Exodus 16: 2-15 Just two months after God’s spectacular deliverance of God’s people from slavery, they complain  to their leaders: “If only we had died in Egypt, where we .. ate our fill of bread; for you have brought us … Continue reading →

Exodus 14: 19-31 The “angel of the Lord” and the “pillar of cloud” that had been in front of the Israelites as they fled Pharaoh and his army now moves behind them, coming “between the army of Egypt and the … Continue reading →

Exodus 12: 1-14 After 430 years in Egypt (v. 40) and worsening negotiations between God’s representative, Moses, and Pharaoh for the release of God’s people from slavery, they are on the eve of escape.  Moses and Aaron are given detailed … Continue reading →

Genesis 3: 1-15 Moses was tending the flocks of his father-in-law, Jethro, near Mt. Horeb when a messenger/angel of the Lord “appeared to him in a flame of fire from the midst of the bush,” which burned, but was not … Continue reading →

Exodus 1: 8- 2:10 The narratives of individual patriarchs and matriarchs now shifts to the story of the Israelites in Egypt.  In last Sunday’s reading, Joseph  promised that his father, brothers and their families would flourish  under his protection in … Continue reading →

Genesis 45: 1-15 Joseph has risen to great power in Egypt; the foreigner becomes the ultimate insider.  Desperately seeking food during a famine, Joseph’s brothers journey to Egypt and are taken to Pharaoh’s deputy.  They do not recognize their brother, … Continue reading →

Genesis 37: 1-4, 12-28 Patriarchal and matriarchal and sibling rivalry continues into the next generation, but God still finds a way to extend the covenant.  Jacob/Israel and Rachel’s seventeen year old son, Joseph, was assisting his brothers in shepherding the … Continue reading →

Genesis 32: 22-31 Jacob is en route to try to reconcile with his brother, Esau, from whom he cheated his birthright as the firstborn.  Jacob sends his two wives, Rachel and Leah, and the whole household to the other side … Continue reading →

Genesis 29: 15-28 The intrigue and duplicity among the patriarchal and matriarchal families continue, but God finds ways for the Covenant to be preserved and renewed.  Jacob has fallen for Rachel, the younger daughter of his uncle, Laban.  To win … Continue reading →

Genesis 28: 10-19a As his father, Isaac, and grandfather, Abraham before him, Jacob experiences his own affirmation of God’s covenant.  Also, like his father,  Abraham, Isaac insists that his son, Jacob,  return to the homeland to find a wife who … Continue reading →