Isaac and Rebekah

24 Abraham was now very old,^(A) and the Lord had blessed^(B) him in every way.^{(C) 2} He said to the senior servant^(D) in his household, the one in charge of all that he had,^(E) “Put your hand under my thigh.^{(F) 3} I want you to swear^(G) by the Lord, the God of heaven^(H) and the God of earth,^(I) that you will not get a wife for my son^(J) from the daughters of the Canaanites,^(K) among whom I am living,^{(L) 4} but will go to my country and my own relatives^(M) and get a wife for my son Isaac.^(N)”

⁵ The servant asked him, “What if the woman is unwilling to come back with me to this land?^(O) Shall I then take your son back to the country you came from?^(P)”

⁶ “Make sure that you do not take my son back there,”^(Q) Abraham said. ⁷ “The Lord, the God of heaven,^(R) who brought me out of my father’s household and my native land^(S) and who spoke to me and promised me on oath, saying, ‘To your offspring^[a](T) I will give this land’^(U)—he will send his angel before you^(V) so that you can get a wife for my son from there. ⁸ If the woman is unwilling to come back with you, then you will be released from this oath^(W) of mine. Only do not take my son back there.”^{(X) 9} So the servant put his hand under the thigh^(Y) of his master^(Z) Abraham and swore an oath to him concerning this matter.

¹⁰ Then the servant left, taking with him ten of his master’s camels^(AA) loaded with all kinds of good things^(AB) from his master. He set out for Aram Naharaim^[b](AC) and made his way to the town of Nahor.^{(AD) 11} He had the camels kneel down near the well^(AE) outside the town; it was toward evening, the time the women go out to draw water.^(AF)

¹² Then he prayed, “Lord, God of my master Abraham,^(AG) make me successful^(AH) today, and show kindness^(AI) to my master Abraham. ¹³ See, I am standing beside this spring, and the daughters of the townspeople are coming out to draw water.^{(AJ) 14} May it be that when I say to a young woman, ‘Please let down your jar that I may have a drink,’ and she says, ‘Drink,^(AK) and I’ll water your camels too’^(AL)—let her be the one you have chosen for your servant Isaac.^(AM) By this I will know^(AN) that you have shown kindness to my master.”

¹⁵ Before he had finished praying,^(AO) Rebekah^(AP) came out with her jar on her shoulder. She was the daughter of Bethuel^(AQ) son of Milkah,^(AR) who was the wife of Abraham’s brother Nahor.^{(AS) 16} The woman was very beautiful,^(AT) a virgin;^(AU) no man had ever slept with her. She went down to the spring, filled her jar and came up again.

¹⁷ The servant hurried to meet her and said, “Please give me a little water from your jar.”^(AV)

¹⁸ “Drink,^(AW) my lord,” she said, and quickly lowered the jar to her hands and gave him a drink.

¹⁹ After she had given him a drink, she said, “I’ll draw water for your camels^(AX) too,^(AY) until they have had enough to drink.” ²⁰ So she quickly emptied her jar into the trough, ran back to the well to draw more water, and drew enough for all his camels.^{(AZ) 21} Without saying a word, the man watched her closely to learn whether or not the Lord had made his journey successful.^(BA)

²² When the camels had finished drinking, the man took out a gold nose ring^(BB) weighing a beka^[c] and two gold bracelets^(BC) weighing ten shekels.^{[d] 23} Then he asked, “Whose daughter are you?^(BD) Please tell me, is there room in your father’s house for us to spend the night?^(BE)”

²⁴ She answered him, “I am the daughter of Bethuel, the son that Milkah bore to Nahor.^(BF)” ²⁵ And she added, “We have plenty of straw and fodder,^(BG) as well as room for you to spend the night.”

²⁶ Then the man bowed down and worshiped the Lord,^{(BH) 27} saying, “Praise be to the Lord,^(BI) the God of my master Abraham,^(BJ) who has not abandoned his kindness and faithfulness^(BK) to my master. As for me, the Lord has led me on the journey^(BL) to the house of my master’s relatives.”^(BM)

²⁸ The young woman ran and told her mother’s household about these things.^(BN)

A Silver Cup in a Sack

44 Now Joseph gave these instructions to the steward of his house:^(A) “Fill the men’s sacks with as much food as they can carry, and put each man’s silver in the mouth of his sack.^{(B) 2} Then put my cup,^(C) the silver one,^(D) in the mouth of the youngest one’s sack, along with the silver for his grain.” And he did as Joseph said.

³ As morning dawned, the men were sent on their way with their donkeys.^{(E) 4} They had not gone far from the city when Joseph said to his steward,^(F) “Go after those men at once, and when you catch up with them, say to them, ‘Why have you repaid good with evil?^{(G) 5} Isn’t this the cup^(H) my master drinks from and also uses for divination?^(I) This is a wicked thing you have done.’”

⁶ When he caught up with them, he repeated these words to them. ⁷ But they said to him, “Why does my lord say such things? Far be it from your servants^(J) to do anything like that!^{(K) 8} We even brought back to you from the land of Canaan^(L) the silver^(M) we found inside the mouths of our sacks.^(N) So why would we steal^(O) silver or gold from your master’s house? ⁹ If any of your servants^(P) is found to have it, he will die;^(Q) and the rest of us will become my lord’s slaves.^(R)”

¹⁰ “Very well, then,” he said, “let it be as you say. Whoever is found to have it^(S) will become my slave;^(T) the rest of you will be free from blame.”^(U)

¹¹ Each of them quickly lowered his sack to the ground and opened it. ¹² Then the steward^(V) proceeded to search,^(W) beginning with the oldest and ending with the youngest.^(X) And the cup was found in Benjamin’s sack.^{(Y) 13} At this, they tore their clothes.^(Z) Then they all loaded their donkeys^(AA) and returned to the city.

¹⁴ Joseph was still in the house^(AB) when Judah^(AC) and his brothers came in, and they threw themselves to the ground before him.^{(AD) 15} Joseph said to them, “What is this you have done?^(AE) Don’t you know that a man like me can find things out by divination?^(AF)”

¹⁶ “What can we say to my lord?^(AG)” Judah^(AH) replied. “What can we say? How can we prove our innocence?^(AI) God has uncovered your servants’^(AJ) guilt. We are now my lord’s slaves^(AK)—we ourselves and the one who was found to have the cup.^(AL)”

¹⁷ But Joseph said, “Far be it from me to do such a thing!^(AM) Only the man who was found to have the cup will become my slave.^(AN) The rest of you, go back to your father in peace.”^(AO)

¹⁸ Then Judah^(AP) went up to him and said: “Pardon your servant, my lord,^(AQ) let me speak a word to my lord. Do not be angry^(AR) with your servant, though you are equal to Pharaoh himself. ¹⁹ My lord asked his servants,^(AS) ‘Do you have a father or a brother?’^{(AT) 20} And we answered, ‘We have an aged father, and there is a young son born to him in his old age.^(AU) His brother is dead,^(AV) and he is the only one of his mother’s sons left, and his father loves him.’^(AW)

²¹ “Then you said to your servants,^(AX) ‘Bring him down to me so I can see him for myself.’^{(AY) 22} And we said to my lord,^(AZ) ‘The boy cannot leave his father; if he leaves him, his father will die.’^{(BA) 23} But you told your servants, ‘Unless your youngest brother comes down with you, you will not see my face again.’^{(BB) 24} When we went back to your servant my father,^(BC) we told him what my lord^(BD) had said.^(BE)

²⁵ “Then our father said, ‘Go back and buy a little more food.’^{(BF) 26} But we said, ‘We cannot go down. Only if our youngest brother is with us will we go. We cannot see the man’s face unless our youngest brother is with us.’^(BG)

²⁷ “Your servant my father^(BH) said to us, ‘You know that my wife bore me two sons.^{(BI) 28} One of them went away from me, and I said, “He has surely been torn to pieces.”^(BJ) And I have not seen him since.^{(BK) 29} If you take this one from me too and harm comes to him, you will bring my gray head down to the grave^(BL) in misery.’^(BM)

³⁰ “So now, if the boy is not with us when I go back to your servant my father,^(BN) and if my father, whose life is closely bound up with the boy’s life,^{(BO) 31} sees that the boy isn’t there, he will die.^(BP) Your servants^(BQ) will bring the gray head of our father down to the grave^(BR) in sorrow. ³² Your servant guaranteed the boy’s safety to my father. I said, ‘If I do not bring him back to you, I will bear the blame before you, my father, all my life!’^(BS)

³³ “Now then, please let your servant remain here as my lord’s slave^(BT) in place of the boy,^(BU) and let the boy return with his brothers. ³⁴ How can I go back to my father if the boy is not with me? No! Do not let me see the misery^(BV) that would come on my father.”^(BW)

Joseph Makes Himself Known

45 Then Joseph could no longer control himself^(BX) before all his attendants, and he cried out, “Have everyone leave my presence!”^(BY) So there was no one with Joseph when he made himself known to his brothers. ² And he wept^(BZ) so loudly that the Egyptians heard him, and Pharaoh’s household heard about it.^(CA)

³ Joseph said to his brothers, “I am Joseph! Is my father still living?”^(CB) But his brothers were not able to answer him,^(CC) because they were terrified at his presence.^(CD)

⁴ Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Come close to me.”^(CE) When they had done so, he said, “I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt!^{(CF) 5} And now, do not be distressed^(CG) and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here,^(CH) because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you.^{(CI) 6} For two years now there has been famine^(CJ) in the land, and for the next five years there will be no plowing and reaping. ⁷ But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant^(CK) on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance.^[a](CL)

⁸ “So then, it was not you who sent me here, but God.^(CM) He made me father^(CN) to Pharaoh, lord of his entire household and ruler of all Egypt.^(CO)

Jesus Before the Sanhedrin^(A)(B)

⁵³ They took Jesus to the high priest, and all the chief priests, the elders and the teachers of the law came together. ⁵⁴ Peter followed him at a distance, right into the courtyard of the high priest.^(C) There he sat with the guards and warmed himself at the fire.^(D)

⁵⁵ The chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin^(E) were looking for evidence against Jesus so that they could put him to death, but they did not find any. ⁵⁶ Many testified falsely against him, but their statements did not agree.

⁵⁷ Then some stood up and gave this false testimony against him: ⁵⁸ “We heard him say, ‘I will destroy this temple made with human hands and in three days will build another,^(F) not made with hands.’” ⁵⁹ Yet even then their testimony did not agree.

⁶⁰ Then the high priest stood up before them and asked Jesus, “Are you not going to answer? What is this testimony that these men are bringing against you?” ⁶¹ But Jesus remained silent and gave no answer.^(G)

Again the high priest asked him, “Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One?”^(H)

⁶² “I am,” said Jesus. “And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.”^(I)

⁶³ The high priest tore his clothes.^(J) “Why do we need any more witnesses?” he asked. ⁶⁴ “You have heard the blasphemy. What do you think?”

They all condemned him as worthy of death.^{(K) 65} Then some began to spit at him; they blindfolded him, struck him with their fists, and said, “Prophesy!” And the guards took him and beat him.^(L)

Peter Disowns Jesus^(M)

⁶⁶ While Peter was below in the courtyard,^(N) one of the servant girls of the high priest came by. ⁶⁷ When she saw Peter warming himself,^(O) she looked closely at him.

“You also were with that Nazarene, Jesus,”^(P) she said.

⁶⁸ But he denied it. “I don’t know or understand what you’re talking about,”^(Q) he said, and went out into the entryway.^[a]

⁶⁹ When the servant girl saw him there, she said again to those standing around, “This fellow is one of them.” ⁷⁰ Again he denied it.^(R)

After a little while, those standing near said to Peter, “Surely you are one of them, for you are a Galilean.”^(S)

⁷¹ He began to call down curses, and he swore to them, “I don’t know this man you’re talking about.”^(T)

⁷² Immediately the rooster crowed the second time.^[b] Then Peter remembered the word Jesus had spoken to him: “Before the rooster crows twice^[c] you will disown me three times.”^(U) And he broke down and wept.

Peter Disowns Jesus^(A)

⁵⁴ Then seizing him, they led him away and took him into the house of the high priest.^(B) Peter followed at a distance.^{(C) 55} And when some there had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and had sat down together, Peter sat down with them. ⁵⁶ A servant girl saw him seated there in the firelight. She looked closely at him and said, “This man was with him.”

⁵⁷ But he denied it. “Woman, I don’t know him,” he said.

⁵⁸ A little later someone else saw him and said, “You also are one of them.”

“Man, I am not!” Peter replied.

⁵⁹ About an hour later another asserted, “Certainly this fellow was with him, for he is a Galilean.”^(D)

⁶⁰ Peter replied, “Man, I don’t know what you’re talking about!” Just as he was speaking, the rooster crowed. ⁶¹ The Lord^(E) turned and looked straight at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him: “Before the rooster crows today, you will disown me three times.”^{(F) 62} And he went outside and wept bitterly.

The Guards Mock Jesus^(G)

⁶³ The men who were guarding Jesus began mocking and beating him. ⁶⁴ They blindfolded him and demanded, “Prophesy! Who hit you?” ⁶⁵ And they said many other insulting things to him.^(H)

Jesus Before Pilate and Herod^(I)(J)(K)

⁶⁶ At daybreak the council^(L) of the elders of the people, both the chief priests and the teachers of the law, met together,^(M) and Jesus was led before them. ⁶⁷ “If you are the Messiah,” they said, “tell us.”

Jesus answered, “If I tell you, you will not believe me, ⁶⁸ and if I asked you, you would not answer.^{(N) 69} But from now on, the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the mighty God.”^(O)

⁷⁰ They all asked, “Are you then the Son of God?”^(P)

He replied, “You say that I am.”^(Q)

⁷¹ Then they said, “Why do we need any more testimony? We have heard it from his own lips.”