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Manasseh and Ephraim
48 After these things Joseph was told,[a] “Your father is weakening.” So he took his two sons Manasseh and Ephraim with him. 2 When Jacob was told,[b] “Your son Joseph has just[c] come to you,” Israel regained strength and sat up on his bed. 3 Jacob said to Joseph, “The Sovereign God[d] appeared to me at Luz in the land of Canaan and blessed me. 4 He said to me, ‘I am going to make you fruitful[e] and will multiply you.[f] I will make you into a group of nations, and I will give this land to your descendants[g] as an everlasting possession.’[h]
5 “Now, as for your two sons, who were born to you in the land of Egypt before I came to you in Egypt, they will be mine.[i] Ephraim and Manasseh will be mine just as Reuben and Simeon are. 6 Any children that you father[j] after them will be yours; they will be listed[k] under the names of their brothers in their inheritance.[l] 7 But as for me, when I was returning from Paddan, Rachel died—to my sorrow[m]—in the land of Canaan. It happened along the way, some distance from Ephrath. So I buried her there on the way to Ephrath” (that is, Bethlehem).
8 When Israel saw Joseph’s sons, he asked, “Who are these?” 9 Joseph said to his father, “They are the[n] sons God has given me in this place.” His father[o] said, “Bring them to me so I may bless them.”[p] 10 Now Israel’s eyes were failing[q] because of his age; he was not able to see well. So Joseph[r] brought his sons[s] near to him, and his father[t] kissed them and embraced them. 11 Israel said to Joseph, “I never expected[u] to see you[v] again, but now God has allowed me to see your children[w] too.”
12 So Joseph moved them from Israel’s knees[x] and bowed down with his face to the ground. 13 Joseph positioned them;[y] he put Ephraim on his right hand across from Israel’s left hand, and Manasseh on his left hand across from Israel’s right hand. Then Joseph brought them closer to his father.[z] 14 Israel stretched out his right hand and placed it on Ephraim’s head, although he was the younger.[aa] Crossing his hands, he put his left hand on Manasseh’s head, for Manasseh was the firstborn.
15 Then he blessed Joseph and said,
“May the God before whom my fathers
Abraham and Isaac walked—
the God who has been my shepherd[ab]
all my life long to this day,
16 the angel[ac] who has protected me[ad]
from all harm—
bless these boys.
May my name be named in them,[ae]
and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac.
May they grow into a multitude on the earth.”
17 When Joseph saw that his father placed his right hand on Ephraim’s head, it displeased him.[af] So he took his father’s hand to move it from Ephraim’s head to Manasseh’s head. 18 Joseph said to his father, “Not so, my father, for this is the firstborn. Put your right hand on his head.”
19 But his father refused and said, “I know, my son, I know. He too will become a nation and he too will become great. In spite of this, his younger brother will be even greater and his descendants will become a multitude[ag] of nations.” 20 So he blessed them that day, saying,
“By you[ah] will Israel bless,[ai] saying,
‘May God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh.’”
Thus he put Ephraim before Manasseh.[aj]
21 Then Israel said to Joseph, “I am about to die, but God will be with you[ak] and will bring you back to the land of your fathers. 22 As one who is above your[al] brothers, I give to you the mountain slope,[am] which I took from the Amorites with my sword and my bow.”
The Blessing of Jacob
49 Jacob called for his sons and said, “Gather together so I can tell you[an] what will happen to you in future days.[ao]
2 “Assemble and listen, you sons of Jacob;
listen to Israel, your father.
3 Reuben, you are my firstborn,
my might and the beginning of my strength,
outstanding in dignity, outstanding in power.
4 You are destructive[ap] like water and will not excel,[aq]
for you got on your father’s bed,[ar]
then you defiled it—he got on my couch![as]
5 Simeon and Levi are brothers,
weapons of violence are their knives![at]
6 O my soul, do not come into their council,
do not be united to their assembly, my heart,[au]
for in their anger they have killed men,
and for pleasure they have hamstrung oxen.
7 Cursed be their anger, for it was fierce,
and their fury, for it was cruel.
I will divide them in Jacob,
and scatter them in Israel![av]
8 Judah,[aw] your brothers will praise you.
Your hand will be on the neck of your enemies,
your father’s sons will bow down before you.
9 You are a lion’s cub, Judah,
from the prey, my son, you have gone up.
He crouches and lies down like a lion;
like a lioness—who will rouse him?
10 The scepter will not depart from Judah,
nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet,[ax]
until he comes to whom it belongs;[ay]
the nations will obey him.[az]
11 Binding his foal to the vine,
and his colt to the choicest vine,
he will wash[ba] his garments in wine,
his robes in the blood of grapes.
12 His eyes will be red[bb] from wine,
and his teeth white from milk.[bc]
13 Zebulun will live[bd] by the haven of the sea
and become a haven for ships;
his border will extend to Sidon.
14 Issachar is a strong-boned donkey
lying down between two saddlebags.
15 When he sees[be] a good resting place,
and the pleasant land,
he will bend his shoulder to the burden
and become a slave laborer.[bf]
16 Dan[bg] will judge[bh] his people
as one of the tribes of Israel.
17 May Dan be a snake beside the road,
a viper by the path,
that bites the heels of the horse
so that its rider falls backward.[bi]
18 I wait for your deliverance, O Lord.[bj]
19 Gad will be raided by marauding bands,
but he will attack them at their heels.[bk]
20 Asher’s[bl] food will be rich,[bm]
and he will provide delicacies[bn] to royalty.
21 Naphtali is a free running doe,[bo]
he speaks delightful words.[bp]
22 Joseph is a fruitful bough,[bq]
a fruitful bough near a spring
whose branches[br] climb over the wall.
23 The archers will attack him,[bs]
they will shoot at him and oppose him.
24 But his bow will remain steady,
and his hands[bt] will be skillful;
because of the hands of the Powerful One[bu] of Jacob,
because of[bv] the Shepherd, the Rock[bw] of Israel,
25 because of the God of your father,
who will help you,[bx]
because of the Sovereign God,[by]
who will bless you[bz]
with blessings from the sky above,
blessings from the deep that lies below,
and blessings of the breasts and womb.[ca]
26 The blessings of your father are greater
than[cb] the blessings of the eternal mountains[cc]
or the desirable things of the age-old hills.
They will be on the head of Joseph
and on the brow of the prince of his brothers.[cd]
27 Benjamin is a ravenous wolf;
in the morning devouring the prey,
and in the evening dividing the plunder.”
28 These[ce] are the twelve tribes of Israel. This is what their father said to them when he blessed them. He gave each of them an appropriate blessing.[cf]
29 Then he instructed them,[cg] “I am about to go[ch] to my people. Bury me with my fathers in the cave in the field of Ephron the Hittite. 30 It is the cave in the field of Machpelah, near Mamre in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought for a burial plot from Ephron the Hittite. 31 There they buried Abraham and his wife Sarah; there they buried Isaac and his wife Rebekah; and there I buried Leah. 32 The field and the cave in it were acquired from the sons of Heth.”[ci]
33 When Jacob finished giving these instructions to his sons, he pulled his feet up onto the bed, breathed his last breath, and went[cj] to his people.
Healing Many Others
29 When he left there, Jesus went along the Sea of Galilee. Then he went up a mountain, where he sat down. 30 Then[a] large crowds came to him bringing with them the lame, blind, crippled, mute, and many others. They[b] laid them at his feet, and he healed them. 31 As a result, the crowd was amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled healthy, the lame walking, and the blind seeing, and they praised the God of Israel.
The Feeding of the Four Thousand
32 Then Jesus called his disciples and said, “I have compassion on the crowd, because they have already been here with me three days and they have nothing to eat. I don’t want to send them away hungry since they may faint on the way.” 33 The disciples said to him, “Where can we get enough bread in this desolate place to satisfy so great a crowd?” 34 Jesus said to them, “How many loaves do you have?” They replied, “Seven—and a few small fish.” 35 After instructing the crowd to sit down on the ground, 36 he took the seven loaves and the fish, and after giving thanks, he broke them and began giving them to the disciples, who then gave them to the crowds.[c] 37 They[d] all ate and were satisfied, and they picked up the broken pieces left over, seven baskets full. 38 Not counting children and women,[e] there were 4,000 men who ate.[f] 39 After sending away the crowd, he got into the boat[g] and went to the region of Magadan.[h]
The Demand for a Sign
16 Now when the Pharisees[i] and Sadducees[j] came to test Jesus,[k] they asked him to show them a sign from heaven.[l] 2 He[m] said, “When evening comes you say, ‘It will be fair weather, because the sky is red,’ 3 and in the morning, ‘It will be stormy today, because the sky is red and darkening.’[n] You know how to judge correctly the appearance of the sky,[o] but you cannot evaluate the signs of the times. 4 A wicked and adulterous generation asks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah.” Then[p] he left them and went away.
The Yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees
5 When the disciples went to the other side, they forgot to take bread. 6 “Watch out,” Jesus said to them, “beware of the yeast of the Pharisees[q] and Sadducees.”[r] 7 So[s] they began to discuss this among themselves, saying, “It is because we brought no bread.” 8 When Jesus learned of this,[t] he said, “You who have such little faith! Why are you arguing[u] among yourselves about having no bread? 9 Do you still not understand? Don’t you remember the five loaves for the 5,000, and how many baskets you took up? 10 Or the seven loaves for the 4,000 and how many baskets you took up? 11 How could you not understand that I was not speaking to you about bread? But beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees!” 12 Then they understood that he had not told them to be on guard against the yeast in bread, but against the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.
Psalm 20[a]
For the music director, a psalm of David.
20 May the Lord answer[b] you[c] when you are in trouble;[d]
may the God of Jacob[e] make you secure.
2 May he send you help from his temple;[f]
from Zion may he give you support.
3 May he take notice of[g] all your offerings;
may he accept[h] your burnt sacrifice. (Selah)
4 May he grant your heart’s desire;[i]
may he bring all your plans to pass.[j]
5 Then we will shout for joy over your[k] victory;
we will rejoice[l] in the name of our God.
May the Lord grant all your requests.
6 Now I am sure[m] that the Lord will deliver[n] his chosen king;[o]
he will intervene for him[p] from his holy, heavenly temple,[q]
and display his mighty ability to deliver.[r]
7 Some trust in chariots and others in horses,[s]
but we[t] depend on[u] the Lord our God.
8 They will fall down,[v]
but we[w] will stand firm.[x]
9 The Lord will deliver the king;[y]
he will answer us[z] when we call to him for help![aa]
20 My child, pay attention to my words;
listen attentively[a] to my sayings.
21 Do not let them depart[b] from your sight,
guard[c] them within your heart;[d]
22 for they are life to those who find them
and healing to one’s entire body.[e]
23 Guard your heart[f] with all vigilance,[g]
for from it are the sources[h] of life.
24 Remove perverse speech[i] from your mouth;[j]
keep devious talk far from your lips.[k]
25 Let your eyes look directly[l] in front of you
and let your gaze[m] look straight before you.
26 Make the path for your feet[n] level,[o]
so that[p] all your ways may be established.[q]
27 Do not turn[r] to the right or to the left;
turn yourself[s] away from evil.[t]
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