Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
37 (0) By David:
(1) Don’t be upset by evildoers
or envious of those who do wrong,
2 for soon they will wither like grass
and fade like the green in the fields.
3 Trust in Adonai, and do good;
settle in the land, and feed on faithfulness.
4 Then you will delight yourself in Adonai,
and he will give you your heart’s desire.
5 Commit your way to Adonai;
trust in him, and he will act.
6 He will make your vindication shine forth like light,
the justice of your cause like the noonday sun.
7 Be still before Adonai;
wait patiently till he comes.
Don’t be upset by those whose way
succeeds because of their wicked plans.
8 Stop being angry, put aside rage,
and don’t be upset — it leads to evil.
9 For evildoers will be cut off,
but those hoping in Adonai will inherit the land.
10 Soon the wicked will be no more;
you will look for his place, and he won’t be there.
11 But the meek will inherit the land
and delight themselves in abundant peace.
39 Adonai is the one who saves the righteous;
he is their stronghold in time of trouble.
40 Adonai helps them and rescues them,
rescues them from the wicked and saves them;
because they take refuge in him.
44 Then he ordered the manager of his household, “Fill the men’s packs with food, as much as they can carry, and put each man’s money just inside his pack. 2 And put my goblet, the silver one, just inside the pack of the youngest, along with his grain money.” He did what Yosef told him to do.
3 At daybreak the men were sent off with their donkeys; 4 but before they were far from the city Yosef said to his manager, “Up, go after the men; and when you overtake them, say to them, ‘Why have you repaid good with evil? 5 Isn’t this the goblet my lord drinks from, indeed the one he uses for divination? What you have done is evil!’” 6 So he caught up with them and said these words to them. 7 They replied, “Why does my lord speak this way? Heaven forbid that we should do such a thing! 8 Why, the money we found inside our packs we brought back to you from the land of Kena‘an! So how would we steal silver or gold from your lord’s house? 9 Whichever one of us the goblet is found with, let him be put to death — and the rest of us will be my lord’s slaves!” 10 He replied, “Fine; let it be as you have said: whichever one it is found with will be my slave. But the rest of you will be blameless.” 11 Then each hurried to put his pack down on the ground, and each one opened his pack. 12 He searched, starting with the oldest and ending with the youngest; and the goblet was found in the pack belonging to Binyamin. 13 At this, they tore their clothes from grief. Then each man loaded up his donkey and returned to the city.
(A: Maftir) 14 Y’hudah and his brothers arrived at Yosef’s house. He was still there, and they fell down before him on the ground. (S: Maftir) 15 Yosef said to them, “How could you do such a thing? Don’t you know that a man such as myself can learn the truth by divination?” 16 Y’hudah said, “There’s nothing we can say to my lord! How can we speak? There’s no way we can clear ourselves! God has revealed your servants’ guilt; so here we are, my lord’s slaves — both we and also the one in whose possession the cup was found.” 17 But he replied, “Heaven forbid that I should act in such a way. The man in whose possession the goblet was found will be my slave; but as for you, go in peace to your father.”
Haftarah Mikketz: M’lakhim Alef (1 Kings) 3:15–4:1
B’rit Hadashah suggested reading for Parashah Mikketz: Acts 7:9–16 (specifically vv. 11–12)
12 You children, I am writing you
because your sins have been forgiven for his sake.
13 You fathers, I am writing you
because you have known him who has existed from the beginning.
You young people, I am writing you
because you have overcome the Evil One.
14 You children, I have written you
because you have known the Father.
You fathers, I have written you
because you have known him who has existed from the beginning.
You young people, I have written you
because you are strong —
the Word of God remains in you,
and you have overcome the Evil One.
15 Do not love the world or the things of the world. If someone loves the world, then love for the Father is not in him; 16 because all the things of the world — the desires of the old nature, the desires of the eyes, and the pretensions of life — are not from the Father but from the world. 17 And the world is passing away, along with its desires. But whoever does God’s will remains forever.
Copyright © 1998 by David H. Stern. All rights reserved.