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Jacob Blesses Joseph's Two Sons
48 Joseph was told that his father Jacob had become very sick. So Joseph went to see him and took along his two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim. 2 When Joseph arrived, someone told Jacob, “Your son Joseph has come to see you.” Jacob sat up in bed, but it took almost all his strength.
3 (A) Jacob told Joseph:
God All-Powerful appeared to me at Luz in the land of Canaan, where he gave me his blessing 4 and promised, “I will give you a large family with many descendants that will grow into a nation. And I am giving you this land that will belong to you and your family forever.”
5 Then Jacob went on to say:
Joseph, your two sons Ephraim and Manasseh were born in Egypt, but I accept them as my own, just as Reuben and Simeon are mine. 6 Any children you have later will be considered yours, but their inheritance will come from Ephraim and Manasseh. 7 (B) Unfortunately, your mother Rachel died in Canaan after we had left northern Syria[a] and before we reached Bethlehem.[b] And I had to bury her along the way.
8-10 Jacob was very old and almost blind. He did not recognize the two boys, and so he asked Joseph, “Who are these boys?”
Joseph answered, “They are my sons. God has given them to me here in Egypt.”
“Bring them to me,” Jacob said. “I want to give them my blessing.” Joseph brought the boys to him, and he hugged and kissed them.
11 Jacob turned to Joseph and told him, “For many years I thought you were dead and that I would never see you again. But now God has even let me live to see your children.” 12 Then Joseph made his sons move away from Jacob's knees,[c] and Joseph bowed down in front of him with his face to the ground.
13 After Joseph got up, he brought his two sons over to Jacob again. He led his younger son Ephraim to the left side of Jacob and his older son Manasseh to the right. 14 But before Jacob gave them his blessing, he crossed his arms, putting his right hand on the head of Ephraim and his left hand on the head of Manasseh. 15 Then he gave Joseph his blessing and said:
My grandfather Abraham and my father Isaac worshiped the Lord God. He has been with me all my life, 16 and his angel has kept me safe. Now I pray that he will bless these boys and that my name and the names of Abraham and Isaac will live on because of them. I ask God to give them many children and many descendants as well.
17 Joseph did not like it when he saw his father place his right hand on the head of the younger son. So he tried to move his father's right hand from Ephraim's head and place it on Manasseh. 18 Joseph said, “Father, you have made a mistake. This is the older boy. Put your right hand on him.”
19 But his father said, “Son, I know what I am doing. It's true that Manasseh's family will someday become a great nation. But Ephraim will be even greater than Manasseh, because his descendants will become many great nations.”
20 (C) Jacob told him that in the future the people of Israel would ask God's blessings on one another by saying, “I pray for God to bless you as much as he blessed Ephraim and Manasseh.” Jacob put Ephraim's name first to show that he would be greater than Manasseh. 21 After that, Jacob said, “Joseph, you can see that I won't live much longer. But God will be with you and will lead you back to the land he promised our family long ago. 22 Meanwhile, I'm giving you the hillside[d] I captured from the Amorites.”
Jacob Blesses His Sons
49 Jacob called his sons together and said:
My sons, I am Jacob,
your father Israel.
2 Come, gather around,
as I tell your future.
3 Reuben, you are my oldest,
born at the peak of my powers;
you were an honored leader.
4 Uncontrollable as a flood,
you slept with my wife
and disgraced my bed.
And so you no longer deserve
the place of honor.
5 Simeon and Levi,
you are brothers,
each a gruesome sword.
6 I never want to take part
in your plans or deeds.
You slaughtered people
in your anger,
and you crippled cattle
for no reason.
7 Now I place a curse on you
because of
your fierce anger.
Your descendants
will be scattered
among the tribes of Israel.
8 Judah, you will be praised
by your brothers;
they will bow down to you,
as you defeat your enemies.
9 (D) My son, you are a lion
ready to eat your victim!
You are terribly fierce;
no one will bother you.
10 You will have power and rule
until nations obey you[e]
and come bringing gifts.
11 You will tie your donkey
to a choice grapevine
and wash your clothes
in wine from those grapes.
12 Your eyes are darker than wine,
your teeth whiter than milk.
13 Zebulun, you will settle
along the seashore
and provide safe harbors
as far north as Sidon.
14 Issachar, you are a strong donkey
resting in the meadows.[f]
15 You found them so pleasant
that you worked too hard
and became a slave.
16 Dan,[g] you are the tribe
that will bring justice
to Israel.
17 You are a snake that bites
the heel of a horse,
making its rider fall.
18 Our Lord, I am waiting
for you to save us.
19 Gad,[h] you will be attacked,
then attack your attackers.
20 Asher, you will eat food
fancy enough for a king.
21 Naphtali, you are a wild deer
with lovely fawns.[i]
22 Joseph, you are a fruitful vine
growing near a stream
and climbing a wall.[j]
23 Enemies attacked with arrows,
refusing to show mercy.
24 But you stood your ground,
swiftly shooting back
with the help of Jacob's God,
the All-Powerful One—
his name is the Shepherd,
Israel's mighty rock.[k]
25 Your help came from the God
your father worshiped,
from God All-Powerful.
God will bless you with rain
and streams from the earth;
he will bless you
with many descendants.
26 My son, the blessings I give
are better than the promise
of ancient mountains
or eternal hills.[l]
Joseph, I pray these blessings
will come to you,
because you are the leader
of your brothers.
27 Benjamin, you are a fierce wolf,
destroying your enemies
morning and evening.
28 These are the twelve tribes of Israel, and this is how Jacob gave each of them their proper blessings.
Jacob's Death
29-31 (E) Jacob told his sons:
Soon I will die, and I want you to bury me in Machpelah Cave. Abraham bought this cave as a burial place from Ephron the Hittite, and it is near the town of Mamre in Canaan. Abraham and Sarah are buried there, and so are Isaac and Rebekah. I buried Leah there too. 32 Both the cave and the land that goes with it were bought from the Hittites.
33 (F) When Jacob had finished giving these instructions to his sons, he lay down on his bed and died.
Jesus Heals Many People
29 From there, Jesus went along Lake Galilee. Then he climbed a hill and sat down. 30 Large crowds came and brought many people who were paralyzed or blind or lame or unable to talk. They placed them, and many others, in front of Jesus, and he healed them all. 31 Everyone was amazed at what they saw and heard. People who had never spoken could now speak. The lame were healed, the paralyzed could walk, and the blind were able to see. Everyone was praising the God of Israel.
Jesus Feeds Four Thousand
(Mark 8.1-10)
32 Jesus called his disciples together and told them, “I feel sorry for these people. They have been with me for three days, and they don't have anything to eat. I don't want to send them away hungry. They might faint on their way home.”
33 His disciples said, “This place is like a desert. Where can we find enough food to feed such a crowd?”
34 Jesus asked them how much food they had. They replied, “Seven small loaves of bread[a] and a few little fish.”
35 After Jesus had told the people to sit down, 36 he took the seven loaves of bread and the fish and gave thanks. He then broke them and handed them to his disciples, who passed them around to the crowds.
37 Everyone ate all they wanted, and the leftovers filled seven large baskets.
38 There were 4,000 men who ate, not counting the women and children.
39 After Jesus had sent the crowds away, he got into a boat and sailed across the lake. He came to shore near the town of Magadan.[b]
A Demand for a Sign from Heaven
(Mark 8.11-13; Luke 12.54-56)
16 (A) The Pharisees and Sadducees came to Jesus and tried to test him by asking for a sign from heaven. 2 He told them:
If the sky is red in the evening, you say the weather will be good. 3 But if the sky is red and gloomy in the morning, you say it is going to rain. You can tell what the weather will be like by looking at the sky. But you don't understand what is happening now.[c] 4 (B) You want a sign because you are evil and won't believe! But the only sign you will be given is what happened to Jonah.[d]
Then Jesus left.
The Yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees
(Mark 8.14-21)
5 The disciples had forgotten to bring any bread when they crossed the lake.[e] 6 (C) Jesus then warned them, “Watch out! Guard against the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”
7 The disciples talked this over and said to each other, “He must be saying this because we didn't bring along any bread.”
8 Jesus knew what they were thinking and said:
You surely don't have much faith! Why are you talking about not having any bread? 9 (D) Don't you understand? Have you forgotten about the 5,000 people and all those baskets of leftovers from just five loaves of bread? 10 (E) And what about the 4,000 people and all those baskets of leftovers from only seven loaves of bread? 11 Don't you know by now that I am not talking to you about bread? Watch out for the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees!
12 Finally, the disciples understood that Jesus wasn't talking about the yeast used to make bread, but about the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.
(A psalm by David for the music leader.)
A Prayer for Victory
1 I pray that the Lord
will listen when you
are in trouble,
and that the God of Jacob
will keep you safe.
2 May the Lord send help
from his temple
and come to your rescue
from Mount Zion.
3 May he remember your gifts
and be pleased
with what you bring.
4 May God do what you want most
and let all go well for you.
5 Then you will win victories,
and we will celebrate,
while raising our banners
in the name of our God.
May the Lord answer
all your prayers!
6 I am certain, Lord,
that you will help
your chosen king.
You will answer my prayers
from your holy place
in heaven,
and you will save me
with your mighty arm.
7 Some people trust the power
of chariots or horses,
but we trust you, Lord God.
8 Others will stumble and fall,
but we will be strong
and stand firm.
9 Give the king victory, Lord,
and answer our prayers.[a]
20 My child, listen carefully
to everything I say.
21 Don't forget a single word,
but think about it all.
22 Knowing these teachings
will mean true life
and good health for you.
23 Carefully guard your thoughts
because they are the source
of true life.
24 Never tell lies or be deceitful
in what you say.
25 Keep looking straight ahead,
without turning aside.
26 (A) Know where you are headed,
and you will stay
on solid ground.
27 Don't make a mistake by turning
to the right or the left.
Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society For more information about CEV, visit www.bibles.com and www.cev.bible.