AME Zion Universal Reading November 19th 2023

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First Portion

Bereshit (Genesis) Chapter 25 19And these are the generations of Isaac the son of Abraham; Abraham begot Isaac.20And Isaac was forty years old when he took Rebecca the daughter of Bethuel the Aramean of Padan Aram, the sister of Laban the Aramean, to himself for a wife.21And Isaac prayed to the Lord opposite his wife because she was barren, and the Lord accepted his prayer, and Rebecca his wife conceived.22And the children struggled within her, and she said, "If [it be] so, why am I [like] this?" And she went to inquire of the Lord.23And the Lord said to her, "Two nations are in your womb, and two kingdoms will separate from your innards, and one kingdom will become mightier than the other kingdom, and the elder will serve the younger.24And her days to give birth were completed, and behold, there were twins in her womb.25And the first one emerged ruddy; he was completely like a coat of hair, and they named him Esau.26And afterwards, his brother emerged, and his hand was grasping Esau's heel, and he named him Jacob. Now Isaac was sixty years old when she gave birth to them.27And the youths grew up, and Esau was a man who understood hunting, a man of the field, whereas Jacob was an innocent man, dwelling in tents.28And Isaac loved Esau because [his] game was in his mouth, but Rebecca loved Jacob.29Now Jacob cooked a pottage, and Esau came from the field, and he was faint.30And Esau said to Jacob, "Pour into [me] some of this red, red [pottage], for I am faint"; he was therefore named Edom.31And Jacob said, "Sell me as of this day your birthright."32Esau replied, "Behold, I am going to die; so why do I need this birthright?"33And Jacob said, "Swear to me as of this day"; so he swore to him, and he sold his birthright to Jacob.34And Jacob gave Esau bread and a pottage of lentils, and he ate and drank and arose and left, and Esau despised the birthright.Bereshit (Genesis) Chapter 26 1And there was a famine in the land, aside from the first famine that had been in the days of Abraham, and Isaac went to Abimelech the king of the Philistines, to Gerar.2And the Lord appeared to him, and said, "Do not go down to Egypt; dwell in the land that I will tell you.3Sojourn in this land, and I will be with you, and I will bless you, for to you and to your seed will I give all these lands, and I will establish the oath that I swore to Abraham, your father.4And I will multiply your seed like the stars of the heavens, and I will give your seed all these lands, and all the nations of the earth will bless themselves by your seed,5Because Abraham hearkened to My voice, and kept My charge, My commandments, My statutes, and My instructions."

Colossians 2:16–23 (NLT):

16 So don’t let anyone condemn you for what you eat or drink, or for not celebrating certain holy days or new moon ceremonies or Sabbaths. 17 For these rules are only shadows of the reality yet to come. And Christ himself is that reality. 18 Don’t let anyone condemn you by insisting on pious self-denial or the worship of angels, saying they have had visions about these things. Their sinful minds have made them proud, 19 and they are not connected to Christ, the head of the body. For he holds the whole body together with its joints and ligaments, and it grows as God nourishes it.

20 You have died with Christ, and he has set you free from the spiritual powers of this world. So why do you keep on following the rules of the world, such as, 21 “Don’t handle! Don’t taste! Don’t touch!”? 22 Such rules are mere human teachings about things that deteriorate as we use them. 23 These rules may seem wise because they require strong devotion, pious self-denial, and severe bodily discipline. But they provide no help in conquering a person’s evil desires.

Second Portion

Bereshit (Genesis) Chapter 26

6And Isaac dwelt in Gerar.7And the men of the place asked about his wife, and he said, "She is my sister," because he was afraid to say, "[She is] my wife," [because he said,] "Lest the men of the place kill me because of Rebecca, for she is of comely appearance."8And it came to pass, when he had been there for many days, that Abimelech, the king of the Philistines, looked out of the window, and he saw, and behold, Isaac was jesting with Rebecca his wife.9So Abimelech called Isaac, and he said, "Behold, she is your wife; so how could you have said, 'She is my sister'?" And Isaac said to him, "Because I said, 'Lest I die because of her. '"10And Abimelech said, "What have you done to us? The most prominent of the people might easily have lain with your wife, and you would have brought guilt upon us."11And Abimelech commanded all the people, saying, "Whoever touches this man or his wife shall be put to death."12And Isaac sowed in that land, and he found in that year a hundred fold, and the Lord blessed him.

Monday

2 Corinthians 3:12–18 (NLT):

12 Since this new way gives us such confidence, we can be very bold. 13 We are not like Moses, who put a veil over his face so the people of Israel would not see the glory, even though it was destined to fade away. 14 But the people’s minds were hardened, and to this day whenever the old covenant is being read, the same veil covers their minds so they cannot understand the truth. And this veil can be removed only by believing in Christ. 15 Yes, even today when they read Moses’ writings, their hearts are covered with that veil, and they do not understand.

16 But whenever someone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. 17 For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 18 So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image.

Third Portion

Bereshit (Genesis) Chapter 26

13And the man became great, and he grew constantly greater until he had grown very great.14And he had possessions of sheep and possessions of cattle and much production, and the Philistines envied him.15And all the wells that his father's servants had dug in the days of Abraham his father the Philistines stopped them up and filled them with earth.16And Abimelech said to Isaac, "Go away from us, for you have become much stronger than we."17And Isaac went away from there, and he encamped in the valley of Gerar and dwelt there.18And Isaac again dug the wells of water which they had dug in the days of his father, Abraham, and the Philistines had stopped them up after Abraham's death; and he gave them names like the names that his father had given them.19And Isaac's servants dug in the valley, and they found there a well of living waters.20And the shepherds of Gerar quarreled with Isaac's shepherds, saying, "The water is ours"; so he named the well Esek, because they had contended with him.21And they dug another well, and they quarreled about it also; so he named it Sitnah.22And he moved away from there, and he dug another well, and they did not quarrel over it; so he named it Rehoboth, and he said, "For now the Lord has made room for us, and we will be fruitful in the land."

Tuesday

James 2:8–13 (NLT):

8 Yes indeed, it is good when you obey the royal law as found in the Scriptures: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” 9 But if you favor some people over others, you are committing a sin. You are guilty of breaking the law.

10 For the person who keeps all of the laws except one is as guilty as a person who has broken all of God’s laws. 11 For the same God who said, “You must not commit adultery,” also said, “You must not murder.” So if you murder someone but do not commit adultery, you have still broken the law.

12 So whatever you say or whatever you do, remember that you will be judged by the law that sets you free. 13 There will be no mercy for those who have not shown mercy to others. But if you have been merciful, God will be merciful when he judges you.

Fourth Portion

Bereshit (Genesis) Chapter 26

23And he went up from there to Beer sheba.24And the Lord appeared to him on that night and said, "I am the God of Abraham, your father. Fear not, for I am with you, and I will bless you and multiply your seed for the sake of Abraham, My servant."25And he built an altar there, and he called in the name of the Lord, and he pitched his tent there, and Isaac's servants dug a well there.26And Abimelech went to him from Gerar, and a group of his companions and Pichol, his general.27And Isaac said to them, "Why have you come to me, since you hate me, and you sent me away from you?"28And they said, "We have seen that the Lord was with you; so we said: Let there now be an oath between us, between ourselves and you, and let us form a covenant with you.29If you do [not] harm us, as we have not touched you, and as we have done with you only good, and we sent you away in peace, [so do] you now, blessed of the Lord."

Wednesday

Leviticus 25:8–17 (NLT): The Year of Jubilee

8 “In addition, you must count off seven Sabbath years, seven sets of seven years, adding up to forty-nine years in all. 9 Then on the Day of Atonement in the fiftieth year, blow the ram’s horn loud and long throughout the land. 10 Set this year apart as holy, a time to proclaim freedom throughout the land for all who live there. It will be a jubilee year for you, when each of you may return to the land that belonged to your ancestors and return to your own clan. 11 This fiftieth year will be a jubilee for you. During that year you must not plant your fields or store away any of the crops that grow on their own, and don’t gather the grapes from your unpruned vines. 12 It will be a jubilee year for you, and you must keep it holy. But you may eat whatever the land produces on its own. 13 In the Year of Jubilee each of you may return to the land that belonged to your ancestors.

14 “When you make an agreement with your neighbor to buy or sell property, you must not take advantage of each other. 15 When you buy land from your neighbor, the price you pay must be based on the number of years since the last jubilee. The seller must set the price by taking into account the number of years remaining until the next Year of Jubilee. 16 The more years until the next jubilee, the higher the price; the fewer years, the lower the price. After all, the person selling the land is actually selling you a certain number of harvests. 17 Show your fear of God by not taking advantage of each other. I am the Lord your God.

Fifth Portion

Bereshit (Genesis) Chapter 26

30So he made a feast for them, and they ate and drank.31And they arose early in the morning, and they swore one to the other, and Isaac escorted them, and they went away from him in peace.32And it came to pass on that day, that Isaac's servants came and told him about the well that they had dug, and they said to him, "We have found water."33And he named it Shibah; therefore, the city is named Beer sheba until this very day.34And Esau was forty years old, and he married Judith, the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Basemath, the daughter of Elon the Hittite.35And they were a vexation of the spirit to Isaac and to Rebecca

Bereshit (Genesis) Chapter 27

1It came to pass when Isaac was old, and his eyes were too dim to see, that he called Esau his elder son, and he said to him, "My son," and he said to him, "Here I am."2And he said, "Behold now, I have grown old; I do not know the day of my death.3So, now, sharpen your implements, your sword [and take] your bow, and go forth to the field, and hunt game for me.4And make for me tasty foods as I like, and bring them to me, and I will eat, in order that my soul will bless you before I die."5But Rebecca overheard when Isaac spoke to Esau his son, and Esau went to the field to hunt game, to bring [it].6And Rebecca said to Jacob her son, saying, "Behold I have heard your father speaking to Esau your brother, saying,7'Bring me game and make me tasty foods, and I will eat, and I will bless you before the Lord before my death.'8And now my son, hearken to my voice, to what I am commanding you.9Go now to the flock, and take for me from there two choice kids, and I will make them tasty foods for your father, as he likes.10And you shall bring [them] to your father that he may eat, in order that he bless you before his death."11And Jacob said to Rebecca his mother, "Behold, my brother Esau is a hairy man, whereas I am a smooth man.12Perhaps my father will touch me, and I will appear to him as a deceiver, and I will bring upon myself a curse and not a blessing."13And his mother said to him, "On me is your curse, my son. Only hearken to my voice and go, take [them] for me."14So he went, and he took, and he brought [them] to his mother, and his mother made tasty foods, as his father liked.15And Rebecca took the costly garments of Esau, her elder son, which were with her in the house, and she dressed Jacob, her younger son.16And the hides of the kids she put on his hands and on the smoothness of his neck.17And she gave the tasty foods and the bread that she had made, into the hand of Jacob her son.18And he came to his father and said, "My father!" And he said, "Here I am. Who are you, my son?"19And Jacob said to his father, "I am Esau your firstborn. I have done as you have spoken to me. Please rise, sit down and eat of my game, so that your soul will bless me."20And Isaac said to his son, "How is it that you have found [it] so quickly, my son?" And he said, "Because the Lord your God prepared it before me."21And Isaac said to Jacob, "Please come closer, so that I may feel you, my son, whether you are really my son Esau or not."22So Jacob drew near to Isaac his father, and he felt him, and he said, "The voice is the voice of Jacob, but the hands are the hands of Esau."23And he did not recognize him because his hands were hairy like the hands of his brother Esau, and he blessed him.24And he said, "Are you [indeed] my son Esau?" And he said, "I am."25And he said, "Serve [it] to me that I may eat of the game of my son, so that my soul will bless you." And he served him, and he ate, and he brought him wine, and he drank.26And his father Isaac said to him, "Please come closer and kiss me, my son."27And he came closer, and he kissed him, and he smelled the fragrance of his garments, and he blessed him, and he said, "Behold, the fragrance of my son is like the fragrance of a field, which the Lord has blessed!

Thursday

Luke 4:14–22 (NLT): Jesus Rejected at Nazareth

14 Then Jesus returned to Galilee, filled with the Holy Spirit’s power. Reports about him spread quickly through the whole region. 15 He taught regularly in their synagogues and was praised by everyone.

16 When he came to the village of Nazareth, his boyhood home, he went as usual to the synagogue on the Sabbath and stood up to read the Scriptures. 17 The scroll of Isaiah the prophet was handed to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where this was written:

18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,

for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor.

He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released,

that the blind will see,

that the oppressed will be set free,

19 and that the time of the Lord’s favor has come.”

20 He rolled up the scroll, handed it back to the attendant, and sat down. All eyes in the synagogue looked at him intently. 21 Then he began to speak to them. “The Scripture you’ve just heard has been fulfilled this very day!”

22 Everyone spoke well of him and was amazed by the gracious words that came from his lips. “How can this be?” they asked. “Isn’t this Joseph’s son?”

Sixth Portion

Bereshit (Genesis) Chapter 27

28And may the Lord give you of the dew of the heavens and [of] the fatness of the earth and an abundance of grain and wine.29Nations shall serve you and kingdoms shall bow down to you; you shall be a master over your brothers, and your mother's sons shall bow down to you. Those who curse you shall be cursed, and those who bless you shall be blessed."30And it came to pass, when Isaac had finished blessing Jacob, and it came to pass Jacob had just left his father Isaac's presence, that his brother Esau came from his hunt.31And he too had made tasty foods, and he brought [them] to his father, and he said to his father, "Let my father arise and eat of the game of his son, so that your soul will bless me. "32And his father Isaac said to him, "Who are you?" And he said, "I am your son, your firstborn, Esau."33And Isaac shuddered a great shudder, and he said, "Who then is the one who hunted game and brought it to me, and I ate of everything while you had not yet come, and I blessed him? He, too, shall be blessed."34When Esau heard his father's words, he cried out a great and bitter cry, and he said to his father, "Bless me too, O my father!"35And he said, "Your brother came with cunning and took your blessing."36And he said, "Is it for this reason that he was named Jacob? For he has deceived me twice; he took my birthright, and behold, now he has taken my blessing." And he said, "Have you not reserved a blessing for me?"37And Isaac answered and said to Esau, "Behold, I made him a master over you, and I gave him all his brothers as servants, and I have sustained him with corn and wine; so for you then, what shall I do, my son?"38And Esau said to his father, "Have you [but] one blessing, my father? Bless me too, my father." And Esau raised his voice and wept.39And his father Isaac answered and said to him, "Behold, your dwelling place shall be the fat places of the earth and of the dew of the heaven from above.40And you shall live by your sword, and you shall serve your brother, and it will be, when you grieve, that you will break his yoke off your neck."41And Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing that his father had blessed him, and Esau said to himself, "Let the days of mourning for my father draw near, I will then kill my brother Jacob. "42And Rebecca was told of the words of Esau, her elder son, and she sent and called Jacob, her younger son, and she said to him, "Behold, your brother Esau regrets [his relationship] to you [and wishes] to kill you.43And now, my son, hearken to my voice, and arise, flee to my brother Laban, to Haran.44And you shall dwell with him for a few days until your brother's wrath has subsided.45Until your brother's rage subsides from you, and he forgets what you did to him, and I will send and bring you from there. Why should I be bereft of both of you on one day?"46And Rebecca said to Isaac, "I am disgusted with my life because of the daughters of Heth. If Jacob takes a wife of the daughters of Heth like these, from the daughters of the land, of what use is life to me?

Bereshit (Genesis) Chapter 28

1And Isaac called Jacob and blessed him, and he commanded him and said to him, "You shall not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan.2Arise, go to Padan aram, to the house of Bethuel, your mother's father, and take yourself from there a wife of the daughters of Laban, your mother's brother.3And may the Almighty God bless you and make you fruitful and multiply you, and you shall become an assembly of peoples.4And may He give you the blessing of Abraham, to you and to your seed with you, that you may inherit the land of your sojournings, which God gave to Abraham."

Friday

Psalm 23:1–6 (NLT):

1 The Lord is my shepherd;

I have all that I need.

2 He lets me rest in green meadows;

he leads me beside peaceful streams.

3 He renews my strength.

He guides me along right paths,

bringing honor to his name.

4 Even when I walk

through the darkest valley,

I will not be afraid,

for you are close beside me.

Your rod and your staff

protect and comfort me.

5 You prepare a feast for me

in the presence of my enemies.

You honor me by anointing my head with oil.

My cup overflows with blessings.

6 Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me

all the days of my life,

and I will live in the house of the Lord

forever.

Seventh Portion

Bereshit (Genesis) Chapter 28

5And Isaac sent Jacob, and he went to Padan aram, to Laban the son of Bethuel the Aramean, the brother of Rebecca, the mother of Jacob and Esau.6And Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob and sent him away to Padan aram, to take himself a wife from there, and that when he blessed him, he commanded him, saying, "You shall not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan."7And Jacob listened to his father and his mother, and he went to Padan aram.8And Esau saw that the daughters of Canaan were displeasing to his father Isaac.9So Esau went to Ishmael, and he took Mahalath, the daughter of Ishmael, the son of Abraham, the sister of Nebaioth, in addition to his other wives as a wife.

Saturday

Colossians 2:6–15 (NLT): Freedom from Rules and New Life in Christ

6 And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow him. 7 Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.

8 Don’t let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world, rather than from Christ. 9 For in Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body. 10 So you also are complete through your union with Christ, who is the head over every ruler and authority.

11 When you came to Christ, you were “circumcised,” but not by a physical procedure. Christ performed a spiritual circumcision—the cutting away of your sinful nature. 12 For you were buried with Christ when you were baptized. And with him you were raised to new life because you trusted the mighty power of God, who raised Christ from the dead.

13 You were dead because of your sins and because your sinful nature was not yet cut away. Then God made you alive with Christ, for he forgave all our sins. 14 He canceled the record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross. 15 In this way, he disarmed the spiritual rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by his victory over them on the cross.

Maftir Portion

Bereshit (Genesis) Chapter 28

7And Jacob listened to his father and his mother, and he went to Padan aram.8And Esau saw that the daughters of Canaan were displeasing to his father Isaac.9So Esau went to Ishmael, and he took Mahalath, the daughter of Ishmael, the son of Abraham, the sister of Nebaioth, in addition to his other wives as a wife.

Haftarah

Malachi Chapter 1

1The burden of the word of the Lord to Israel in the hand of Malachi.2I loved you, said the Lord, and you said, "How have You loved us?" Was not Esau a brother to Jacob? says the Lord. And I loved Jacob.3And I hated Esau, and I made his mountains desolate and his heritage into [a habitat for] the jackals of the desert.4Should Edom say, "We were poor, but we will return and build the ruins"? So said the Lord of Hosts: They shall build, but I will demolish; and they shall be called the border of wickedness and the people whom the Lord has damned forever.5And your eyes shall see, and you shall say, "The Lord is great beyond the border of Israel."6A son honors a father, and a slave his master. Now if I am a father, where is My honor? And if I am a master, where is My fear? says the Lord of Hosts to you, the priests, who despise My name. But you said, "How have we despised Your Name?"7You offer on My altar defiled food, yet you say, "How have we defiled You?" By your saying, "God's table is contemptible."8When you offer a blind [animal] for a sacrifice, is there nothing wrong? And when you offer a lame or a sick one, is there nothing wrong? Were you to offer it to your governor, would he accept you or would he favor you? says the Lord of Hosts.9And now, will you pray before the Lord that He be gracious to us? This has come from your hand. Will He favor any of you? says the Lord of Hosts.10O that there were even one among you that would close the doors [of the Temple] and that you would not kindle fire on My altar in vain! I have no desire in you, says the Lord of Hosts. Neither will I accept an offering from your hand.11For, from the rising of the sun until its setting, My Name is great among the nations, and everywhere offerings are burnt and offered up to My Name; yea, a pure oblation, for My Name is great among the nations, says the Lord of Hosts.12But you are profaning it by your saying, "The Lord's table is defiled"; and its expression is "Its food is contemptible."13And you say, "Here is a weary one," and you cause it pain, says the Lord of Hosts. And you brought that which was taken by violence, and the lame and the sick. And you bring an offering-will I accept it from your hand? says the Lord.14And cursed is he who deals craftily; although there is a ram in his flock, he vows and sacrifices a blemished one. For I am a great King, says the Lord of Hosts, and My Name is feared among the nations.

Malachi Chapter 2

1And now, to you is this commandment, O priests.2If you do not heed, and if you do not take it to heart to give honor to My Name, says the Lord of Hosts, I will send the curse upon you, and I will curse your blessings. Indeed I have [already] cursed it, for you do not take it to heart.3Behold! I rebuke the seed because of you, and I will scatter dung upon your face-the dung of your festive sacrifices, and it shall take you to itself.4And you shall know that I have sent you this commandment, that My covenant be with Levi, says the Lord of Hosts.5My covenant was with him, life and peace, and I gave them to him [with] fear; and he feared Me, and because of My Name, he was over-awed.6True teaching was in his mouth, and injustice was not found on his lips. In peace and equity he went with Me, and he brought back many from iniquity.7For a priest's lips shall guard knowledge, and teaching should be sought from his mouth, for he is a messenger of the Lord of Hosts.