1Joseph threw himself on his father and wept over him and kissed him.
4When the period of mourning was over, Joseph approached Pharaoh’s advisers and said, “Please do me this favor and speak to Pharaoh on my behalf.
6Pharaoh agreed to Joseph’s request. “Go and bury your father, as he made you promise,” he said.
10When they arrived at the threshing floor of Atad, near the Jordan River, they held a very great and solemn memorial service, with a seven-day period of mourning for Joseph’s father.
12So Jacob’s sons did as he had commanded them.
14After burying Jacob, Joseph returned to Egypt with his brothers and all who had accompanied him to his father’s burial.
16So they sent this message to Joseph: “Before your father died, he instructed us
19But Joseph replied, “Don’t be afraid of me. Am I God, that I can punish you?
22So Joseph and his brothers and their families continued to live in Egypt. Joseph lived to the age of 110.
24“Soon I will die,” Joseph told his brothers, “but God will surely come to help you and lead you out of this land of Egypt. He will bring you back to the land he solemnly promised to give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.”
25Then Joseph made the sons of Israel swear an oath, and he said, “When God comes to help you and lead you back, you must take my bones with you.”
1These are the names of the sons of Israel (that is, Jacob) who moved to Egypt with their father, each with his family:
6In time, Joseph and all of his brothers died, ending that entire generation.
8Eventually, a new king came to power in Egypt who knew nothing about Joseph or what he had done.
11So the Egyptians made the Israelites their slaves. They appointed brutal slave drivers over them, hoping to wear them down with crushing labor. They forced them to build the cities of Pithom and Rameses as supply centers for the king.
15Then Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, gave this order to the Hebrew midwives, Shiphrah and Puah:
18So the king of Egypt called for the midwives. “Why have you done this?” he demanded. “Why have you allowed the boys to live?”
19“The Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women,” the midwives replied. “They are more vigorous and have their babies so quickly that we cannot get there in time.”
20So God was good to the midwives, and the Israelites continued to multiply, growing more and more powerful.
22Then Pharaoh gave this order to all his people: “Throw every newborn Hebrew boy into the Nile River. But you may let the girls live.”
1About this time, a man and woman from the tribe of Levi got married.
5Soon Pharaoh’s daughter came down to bathe in the river, and her attendants walked along the riverbank. When the princess saw the basket among the reeds, she sent her maid to get it for her.
7Then the baby’s sister approached the princess. “Should I go and find one of the Hebrew women to nurse the baby for you?” she asked.
8“Yes, do!” the princess replied. So the girl went and called the baby’s mother.
9“Take this baby and nurse him for me,” the princess told the baby’s mother. “I will pay you for your help.” So the woman took her baby home and nursed him.
10Later, when the boy was older, his mother brought him back to Pharaoh’s daughter, who adopted him as her own son. The princess named him Moses,*2:10 Moses sounds like a Hebrew term that means “to lift out.” for she explained, “I lifted him out of the water.”
13When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”*16:13 “Son of Man” is a title Jesus used for himself.
14“Well,” they replied, “some say John the Baptist, some say Elijah, and others say Jeremiah or one of the other prophets.”
15Then he asked them, “But who do you say I am?”
16Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah,*16:16 Or the Christ. Messiah (a Hebrew term) and Christ (a Greek term) both mean “anointed one.” the Son of the living God.”
17Jesus replied, “You are blessed, Simon son of John,*16:17 Greek Simon bar-Jonah; see John 1:42; 21:15-17. because my Father in heaven has revealed this to you. You did not learn this from any human being.
20Then he sternly warned the disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.
21From then on Jesus*16:21 Some manuscripts read Jesus the Messiah. began to tell his disciples plainly that it was necessary for him to go to Jerusalem, and that he would suffer many terrible things at the hands of the elders, the leading priests, and the teachers of religious law. He would be killed, but on the third day he would be raised from the dead.
22But Peter took him aside and began to reprimand him*16:22 Or began to correct him. for saying such things. “Heaven forbid, Lord,” he said. “This will never happen to you!”
23Jesus turned to Peter and said, “Get away from me, Satan! You are a dangerous trap to me. You are seeing things merely from a human point of view, not from God’s.”
24Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me.
1Six days later Jesus took Peter and the two brothers, James and John, and led them up a high mountain to be alone.
4Peter exclaimed, “Lord, it’s wonderful for us to be here! If you want, I’ll make three shelters as memorials*17:4 Greek three tabernacles.—one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”
5But even as he spoke, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy. Listen to him.”
7Then Jesus came over and touched them. “Get up,” he said. “Don’t be afraid.”
9As they went back down the mountain, Jesus commanded them, “Don’t tell anyone what you have seen until the Son of Man*17:9 “Son of Man” is a title Jesus used for himself. has been raised from the dead.”
For the choir director: A psalm of David.
1How the king rejoices in your strength, O Lord!
He shouts with joy because you give him victory.
2For you have given him his heart’s desire;
you have withheld nothing he requested.
Interlude
3You welcomed him back with success and prosperity.
You placed a crown of finest gold on his head.
4He asked you to preserve his life,
and you granted his request.
The days of his life stretch on forever.
5Your victory brings him great honor,
and you have clothed him with splendor and majesty.
6You have endowed him with eternal blessings
and given him the joy of your presence.
7For the king trusts in the Lord.
The unfailing love of the Most High will keep him from stumbling.
8You will capture all your enemies.
Your strong right hand will seize all who hate you.
9You will throw them in a flaming furnace
when you appear.
The Lord will consume them in his anger;
fire will devour them.
10You will wipe their children from the face of the earth;
they will never have descendants.
11Although they plot against you,
their evil schemes will never succeed.
12For they will turn and run
when they see your arrows aimed at them.
13Rise up, O Lord, in all your power.
With music and singing we celebrate your mighty acts.
1My son, pay attention to my wisdom;
listen carefully to my wise counsel.
2Then you will show discernment,
and your lips will express what you’ve learned.
3For the lips of an immoral woman are as sweet as honey,
and her mouth is smoother than oil.
4But in the end she is as bitter as poison,
as dangerous as a double-edged sword.
5Her feet go down to death;
her steps lead straight to the grave.*5:5 Hebrew to Sheol.
6For she cares nothing about the path to life.
She staggers down a crooked trail and doesn’t realize it.