We are from a family of twelve brothers; we are the sons of one father.<n id="1" /> One is no longer alive,<n id="2" /> and the youngest is with our father at this time<n id="3" /> in the land of Canaan.&#8217;p>

Counting the two sons<n id="1" /> of Joseph who were born to him in Egypt, all the people of the household of Jacob who were in Egypt numbered seventy.<n id="2" />p>

<t /><p class="bodytext">After these things Joseph was told,<n id="1" /> &#8220;Your father is weakening.&#8221; So he took his two sons Manasseh and Ephraim with him.

Joseph positioned them;<n id="1" /> he put Ephraim on his right hand across from Israel&#8217;s left hand, and Manasseh on his left hand across from Israel&#8217;s right hand. Then Joseph brought them closer to his father.<n id="2" />

<p class="bodytext">These<n id="1" /> are the twelve tribes of Israel. This is what their father said to them when he blessed them. He gave each of them an appropriate blessing.<n id="2" />p>

Shem and Japheth took the garment<n id="1" /> and placed it on their shoulders. Then they walked in backwards and covered up their father&#8217;s nakedness. Their faces were turned<n id="2" /> the other way so they did not see their father&#8217;s nakedness.p>

Look, I have two daughters who have never had sexual relations with<n id="1" /> a man. Let me bring them out to you, and you can do to them whatever you please.<n id="2" /> Only don&#8217;t do anything to these men, for they have come under the protection<n id="3" /> of my roof.&#8221;<n id="4" />p>

<p class="bodytext">At dawn<n id="1" /> the angels hurried Lot along, saying, &#8220;Get going! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here,<n id="2" /> or else you will be destroyed when the city is judged!&#8221;<n id="3" />

<p class="bodytext">Early in the morning Abraham got up and saddled his donkey.<n id="1" /> He took two of his young servants with him, along with his son Isaac. When he had cut the wood for the burnt offering, he started out<n id="2" /> for the place God had spoken to him about.p>

Stay there<n id="1" /> until your brother&#8217;s anger against you subsides and he forgets what you did to him. Then I&#8217;ll send someone to bring you back from there.<n id="2" /> Why should I lose both of you in one day?&#8221;<n id="3" />p>

This was my lot<n id="1" /> for twenty years in your house: I worked like a slave<n id="2" /> for you &#8211; fourteen years for your two daughters and six years for your flocks, but you changed my wages ten times!

I am not worthy of all the faithful love<n id="1" /> you have shown<n id="2" /> your servant. With only my walking stick<n id="3" /> I crossed the Jordan,<n id="4" /> but now I have become two camps.

<t /><p class="bodytext">Jacob looked up<n id="1" /> and saw that Esau was coming<n id="2" /> along with four hundred men. So he divided the children among Leah, Rachel, and the two female servants.

In three days, when they were still in pain, two of Jacob&#8217;s sons, Simeon and Levi, Dinah&#8217;s brothers, each took his sword<n id="1" /> and went to the unsuspecting city<n id="2" /> and slaughtered every male.

While Israel was living in that land, Reuben had sexual relations with<n id="1" /> Bilhah, his father&#8217;s concubine, and Israel heard about it.p> <p class="bodytext">Jacob had twelve sons:p>

Both of them, the cupbearer and the baker of the king of Egypt, who were confined in the prison, had a dream<n id="1" /> the same night.<n id="2" /> Each man&#8217;s dream had its own meaning.<n id="3" />

<p class="bodytext">Then Reuben said to his father, &#8220;You may<n id="1" /> put my two sons to death if I do not bring him back to you. Put him in my care<n id="2" /> and I will bring him back to you.&#8221;

<p class="bodytext">&#8220;Now, as for your two sons, who were born to you in the land of Egypt before I came to you in Egypt, they will be mine.<n id="1" /> Ephraim and Manasseh will be mine just as Reuben and Simeon are.