / December 8, 2023
Day 342 Readings
Torah: Vayeishev, 6th Portion Bereshit (Genesis) 39:7-23
Genesis 39:7-23
New American Standard Bible
7 And it came about after these events that his master’s wife [a]had her eyes on Joseph, and she said, “Sleep with me.” 8 But he refused and said to his master’s wife, “Look, with me here, my master [b]does not concern himself with anything in the house, and he has [c]put me in charge of all that he owns. 9 [d]There is no one greater in this house than I, and he has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do this great evil, and sin against God?” 10 Though she spoke to Joseph day after day, he did not listen to her to lie beside her or be with her. 11 Now it happened [e]one day that he went into the house to do his work, and none of the people of the household was there inside. 12 So she grabbed him by his garment, saying, “Sleep with me!” But he left his garment in her hand and fled, and went outside. 13 [f]When she saw that he had left his garment in her hand and had fled outside, 14 she called to the men of her household and said to them, “See, he has brought in a [g]Hebrew to us to make fun of us; he came in to me to sleep with me, and I [h]screamed. 15 When he heard that I raised my voice and [i]screamed, he left his garment beside me and fled and went outside.” 16 So she [j]left his garment beside her until his master came home. 17 Then she spoke to him [k]with these [l]words: “The Hebrew slave, whom you brought to us, came in to me to make fun of me; 18 but when I raised my voice and [m]screamed, he left his garment beside me and fled outside.”
Joseph Imprisoned
19 Now when his master heard the words of his wife which she spoke to him, saying, “[n]This is what your slave did to me,” his anger burned. 20 So Joseph’s master took him and put him into the prison, the place where the king’s prisoners were confined; and he was there in the prison. 21 But the Lord was with Joseph and extended kindness to him, and gave him favor in the sight of the warden of the prison. 22 And the warden of the prison [o]put Joseph in charge of all the prisoners who were in the prison; so that whatever was done there, he was [p]responsible for it. 23 The warden of the prison did not supervise anything [q]under Joseph’s authority, because the Lord was with him; and, the Lord made whatever he did prosper.
Bible Study Together
1 Samuel 28
18 Just as you did not [h]obey the Lord and did not execute His fierce wrath on Amalek, so the Lord has done this thing to you this day.
Luke 17
New American Standard Bible
Instructions
1 Now He said to His disciples, “It is inevitable that [a]stumbling blocks come, but woe to one through whom they come! 2 It is better for him if a millstone is hung around his neck and he [b]is thrown into the sea, than that he may cause one of these little ones to [c]sin. 3 [d]Be on your guard! If your brother sins, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. 4 And if he sins against you seven times a day, and returns to you seven times, saying, ‘I repent,’ you shall forgive him.”
5 The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!” 6 But the Lord said, “If you [e]had faith [f]the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and be planted in the sea’; and it would [g]obey you.
7 “Now which of you, having a slave plowing or tending sheep, will say to him after he comes in from the field, ‘Come immediately and recline at the table to eat’? 8 On the contrary, will he not say to him, ‘Prepare something for me to eat, and properly [h]clothe yourself and serve me while I eat and drink; and [i]afterward you [j]may eat and drink’? 9 He does not thank the slave because he did the things which were commanded, does he? 10 So you too, when you do all the things which were commanded you, say, ‘We are [k]unworthy slaves; we have done only that which we ought to have done.’”
365 Daily Kingdom Living
Necessity Of Discipline
This proverb highlights the necessity of discipline in the home: parents are to discipline, train, and correct their child. A child who is well disciplined, well trained will give the parents peace, joy, and honour.
Prayer: Father God, I understand that a child by human nature is wayward and ignorant without discipline, training and teaching. Give us wisdom to train our children in the way they should go, and when they are old, they will not depart from it. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Scripture
Hosea 10
2 Their heart is [c]deceitful;Now they must suffer for their guilt.[d]The Lord will break down their altarsAnd destroy their memorial stones.
3 Certainly now they will say, “We have no king,For we do not revere the Lord.As for the king, what can he do for us?”
Hosea 11
1 When Israel was a youth I loved him, And out of Egypt I called My son.
2 The more [o]they called them, The more they went away from [p]them;
They kept sacrificing to the Baals And burning incense to idols.
3 Yet it is I who taught Ephraim to walk, [q]I took them in My arms;
But they did not know that I healed them.
4 I pulled them along with cords of a man, with ropes of love
And I became to them as one who lifts the yoke from their jaws;
And I bent down and fed them.
Hosea 12
12 NowJacob fled to the[ai]land of Aram, AndIsrael worked for a wife,
And for a wife he keptsheep.
13 But by aprophet theLordbrought Israel up from Egypt,
And by a prophet he was protected.
Hosea 13
4 Yet I have been the Lord your GodSince the land of Egypt;And you were not to know any god except Me,For there is no savior besides Me.5 I [an]cared for you in the wilderness,In the land of drought.6 As they had their pasture, they became satisfied,And as they became satisfied, their heart became proud;Therefore they forgot Me.7 So I will be like a lion to them;Like a leopard I will [ao]lie in wait by the wayside.8 I will confront them like a bear deprived of her cubs,And I will tear open [ap]their chests;I will also devour them there like a lioness,As a wild animal would tear them to pieces.
9 [aq]It is to your own destruction, Israel,That you are against Me, against your help.10 Where then is your king,That he might save you in all your cities;And your judges, to whom you said,“Give me a king and princes”?11 I gave you a king in My anger,And took him away in My wrath.
Hosea 14
Israel’s Future Blessing
1 [ax]Return, Israel, to the Lord your God,For you have stumbled [ay]because of your wrongdoing.2 Take words with you and return to the Lord.Say to Him, “Take away all guiltAnd [az]receive us graciously,So that we may present [ba]the fruit of our lips.3 Assyria will not save us,We will not ride on horses;Nor will we say again, ‘Our god’To the work of our hands;For in You the [bb]orphan finds mercy.”
4 I will heal their apostasy,I will love them freely,Because My anger has turned away from them.5 I will be like the dew to Israel;He will blossom like the lily,And he will [bc]take root like the cedars of Lebanon.6 His shoots will [bd]sprout,His [be]majesty will be like the olive tree,And his fragrance like the cedars of Lebanon.7 Those who live in his shadowWill [bf]again raise grain,And they will blossom like the vine.His fame will be like the wine of Lebanon.
8 Ephraim, what more have I to do with idols?It is I who answer and look after [bg]you.I am like a luxuriant juniper;From Me [bh]comes your fruit.
9 Whoever is wise, let him understand these things;Whoever is discerning, let him know them.For the ways of the Lord are right,And the righteous will walk in them,But wrongdoers will stumble in them.
Jude
New American Standard Bible
The Warnings of History to the Ungodly
1 [a]Jude, a bond-servant of Jesus Christ and brother of [b]James,
To those who are the called, beloved in God the Father, and kept for Jesus Christ: 2 May mercy, peace, and love be multiplied to you.
3 Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith that was once for all time handed down to the [c]saints. 4 For certain people have crept in unnoticed, those who were long beforehand [d]marked out for this condemnation, ungodly persons who turn the grace of our God into indecent behavior and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.
5 Now I want to remind you, though you know everything once and for all, that [e]the Lord, after saving a people out of the land of Egypt, [f]subsequently destroyed those who did not believe. 6 And angels who did not keep their own domain but abandoned their proper dwelling place, these He has kept in eternal restraints under darkness for the judgment of the great day, 7 just as Sodom and Gomorrah and the cities around them, since they in the same way as these angels indulged in sexual perversion and went after [g]strange flesh, are exhibited as an [h]example in undergoing the punishment of eternal fire.
8 Yet in the same way these people also, dreaming, defile the flesh, reject authority, and speak abusively of angelic [i]majesties. 9 But Michael the archangel, when he disputed with the devil and argued about the body of Moses, did not dare pronounce against him an abusive judgment, but said, “The Lord rebuke you!” 10 But these people disparage all the things that they do not understand; and all the things that they know by instinct, like unreasoning animals, by these things they are destroyed. 11 Woe to them! For they have gone the way of Cain, and for pay [j]they have given themselves up to the error of Balaam, and perished in the rebellion of Korah. 12 These are the ones who are [k]hidden reefs in your love feasts when they feast with you without fear, like shepherds caring only for themselves; clouds without water, carried along by winds; autumn trees without fruit, [l]doubly dead, uprooted; 13 wild waves of the sea, churning up their own shameful deeds like dirty foam; wandering stars, for whom the [m]gloom of darkness has been reserved forever.
14 It was also about these people that Enoch, in the seventh generation from Adam, prophesied, saying, “Behold, the Lord has come with [n]many thousands of His holy ones, 15 to execute judgment upon all, and to convict all the ungodly of all their ungodly deeds which they have done in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.” 16 These are grumblers, finding fault, following after their own lusts; they speak arrogantly, flattering people for the sake of gaining an advantage.
Keep Yourselves in the Love of God
17 But you, beloved, ought to remember the words that were spoken beforehand by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ, 18 that they were saying to you, “In the last time there will be mockers, following after their own ungodly lusts.” 19 These are the ones who cause divisions, [p]worldly-minded, [q]devoid of the Spirit. 20 But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, 21 keep yourselves in the love of God, looking forward to the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life. 22 And have mercy on some, who are doubting; 23 save others, snatching them out of the fire; and on some have mercy with fear, hating even the garment polluted by the flesh.
24 Now to Him who is able to protect you from stumbling, and to make you stand in the presence of His glory, blameless with great joy, 25 to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority before all time and now and [r]forever. Amen.
Psalm 127
New American Standard Bible
Prosperity Comes from the Lord.
A Song of Ascents, of Solomon.
1 Unless the Lord builds a house, They who build it labor in vain;Unless the Lord guards a city, The watchman stays awake in vain. 2 It is futile for you to rise up early,To [a]stay up late,To eat the bread of painful labor; This is how He gives to His beloved sleep.
3 Behold, children are a [b]gift of the Lord, The fruit of the womb is a reward. 4 Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, So are the children of one’s youth. 5 Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them; They will not be ashamed When they speak with their enemies in the gate.
Proverbs 29:12-14
New American Standard Bible
12 If a ruler pays attention to falsehood,All his ministers become wicked.13 The poor person and the oppressor [a]have this in common:The Lord gives light to the eyes of both.14 If a king judges the poor with truth,His throne will be established forever.