One Year Pray for the Persecuted Bible - Flipbook - Page 84
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January 21
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3
4
Pay attention and learn good judgment,
for I am giving you good guidance.
Don’t turn away from my instructions.
For I, too, was once my father’s son,
tenderly loved as my mother’s only
child.
My father taught me,
“Take my words to heart.
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6
Follow my commands, and you will live.
Get wisdom; develop good judgment.
Don’t forget my words or turn away
from them.
Don’t turn your back on wisdom, for she
will protect you.
Love her, and she will guard you.”
4:1 Hebrew My sons.
UNBEKNOWNST TO HER HUSBAND, Sei Wang of Laos gave her life to
Christ and began attending church. After confronting her there one
Sunday, her husband berated and hit Sei Wang—who stayed and
continued worshiping God. A few weeks later he handed her a bag filled
with her clothes. If she went to a Christian seminar, he announced, she
could not come home. Further, if she continued with church, he’d beat
her. Unafraid, Sei Wang boldly walked out the door. • LORD, STAND
WITH my persecuted Christian family who take a stand for you. Comfort
their hearts and supply their needs. Bless them abundantly. Amen.
GENESIS 42:18–43:34
On the third day Joseph said to them [his
brothers], “I am a God-fearing man. If you do
as I say, you will live. 19 If you really are honest
men, choose one of your brothers to remain
in prison. The rest of you may go home with
grain for your starving families. 20 But you
must bring your youngest brother back to me.
This will prove that you are telling the truth,
and you will not die.” To this they agreed.
21 Speaking among themselves, they said,
“Clearly we are being punished because of
what we did to Joseph long ago. We saw his
anguish when he pleaded for his life, but
we wouldn’t listen. That’s why we’re in this
trouble.”
22 “Didn’t I tell you not to sin against the
boy?” Reuben asked. “But you w
ouldn’t listen.
And now we have to answer for his blood!”
23 Of course, they didn’t know that Joseph
understood them, for he had been speaking
to them through an interpreter. 24 Now he
turned away from them and began to weep.
When he regained his composure, he spoke
to them again. Then he chose Simeon from
among them and had him tied up right before
their eyes.
25 Joseph then ordered his servants to fill the
men’s sacks with grain, but he also gave secret
instructions to return each brother’s payment
at the top of his sack. He also gave them supplies for their journey home. 26 So the brothers loaded their donkeys with the grain and
headed for home.
27 But when they stopped for the night and
JANUARY
21
one of them opened his sack to get grain for his
donkey, he found his money in the top of his
sack. 28 “Look!” he exclaimed to his brothers.
“My money has been returned; it’s here in my
sack!” Then their hearts sank. Trembling, they
said to each other, “What has God done to us?”
29 When the brothers came to their father,
Jacob, in the land of Canaan, they told him
everything that had happened to them. 30 “The
man who is governor of the land spoke very
harshly to us,” they told him. “He accused us
of being spies scouting the land. 31 But we said,
‘We are honest men, not spies. 32 We are twelve
brothers, sons of one father. One brother is no
longer with us, and the youngest is at home
with our father in the land of Canaan.’
33 “Then the man who is governor of the
land told us, ‘This is how I will find out if you
are honest men. Leave one of your brothers
here with me, and take grain for your starving
families and go on home. 34 But you must bring
your youngest brother back to me. Then I will
know you are honest men and not spies. Then
I will give you back your brother, and you may
trade freely in the land.’”
35 As they emptied out their sacks, there in
each man’s sack was the bag of money he had
paid for the grain! The brothers and their father were terrified when they saw the bags of
money. 36 Jacob exclaimed, “You are robbing
me of my children! Joseph is gone! Simeon is
gone! And now you want to take Benjamin,
too. Everything is going against me!”
37 Then Reuben said to his father, “You may
kill my two sons if I d
on’t bring Benjamin back
