The Daily Audio Bible
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Jacob Searches for a Wife
28 Isaac called Jacob and blessed him. Then Isaac commanded him, “You must not marry a Canaanite woman. 2 Go to the house of Bethuel, your mother’s father, in Northwest Mesopotamia. Laban, your mother’s brother, lives there. Marry one of his daughters. 3 May God All-Powerful bless you and give you many children. May you become the father of many peoples. 4 May the Lord give you and your descendants the blessing of Abraham. Then you may own the land where you are now living as a stranger. This is the land God gave to Abraham.” 5 So Isaac sent Jacob to Northwest Mesopotamia. Jacob went to Laban, the brother of Rebekah. Bethuel, the Aramean, was the father of Laban and Rebekah. And Rebekah was the mother of Jacob and Esau.
6 Esau learned that Isaac had blessed Jacob and sent him to Northwest Mesopotamia. Jacob went to find a wife there. Esau also learned that Isaac had commanded Jacob not to marry a Canaanite woman. 7 And Esau learned that Jacob had obeyed his father and mother. He had gone to Northwest Mesopotamia. 8 So Esau saw that his father Isaac did not want his sons to marry Canaanite women. 9 Now Esau already had wives. But he went to Ishmael son of Abraham. And he married Mahalath, Ishmael’s daughter. Mahalath was the sister of Nebaioth.
Jacob’s Dream at Bethel
10 Jacob left Beersheba and set out for Haran. 11 He came to a place and spent the night there because the sun had set. He found a stone there and laid his head on it to go to sleep. 12 Jacob dreamed that there was a ladder resting on the earth and reaching up into heaven. And he saw angels of God going up and coming down the ladder. 13 And then Jacob saw the Lord standing above the ladder. The Lord said, “I am the Lord, the God of Abraham, your grandfather. And I am the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are now sleeping. 14 Your descendants will be as many as the dust of the earth. They will spread west and east, north and south. All the families of the earth will be blessed through you and your descendants. 15 I am with you, and I will protect you everywhere you go. And I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”
16 Then Jacob woke from his sleep. He said, “Surely the Lord is in this place. But I did not know it.” 17 Jacob was afraid. He said, “This place frightens me! It is surely the house of God and the gate of heaven.”
18 Jacob rose early in the morning. He took the stone he had slept on and set it up on its end. Then he poured olive oil on the top of it. 19 At first, the name of that city was Luz. But Jacob named it Bethel.[a]
20 Then Jacob made a promise. He said, “I want God to be with me and protect me on this journey. I want God to give me food to eat and clothes to wear. 21 Then I will be able to return in peace to my father’s house. If the Lord does these things, he will be my God. 22 This stone which I have set up on its end will be the house of God. And I will give God one-tenth of all he gives me.”
Jacob Arrives in Northwest Mesopotamia
29 Then Jacob continued his journey. He came to the land of the people of the East. 2 He looked and saw a well in the field. Three flocks of sheep were lying nearby, because they drank water from this well. A large stone covered the mouth of the well. 3 All the flocks would gather there. The shepherds would roll the stone away from the well and water the sheep. Then they would put the stone back in its place.
4 Jacob said to the shepherds there, “My brothers, where are you from?”
They answered, “We are from Haran.”
5 Then Jacob asked, “Do you know Laban grandson of Nahor?”
They answered, “We know him.”
6 Then Jacob asked, “How is he?”
They answered, “He is well. Look, his daughter Rachel is coming now with his sheep.”
7 Jacob said, “But look, it is still the middle part of the day. It is not time for the sheep to be gathered for the night. So give them water and let them go back into the pasture.”
8 But they said, “We cannot do that until all the flocks are gathered. Then we will roll away the stone from the mouth of the well and water the sheep.”
9 While Jacob was talking with the shepherds, Rachel came with her father’s sheep. It was her job to take care of the sheep. 10 Then Jacob saw Laban’s daughter Rachel and Laban’s sheep. So he went to the well and rolled the stone from its mouth. Then he watered Laban’s sheep. Now Laban was the brother of Rebekah, Jacob’s mother. 11 Then Jacob kissed Rachel and cried. 12 He told her that he was from her father’s family. He said that he was the son of Rebekah. So Rachel ran home and told her father.
13 When Laban heard the news about his sister’s son Jacob, Laban ran to meet him. Laban hugged him and kissed him and brought him to his house. Jacob told Laban everything that had happened.
14 Then Laban said, “You are my own flesh and blood.”
Jacob Is Tricked
So Jacob stayed there a month. 15 Then Laban said to Jacob, “You are my relative. But it is not right for you to keep on working for me without pay. What would you like me to pay you?”
16 Now Laban had two daughters. The older was Leah, and the younger was Rachel. 17 Leah had weak eyes, but Rachel was very beautiful. 18 Jacob loved Rachel. So he said to Laban, “Let me marry your younger daughter Rachel. If you will, I will work seven years for you.”
19 Laban said, “It would be better for her to marry you than someone else. So stay here with me.” 20 So Jacob worked for Laban seven years so he could marry Rachel. But they seemed to him like just a few days. This was because he loved Rachel very much.
21 After seven years Jacob said to Laban, “Give me Rachel so that I may marry her. The time I promised to work for you is over.”
22 So Laban gave a feast for all the people there. 23 That evening Laban brought his daughter Leah to Jacob. Jacob and Leah had intimate relations together. 24 (Laban gave his slave girl Zilpah to his daughter to be her servant.) 25 In the morning Jacob saw that he had had intimate relations with Leah! He said to Laban, “What have you done to me? I worked hard for you so that I could marry Rachel! Why did you trick me?”
26 Laban said, “In our country we do not allow the younger daughter to marry before the older daughter. 27 But complete the full week of the marriage ceremony with Leah. I will give you Rachel to marry also. But you must serve me another seven years.”
28 So Jacob did this and completed the week with Leah. Then Laban gave him his daughter Rachel as a wife. 29 (Laban gave his slave girl Bilhah to his daughter Rachel to be her servant.) 30 So Jacob had intimate relations with Rachel also. And Jacob loved Rachel more than Leah. Jacob worked for Laban for another seven years.
Jacob’s Family Grows
31 The Lord saw that Jacob loved Rachel more than Leah. So the Lord made it possible for Leah to have children. But Rachel did not have any children. 32 Leah became pregnant and gave birth to a son. She named him Reuben,[b] because she said, “The Lord has seen my troubles. Surely now my husband will love me.”
33 Leah became pregnant again and gave birth to another son. She named him Simeon.[c] She said, “The Lord has heard that I am not loved. So he gave me this son.”
34 Leah became pregnant again and gave birth to another son. She named him Levi.[d] Leah said, “Now, surely my husband will be close to me. I have given him three sons.”
35 Then Leah gave birth to another son. She named him Judah.[e] Leah named him this because she said, “Now I will praise the Lord.” Then Leah stopped having children.
Jesus Gives Life to a Dead Girl and Heals a Sick Woman
18 While Jesus was saying these things, a ruler of the synagogue came to him. The ruler bowed down before Jesus and said, “My daughter has just died. But come and touch her with your hand, and she will live again.”
19 So Jesus stood up and went with the ruler. Jesus’ followers went too.
20 Then a woman who had been bleeding for 12 years came behind Jesus and touched the edge of his coat. 21 She was thinking, “If I can touch his coat, then I will be healed.”
22 Jesus turned and saw the woman. He said, “Be happy, dear woman. You are made well because you believed.” And the woman was healed at once.
23 Jesus continued along with the ruler and went into the ruler’s house. Jesus saw people there who play music for funerals. And he saw many people there crying. 24 Jesus said, “Go away. The girl is not dead. She is only asleep.” But the people laughed at Jesus. 25 After the crowd had been put outside, Jesus went into the girl’s room. He took her hand, and she stood up. 26 The news about this spread all around the area.
Jesus Heals More People
27 When Jesus was leaving there, two blind men followed him. They cried out, “Show kindness to us, Son of David!”
28 Jesus went inside, and the blind men went with him. He asked the men, “Do you believe that I can make you see again?”
They answered, “Yes, Lord.”
29 Then Jesus touched their eyes and said, “You believe that I can make you see again. So this will happen.” 30 Then the men were able to see. But Jesus warned them very strongly, saying, “Don’t tell anyone about this.” 31 But the blind men left and spread the news about Jesus all around that area.
32 When the two men were leaving, some people brought another man to Jesus. This man could not talk because he had a demon in him. 33 Jesus forced the demon to leave the man. Then the man who couldn’t talk was able to speak. The crowd was amazed and said, “We have never seen anything like this in Israel.”
34 But the Pharisees said, “The leader of demons is the one that gives him power to force demons out.”
35 Jesus traveled through all the towns and villages. He taught in their synagogues and told people the Good News about the kingdom. And he healed all kinds of diseases and sicknesses. 36 He saw the crowds of people and felt sorry for them because they were worried and helpless. They were like sheep without a shepherd. 37 Jesus said to his followers, “There are many people to harvest, but there are only a few workers to help harvest them. 38 God owns the harvest. Pray to him that he will send more workers to help gather his harvest.”[a]
A Statement About Trust in God
For the director of music. Of David.
11 I trust in the Lord for protection.
So why do you say to me,
“Fly like a bird to your mountain.
2 Like hunters, the wicked string their bows.
They set their arrows on the bowstrings.
They shoot from dark places
at those who are honest.
3 When all that is good falls apart,
what can good people do?”
4 The Lord is in his holy temple.
The Lord sits on his throne in heaven.
And he sees what people do.
He keeps his eye on them.
5 The Lord tests those who do right.
But he hates the wicked and those who love to hurt others.
6 He will send hot coals on the wicked.
Burning sulfur and a whirlwind is what they will get.
7 The Lord does what is right, and he loves justice.
So honest people will see his face.
11 My child, do not reject the Lord’s discipline.
And don’t become angry when he corrects you.
12 The Lord corrects those he loves,
just as a father corrects the child that he likes.
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.