Shabbat, 4 Tevet 5784 / December 16, 2023
Day 350 Readings
Torah: Mikeitz, 7th Portion Bereshit (Genesis) 43:30-44:17
Genesis 43
New American Standard Bible 1995
30 Joseph hurried out for [a]he was deeply stirred over his brother, and he sought a place to weep; and he entered his chamber and wept there. 31 Then he washed his face and came out; and he controlled himself and said, “[b]Serve the meal.” 32 So they served him by himself, and them by themselves, and the Egyptians who ate with him by themselves, because the Egyptians could not eat bread with the Hebrews, for that is [c]loathsome to the Egyptians. 33 Now they [d]were seated before him, the firstborn according to his birthright and the youngest according to his youth, and the men looked at one another in astonishment. 34 He took portions to them from [e]his own table, but Benjamin’s portion was five times as much as any of theirs. So they feasted and drank freely with him.
Genesis 44
The Brothers Are Brought Back
1 Then he commanded his house steward, saying, “Fill the men’s sacks with food, as much as they can carry, and put each man’s money in the mouth of his sack. 2 Put my cup, the silver cup, in the mouth of the sack of the youngest, and his money for the grain.” And he did [f]as Joseph had told him. 3 [g]As soon as it was light, the men were sent away, they with their donkeys. 4 They had just gone out of the city, and were not far off, when Joseph said to his house steward, “Up, follow the men; and when you overtake them, say to them, ‘Why have you repaid evil for good? 5 Is not this the one from which my lord drinks and which he indeed uses for divination? You have done wrong in doing this.’”
6 So he overtook them and spoke these words to them. 7 They said to him, “Why does my lord speak such words as these? Far be it from your servants to do such a thing. 8 Behold, the money which we found in the mouth of our sacks we have brought back to you from the land of Canaan. How then could we steal silver or gold from your lord’s house? 9 With whomever of your servants it is found, let him die, and we also will be my lord’s slaves.” 10 So he said, “Now let it also be according to your words; he with whom it is found shall be my slave, and the rest of you shall be innocent.” 11 Then they hurried, each man lowered his sack to the ground, and each man opened his sack. 12 He searched, beginning with the oldest and ending with the youngest, and the cup was found in Benjamin’s sack. 13 Then they tore their clothes, and when each man loaded his donkey, they returned to the city.
14 When Judah and his brothers came to Joseph’s house, he was still there, and they fell to the ground before him. 15 Joseph said to them, “What is this deed that you have done? Do you not know that such a man as I can indeed practice divination?” 16 So Judah said, “What can we say to my lord? What can we speak? And how can we justify ourselves? God has found out the iniquity of your servants; behold, we are my lord’s slaves, both we and the one in whose [h]possession the cup has been found.” 17 But he said, “Far be it from me to do this. The man in whose [i]possession the cup has been found, he shall be my slave; but as for you, go up in peace to your father.”
Haftarah Mikketz: M’lakhim Alef (1 Kings) 3:15–4:1
23 Then the king said, “[c]The one says, ‘This is my son who is living, and your son is the dead one’; and [d]the other says, ‘No! For your son is the dead one, and my son is the living one.’” 24 The king said, “Get me a sword.” So they brought a sword before the king. 25 The king said, “Divide the living child in two, and give half to the one and half to the other.” 26 Then the woman whose child was the living one spoke to the king, for [e]she was deeply stirred over her son and said, “Oh, my lord, give her the living child, and by no means kill him.” But the other said, “He shall be neither mine nor yours; divide him!” 27 Then the king said, “Give [f]the first woman the living child, and by no means kill him. She is his mother.” 28 When all Israel heard of the judgment which the king had [g]handed down, they feared the king, for they saw that the wisdom of God was in him to [h]administer justice.
Thank YOU ABBA that my husband is a wise man, who knows how to administer justice.
B’rit Hadashah suggested reading for Parashah Mikketz: Acts 7:9–16 (specifically vv. 11–12)
9 “The patriarchs became jealous of Joseph and sold him into Egypt. Yet God was with him, 10 and rescued him from all his afflictions, and granted him favor and wisdom in the sight of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and he made him governor over Egypt and all his household.
11 “Now a famine came over all Egypt and Canaan, and great affliction with it, and our fathers [a]could find no food. 12 But when Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent our fathers there the first time. 13 On the second visit Joseph [b]made himself known to his brothers, and Joseph’s family was disclosed to Pharaoh. 14 Then Joseph sent word and invited Jacob his father and all his relatives to come to him, seventy-five [c]persons in all. 15 And Jacob went down to Egypt and there he and our fathers died. 16 From there they were removed to [d]Shechem and laid in the tomb which Abraham had purchased for a sum of money from the sons of [e]Hamor in [f]Shechem.
Bible Study Together
2 Samuel 23:8-39
11 Now after him was Shammah the son of Agee a Hararite. And the Philistines were gathered [f]into a troop where there was a plot of ground full of lentils, and the people fled from the Philistines. 12 But he took his stand in the midst of the plot, defended it and struck the Philistines; and the Lord brought about a great [g]victory.
Mark 10:1-12
New American Standard Bible 1995
Jesus’ Teaching about Divorce
10 Getting 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 Some Pharisees came up to Jesus, testing Him, and began to question Him whether it was lawful for a man to [a]divorce a wife. 3 And He answered and said to them, “What did Moses command you?” 4 They said, “Moses permitted a man to write a certificate of divorce and [b]send her away.” 5 But Jesus said to them, “[c]Because of your hardness of heart he wrote 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[d], 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 In the house the disciples began questioning Him about this again. 11 And He *said to them, “Whoever [e]divorces his wife and marries another woman commits adultery against her; 12 and if she herself [f]divorces her husband and marries another man, she is committing adultery.”
Thank YOU ABBA, that YOU will protect and bless my marriage with Stephen so that we will never be separated by anyone or any entity or anything for YOUR glory and by YOUR Grace it is done, In YESHUA Name, Amen!
365 Daily Kingdom Living
Error-free
Claiming to speak for God (“God told me…” or “The Lord says…”) not only carries power, but it also carries risk. God’s word is right 100 percent of the time. Believers have confidence in its protection. But if we start adding to it, amending it, or going beyond his revealed word, we can quickly get into trouble. This proverb reminds us of the responsibility to represent God and his word accurately and carefully.
Prayer: Dear Lord, may I reflect your word accurately and truthfully today. Let us not use your name or your word in vain. I take your word seriously; I trust in what you’ve said. If I have accidentally misled anyone or mis-stated your word to others, please forgive me and correct what was said. I never want my words to be a substitute for your precious and holy Word. In the name of Jesus, Amen.
Scripture
Micah 5
Micah 6
What God Requires of Man
6 With what shall I come to the LordAnd bow myself before the God on high?Shall I come to Him with burnt offerings,With yearling calves?7 Does the Lord take delight in thousands of rams,In ten thousand rivers of oil?Shall I present my firstborn for my rebellious acts,The fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?8 He has told you, O man, what is good;And what does the Lord require of youBut to do justice, to love [k]kindness,And to walk [l]humbly with your God?
9 The voice of the Lord will call to the city—And it is sound wisdom to fear Your name:“Hear, O tribe. Who has appointed [m]its time?10 “Is there yet a man in the wicked house,Along with treasures of wickednessAnd a [n]short measure that is cursed?11 “Can I justify wicked scalesAnd a bag of deceptive weights?12 “For the rich men of the [o]city are full of violence,Her residents speak lies,And their tongue is deceitful in their mouth.13 “So also I will make you sick, striking you down,Desolating you because of your sins.14 “You will eat, but you will not be satisfied,And your [p]vileness will be in your midst. You will try to remove for safekeeping,But you will not preserve anything,And what you do preserve I will give to the sword.15 “You will sow but you will not reap. You will tread the olive but will not anoint yourself with oil;And the grapes, but you will not drink wine.16 “The statutes of Omri And all the works of the house of Ahab are observed; And in their devices you walk. Therefore I will give you up for destruction And [q]your inhabitants for derision,And you will bear the reproach of My people.”
Micah 7
God Is the Source of Salvation and Light
7 But as for me, I will watch expectantly for the Lord;I will wait for the God of my salvation.My God will hear me.8 Do not rejoice over me, O my enemy.Though I fall I will rise;Though I dwell in darkness, the Lord is a light for me.
9 I will bear the indignation of the LordBecause I have sinned against Him,Until He pleads my case and executes justice for me.He will bring me out to the light,And I will see His [u]righteousness.10 Then my enemy will see,And shame will cover her who said to me,“Where is the Lord your God?”My eyes will look on her;[v]At that time she will [w]be trampled downLike mire of the streets.11 It will be a day for building your walls.On that day will your boundary be extended.12 It will be a day when [x]they will come to youFrom Assyria and the cities of Egypt,From Egypt even to the [y]Euphrates,Even from sea to sea and mountain to mountain.13 And the earth will become desolate because of her inhabitants,On account of the fruit of their deeds.
14 Shepherd Your people with Your scepter,The flock of Your [z]possessionWhich dwells by itself in the woodland,In the midst of [aa]a fruitful field.Let them feed in Bashan and GileadAs in the days of old.15 “As in the days when you came out from the land of Egypt,I will show [ab]you miracles.”16 Nations will see and be ashamedOf all their might.They will put their hand on their mouth,Their ears will be deaf.17 They will lick the dust like a serpent,Like reptiles of the earth.They will come trembling out of their [ac]fortresses;To the Lord our God they will come in dreadAnd they will be afraid before You.18 Who is a God like You, who pardons iniquityAnd passes over the rebellious act of the remnant of His [ad]possession?He does not retain His anger forever,Because He delights in [ae]unchanging love.19 He will again have compassion on us;He will tread our iniquities under foot.Yes, You will cast all [af]their sinsInto the depths of the sea.20 You will give [ag]truth to JacobAnd [ah]unchanging love to Abraham,Which You swore to our forefathersFrom the days of old.
Revelation 7
A Multitude from the Tribulation
9 After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could count, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, and palm branches were in their hands; 10 and they cry out with a loud voice, saying,
“Salvation to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.” 11 And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures; and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, 12 saying,
“Amen, blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might, be to our God forever and ever. Amen.”
13 Then one of the elders answered, saying to me, “These who are clothed in the white robes, who are they, and where have they come from?” 14 I [a]said to him, “My lord, you know.” And he said to me, “These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation, and they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. 15 For this reason, they are before the throne of God; and they serve Him day and night in His [b]temple; and He who sits on the throne will spread His tabernacle over them. 16 They will hunger no longer, nor thirst anymore; nor will the sun [c]beat down on them, nor any heat; 17 for the Lamb in the center of the throne will be their shepherd, and will guide them to springs of the [d]water of life; and God will wipe every tear from their eyes.”
Psalm 135
New American Standard Bible 1995
Praise the Lord’s Wonderful Works. Vanity of Idols.
1 [a]Praise [b]the Lord!Praise the name of the Lord;Praise Him, O servants of the Lord, 2 You who stand in the house of the Lord,In the courts of the house of our God! 3 [c]Praise [d]the Lord, for the Lord is good;Sing praises to His name, for it is lovely. 4 For [e]the Lord has chosen Jacob for Himself,Israel for His [f]own possession.
5 For I know that the Lord is greatAnd that our Lord is above all gods. 6 Whatever the Lord pleases, He does,In heaven and in earth, in the seas and in all deeps.7 [g]He causes the [h]vapors to ascend from the ends of the earth;Who makes lightnings for the rain,Who brings forth the wind from His treasuries.
8 [i]He smote the firstborn of Egypt,[j]Both of man and beast.9 [k]He sent signs and wonders into your midst, O Egypt,Upon Pharaoh and all his servants.10 [l]He smote many nationsAnd slew mighty kings,11 Sihon, king of the Amorites,And Og, king of Bashan,And all the kingdoms of Canaan;12 And He gave their land as a heritage,A heritage to Israel His people.13 Your name, O Lord, is everlasting,Your [m]remembrance, O Lord, [n]throughout all generations.14 For the Lord will judge His peopleAnd will have compassion on His servants.15 The idols of the nations are but silver and gold,The work of man’s hands. 16 They have mouths, but they do not speak;They have eyes, but they do not see;17 They have ears, but they do not hear,Nor is there any breath at all in their mouths. 18 Those who make them will be like them,Yes, everyone who trusts in them.
19 O house of Israel, bless the Lord;O house of Aaron, bless the Lord; 20 O house of Levi, bless the Lord;You who [o]revere the Lord, bless the Lord. 21 Blessed be the Lord from Zion,Who dwells in Jerusalem.[p]Praise [q]the Lord!
Proverbs 30:1-4
The Words of Agur
1 The words of Agur the son of Jakeh, the [a]oracle.
The man declares to Ithiel, to Ithiel and Ucal:
2 Surely I am more stupid than any man,And I do not have the understanding of a man.3 Neither have I learned wisdom,Nor do I have the knowledge of the Holy One.4 Who has ascended into heaven and descended?Who has gathered the wind in His fists?Who has wrapped the waters in [b]His garment?Who has established all the ends of the earth?What is His name or His son’s name?Surely you know!