17th January

¹ And when Rachel saw that she bare Jacob no children, Rachel envied her sister; and said unto Jacob, Give me children, or else I die.² And Jacob's anger was kindled against Rachel: and he said, Am I in God's stead, who hath withheld from thee the fruit of the womb?³ And she said, Behold my maid Bilhah, go in unto her; and she shall bear upon my knees, that I may also have children by her.⁴ And she gave him Bilhah her handmaid to wife: and Jacob went in unto her.⁵ And Bilhah conceived, and bare Jacob a son.⁶ And Rachel said, God hath judged me, and hath also heard my voice, and hath given me a son: therefore called she his name Dan.⁷ And Bilhah Rachel's maid conceived again, and bare Jacob a second son.⁸ And Rachel said, With great wrestlings have I wrestled with my sister, and I have prevailed: and she called his name Naphtali.⁹ When Leah saw that she had left bearing, she took Zilpah her maid, and gave her Jacob to wife.¹⁰ And Zilpah Leah's maid bare Jacob a son.¹¹ And Leah said, A troop cometh: and she called his name Gad.¹² And Zilpah Leah's maid bare Jacob a second son.¹³ And Leah said, Happy am I, for the daughters will call me blessed: and she called his name Asher.¹⁴ And Reuben went in the days of wheat harvest, and found mandrakes in the field, and brought them unto his mother Leah. Then Rachel said to Leah, Give me, I pray thee, of thy son's mandrakes.¹⁵ And she said unto her, Is it a small matter that thou hast taken my husband? and wouldest thou take away my son's mandrakes also? And Rachel said, Therefore he shall lie with thee to night for thy son's mandrakes.¹⁶ And Jacob came out of the field in the evening, and Leah went out to meet him, and said, Thou must come in unto me; for surely I have hired thee with my son's mandrakes. And he lay with her that night.¹⁷ And God hearkened unto Leah, and she conceived, and bare Jacob the fifth son.¹⁸ And Leah said, God hath given me my hire, because I have given my maiden to my husband: and she called his name Issachar.¹⁹ And Leah conceived again, and bare Jacob the sixth son.²⁰ And Leah said, God hath endued me with a good dowry; now will my husband dwell with me, because I have born him six sons: and she called his name Zebulun.²¹ And afterwards she bare a daughter, and called her name Dinah.²² And God remembered Rachel, and God hearkened to her, and opened her womb.²³ And she conceived, and bare a son; and said, God hath taken away my reproach:²⁴ And she called his name Joseph; and said, The LORD shall add to me another son.²⁵ And it came to pass, when Rachel had born Joseph, that Jacob said unto Laban, Send me away, that I may go unto mine own place, and to my country.²⁶ Give me my wives and my children, for whom I have served thee, and let me go: for thou knowest my service which I have done thee.²⁷ And Laban said unto him, I pray thee, if I have found favour in thine eyes, tarry: for I have learned by experience that the LORD hath blessed me for thy sake.²⁸ And he said, Appoint me thy wages, and I will give it.²⁹ And he said unto him, Thou knowest how I have served thee, and how thy cattle was with me.³⁰ For it was little which thou hadst before I came, and it is now increased unto a multitude; and the LORD hath blessed thee since my coming: and now when shall I provide for mine own house also?³¹ And he said, What shall I give thee? And Jacob said, Thou shalt not give me any thing: if thou wilt do this thing for me, I will again feed and keep thy flock.³² I will pass through all thy flock to day, removing from thence all the speckled and spotted cattle, and all the brown cattle among the sheep, and the spotted and speckled among the goats: and of such shall be my hire.³³ So shall my righteousness answer for me in time to come, when it shall come for my hire before thy face: every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats, and brown among the sheep, that shall be counted stolen with me.³⁴ And Laban said, Behold, I would it might be according to thy word.³⁵ And he removed that day the he goats that were ringstraked and spotted, and all the she goats that were speckled and spotted, and every one that had some white in it, and all the brown among the sheep, and gave them into the hand of his sons.³⁶ And he set three days' journey betwixt himself and Jacob: and Jacob fed the rest of Laban's flocks.³⁷ And Jacob took him rods of green poplar, and of the hazel and chesnut tree; and pilled white strakes in them, and made the white appear which was in the rods.³⁸ And he set the rods which he had pilled before the flocks in the gutters in the watering troughs when the flocks came to drink, that they should conceive when they came to drink.³⁹ And the flocks conceived before the rods, and brought forth cattle ringstraked, speckled, and spotted.⁴⁰ And Jacob did separate the lambs, and set the faces of the flocks toward the ringstraked, and all the brown in the flock of Laban; and he put his own flocks by themselves, and put them not unto Laban's cattle.⁴¹ And it came to pass, whensoever the stronger cattle did conceive, that Jacob laid the rods before the eyes of the cattle in the gutters, that they might conceive among the rods.⁴² But when the cattle were feeble, he put them not in: so the feebler were Laban's, and the stronger Jacob's.⁴³ And the man increased exceedingly, and had much cattle, and maidservants, and menservants, and camels, and asses.

¹ I will bless the LORD at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth.² My soul shall make her boast in the LORD: the humble shall hear thereof, and be glad.³ O magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt his name together.⁴ I sought the LORD, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.⁵ They looked unto him, and were lightened: and their faces were not ashamed.⁶ This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles.⁷ The angel of the LORD encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them.⁸ O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him.⁹ O fear the LORD, ye his saints: for there is no want to them that fear him.¹⁰ The young lions do lack, and suffer hunger: but they that seek the LORD shall not want any good thing.¹¹ Come, ye children, hearken unto me: I will teach you the fear of the LORD.¹² What man is he that desireth life, and loveth many days, that he may see good?¹³ Keep thy tongue from evil, and thy lips from speaking guile.¹⁴ Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it.¹⁵ The eyes of the LORD are upon the righteous, and his ears are open unto their cry.¹⁶ The face of the LORD is against them that do evil, to cut off the remembrance of them from the earth.¹⁷ The righteous cry, and the LORD heareth, and delivereth them out of all their troubles.¹⁸ The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.¹⁹ Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the LORD delivereth him out of them all.²⁰ He keepeth all his bones: not one of them is broken.²¹ Evil shall slay the wicked: and they that hate the righteous shall be desolate.²² The LORD redeemeth the soul of his servants: and none of them that trust in him shall be desolate.

¹ And it came to pass, that when Jesus had finished these sayings, he departed from Galilee, and came into the coasts of Judaea beyond Jordan;² And great multitudes followed him; and he healed them there.³ The Pharisees also came unto him, tempting him, and saying unto him, Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife for every cause?⁴ And he answered and said unto them, Have ye not read, that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female,⁵ And said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh?⁶ Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.⁷ They say unto him, Why did Moses then command to give a writing of divorcement, and to put her away?⁸ He saith unto them, Moses because of the hardness of your hearts suffered you to put away your wives: but from the beginning it was not so.⁹ And I say unto you, Whosoever shall put away his wife, except it be for fornication, and shall marry another, committeth adultery: and whoso marrieth her which is put away doth commit adultery.¹⁰ His disciples say unto him, If the case of the man be so with his wife, it is not good to marry.¹¹ But he said unto them, All men cannot receive this saying, save they to whom it is given.¹² For there are some eunuchs, which were so born from their mother's womb: and there are some eunuchs, which were made eunuchs of men: and there be eunuchs, which have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake. He that is able to receive it, let him receive it.¹³ Then were there brought unto him little children, that he should put his hands on them, and pray: and the disciples rebuked them.¹⁴ But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven.¹⁵ And he laid his hands on them, and departed thence.¹⁶ And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?¹⁷ And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.¹⁸ He saith unto him, Which? Jesus said, Thou shalt do no murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness,¹⁹ Honour thy father and thy mother: and, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.²⁰ The young man saith unto him, All these things have I kept from my youth up: what lack I yet?²¹ Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me.²² But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions.²³ Then said Jesus unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven.²⁴ And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.²⁵ When his disciples heard it, they were exceedingly amazed, saying, Who then can be saved?²⁶ But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.²⁷ Then answered Peter and said unto him, Behold, we have forsaken all, and followed thee; what shall we have therefore?²⁸ And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.²⁹ And every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name's sake, shall receive an hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life.³⁰ But many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first.