Week 2

8 - 14 January: Psalms 8 - 14, Genesis 33 - Exodus 12, Luke 8 - 13, Proverbs 2

Day	Date	Psalm	OT	NT	Proverbs
Wednesday	8 Jan	8	Genesis 33 - 36	Luke 8.1-39
Thursday	9 Jan	9	Genesis 37 - 40	Luke 8.40 - 9.17
Friday	10 Jan	10	Genesis 41 - 43	Luke 9.18 - 50
Saturday	11 Jan	11	Genesis 44 - 48	Luke 9.51 - 10.42	2.1-15
Sunday	12 Jan	12	Genesis 49 - Exodus 3	Luke 11	2.16-22
Monday	13 Jan	13	Exodus 4 - 7	Luke 12
Tuesday	14 Jan	14	Exodus 8 - 12	Luke 13

Psalms

Psalm 8 is a hymn of praise to God our creator.
Psalm 9 is a psalm of thanksgiving.
Psalm 10 is an individual lament.  Together Psalms 9 and 10 form an acrostic, in which successive lines of poetry begin with the letters of the alphabet in sequence.
Psalm 11 is a song of trust in God who will uphold the righteous and bring down the wicked.
Psalm 12 speaks of God as the guard of the righteous and the one who will judge the wicked.
Psalm 13 is the lament of one who feels God's absence, but still is able to trust in his steadfast love.

Genesis - Exodus

The second half of Genesis moves the story on through the account of Jacob and his sons, and the eventual settlement of the people in Egypt.  Because of his trust in God, Joseph rises from being a slave to Pharaoh's right-hand man, able to ensure their survival in a time of famine.
The story continues in the book of the Exodus.  Following the death of Joseph, the people become numerous, and eventually a threat.  But although oppression and slavery follow, God hears the cry of his people, and raises up Moses, and with him Aaron, to deliver them from their oppressors.  Reluctant to let such a useful work force leave, a later Pharaoh goes back on his word time after time, despite increasingly vicious plagues sent by God to force his hand, until at last the death of all first-born males, both human and animal convinces him that enough is enough.

Luke's Gospel

Luke 8 and 9 see Jesus' Galilean ministry coming to an end.  In chapter 9, he begins to talk to his disciples about what lies ahead - the cross - prefigured in the Transfiguration.  Following this, Jesus tries to help his disciples to understand the way of the cross, and what it will mean for him personally, and for them as his followers - and for us, as his followers now.  Luke 9 is the pivotal point in Luke's gospel, with the account of the Transfiguration followed by verse 51, where we read: 'When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem.'

On the way to Jerusalem, Jesus instructs his disciples on what it means to follow him, in part through a series of very familiar parables.  We should not let familiarity blind us to the real challenge in them, however - Luke makes it clear that there is a cost to being a disciple of Jesus, and that the disciple is likely to meet with opposition.

Proverbs 2

Chapter 2 begins a long account of the benefits of Wisdom - how it is to be acquired and why it is important to acquire it.  The 'strange woman' may represent a cultic fertility figure, who tempts men to idolatry as well as adultery - marital infidelity breaks the covenant with God, as well as that between husband and wife.