“Please test your servants for ten days by providing us with some vegetables to eat and water to drink.

When they had completely consumed the earth&#8217;s vegetation, I said,p> <p class="poetry">&#8220;Sovereign <sc>Lordsc>, forgive Israel!<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">How can Jacob survive?<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">He is too weak!&#8221;<n id="3" />p>

<t /><p class="poetry">I said,p> <p class="poetry">&#8220;Listen, you leaders<n id="1" /> of Jacob,p> <p class="poetry">you rulers of the nation<n id="2" /> of Israel!p> <p class="poetry">You ought to know what is just,<n id="3" />p>

<p class="poetry">Listen to this, you leaders of the family<n id="1" /> of Jacob,p> <p class="poetry">you rulers of the nation<n id="2" /> of Israel!p> <p class="poetry">You<n id="3" /> hate justicep> <p class="poetry">and pervert all that is right.p>

<t /><p class="poetry">Listen to what the <sc>Lordsc> says:p> <p class="poetry">&#8220;Get up! Defend yourself<n id="1" /> before the mountains!<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">Present your case before the hills!&#8221;<n id="3" />p>

&#8220;Ask the following questions to<n id="1" /> Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, the high priest Joshua son of Jehozadak,<n id="2" /> and the remnant of the people:

Now therefore reflect carefully on the recent past,<n id="1" /> before one stone was laid on another in the <sc>Lordsc>&#8217;s temple.<n id="2" />

<t /><p class="bodytext">After this the angelic messenger<n id="1" /> who had been speaking to me went out and said, &#8220;Look, see what is leaving.&#8221;

But now plead for God&#8217;s favor<n id="1" /> that he might be gracious to us.<n id="2" /> &#8220;With this kind of offering in your hands, how can he be pleased with you?&#8221; asks the <sc>Lordsc> who rules over all.p>

<p class="bodytext">After Lot had departed, the <sc>Lordsc> said to Abram,<n id="1" /> &#8220;Look<n id="2" /> from the place where you stand to the north, south, east, and west.

Your<n id="1" /> servant has found favor with you,<n id="2" /> and you have shown me great<n id="3" /> kindness<n id="4" /> by sparing<n id="5" /> my life. But I am not able to escape to the mountains because<n id="6" /> this disaster will overtake<n id="7" /> me and I&#8217;ll die.<n id="8" />

God<n id="1" /> said, &#8220;Take your son &#8211; your only son, whom you love, Isaac<n id="2" /> &#8211; and go to the land of Moriah!<n id="3" /> Offer him up there as a burnt offering<n id="4" /> on one of the mountains which I will indicate to<n id="5" /> you.&#8221;p>

I will say to a young woman, &#8216;Please lower your jar so I may drink.&#8217; May the one you have chosen for your servant Isaac reply, &#8216;Drink, and I&#8217;ll give your camels water too.&#8217;<n id="1" /> In this way I will know that you have been faithful to my master.&#8221;<n id="2" />p>

<p class="bodytext">&#8220;Before I finished praying in my heart,<n id="1" /> along came Rebekah<n id="2" /> with her water jug on her shoulder! She went down to the spring and drew water. So I said to her, &#8216;Please give me a drink.&#8217;

Jacob said to his father, &#8220;I am Esau, your firstborn. I&#8217;ve done as you told me. Now sit up<n id="1" /> and eat some of my wild game so that you can bless me.&#8221;<n id="2" />

<p class="bodytext">At the time<n id="1" /> of the wheat harvest Reuben went out and found some mandrake plants<n id="2" /> in a field and brought them to his mother Leah. Rachel said to Leah, &#8220;Give me some of your son&#8217;s mandrakes.&#8221;

Then he said, &#8216;Observe<n id="1" /> that all the male goats mating with<n id="2" /> the flock are streaked, speckled, or spotted, for I have observed all that Laban has done to you.

Let my lord go on ahead of his servant. I will travel more slowly, at the pace of the herds and the children,<n id="1" /> until I come to my lord at Seir.&#8221;p>

He turned aside to her along the road and said, &#8220;Come on! I want to have sex with you.&#8221;<n id="1" /> (He did not realize<n id="2" /> it was his daughter-in-law.) She asked, &#8220;What will you give me in exchange for having sex with you?&#8221;<n id="3" />

While they were bringing her out, she sent word<n id="1" /> to her father-in-law: &#8220;I am pregnant by the man to whom these belong.&#8221;<n id="2" /> Then she said, &#8220;Identify<n id="3" /> the one to whom the seal, cord, and staff belong.&#8221;