Readings for Celebrating Advent

² God spoke to Israel in the visions of the night, and said, “Jacob, Jacob!”

He said, “Here I am.”

³ He said, “I am God, the God of your father. Don’t be afraid to go down into Egypt, for there I will make of you a great nation. ⁴ I will go down with you into Egypt. I will also surely bring you up again. Joseph’s hand will close your eyes.”

⁵ Jacob rose up from Beersheba, and the sons of Israel carried Jacob, their father, their little ones, and their wives, in the wagons which Pharaoh had sent to carry him.