January 15: Daily Readings & Quote

St. Macarius of Egypt

God gives His Holy Spirit to all, weather celibate or married, in the monastery or in the world, according to how earnest they are in their intention to serve Him.

-St. Macarius of Egypt

Today's readings are:

Genesis 33-36

Mark 6:1-13

1

Jacob looked up and saw Esau coming, accompanied by four hundred men. So he divided his children among Leah, Rachel and the two maidservants,

2

putting the maids and their children first, Leah and her children next, and Rachel and Joseph last.

3

He himself went on ahead of them, bowing to the ground seven times, until he reached his brother.

4

Esau ran to meet him, embraced him, and flinging himself on his neck, kissed him as he wept.

5

When Esau looked about, he saw the women and children. "Who are these with you?" he asked. Jacob answered, "They are the children whom God has graciously bestowed on your servant."

6

Then the maidservants and their children came forward and bowed low;

7

next, Leah and her children came forward and bowed low; lastly, Rachel and her children came forward and bowed low.

8

Then Esau asked, "What did you intend with all those droves that I encountered?" Jacob answered, "It was to gain my lord's favor."

9

"I have plenty," replied Esau; "you should keep what is yours, brother."

10

"No, I beg you!" said Jacob. "If you will do me the favor, please accept this gift from me, since to come into your presence is for me like coming into the presence of God, now that you have received me so kindly.

11

Do accept the present I have brought you; God has been generous toward me, and I have an abundance." Since he so urged him, Esau accepted.

12

Then Esau said, "Let us break camp and be on our way; I will travel alongside you."

13

But Jacob replied: "As my lord can see, the children are frail. Besides, I am encumbered with the flocks and herds, which now have sucklings; if overdriven for a single day, the whole flock will die.

14

Let my lord, then, go on ahead of me, while I proceed more slowly at the pace of the livestock before me and at the pace of my children, until I join my lord in Seir."

15

Esau replied, "Let me at least put at your disposal some of the men who are with me." But Jacob said, "For what reason? Please indulge me in this, my lord."

16

So on the same day that Esau began his journey back to Seir,

17

¹ Jacob journeyed to Succoth. There he built a home for himself and made booths for his livestock. That is why the place was called Succoth.

18

Having thus come from Paddan-aram, Jacob arrived safely at the city of Shechem, which is in the land of Canaan, and he encamped in sight of the city.

19

² The plot of ground on which he had pitched his tent he bought for a hundred pieces of bullion from the descendants of Hamor, the founder of Shechem.

20

He set up a memorial stone there and invoked "El, the God of Israel."

1

¹ Dinah, the daughter whom Leah had borne to Jacob, went out to visit some of the women of the land.

2

² When Shechem, son of Hamor the Hivite, who was chief of the region, saw her, he seized her and lay with her by force.

3

Since he was strongly attracted to Dinah, daughter of Jacob, indeed was really in love with the girl, he endeavored to win her affection.

4

Shechem also asked his father Hamor, "Get me this girl for a wife."

5

Meanwhile, Jacob heard that Shechem had defiled his daughter Dinah; but since his sons were out in the fields with his livestock, he held his peace until they came home.

6

Now Hamor, the father of Shechem, went out to discuss the matter with Jacob,

7

just as Jacob's sons were coming in from the fields. When they heard the news, the men were shocked and seethed with indignation. What Shechem had done was an outrage in Israel; such a thing could not be tolerated.

8

Hamor appealed to them, saying: "My son Shechem has his heart set on your daughter. Please give her to him in marriage.

9

Intermarry with us; give your daughters to us, and take our daughters for yourselves.

10

Thus you can live among us. The land is open before you; you can settle and move about freely in it, and acquire landed property here."

11

Then Shechem, too, appealed to Dinah's father and brothers: "Do me this favor, and I will pay whatever you demand of me.

12

No matter how high you set the bridal price, I will pay you whatever you ask; only give me the maiden in marriage."

13

Jacob's sons replied to Shechem and his father Hamor with guile, speaking as they did because their sister Dinah had been defiled.

14

"We could not do such a thing," they said, "as to give our sister to an uncircumcised man; that would be a disgrace for us.

15

We will agree with you only on this condition, that you become like us by having every male among you circumcised.

16

Then we will give you our daughters and take yours in marriage; we will settle among you and become one kindred people with you.

17

But if you do not comply with our terms regarding circumcision, we will take our daughter and go away."

18

Their proposal seemed fair to Hamor and his son Shechem.

19

The young man lost no time in acting in the matter, since he was deeply in love with Jacob's daughter. Moreover he was more highly respected than anyone else in his clan.

20

So Hamor and his son Shechem went to their town council and thus presented the matter to their fellow townsmen:

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"These men are friendly toward us. Let them settle in the land and move about in it freely; there is ample room in the country for them. We can marry their daughters and give our daughters to them in marriage.

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But the men will agree to live with us and form one kindred people with us only on this condition, that every male among us be circumcised as they themselves are.

23

Would not the livestock they have acquired--all their animals--then be ours? Let us, therefore, give in to them, so that they may settle among us."

24

³ All the able-bodied men of the town agreed with Hamor and his son Shechem, and all the males, including every able-bodied man in the community, were circumcised.

25

On the third day, while they were still in pain, Dinah's full brothers Simeon and Levi, two of Jacob's sons, took their swords, advanced against the city without any trouble, and massacred all the males.

26

After they had put Hamor and his son Shechem to the sword, they took Dinah from Shechem's house and left.

27

Then the other sons of Jacob followed up the slaughter and sacked the city in reprisal for their sister Dinah's defilement.

28

They seized their flocks, herds and asses, whatever was in the city and in the country around.

29

They carried off all their wealth, their women, and their children, and took for loot whatever was in the houses.

30

Jacob said to Simeon and Levi: "You have brought trouble upon me by making me loathsome to the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites and the Perizzites. I have so few men that, if these people unite against me and attack me, I and my family will be wiped out."

31

But they retorted, "Should our sister have been treated like a harlot?"

1

God said to Jacob: "Go up now to Bethel. Settle there and build an altar there to the God who appeared to you while you were fleeing from your brother Esau."

2

¹ So Jacob told his family and all the others who were with him: "Get rid of the foreign gods that you have among you; then purify yourselves and put on fresh clothes.

3

We are now to go up to Bethel, and I will build an altar there to the God who answered me in my hour of distress and who has been with me wherever I have gone."

4

² They therefore handed over to Jacob all the foreign gods in their possession and also the rings they had in their ears.

5

Then, as they set out, a terror from God fell upon the towns round about, so that no one pursued the sons of Jacob.

6

Thus Jacob and all the people who were with him arrived in Luz (that is, Bethel) in the land of Canaan.

7

There he built an altar and named the place Bethel, for it was there that God had revealed himself to him when he was fleeing from his brother.

8

³ Death came to Rebekah's nurse Deborah; she was buried under the oak below Bethel, and so it was called Allonbacuth.

9

On Jacob's arrival from Paddan-aram, God appeared to him again and blessed him.

10

God said to him: "You whose name is Jacob shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel shall be your name." Thus he was named Israel.

11

God also said to him: "I am God Almighty; be fruitful and multiply. A nation, indeed an assembly of nations, shall stem from you, and kings shall issue from your loins.

12

The land I once gave to Abraham and Isaac I now give to you; And to your descendants after you will I give this land."

13

Then God departed from him.

14

On the site where God had spoken with him, Jacob set up a memorial stone, and upon it he made a libation and poured out oil.

15

Jacob named the site Bethel, because God had spoken with him there.

16

Then they departed from Bethel; but while they still had some distance to go on the way to Ephrath, Rachel began to be in labor and to suffer great distress.

17

When her pangs were most severe, her midwife said to her, "Have no fear! This time, too, you have a son."

18

⁴ With her last breath--for she was at the point of death-she called him Ben-oni; his father, however, named him Benjamin.

19

⁵ Thus Rachel died; and she was buried on the road to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem).

20

Jacob set up a memorial stone on her grave, and the same monument marks Rachel's grave to this day.

21

Israel moved on and pitched his tent beyond Migdal-eder.

22

While Israel was encamped in that region, Reuben went and lay with Bilhah, his father's concubine. When Israel heard of it, he was greatly offended. The sons of Jacob were now twelve.

23

The sons of Leah: Reuben, Jacob's first-born, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun;

24

⁶ the sons of Rachel: Joseph and Benjamin;

25

the sons of Rachel's maid Bilhah: Dan and Naphtali;

26

the sons of Leah's maid Zilpah: Gad and Asher. These are the sons of Jacob who were born to him in Paddan-aram.

27

Jacob went home to his father Isaac at Mamre, in Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron), where Abraham and Isaac had stayed.

28

The lifetime of Isaac was one hundred and eighty years;

29

then he breathed his last. After a full life, he died as an old man and was taken to his kinsmen. His sons Esau and Jacob buried him.

1

These are the descendants of Esau (that is, Edom).

2

¹ Esau took his wives from among the Canaanite women: Adah, daughter of Elon the Hittite; Oholibamah, granddaughter through Anah of Zibeon the Hivite;

3

and Basemath, daughter of Ishmael and sister of Nebaioth.

4

Adah bore Eliphaz to Esau; Basemath bore Reuel;

5

and Oholibamah bore Jeush, Jalam and Korah. These are the sons of Esau who were born to him in the land of Canaan.

6

Esau took his wives, his sons, his daughters, and all the members of his household, as well as his livestock comprising various animals and all the property he had acquired in the land of Canaan, and went to the land of Seir, out of the way of his brother Jacob.

7

Their possessions had become too great for them to dwell together, and the land in which they were staying could not support them because of their livestock.

8

So Esau settled in the highlands of Seir. (Esau is Edom.)

9

These are the descendants of Esau, ancestor of the Edomites, in the highlands of Seir.

10

These are the names of Esau's sons: Eliphaz, son of Esau's wife Adah; and Reuel, son of Esau's wife Basemath.

11

The sons of Eliphaz were Teman, Omar, Zepho, Gatam, and Kenaz.

12

(Esau's son Eliphaz had a concubine Timna, and she bore Amalek to Eliphaz.) These are the descendants of Esau's wife Adah.

13

The sons of Reuel were Nahath, Zerah, Shammah, and Mizzah. These are the descendants of Esau's wife Basemath.

14

The descendants of Esau's wife Oholibamah--granddaughter through Anah of Zibeon--whom she bore to Esau were Jeush, Jalam, and Korah.

15

The following are the clans of Esau's descendants. The descendants of Eliphaz, Esau's first-born: the clans of Teman, Omar, Zepho, Kenaz,

16

Korah, Gatam, and Amalek. These are the clans of Eliphaz in the land of Edom; they are descended from Adah.

17

The descendants of Esau's son Reuel: the clans of Nahath, Zerah, Shammah, and Mizzah. These are the clans of Reuel in the land of Edom; they are descended from Esau's wife Basemath.

18

The descendants of Esau's wife Oholibamah: the clans of Jeush, Jalam, and Korah. These are the clans of Esau's wife Oholibamah, daughter of Anah.

19

Such are the descendants of Esau (that is, Edom) according to their clans.

20

² The following are the descendants of Seir the Horite, the original settlers in the land: Lotan, Shobal, Zibeon, Anah,

21

Dishon, Ezer, and Dishan; they are the Horite clans descended from Seir, in the land of Edom.

22

Lotan's descendants were Hori and Hemam, and Lotan's sister was Timna.

23

Shobal's descendants were Alvan, Mahanath, Ebal, Shepho, and Onam.

24

Zibeon's descendants were Aiah and Anah. (He is the Anah who found water in the desert while he was pasturing the asses of his father Zibeon.)

25

The descendants of Anah were Dishon and Oholibamah, daughter of Anah.

26

The descendants of Dishon were Hemdan, Eshban, Ithran, and Cheran.

27

The descendants of Ezer were Bilhan, Zaavan, and Akan.

28

The descendants of Dishan were Uz and Aran.

29

These are the Horite clans: the clans of Lotan, Shobal, Zibeon, Anah,

30

Dishon, Ezer, and Dishan; they were the clans of the Horites, clan by clan, in the land of Seir.

31

³ The following are the kings who reigned in the land of Edom before any king reigned over the Israelites.

32

Bela, son of Beor, became king in Edom; the name of his city was Dinhabah.

33

When Bela died, Jobab, son of Zerah, from Bozrah, succeeded him as king.

34

When Jobab died, Husham, from the land of the Temanites, succeeded him as king. He defeated the Midianites in the country of Moab; the name of his city was Avith.

35

When Husham died, Hadad, son of Bedad, succeeded him as king.

36

When Hadad died, Samlah, from Masrekah, succeeded him as king.

37

When Samlah died, Shaul, from Rehoboth-on-the-River, succeeded him as king.

38

When Shaul died, Baal-hanan, son of Achbor, succeeded him as king.

39

When Baal-hanan died, Hadar succeeded him as king; the name of his city was Pau. (His wife's name was Mehetabel; she was the daughter of Matred, son of Mezahab.)

40

The following are the names of the clans of Esau individually according to their subdivisions and localities: the clans of Timna, Alvah, Jetheth,

41

Oholibamah, Elah, Pinon,

42

Kenaz, Teman, Mibzar,

43

Magdiel, and Iram. These are the clans of the Edomites, according to their settlements in their territorial holdings. (Esau was the father of the Edomites.)

1

He departed from there and came to his native place, ¹ accompanied by his disciples.

2

² When the sabbath came he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were astonished. They said, "Where did this man get all this? What kind of wisdom has been given him? What mighty deeds are wrought by his hands!

3

Is he not the carpenter, ³ the son of Mary, and the brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? And are not his sisters here with us?" And they took offense at him.

4

⁴ Jesus said to them, "A prophet is not without honor except in his native place and among his own kin and in his own house."

5

So he was not able to perform any mighty deed there, ⁵ apart from curing a few sick people by laying his hands on them.

6

He was amazed at their lack of faith. He went around to the villages in the vicinity teaching.

7

He summoned the Twelve ⁶ and began to send them out two by two and gave them authority over unclean spirits.

8

⁷ He instructed them to take nothing for the journey but a walking stick--no food, no sack, no money in their belts.

9

They were, however, to wear sandals but not a second tunic.

10

⁸ He said to them, "Wherever you enter a house, stay there until you leave from there.

11

Whatever place does not welcome you or listen to you, leave there and shake the dust off your feet in testimony against them."

12

So they went off and preached repentance.

13

⁹ They drove out many demons, and they anointed with oil many who were sick and cured them.