Category: Scripture

About this time, a man and a woman from the tribe of Levi got married. The woman became pregnant and gave birth to a son. She say that he was a special baby and kept him hidden for three months. But when she could no longer hide him, she got basket made of papyrus reeds and waterproofed with with tar and pitch. She put the baby in the basket and laid among the reeds along the Nile River. The baby’s sister stood at a distance, watching to see what would happen to him.

Soon Pharaoh’s daughter came down to bathe in the river, and her attendants walked along the river bank. When the princes saw the basket among the reeds, she sent her maid to get it for her. When the princess oened it, she saw the baby. The little boy was crying and she felt sorry for him. “This must be one of the Hebrew children,” she said.

Then the baby’s sister approached the princess. “Should I go find one of the Hebrew women to nurse the baby for you?” she asked.

“Yes, do!” the princes replied.” So the girl went and called the baby’s mother.

“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.

Later, 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, for she explained, “I lifted him out of the water.”(vv. 1-10, NLT)

Then Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, gave this order to the Hebrew midwives, Shiprah and Puah. “When you people help the Hebrew women as they give birth, watch as they deliver. If the baby is a boy, kill him; if it is a girl, let her live.”

But because the midwives feared God, they refused to obey the king’s orders. They allowed the boys to live, too.

So the king of Egypt called for the midwives. “Why have you done this?” he demanded. “Why have you allowed the boys to live?”

“The Hebrew women wer not like the Egyptian women,” the midwives replied. “They are. more vigorous and have their babies quickly so we cannot get there in time.”

So God was good to the midwives, and the Israelites continued to multiply, growing more and more powerful. And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families of their own.

Then Pharaoh gave this order to all his people: “Throw every newborn Hebrew into the Nile River. But you may let the girls live.” (vv. 15-22, NLT)

Eventually, a new king came to power in Egypt who knew nothing about Joseph or what he had done. He said to his people,”Look, the people of Israel now outnumber us and are stronger than we are. We must make a plan to keep them from growing even more. If we don’t and war breaks out, they will join our enemies and fight against us. They will escape from the country.”

So 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 Ramses as supply centers for the king. But the more the Egyptians oppressed them, the more the Israelites multiplied and spread, and the more alarmed the Egyptians became. So the Egyptians worked the people without mercy. They made their lives bitter, forcing them to make their mortar and make bricks and do all the work in the fields. They were ruthless in their demands. (vv. 8-14, NLT)

So Joseph and his brothers and their families continued to live in Egypt. Joseph lived to the age of 110. He lived to see three generations of descendants of his son, Ephraim, and he lived to see the birth of the children of the children of Manasseh’s son, Makir, whom he claimed as his own.

“Soon I will die,” Joseph told his brothers, “but God will surely come to help and lead you our of this land of Egypt. He will bring you back to the and He solemnly promised to give to Abraham, to Issac, and to Jacob.”

Then Joseph made the sons of Israel swear by an oath, and he said, “When God comes to help you and lead you back, you must take my bones with you. So Joseph died at the age of 110. The Egyptians embalmed him and his body was placed in a coffin in Egypt. (vv. 22-26, NLT)

After burying Jacob, Joseph returned to Egypt with his brothers and all who had accompanied him to his father’s burial. But now that their father was dead, Joseph’s brothers became fearful. “Now Joseph will show his anger and pay us back for all the wrong we did to him,” they said.

So they sent a message to Joseph:”Before your father died, he instructed us to say to you: “Please forgive your brothers for the great wrong they did to you-for their sin in treating you so cruelly.’ So we, the servants of the God of your father, beg you to forgive our sin.” When Joseph received the message, he broke down and wept. Then his brothers cam and threw themselves down before Joseph. “Look, we are your slaves!” they said.

But Joseph replied, “Don’t be afraid of me. Am I God, that I can punish you? You tended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me to this position so I could save lives of many people. No, don’t be afraid. I will continue to take care you and your children.” So he reassured them by speaking kindly to them. (vv. 14-21, NLT)

[Jacob’s last words to Judah]

“Judah, your brothers will praise you. You will grasp your enemies by the neck. ALl your relatives will bow before you.

Judah, my son, is a young lion that has finished eating his prey. Like a lion he crouches and lies down; like a lioness-who dares to rouse him: The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from his descendants, until the coming of the one to whim it belongs, the one whom all nations will honor. He ties his donkey to a grapevine, the cold of his donkey to a choice vine. He washes his clothes in wine, his robes in the blood of grapes. His eyes ae darker than wine, and his teeth are whiter than milk.” (vv. 8-12, NLT)

Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Now that your father and brothers have joined you here, choose any place in the entire land of Egypt for them to live. Give them the best the best land of Egypt. Let them live in the region of Goshen. If any of them have special skills, put them in charge my livestock, too.”

Then Joseph brought his father, Jacob, and presented him to Pharaoh. And Jacob blessed Pharaoh.

“How old are you?” Pharaoh asked Jacob.

Jacob replied, “I have traveled this earth 130 hard years. But my life has been short compared to the live of my ancestors.” Then Jacob blessed Pharaoh again before leaving his court. (vv. 5-10, NLT)

As they neared their destination, Jacob sent Judah ahead to meet Joseph and get directions to the region of Goshen. And when they finally arrived there, Joseph prepared his chariot and traveled to Goshen to meet his father, Jacob. When Joseph arrived, he embraced his father and wept, holding him for a long time.

Finally, Jacob said to Joseph, “Now I am ready to die, since I have seen your face again and know that you are still alive.”

And Joseph said to his brothers and to his father’s entire family. “I will go to Pharaoh and tell him, ‘My brothers and my father’s entire family have tom to me from the land of Canaan. These men are shepherds, and they raise livestock. They have brought with them their flocks and herds and everything they own.'”

Then he said, “When Pharaoh calls for you and asks about your occupation, you must tell him, ‘We, your servants have raised livestock all our lives, as our ancestors have always done.’ When you tell him this, he will let you live here in the region of Goshen, for the Egyptians despise shepherds.” (vv. 28-34, NLT)

So Jacob set out for Egypt with all his possessions. And when he came to Beersheba, he offered sacrifices to the God of his father, Issac. During the night God spoke to him in a vision. “Jacob!” he called.

“Here I am,” Jacob replied.

“I am God, the God of your father”, the voice said. “Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for there I will make your family a great nation. I will go with you down to Egypt, and I will bring you back again. You will die in Egypt, but Joseph will be with you to close your eyes.”

So Jacob left Beersheba, and his sons took him to Egypt. They carried with him and their little ones and their wives in the wagons Pharaoh had provided for them. They also took all of the livestock and all the personal belongings they had acquired in the and of Canaan. So Jacob and his entire family went to Egypt-sons and grandsons, daughter and granddaughters-all of his descendants. (vv. 1-7-NLT)

The total number of Jacob’s direct descendants who went with him to Egypt, not counting his sos’s wives, was sixty-six. In addition, Joseph had two sons who were born in Egypt. So all together, there were seventy members of Jacob’s family in the land of Egypt. (vv 26-27, NLT)

The news soon reached Pharaoh’s palace: “Joseph’s brothers have arrived!” Pharaoh and his officials were delighted to hear this.

Pharaoh said to Joseph, ” Tell your brothers, ‘This is what you must do: Load your pack animals , and hurry back to the land of Canaan. Then get your father and all of your families, and return here to me. I will give you the very best land in Egypt, and you will eat from the best that the land produces.”

So the sons of Jacob did as they were told. Joseph provided them with wagons, as Pharaoh had commanded, and he gave them supplies for their journey. And he gave each of them new clothes-but to Benjamin he gave five changes of clothes and 300 pieces of silver. He also sent his father ten male donkeys, and ten female donkeys loaded with grain and bread and other supplies he would need on his journey. (vv. 16-23, NLT)