Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

Psalm 103

The Forgiving God

Davidic.

⁵³ Then the seven years of abundance in the land of Egypt came to an end, ⁵⁴ and the seven years of famine began, just as Joseph had said. There was famine in every country, but throughout the land of Egypt there was food. ⁵⁵ Extreme hunger came to all the land of Egypt, and the people cried out to Pharaoh for food. Pharaoh told all Egypt, “Go to Joseph and do whatever he tells you.” ⁵⁶ Because the famine had spread across the whole country, Joseph opened up all the storehouses and sold grain to the Egyptians, for the famine was severe in the land of Egypt. ⁵⁷ Every nation came to Joseph in Egypt to buy grain, for the famine was severe in every land.^(A)

Joseph’s Brothers in Egypt

42 When Jacob learned that there was grain in Egypt,^(B) he said to his sons, “Why do you keep looking at each other? ² Listen,” he went on, “I have heard there is grain in Egypt. Go down there and buy some for us so that we will live and not die.”^{(C) 3} So 10 of Joseph’s brothers went down to buy grain from Egypt. ⁴ But Jacob did not send Joseph’s brother Benjamin with his brothers, for he thought, “Something might happen to him.”

⁵ The sons of Israel were among those who came to buy grain, for the famine was in the land of Canaan. ⁶ Joseph was in charge of the country; he sold grain to all its people. His brothers came and bowed down before him with their faces to the ground.^{(D) 7} When Joseph saw his brothers, he recognized them, but he treated them like strangers and spoke harshly to them.

“Where do you come from?” he asked.

“From the land of Canaan to buy food,” they replied.

⁸ Although Joseph recognized his brothers, they did not recognize him. ⁹ Joseph remembered his dreams about them^(E) and said to them, “You are spies. You have come to see the weakness^[a] of the land.”

¹⁰ “No, my lord. Your servants have come to buy food,” they said. ¹¹ “We are all sons of one man. We are honest; your servants are not spies.”

¹² “No,” he said to them. “You have come to see the weakness of the land.”

¹³ But they replied, “We, your servants, were 12 brothers, the sons of one man in the land of Canaan. The youngest is now^[b] with our father, and one is no longer living.”

¹⁴ Then Joseph said to them, “I have spoken:^[c] ‘You are spies!’ ¹⁵ This is how you will be tested: As surely as Pharaoh lives, you will not leave this place unless your youngest brother comes here. ¹⁶ Send one from among you to get your brother. The rest of you will be imprisoned so that your words can be tested to see if they are true. If they are not, then as surely as Pharaoh lives, you are spies!” ¹⁷ So Joseph imprisoned them together for three days.

The Patriarchs in Egypt

⁹ “The patriarchs became jealous of Joseph and sold him into Egypt, but God was with him^{(A) 10} and rescued him out of all his troubles. He gave him favor and wisdom in the sight of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, who appointed him ruler over Egypt and over his whole household.^{(B) 11} Then a famine and great suffering came over all of Egypt and Canaan,^(C) and our ancestors could find no food. ¹² When Jacob heard there was grain in Egypt, he sent our ancestors the first time. ¹³ The second time, Joseph was revealed to his brothers, and Joseph’s family became known to Pharaoh. ¹⁴ Joseph then invited his father Jacob and all his relatives, 75 people in all,^{(D) 15} and Jacob went down to Egypt. He and our ancestors died there,^{(E) 16} were carried back to Shechem, and were placed in the tomb that Abraham had bought for a sum of silver from the sons of Hamor in Shechem.^(F)