Today’s reading. (Last post for Genesis. Congrats everyone!) (Sorry for the late post. The Prince concert last night was awesome.) Here we get to see what takes place after Israel dies. His children keep their word to him and carry his body back to the land of Canaan to be buried alongside his fathers. He… Read More ›

Today’s reading. God always keeps his promises. In Genesis 12, God made several promises to Abraham. He promised to make him a “great nation” (12:2). He promised to bless those who bless him and curse those who curse him, and that in him “all the families of the earth shall be blessed” (12:3). And he… Read More ›

Today’s reading. In this chapter and the next, Jacob is saying his dying blessings over his sons. Here, he blesses Joseph’s two sons as his own, showing special favor to his grandchildren through Joseph, giving them the status as tribes in the nation of Israel. Joseph is careful to make sure the right sons are… Read More ›

Today’s reading. (Just a few more readings in Genesis! It’s been a blessing to go through it with you all.) The story is beginning to wrap up now. Jacob and his family settles down in Egypt, and the plot is being set up in “to be continued…” fashion. We will leave the promised family in… Read More ›

Today’s reading. The focus of the story shifts from Egypt back to the land of Canaan, where Jacob is. Now, if I were Jacob, and I thought about all it took me to get back to live in the land that God promised to give to me and my descendants (think Laban, getting past Esau),… Read More ›

Today’s reading. Finally, Joseph reveals his identity, and the human race gets its first glimpse of what will one day be known as the daytime talk show. (This week’s episode: “You thought I was a powerful foreign ruler. Surprise! I’m your brother!”) Makes you wonder what the Egyptians in the next room (45:2) thought of… Read More ›

Today’s reading. A lot happens in these two chapters. Israel and family run out of food again, and he sends his sons back to Egypt to get some. This time, the brothers bring Benjamin with them, with the warning that losing Joseph’s only full brother will bring his “gray hairs… with sorrow to Sheol” (44:31)…. Read More ›

Today’s reading. Most of the biblical narratives are bare bones in their detail. So, when you get details of any kind, they shine through all the more. Which is why I love the first verse. Jacob says to his sons when he finds out there’s grain in Egypt, “Why do you look at one another?”… Read More ›

Today’s reading. Finally, Joseph the victim becomes Joseph the victor. He goes from slave and prisoner to doing for Pharaoh what no one else in Egypt could do. He becomes Pharaoh’s right-hand man; Pharaoh even tells him that all his people will kiss the ground at his command (41:40, see ESV note on the Hebrew)…. Read More ›

Today’s reading. Through his whole life story so far, God is making sure that Joseph believes what he says in verse 8: “Do not interpretations belong to God?” Were I with Joseph, I would interpret what takes place in Genesis 40 as God finally getting to give him a break. So far, he’s gone from… Read More ›