Genesis 39; Genesis 40; Matthew 11

1 Now the Ishmaelites had taken Joseph to Egypt and sold him to Potiphar, one of the king's officers, who was the captain of the palace guard.

2 The Lord was with Joseph and made him successful. He lived in the house of his Egyptian master,

3 who saw that the Lord was with Joseph and had made him successful in everything he did.

4 Potiphar was pleased with him and made him his personal servant; so he put him in charge of his house and everything he owned.

5 From then on, because of Joseph the Lord blessed the household of the Egyptian and everything that he had in his house and in his fields.

6 Potiphar turned over everything he had to the care of Joseph and did not concern himself with anything except the food he ate. Joseph was well-built and good-looking,

7 and after a while his master's wife began to desire Joseph and asked him to go to bed with her.

8 He refused and said to her, "Look, my master does not have to concern himself with anything in the house, because I am here. He has put me in charge of everything he has.

9 I have as much authority in this house as he has, and he has not kept back anything from me except you. How then could I do such an immoral thing and sin against God?"

10 Although she asked Joseph day after day, he would not go to bed with her.

11 But one day when Joseph went into the house to do his work, none of the house servants was there.

12 She caught him by his robe and said, "Come to bed with me." But he escaped and ran outside, leaving his robe in her hand.

13 When she saw that he had left his robe and had run out of the house,

14 she called to her house servants and said, "Look at this! This Hebrew that my husband brought to the house is insulting us. He came into my room and tried to rape me, but I screamed as loud as I could.

15 When he heard me scream, he ran outside, leaving his robe beside me."

16 She kept his robe with her until Joseph's master came home.

17 Then she told him the same story: "That Hebrew slave that you brought here came into my room and insulted me.

18 But when I screamed, he ran outside, leaving his robe beside me."

19 Joseph's master was furious

20 and had Joseph arrested and put in the prison where the king's prisoners were kept, and there he stayed.

21 But the Lord was with Joseph and blessed him, so that the jailer was pleased with him.

22 He put Joseph in charge of all the other prisoners and made him responsible for everything that was done in the prison.

23 The jailer did not have to look after anything for which Joseph was responsible, because the Lord was with Joseph and made him succeed in everything he did.

1 Some time later the king of Egypt's wine steward and his chief baker offended the king.

2 He was angry with these two officials

3 and put them in prison in the house of the captain of the guard, in the same place where Joseph was being kept.

4 They spent a long time in prison, and the captain assigned Joseph as their servant.

5 One night there in prison the wine steward and the chief baker each had a dream, and the dreams had different meanings.

6 When Joseph came to them in the morning, he saw that they were upset.

7 He asked them, "Why do you look so worried today?"

8 They answered, "Each of us had a dream, and there is no one here to explain what the dreams mean." "It is God who gives the ability to interpret dreams," Joseph said. "Tell me your dreams."

9 So the wine steward said, "In my dream there was a grapevine in front of me

10 with three branches on it. As soon as the leaves came out, the blossoms appeared, and the grapes ripened.

11 I was holding the king's cup; so I took the grapes and squeezed them into the cup and gave it to him."

12 Joseph said, "This is what it means: the three branches are three days.

13 In three days the king will release you, pardon you, and restore you to your position. You will give him his cup as you did before when you were his wine steward.

14 But please remember me when everything is going well for you, and please be kind enough to mention me to the king and help me get out of this prison.

15 After all, I was kidnapped from the land of the Hebrews, and even here in Egypt I didn't do anything to deserve being put in prison."

16 When the chief baker saw that the interpretation of the wine steward's dream was favorable, he said to Joseph, "I had a dream too; I was carrying three breadbaskets on my head.

17 In the top basket there were all kinds of baked goods for the king, and the birds were eating them."

18 Joseph answered, "This is what it means: the three baskets are three days.

19 In three days the king will release you - and have your head cut off! Then he will hang your body on a pole, and the birds will eat your flesh."

20 On his birthday three days later the king gave a banquet for all his officials; he released his wine steward and his chief baker and brought them before his officials.

21 He restored the wine steward to his former position,

22 but he executed the chief baker. It all happened just as Joseph had said.

23 But the wine steward never gave Joseph another thought - he forgot all about him.

1 When Jesus finished giving these instructions to his twelve disciples, he left that place and went off to teach and preach in the towns near there.

2 When John the Baptist heard in prison about the things that Christ was doing, he sent some of his disciples to him.

3 "Tell us," they asked Jesus, "are you the one John said was going to come, or should we expect someone else?"

4 Jesus answered, "Go back and tell John what you are hearing and seeing:

5 the blind can see, the lame can walk, those who suffer from dreaded skin diseases are made clean, the deaf hear, the dead are brought back to life, and the Good News is preached to the poor.

6 How happy are those who have no doubts about me!"

7 While John's disciples were leaving, Jesus spoke about him to the crowds: "When you went out to John in the desert, what did you expect to see? A blade of grass bending in the wind?

8 What did you go out to see? A man dressed up in fancy clothes? People who dress like that live in palaces!

9 Tell me, what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes indeed, but you saw much more than a prophet.

10 For John is the one of whom the scripture says: "God said, I will send my messenger ahead of you to open the way for you.'

11 I assure you that John the Baptist is greater than anyone who has ever lived. But the one who is least in the Kingdom of heaven is greater than John.

12 From the time John preached his message until this very day the Kingdom of heaven has suffered violent attacks, and violent men try to seize it.

13 Until the time of John all the prophets and the Law of Moses spoke about the Kingdom;

14 and if you are willing to believe their message, John is Elijah, whose coming was predicted.

15 Listen, then, if you have ears!

16 "Now, to what can I compare the people of this day? They are like children sitting in the marketplace. One group shouts to the other,

17 "We played wedding music for you, but you wouldn't dance! We sang funeral songs, but you wouldn't cry!'

18 When John came, he fasted and drank no wine, and everyone said, "He has a demon in him!'

19 When the Son of Man came, he ate and drank, and everyone said, "Look at this man! He is a glutton and wine drinker, a friend of tax collectors and other outcasts!' God's wisdom, however, is shown to be true by its results."

20 The people in the towns where Jesus had performed most of his miracles did not turn from their sins, so he reproached those towns.

21 "How terrible it will be for you, Chorazin! How terrible for you too, Bethsaida! If the miracles which were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, the people there would have long ago put on sackcloth and sprinkled ashes on themselves, to show that they had turned from their sins!

22 I assure you that on the Judgment Day God will show more mercy to the people of Tyre and Sidon than to you!

23 And as for you, Capernaum! Did you want to lift yourself up to heaven? You will be thrown down to hell! If the miracles which were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would still be in existence today!

24 You can be sure that on the Judgment Day God will show more mercy to Sodom than to you!"

25 At that time Jesus said, "Father, Lord of heaven and earth! I thank you because you have shown to the unlearned what you have hidden from the wise and learned.

26 Yes, Father, this was how you were pleased to have it happen.

27 "My Father has given me all things. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.

28 "Come to me, all of you who are tired from carrying heavy loads, and I will give you rest.

29 Take my yoke and put it on you, and learn from me, because I am gentle and humble in spirit; and you will find rest.

30 For the yoke I will give you is easy, and the load I will put on you is light."