Through the Bible – Day 10

₁After Isaac had become old and almost blind, he called in his firstborn son Esau, who asked him, “Father, what can I do for you?”

₂Isaac replied, “I am old and might die at any time. ₃So take your bow and arrows, then go out in the fields, and kill a wild animal. ₄Cook some of that tasty food that I love so much and bring it to me. I want to eat it once more and give you my blessing before I die.”

₅Rebekah had been listening, and as soon as Esau left to go hunting, ₆she said to Jacob, “I heard your father tell Esau ₇to kill a wild animal and cook some tasty food for your father before he dies. Your father said this because he wants to bless your brother with the LORD as his witness. ₈Now, my son, listen carefully to what I want you to do. ₉Go and kill two of your best young goats and bring them to me. I'll cook the tasty food that your father loves so much. ₁₀Then you can take it to him, so he can eat it and give you his blessing before he dies.”

₁₁“My brother Esau is a hairy man,” Jacob reminded her. “And I am not. ₁₂If my father touches me and realizes I am trying to trick him, he will put a curse on me instead of giving me a blessing.”

₁₃Rebekah insisted, “Let his curse fall on me! Just do what I say and bring me the meat.” ₁₄So Jacob brought the meat to his mother, and she cooked the tasty food that his father liked. ₁₅Then she took Esau's best clothes and put them on Jacob. ₁₆She also covered the smooth part of his hands and neck with goatskins ₁₇and gave him some bread and the tasty food she had cooked.

₁₈Jacob went to his father and said, “Father, here I am.”

“Which one of my sons are you?” his father asked.

₁₉Jacob replied, “I am Esau, your firstborn, and I have done what you told me. Please sit up and eat the meat I have brought. Then you can give me your blessing.”

₂₀Isaac asked, “My son, how did you find an animal so quickly?”

“The LORD your God was kind to me,” Jacob answered.

₂₁“My son,” Isaac said, “come closer, where I can touch you and find out if you really are Esau.” ₂₂Jacob went closer. His father touched him and said, “You sound like Jacob, but your hands feel hairy like Esau's.” ₂₃And so Isaac blessed Jacob, thinking he was Esau.

₂₄Isaac asked, “Are you really my son Esau?”

“Yes, I am,” Jacob answered.

₂₅So Isaac told him, “Serve me the wild meat, and I can give you my blessing.”

Jacob gave him some meat, and he ate it. He also gave him some wine, and he drank it. ₂₆Then Isaac said, “Son, come over here and kiss me.” ₂₇While Jacob was kissing him, Isaac caught the smell of his clothes and said:

₃₀Straight after Isaac had given Jacob his blessing and Jacob had gone, Esau came back from hunting. ₃₁He cooked the tasty food, brought it to his father, and said, “Father, please sit up and eat the meat I have brought you, so you can give me your blessing.”

₃₂“Who are you?” Isaac asked.

“I am Esau, your firstborn son.”

₃₃Isaac started trembling and said, “Then who brought me some wild meat just before you came in? I ate it and gave him a blessing that cannot be taken back.”

₃₄Esau cried loudly and begged, “Father, give me a blessing too!”

₃₅Isaac answered, “Your brother tricked me and stole your blessing.”

₃₆Esau replied, “My brother deserves the name Jacob, because he has already cheated me twice. The first time he cheated me out of my rights as the firstborn son, and now he has cheated me out of my blessing.” Then Esau asked his father, “Don't you still have any blessing left for me?”

₃₇“My son,” Isaac answered, “I have made Jacob the ruler over you and your brothers, and all of you will be his servants. I have also promised him all the grain and grapes that he needs. There's nothing left that I can do for you.”

₃₈“Father,” Esau asked, “don't you have more than one blessing? You can surely give me a blessing too!” Then Esau started crying again.

₃₉So his father said:

₄₁Esau hated his brother Jacob because he had stolen the blessing that was supposed to be his. So he said to himself, “Just as soon as my father dies, I'll kill Jacob.”

₄₂When Rebekah found out what Esau planned to do, she sent for Jacob and told him, “Son, your brother Esau is just waiting for the time when he can kill you. ₄₃Now listen carefully and do what I say. Go to the home of my brother Laban in Haran ₄₄and stay with him for a while. When Esau stops being angry ₄₅and forgets what you have done to him, I'll send for you to come home. Why should I lose both of my sons on the same day?”

₄₆Rebekah later told Isaac, “Those Hittite wives of Esau are making my life miserable! If Jacob marries a Hittite woman, I'd be better off dead.”

₁Isaac called in Jacob, then gave him a blessing, and said:

₅Isaac then sent Jacob to stay with Rebekah's brother Laban, the son of Bethuel the Aramean.

₆Esau found out that his father Isaac had blessed Jacob and had warned him not to marry any of the Canaanite women. He also learnt that Jacob had been sent to find a wife in northern Syria ₇and that he had obeyed his father and mother. ₈Esau already had several wives, but he realized at last how much his father hated the Canaanite women. ₉So he married Ishmael's daughter Mahalath, who was the sister of Nebaioth and the granddaughter of Abraham.

₁₀Jacob left the town of Beersheba and started out for Haran. ₁₁At sunset he stopped for the night and went to sleep, resting his head on a large rock. ₁₂In a dream he saw a ladder that reached from earth to heaven, and God's angels were going up and down on it.

₁₃The LORD was standing beside the ladder and said:

₁₆Jacob woke up suddenly and thought, “The LORD is in this place, and I didn't even know it.” ₁₇Then Jacob became frightened and said, “This is a fearsome place! It must be the house of God and the ladder to heaven.”

₁₈When Jacob got up early the next morning, he took the rock that he had used for a pillow and stood it up for a place of worship. Then he poured olive oil on the rock to dedicate it to God, ₁₉and he named the place Bethel. Before that it had been named Luz.

₂₀Jacob solemnly promised God, “If you go with me and watch over me as I travel, and if you give me food and clothes ₂₁and bring me safely home again, you will be my God. ₂₂This rock will be your house, and I will give back to you a tenth of everything you give me.”

₁As Jesus came down the mountain, he was followed by large crowds. ₂Suddenly a man with leprosy came and knelt in front of Jesus. He said, “Lord, you have the power to make me well, if only you wanted to.”

₃Jesus put his hand on the man and said, “I want to! Now you are well.” At once the man's leprosy disappeared. ₄Jesus told him, “Don't tell anyone about this, but go and show the priest that you are well. Then take a gift to the temple just as Moses commanded, and everyone will know that you have been healed.”

₅When Jesus was going into the town of Capernaum, an army officer came up to him and said, ₆“Lord, my servant is at home in such terrible pain that he can't even move.”

₇“I will go and heal him,” Jesus replied.

₈But the officer said, “Lord, I'm not good enough for you to come into my house. Just give the order, and my servant will get well. ₉I have officers who give orders to me, and I have soldiers who take orders from me. I can say to one of them, ‘Go!’ and he goes. I can say to another, ‘Come!’ and he comes. I can say to my servant, ‘Do this!’ and he will do it.”

₁₀When Jesus heard this, he was so surprised that he turned and said to the crowd following him, “I tell you that in all of Israel I've never found anyone with this much faith! ₁₁Many people will come from everywhere to enjoy the feast in the kingdom of heaven with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. ₁₂But the ones who should have been in the kingdom will be thrown out into the dark. They will cry and grit their teeth in pain.”

₁₃Then Jesus said to the officer, “You may go home now. Your faith has made it happen.”

At once his servant was healed.

₁₄Jesus went to the home of Peter, where he found that Peter's mother-in-law was sick in bed with fever. ₁₅He took her by the hand, and the fever left her. Then she got up and served Jesus a meal.

₁₆That evening many people with demons in them were brought to Jesus. And with only a word he forced out the evil spirits and healed everyone who was sick. ₁₇So God's promise came true, just as the prophet Isaiah had said,