Old isn’t bad. We westerners have been raised to worship the new, the young. Our culture is wrong in this regard. It is the old, the eternal, that demands and deserves our honor and care.
The scriptures are old. Many today look at that like it is a liability. Many worship services today use as little scripture as possible in order to speak in more contemporary terms to their people for that reason. It is foreign and strange to us. We want folks to stay comfortable.
This is a mistake, of course. Our job isn’t to be comfortable. It is to be a peculiar people. We gain our identity by meditating upon the holy words of God. They reform us and inform us. Yes, they comfort, but more than that, they convict and consecrate us.
That is what is happening here when you attend deeply upon God’s word, with the blessing and activity of his Spirit. Pray for his Spirit to dwell in you and work a new thing as you attend upon these eternally-true, eternally beautiful words:
Genesis 37
Now Jacob lived in the land where his father had resided, the land of Canaan.
This is the account of Jacob. When Joseph was seventeen years old, he was tending the flock with his brothers, the sons of his father’s wives Bilhah and Zilpah, and he brought their father a bad report about them.
Now Israel loved Joseph more than his other sons, because Joseph had been born to him in his old age; so he made him a robe of many colors.
When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father loved him more than any of them, they hated him and could not speak a kind word to him.
Then Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him even more.
He said to them, “Listen to this dream I had: We were binding sheaves of grain in the field, and suddenly my sheaf rose and stood upright, while your sheaves gathered around and bowed down to mine.”
“Do you intend to reign over us?” his brothers asked. “Will you actually rule us?” So they hated him even more because of his dream and his statements.
Then Joseph had another dream and told it to his brothers. “Look,” he said, “I had another dream, and this time the sun and moon and eleven stars were bowing down to me.”
He told his father and brothers, but his father rebuked him and said, “What is this dream that you have had? Will your mother and brothers and I actually come and bow down to the ground before you?”
And his brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept in mind what he had said.
Some time later, Joseph’s brothers had gone to pasture their father’s flocks near Shechem.
Israel said to him, “Are not your brothers pasturing the flocks at Shechem? Get ready; I am sending you to them.”
“I am ready,” Joseph replied.
Then Israel told him, “Go now and see how your brothers and the flocks are faring, and bring word back to me.” So he sent him off from the Valley of Hebron. And when Joseph arrived in Shechem, a man found him wandering in the field and asked, “What are you looking for?”
“I am looking for my brothers,” Joseph replied. “Can you please tell me where they are pasturing their flocks?”
“They have moved on from here,” the man answered. “I heard them say, ‘Let us go to Dothan.’” So Joseph set out after his brothers and found them at Dothan.
Now Joseph’s brothers saw him in the distance, and before he arrived, they plotted to kill him.
“Here comes that dreamer!” they said to one another.
“Come now, let us kill him and throw him into one of the pits. We can say that a vicious animal has devoured him. Then we shall see what becomes of his dreams!”
When Reuben heard this, he tried to rescue Joseph from their hands. “Let us not take his life,” he said.
“Do not shed his blood. Throw him into this pit in the wilderness, but do not lay a hand on him.” Reuben said this so that he could rescue Joseph from their hands and return him to his father.
So when Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped him of his robe—the robe of many colors he was wearing— and they took him and threw him into the pit. Now the pit was empty, with no water in it.
And as they sat down to eat a meal, they looked up and saw a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead. Their camels were carrying spices, balm, and myrrh on their way down to Egypt.
Then Judah said to his brothers, “What profit will we gain if we kill our brother and cover up his blood?
Come, let us sell him to the Ishmaelites and not lay a hand on him; for he is our brother, our own flesh.” And they agreed.
So when the Midianite traders passed by, his brothers pulled Joseph out of the pit and sold him for twenty shekels of silver to the Ishmaelites, who took him to Egypt.
When Reuben returned to the pit and saw that Joseph was not there, he tore his clothes, returned to his brothers, and said, “The boy is gone! What am I going to do?”
Then they took Joseph’s robe, slaughtered a young goat, and dipped the robe in its blood.
They sent the robe of many colors to their father and said, “We found this. Examine it to see whether it is your son’s robe or not.”
His father recognized it and said, “It is my son’s robe! A vicious animal has devoured him. Joseph has surely been torn to pieces!”
Then Jacob tore his clothes, put sackcloth around his waist, and mourned for his son many days.
All his sons and daughters tried to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. “No,” he said. “I will go down to Sheol mourning for my son.” So his father wept for him.
Meanwhile, the Midianites sold Joseph in Egypt to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh and captain of the guard.
Genesis 38
About that time, Judah left his brothers and settled near a man named Hirah, an Adullamite.
There Judah saw the daughter of a Canaanite man named Shua, and he took her as a wife and slept with her.
So she conceived and gave birth to a son, and Judah named him Er.
Again she conceived and gave birth to a son, and she named him Onan.
Then she gave birth to another son and named him Shelah; it was at Chezib that she gave birth to him.
Now Judah acquired a wife for Er, his firstborn, and her name was Tamar.
But Er, Judah’s firstborn, was wicked in the sight of the LORD; so the LORD put him to death.
Then Judah said to Onan, “Sleep with your brother’s wife. Perform your duty as her brother-in-law and raise up offspring for your brother.”
But Onan knew that the offspring would not belong to him; so whenever he would sleep with his brother’s wife, he would spill his seed on the ground so that he would not produce offspring for his brother.
What he did was wicked in the sight of the LORD, so He put Onan to death as well.
Then Judah said to his daughter-in-law Tamar, “Live as a widow in your father’s house until my son Shelah grows up.” For he thought, “He may die too, like his brothers.” So Tamar went to live in her father’s house.
After a long time Judah’s wife, the daughter of Shua, died. When Judah had finished mourning, he and his friend Hirah the Adullamite went up to his sheepshearers at Timnah.
When Tamar was told, “Your father-in-law is going up to Timnah to shear his sheep,” she removed her widow’s garments, covered her face with a veil to disguise herself, and sat at the entrance to Enaim, which is on the way to Timnah. For she saw that although Shelah had grown up, she had not been given to him as a wife.
When Judah saw her, he thought she was a prostitute because she had covered her face.
Not realizing that she was his daughter-in-law, he went over to her and said, “Come now, let me sleep with you.”
“What will you give me for sleeping with you?” she inquired.
“I will send you a young goat from my flock,” Judah answered. But she replied, “Only if you leave me something as a pledge until you send it.”
“What pledge should I give you?” he asked. She answered, “Your seal and your cord, and the staff in your hand.” So he gave them to her and slept with her, and she became pregnant by him.
Then Tamar got up and departed. And she removed her veil and put on her widow’s garments again.
Now when Judah sent his friend Hirah the Adullamite with the young goat to collect the items he had left with the woman, he could not find her.
He asked the men of that place, “Where is the shrine prostitute who was beside the road at Enaim?”
“No shrine prostitute has been here,” they answered.
So Hirah returned to Judah and said, “I could not find her, and furthermore, the men of that place said, ‘No shrine prostitute has been here.’”
“Let her keep the items,” Judah replied. “Otherwise we will become a laughingstock. After all, I did send her this young goat, but you could not find her.”
About three months later, Judah was told, “Your daughter-in-law Tamar has prostituted herself, and now she is pregnant.”
“Bring her out!” Judah replied. “Let her be burned to death!”
As she was being brought out, Tamar sent a message to her father-in-law: “I am pregnant by the man to whom these items belong.” And she added, “Please examine them. Whose seal and cord and staff are these?”
Judah recognized the items and said, “She is more righteous than I, since I did not give her to my son Shelah.” And he did not have relations with her again.
When the time came for Tamar to give birth, there were twins in her womb.
And as she was giving birth, one of them put out his hand; so the midwife took a scarlet thread and tied it around his wrist. “This one came out first,” she announced.
But when he pulled his hand back and his brother came out, she said, “You have broken out first!” So he was named Perez.
Then his brother came out with the scarlet thread around his wrist, and he was named Zerah.
Genesis 39
Meanwhile, Joseph had been taken down to Egypt, where an Egyptian named Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh and captain of the guard, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had taken him there.
And the LORD was with Joseph, and he became a successful man, serving in the household of his Egyptian master.
When his master saw that the LORD was with him and made him prosper in all he did, Joseph found favor in his sight and became his personal attendant. Potiphar put him in charge of his household and entrusted him with everything he owned.
From the time that he put Joseph in charge of his household and all he owned, the LORD blessed the Egyptian’s household on account of him. The LORD’s blessing was on everything he owned, both in his house and in his field.
So Potiphar left all that he owned in Joseph’s care; he did not concern himself with anything except the food he ate. Now Joseph was well-built and handsome, and after some time his master’s wife cast her eyes upon Joseph and said, “Sleep with me.”
But he refused. “Look,” he said to his master’s wife, “with me here, my master does not concern himself with anything in his house, and he has entrusted everything he owns to my care.
No one in this house is greater than I am. He has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. So how could I do such a great evil and sin against God?”
Although Potiphar’s wife spoke to Joseph day after day, he refused to go to bed with her or even be near her.
One day, however, Joseph went into the house to attend to his work, and not a single household servant was inside.
She grabbed Joseph by his cloak and said, “Sleep with me!” But leaving his cloak in her hand, he escaped and ran outside.
When she saw that he had left his cloak in her hand and had run out of the house, she called her household servants. “Look,” she said, “this Hebrew has been brought to us to make sport of us. He came to me so he could sleep with me, but I screamed as loud as I could.
When he heard me scream for help, he left his cloak beside me and ran out of the house.”
So Potiphar’s wife kept Joseph’s cloak beside her until his master came home.
Then she told him the same story: “The Hebrew slave you brought us came to me to make sport of me, but when I screamed for help, he left his cloak beside me and ran out of the house.”
When his master heard the story his wife told him, saying, “This is what your slave did to me,” he burned with anger.
So Joseph’s master took him and had him thrown into the prison where the king’s prisoners were confined. While Joseph was there in the prison, the LORD was with him and extended kindness to him, granting him favor in the eyes of the prison warden.
And the warden put all the prisoners under Joseph’s care, so that he was responsible for all that was done in the prison.
The warden did not concern himself with anything under Joseph’s care, because the LORD was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did.
Genesis 40
Some time later, the king’s cupbearer and baker offended their master, the king of Egypt.
Pharaoh was angry with his two officers, the chief cupbearer and the chief baker, and imprisoned them in the house of the captain of the guard, the same prison where Joseph was confined.
The captain of the guard assigned them to Joseph, and he became their personal attendant. After they had been in custody for some time, both of these men—the Egyptian king’s cupbearer and baker, who were being held in the prison—had a dream on the same night, and each dream had its own meaning.
When Joseph came to them in the morning, he saw that they were distraught.
So he asked the officials of Pharaoh who were in custody with him in his master’s house, “Why are your faces so downcast today?”
“We both had dreams,” they replied, “but there is no one to interpret them.”
Then Joseph said to them, “Don’t interpretations belong to God? Tell me your dreams.”
So the chief cupbearer told Joseph his dream: “In my dream there was a vine before me, and on the vine were three branches. As it budded, its blossoms opened and its clusters ripened into grapes.
Pharaoh’s cup was in my hand, and I took the grapes, squeezed them into his cup, and placed the cup in his hand.”
Joseph replied, “This is the interpretation: The three branches are three days.
Within three days Pharaoh will lift up your head and restore your position. You will put Pharaoh’s cup in his hand, just as you did when you were his cupbearer.
But when it goes well for you, please remember me and show me kindness by mentioning me to Pharaoh, that he might bring me out of this prison.
For I was kidnapped from the land of the Hebrews, and even here I have done nothing for which they should have put me in this dungeon.”
When the chief baker saw that the interpretation was favorable, he said to Joseph, “I too had a dream: There were three baskets of white bread on my head.
In the top basket were all sorts of baked goods for Pharaoh, but the birds were eating them out of the basket on my head.”
Joseph replied, “This is the interpretation: The three baskets are three days.
Within three days Pharaoh will lift off your head and hang you on a tree. Then the birds will eat the flesh of your body.”
On the third day, which was Pharaoh’s birthday, he held a feast for all his officials, and in their presence he lifted up the heads of the chief cupbearer and the chief baker.
Pharaoh restored the chief cupbearer to his position, so that he once again placed the cup in Pharaoh’s hand.
But Pharaoh hanged the chief baker, just as Joseph had described to them in his interpretation.
The chief cupbearer, however, did not remember Joseph; he forgot all about him.
Genesis 41
After two full years had passed, Pharaoh had a dream: He was standing beside the Nile, when seven cows, sleek and well-fed, came up from the river and began to graze among the reeds.
After them, seven other cows, sickly and thin, came up from the Nile and stood beside the well-fed cows on the bank of the river.
And the cows that were sickly and thin devoured the seven sleek, well-fed cows. Then Pharaoh woke up, but he fell back asleep and dreamed a second time: Seven heads of grain, plump and ripe, came up on one stalk.
After them, seven other heads of grain sprouted, thin and scorched by the east wind.
And the thin heads of grain swallowed up the seven plump, ripe ones. Then Pharaoh awoke and realized it was a dream.
In the morning his spirit was troubled, so he summoned all the magicians and wise men of Egypt. Pharaoh told them his dreams, but no one could interpret them for him.
Then the chief cupbearer said to Pharaoh, “Today I recall my failures. Pharaoh was once angry with his servants, and he put me and the chief baker in the custody of the captain of the guard.
One night both the chief baker and I had dreams, and each dream had its own meaning.
Now a young Hebrew was there with us, a servant of the captain of the guard. We told him our dreams and he interpreted them for us individually.
And it happened to us just as he had interpreted: I was restored to my position, and the other man was hanged.”
So Pharaoh sent for Joseph, who was quickly brought out of the dungeon. After he had shaved and changed his clothes, he went in before Pharaoh.
Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I had a dream, and no one can interpret it. But I have heard it said of you that when you hear a dream you can interpret it.”
“I myself cannot do it,” Joseph replied, “but God will give Pharaoh a sound answer.”
Then Pharaoh said to Joseph: “In my dream I was standing on the bank of the Nile, when seven cows, well-fed and sleek, came up from the river and began to graze among the reeds.
After them, seven other cows—sickly, ugly, and thin—came up. I have never seen such ugly cows in all the land of Egypt!
Then the thin, ugly cows devoured the seven well-fed cows that were there first.
When they had devoured them, however, no one could tell that they had done so; their appearance was as ugly as it had been before. Then I awoke.
In my dream I also saw seven heads of grain, plump and ripe, growing on a single stalk.
After them, seven other heads of grain sprouted—withered, thin, and scorched by the east wind.
And the thin heads of grain swallowed the seven plump ones. I told this dream to the magicians, but no one could explain it to me.”
At this, Joseph said to Pharaoh, “The dreams of Pharaoh are one and the same. God has revealed to Pharaoh what He is about to do.
The seven good cows are seven years, and the seven ripe heads of grain are seven years. The dreams have the same meaning.
Moreover, the seven thin, ugly cows that came up after them are seven years, and so are the seven worthless heads of grain scorched by the east wind—they are seven years of famine.
It is just as I said to Pharaoh: God has shown Pharaoh what He is about to do.
Behold, seven years of great abundance are coming throughout the land of Egypt, but seven years of famine will follow them. Then all the abundance in the land of Egypt will be forgotten, and the famine will devastate the land.
The abundance in the land will not be remembered, since the famine that follows it will be so severe.
Moreover, because the dream was given to Pharaoh in two versions, the matter has been decreed by God, and He will carry it out shortly.
Now, therefore, Pharaoh should look for a discerning and wise man and set him over the land of Egypt.
Let Pharaoh take action and appoint commissioners over the land to take a fifth of the harvest of Egypt during the seven years of abundance.
Under the authority of Pharaoh, let them collect all the excess food from these good years, that they may come and lay up the grain to be preserved as food in the cities.
This food will be a reserve for the land during the seven years of famine to come upon the land of Egypt. Then the country will not perish in the famine.”
This proposal pleased Pharaoh and all his officials.
So Pharaoh asked them, “Can we find anyone like this man, in whom the Spirit of God abides?”
Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Since God has made all this known to you, there is no one as discerning and wise as you.
You shall be in charge of my house, and all my people are to obey your commands. Only with regard to the throne will I be greater than you.”
Pharaoh also told Joseph, “I hereby place you over all the land of Egypt.”
Then Pharaoh removed the signet ring from his finger, put it on Joseph’s finger, clothed him in garments of fine linen, and placed a gold chain around his neck.
He had Joseph ride in his second chariot, with men calling out before him, “Bow the knee!” So he placed him over all the land of Egypt.
And Pharaoh declared to Joseph, “I am Pharaoh, but without your permission, no one in all the land of Egypt shall lift his hand or foot.”
Pharaoh gave Joseph the name Zaphenath-paneah, and he gave him Asenath daughter of Potiphera, priest of On, to be his wife. And Joseph took charge of all the land of Egypt.
Now Joseph was thirty years old when he entered the service of Pharaoh king of Egypt. And Joseph left Pharaoh’s presence and traveled throughout the land of Egypt.
During the seven years of abundance, the land brought forth bountifully.
During those seven years, Joseph collected all the excess food in the land of Egypt and stored it in the cities. In every city he laid up the food from the fields around it.
So Joseph stored up grain in such abundance, like the sand of the sea, that he stopped keeping track of it; for it was beyond measure.
Before the years of famine arrived, two sons were born to Joseph by Asenath daughter of Potiphera, priest of On.
Joseph named the firstborn Manasseh, saying, “God has made me forget all my hardship and all my father’s household.”
And the second son he named Ephraim, saying, “God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction.”
When the seven years of abundance in the land of Egypt came to an end, the seven years of famine began, just as Joseph had said. And although there was famine in every country, there was food throughout the land of Egypt.
When extreme hunger came to all the land of Egypt and the people cried out to Pharaoh for food, he told all the Egyptians, “Go to Joseph and do whatever he tells you.”
When the famine had spread over all the land, Joseph opened up all the storehouses and sold grain to the Egyptians; for the famine was severe in the land of Egypt.
And every nation came to Joseph in Egypt to buy grain, because the famine was severe over all the earth.
John 20
Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance.
So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved. “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb,” she said, “and we do not know where they have put Him!”
Then Peter and the other disciple set out for the tomb.
The two were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first.
He bent down and looked in at the linen cloths lying there, but he did not go in.
Simon Peter arrived just after him. He entered the tomb and saw the linen cloths lying there.
The cloth that had been around Jesus’ head was rolled up, lying separate from the linen cloths.
Then the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went in. And he saw and believed.
For they still did not understand from the Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.
Then the disciples returned to their homes.
But Mary stood outside the tomb weeping. And as she wept, she bent down to look into the tomb, and she saw two angels in white sitting where the body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and the other at the feet.
“Woman, why are you weeping?” they asked.
“Because they have taken my Lord away,” she said, “and I do not know where they have put Him.”
When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there; but she did not recognize that it was Jesus.
“Woman, why are you weeping?” Jesus asked. “Whom are you seeking?”
Thinking He was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried Him off, tell me where you have put Him, and I will get Him.”
Jesus said to her, “Mary.”
She turned and said to Him in Hebrew, “Rabboni!” (which means “Teacher”).
“Do not cling to Me,” Jesus said, “for I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go and tell My brothers, ‘I am ascending to My Father and your Father, to My God and your God.’”
Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord!” And she told them what He had said to her.
It was the first day of the week, and that very evening, while the disciples were together with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them. “Peace be with you!” He said to them.
After He had said this, He showed them His hands and His side. The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.
Again Jesus said to them, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent Me, so also I am sending you.”
When He had said this, He breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you withhold forgiveness from anyone, it is withheld.”
Now Thomas called Didymus, one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came.
So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!”
But he replied, “Unless I see the nail marks in His hands, and put my finger where the nails have been, and put my hand into His side, I will never believe.”
Eight days later, His disciples were once again inside with the doors locked, and Thomas was with them. Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.”
Then Jesus said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and look at My hands. Reach out your hand and put it into My side. Stop doubting and believe.”
Thomas replied, “My Lord and my God!”
Jesus said to him, “Because you have seen Me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book.
But these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name.
John 21
Later, by the Sea of Tiberias, Jesus again revealed Himself to the disciples. He made Himself known in this way:
Simon Peter, Thomas called Didymus, Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together.
Simon Peter told them, “I am going fishing.”
“We will go with you,” they said. So they went out and got into the boat, but caught nothing that night.
Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not recognize that it was Jesus.
So He called out to them, “Children, do you have any fish?”
“No,” they answered.
He told them, “Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they cast it there, and they were unable to haul it in because of the great number of fish.
Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!”
As soon as Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on his outer garment (for he had removed it) and jumped into the sea.
The other disciples came ashore in the boat. They dragged in the net full of fish, for they were not far from land, only about a hundred yards.
When they landed, they saw a charcoal fire there with fish on it, and some bread.
Jesus told them, “Bring some of the fish you have just caught.”
So Simon Peter went aboard and dragged the net ashore. It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many, the net was not torn.
“Come, have breakfast,” Jesus said to them.
None of the disciples dared to ask Him, “Who are You?” They knew it was the Lord.
Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them, and He did the same with the fish.
This was now the third time that Jesus appeared to the disciples after He was raised from the dead.
When they had finished eating, Jesus asked Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love Me more than these?”
“Yes, Lord,” he answered, “You know I love You.”
Jesus replied, “Feed My lambs.”
Jesus asked a second time, “Simon son of John, do you love Me?”
“Yes, Lord,” he answered, “You know I love You.”
Jesus told him, “Shepherd My sheep.”
Jesus asked a third time, “Simon son of John, do you love Me?”
Peter was deeply hurt that Jesus had asked him a third time, “Do you love Me?”
“Lord, You know all things,” he replied. “You know I love You.”
Jesus said to him, “Feed My sheep.
Truly, truly, I tell you, when you were young, you dressed yourself and walked where you wanted; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.”
Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. And after He had said this, He told him, “Follow Me.”
Peter turned and saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following them. He was the one who had leaned back against Jesus at the supper to ask, “Lord, who is going to betray You?”
When Peter saw him, he asked, “Lord, what about him?”
Jesus answered, “If I want him to remain until I return, what is that to you? You follow Me!”
Because of this, the rumor spread among the brothers that this disciple would not die. However, Jesus did not say that he would not die, but only, “If I want him to remain until I return, what is that to you?”
This is the disciple who testifies to these things and who has written them down. And we know that his testimony is true.
There are many more things that Jesus did. If all of them were written down, I suppose that not even the world itself would have space for the books that would be written.
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