Genesis 29

• 1. Jacob hurried on, finally arriving in the land of the east.
• 2. He saw in the distance three flocks of sheep lying in an open field beside a well, waiting to be watered. But a heavy stone covered the mouth of the well.
• 3. It was the custom there to wait for all the flocks to arrive before removing the stone. After watering them, the stone would be rolled back over the mouth of the well.
• 4. Jacob went over to the shepherds and asked them, "Where do you live?At Haran," they said.
• 5. "Do you know a man there named Laban, the grandson of Nahor?Yes, we do," they replied.
• 6. "How is he?" Jacob asked. "He's well and prosperous. Look, here comes his daughter Rachel with the sheep."
• 7. "Why don't you water the flocks so they can get back to grazing?" Jacob asked. "They'll be hungry if you stop so early in the day."
• 8. "We don't roll away the stone and begin the watering until all the flocks and shepherds are here," they replied.
• 9. As this conversation was going on, Rachel arrived with her father's sheep, for she was a shepherd.
• 10. And because she was his cousin, the daughter of his mother's brother, and because the sheep were his uncle's, Jacob went over to the well and rolled away the stone and watered his uncle's flock.
• 11. Then Jacob kissed Rachel, and tears came to his eyes.
• 12. He explained that he was her cousin on her father's side, her aunt Rebekah's son. So Rachel quickly ran and told her father, Laban.
• 13. As soon as Laban heard about Jacob's arrival, he rushed out to meet him and greeted him warmly. Laban then brought him home, and Jacob told him his story.
• 14. "Just think, my very own flesh and blood!" Laban exclaimed. After Jacob had been there about a month,
• 15. Laban said to him, "You shouldn't work for me without pay just because we are relatives. How much do you want?"
• 16. Now Laban had two daughters: Leah, who was the oldest, and her younger sister, Rachel.
• 17. Leah had pretty eyes, but Rachel was beautiful in every way, with a lovely face and shapely figure.
• 18. Since Jacob was in love with Rachel, he told her father, "I'll work for you seven years if you'll give me Rachel, your younger daughter, as my wife."
• 19. "Agreed!" Laban replied. "I'd rather give her to you than to someone outside the family."
• 20. So Jacob spent the next seven years working to pay for Rachel. But his love for her was so strong that it seemed to him but a few days.
• 21. Finally, the time came for him to marry her. "I have fulfilled my contract," Jacob said to Laban. "Now give me my wife so we can be married."
• 22. So Laban invited everyone in the neighborhood to celebrate with Jacob at a wedding feast.
• 23. That night, when it was dark, Laban took Leah to Jacob, and he slept with her.
• 24. And Laban gave Leah a servant, Zilpah, to be her maid.
• 25. But when Jacob woke up in the morning--it was Leah! "What sort of trick is this?" Jacob raged at Laban. "I worked seven years for Rachel. What do you mean by this trickery?"
• 26. "It's not our custom to marry off a younger daughter ahead of the firstborn," Laban replied.
• 27. "Wait until the bridal week is over, and you can have Rachel, too--that is, if you promise to work another seven years for me."
• 28. So Jacob agreed to work seven more years. A week after Jacob had married Leah, Laban gave him Rachel, too.
• 29. And Laban gave Rachel a servant, Bilhah, to be her maid.
• 30. So Jacob slept with Rachel, too, and he loved her more than Leah. He then stayed and worked the additional seven years.
• 31. But because Leah was unloved, the LORD let her have a child, while Rachel was childless.
• 32. So Leah became pregnant and had a son. She named him Reuben, for she said, "The LORD has noticed my misery, and now my husband will love me."
• 33. She soon became pregnant again and had another son. She named him Simeon, for she said, "The LORD heard that I was unloved and has given me another son."
• 34. Again she became pregnant and had a son. She named him Levi, for she said, "Surely now my husband will feel affection for me, since I have given him three sons!"
• 35. Once again she became pregnant and had a son. She named him Judah, for she said, "Now I will praise the LORD!" And then she stopped having children.

Matthew 28

• 1. Early on Sunday morning, as the new day was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went out to see the tomb.
• 2. Suddenly there was a great earthquake, because an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and rolled aside the stone and sat on it.
• 3. His face shone like lightning, and his clothing was as white as snow.
• 4. The guards shook with fear when they saw him, and they fell into a dead faint.
• 5. Then the angel spoke to the women. "Don't be afraid!" he said. "I know you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified.
• 6. He isn't here! He has been raised from the dead, just as he said would happen. Come, see where his body was lying.
• 7. And now, go quickly and tell his disciples he has been raised from the dead, and he is going ahead of you to Galilee. You will see him there. Remember, I have told you."
• 8. The women ran quickly from the tomb. They were very frightened but also filled with great joy, and they rushed to find the disciples to give them the angel's message.
• 9. And as they went, Jesus met them. "Greetings!" he said. And they ran to him, held his feet, and worshiped him.
• 10. Then Jesus said to them, "Don't be afraid! Go tell my brothers to leave for Galilee, and they will see me there."
• 11. As the women were on their way into the city, some of the men who had been guarding the tomb went to the leading priests and told them what had happened.
• 12. A meeting of all the religious leaders was called, and they decided to bribe the soldiers.
• 13. They told the soldiers, "You must say, 'Jesus' disciples came during the night while we were sleeping, and they stole his body.'
• 14. If the governor hears about it, we'll stand up for you and everything will be all right."
• 15. So the guards accepted the bribe and said what they were told to say. Their story spread widely among the Jews, and they still tell it today.
• 16. Then the eleven disciples left for Galilee, going to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go.
• 17. When they saw him, they worshiped him--but some of them still doubted!
• 18. Jesus came and told his disciples, "I have been given complete authority in heaven and on earth.
• 19. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.
• 20. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age."

Esther 5

• 1. Three days later, Esther put on her royal robes and entered the inner court of the palace, just across from the king's hall. The king was sitting on his royal throne, facing the entrance.
• 2. When he saw Queen Esther standing there in the inner court, he welcomed her, holding out the gold scepter to her. So Esther approached and touched its tip.
• 3. Then the king asked her, "What do you want, Queen Esther? What is your request? I will give it to you, even if it is half the kingdom!"
• 4. And Esther replied, "If it please Your Majesty, let the king and Haman come today to a banquet I have prepared for the king."
• 5. The king turned to his attendants and said, "Tell Haman to come quickly to a banquet, as Esther has requested." So the king and Haman went to Esther's banquet.
• 6. And while they were drinking wine, the king said to Esther, "Now tell me what you really want. What is your request? I will give it to you, even if it is half the kingdom!"
• 7. Esther replied, "This is my request and deepest wish.
• 8. If Your Majesty is pleased with me and wants to grant my request, please come with Haman tomorrow to the banquet I will prepare for you. Then tomorrow I will explain what this is all about."
• 9. What a happy man Haman was as he left the banquet! But when he saw Mordecai sitting at the gate, not standing up or trembling nervously before him, he was furious.
• 10. However, he restrained himself and went on home. Then he gathered together his friends and Zeresh, his wife,
• 11. and boasted to them about his great wealth and his many children. He bragged about the honors the king had given him and how he had been promoted over all the other officials and leaders.
• 12. Then Haman added, "And that's not all! Queen Esther invited only me and the king himself to the banquet she prepared for us. And she has invited me to dine with her and the king again tomorrow!"
• 13. Then he added, "But all this is meaningless as long as I see Mordecai the Jew just sitting there at the palace gate."
• 14. So Haman's wife, Zeresh, and all his friends suggested, "Set up a gallows that stands seventy-five feet tall, and in the morning ask the king to hang Mordecai on it. When this is done, you can go on your merry way to the banquet with the king." This pleased Haman immensely, and he ordered the gallows set up.

New Living Translation: 28 of 365 days.