Day 14 of 364

^38:1At that time, Judah went down from his brothers, and visited a certain Adullamite, whose name was Hirah. ^38:2There, Judah saw the daughter of a certain Canaanite man named Shua. He took her, and went in to her. ^38:3She conceived, and bore a son; and he named him Er. ^38:4She conceived again, and bore a son; and she named him Onan. ^38:5She yet again bore a son, and named him Shelah. He was at Chezib when she bore him. ^38:6Judah took a wife for Er, his firstborn, and her name was Tamar. ^38:7Er, Judah’s firstborn, was wicked in the LORD’s sight. So the LORD killed him. ^38:8Judah said to Onan, “Go in to your brother’s wife, and perform the duty of a husband’s brother to her, and raise up offspring for your brother.” ^38:9Onan knew that the offspring wouldn’t be his; and when he went in to his brother’s wife, he spilled his semen on the ground, lest he should give offspring to his brother. ^38:10The thing which he did was evil in the LORD’s sight, and he killed him also. ^38:11Then Judah said to Tamar, his daughter-in-law, “Remain a widow in your father’s house, until Shelah, my son, is grown up;” for he said, “Lest he also die, like his brothers.” Tamar went and lived in her father’s house. ^38:12After many days, Shua’s daughter, the wife of Judah, died. Judah was comforted, and went up to his sheep shearers to Timnah, he and his friend Hirah, the Adullamite. ^38:13Tamar was told, “Behold, your father-in-law is going up to Timnah to shear his sheep.” ^38:14She took off the garments of her widowhood, and covered herself with her veil, and wrapped herself, and sat in the gate of Enaim, which is on the way to Timnah; for she saw that Shelah was grown up, and she wasn’t given to him as a wife. ^38:15When Judah saw her, he thought that she was a prostitute, for she had covered her face. ^38:16He turned to her by the way, and said, “Please come, let me come in to you,” for he didn’t know that she was his daughter-in-law. She said, “What will you give me, that you may come in to me?” ^38:17He said, “I will send you a young goat from the flock.” She said, “Will you give me a pledge, until you send it?” ^38:18He said, “What pledge will I give you?” She said, “Your signet and your cord, and your staff that is in your hand.” He gave them to her, and came in to her, and she conceived by him. ^38:19She arose, and went away, and put off her veil from her, and put on the garments of her widowhood. ^38:20Judah sent the young goat by the hand of his friend, the Adullamite, to receive the pledge from the woman’s hand, but he didn’t find her. ^38:21Then he asked the men of her place, saying, “Where is the prostitute, that was at Enaim by the road?” They said, “There has been no prostitute here.” ^38:22He returned to Judah, and said, “I haven’t found her; and also the men of the place said, ‘There has been no prostitute here.’” ^38:23Judah said, “Let her keep it, lest we be shamed. Behold, I sent this young goat, and you haven’t found her.” ^38:24About three months later, Judah was told, “Tamar, your daughter-in-law, has played the prostitute. Moreover, behold, she is with child by prostitution.” Judah said, “Bring her out, and let her be burned.” ^38:25When she was brought out, she sent to her father-in-law, saying, “I am with child by the man who owns these.” She also said, “Please discern whose these are—the signet, and the cords, and the staff.” ^38:26Judah acknowledged them, and said, “She is more righteous than I, because I didn’t give her to Shelah, my son.” He knew her again no more. ^38:27In the time of her travail, behold, twins were in her womb. ^38:28When she travailed, one put out a hand, and the midwife took and tied a scarlet thread on his hand, saying, “This came out first.” ^38:29As he drew back his hand, behold, his brother came out, and she said, “Why have you made a breach for yourself?” Therefore his name was called Perez. ^38:30Afterward his brother came out, who had the scarlet thread on his hand, and his name was called Zerah. ^39:1Joseph was brought down to Egypt. Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh’s, the captain of the guard, an Egyptian, bought him from the hand of the Ishmaelites that had brought him down there. ^39:2The LORD was with Joseph, and he was a prosperous man. He was in the house of his master the Egyptian. ^39:3His master saw that the LORD was with him, and that the LORD made all that he did prosper in his hand. ^39:4Joseph found favor in his sight. He ministered to him, and Potiphar made him overseer over his house, and all that he had he put into his hand. ^39:5From the time that he made him overseer in his house, and over all that he had, the LORD blessed the Egyptian’s house for Joseph’s sake. The LORD’s blessing was on all that he had, in the house and in the field. ^39:6He left all that he had in Joseph’s hand. He didn’t concern himself with anything, except for the food which he ate. Joseph was well-built and handsome. ^39:7After these things, his master’s wife set her eyes on Joseph; and she said, “Lie with me.” ^39:8But he refused, and said to his master’s wife, “Behold, my master doesn’t know what is with me in the house, and he has put all that he has into my hand. ^39:9No one is greater in this house than I am, and he has not kept back anything from me but you, because you are his wife. How then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?” ^39:10As she spoke to Joseph day by day, he didn’t listen to her, to lie by her, or to be with her. ^39:11About this time, he went into the house to do his work, and there were none of the men of the house inside. ^39:12She caught him by his garment, saying, “Lie with me!” He left his garment in her hand, and ran outside. ^39:13When she saw that he had left his garment in her hand, and had run outside, ^39:14she called to the men of her house, and spoke to them, saying, “Behold, he has brought a Hebrew in to us to mock us. He came in to me to lie with me, and I cried with a loud voice. ^39:15When he heard that I lifted up my voice and cried, he left his garment by me, and ran outside.” ^39:16She laid up his garment by her, until his master came home. ^39:17She spoke to him according to these words, saying, “The Hebrew servant, whom you have brought to us, came in to me to mock me, ^39:18and as I lifted up my voice and cried, he left his garment by me, and ran outside.” ^39:19When his master heard the words of his wife, which she spoke to him, saying, “This is what your servant did to me,” his wrath was kindled. ^39:20Joseph’s master took him, and put him into the prison, the place where the king’s prisoners were bound, and he was there in custody. ^39:21But the LORD was with Joseph, and showed kindness to him, and gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison. ^39:22The keeper of the prison committed to Joseph’s hand all the prisoners who were in the prison. Whatever they did there, he was responsible for it. ^39:23The keeper of the prison didn’t look after anything that was under his hand, because the LORD was with him; and that which he did, the LORD made it prosper. ^40:1After these things, the butler of the king of Egypt and his baker offended their lord, the king of Egypt. ^40:2Pharaoh was angry with his two officers, the chief cup bearer and the chief baker. ^40:3He put them in custody in the house of the captain of the guard, into the prison, the place where Joseph was bound. ^40:4The captain of the guard assigned them to Joseph, and he took care of them. They stayed in prison many days. ^40:5They both dreamed a dream, each man his dream, in one night, each man according to the interpretation of his dream, the cup bearer and the baker of the king of Egypt, who were bound in the prison. ^40:6Joseph came in to them in the morning, and saw them, and saw that they were sad. ^40:7He asked Pharaoh’s officers who were with him in custody in his master’s house, saying, “Why do you look so sad today?” ^40:8They said to him, “We have dreamed a dream, and there is no one who can interpret it.” Joseph said to them, “Don’t interpretations belong to God? Please tell it to me.” ^40:9The chief cup bearer told his dream to Joseph, and said to him, “In my dream, behold, a vine was in front of me, ^40:10and in the vine were three branches. It was as though it budded, it blossomed, and its clusters produced ripe grapes. ^40:11Pharaoh’s cup was in my hand; and I took the grapes, and pressed them into Pharaoh’s cup, and I gave the cup into Pharaoh’s hand.” ^40:12Joseph said to him, “This is its interpretation: the three branches are three days. ^40:13Within three more days, Pharaoh will lift up your head, and restore you to your office. You will give Pharaoh’s cup into his hand, the way you did when you were his cup bearer. ^40:14But remember me when it is well with you. Please show kindness to me, and make mention of me to Pharaoh, and bring me out of this house. ^40:15For indeed, I was stolen away out of the land of the Hebrews, and here also I have done nothing that they should put me into the dungeon.” ^40:16When the chief baker saw that the interpretation was good, he said to Joseph, “I also was in my dream, and behold, three baskets of white bread were on my head. ^40:17In the uppermost basket there were all kinds of baked food for Pharaoh, and the birds ate them out of the basket on my head.” ^40:18Joseph answered, “This is its interpretation. The three baskets are three days. ^40:19Within three more days, Pharaoh will lift up your head from off you, and will hang you on a tree; and the birds will eat your flesh from off you.” ^40:20On the third day, which was Pharaoh’s birthday, he made a feast for all his servants, and he lifted up the head of the chief cup bearer and the head of the chief baker among his servants. ^40:21He restored the chief cup bearer to his position again, and he gave the cup into Pharaoh’s hand; ^40:22but he hanged the chief baker, as Joseph had interpreted to them. ^40:23Yet the chief cup bearer didn’t remember Joseph, but forgot him.