Day 1 (Monday)
Genesis 27:41-46; 28:1-22 (Jacob Escapes Esau's Fury, Esau's 3rd Marriage, Jacob's Dream at Bethel)
Last time we saw Jacob and Rebecca deceive Isaac, so that Isaac gave to Jacob the blessing that he had intended for Esau. When Esau returned from hunting and begged for a blessing, Isaac said that he was unable to do so; the blessing had been given to Jacob, and he would indeed be blessed. This time, we will see what the result of this is.
Jacob Escapes Esau’s Fury
41 Now Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing with which his father had blessed him, and Esau said to himself, “The days of mourning for my father are approaching; then I will kill my brother Jacob.” 42 But the words of her elder son Esau were told to Rebekah; so she sent and called her younger son Jacob and said to him, “Your brother Esau is consoling himself by planning to kill you. 43 Now therefore, my son, obey my voice; flee at once to my brother Laban in Haran, 44 and stay with him a while, until your brother’s fury turns away— 45 until your brother’s anger against you turns away, and he forgets what you have done to him; then I will send, and bring you back from there. Why should I lose both of you in one day?”
46 Then Rebekah said to Isaac, “I am weary of my life because of the Hittite women. If Jacob marries one of the Hittite women such as these, one of the women of the land, what good will my life be to me?”
28 Then Isaac called Jacob and blessed him, and charged him, “You shall not marry one of the Canaanite women. 2 Go at once to Paddan-aram to the house of Bethuel, your mother’s father; and take as wife from there one of the daughters of Laban, your mother’s brother. 3 May God Almighty bless you and make you fruitful and numerous, that you may become a company of peoples. 4 May he give to you the blessing of Abraham, to you and to your offspring with you, so that you may take possession of the land where you now live as an alien—land that God gave to Abraham.” 5 Thus Isaac sent Jacob away; and he went to Paddan-aram, to Laban son of Bethuel the Aramean, the brother of Rebekah, Jacob’s and Esau’s mother.
Esau Marries Ishmael’s Daughter
6 Now Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob and sent him away to Paddan-aram to take a wife from there, and that as he blessed him he charged him, “You shall not marry one of the Canaanite women,” 7 and that Jacob had obeyed his father and his mother and gone to Paddan-aram. 8 So when Esau saw that the Canaanite women did not please his father Isaac, 9 Esau went to Ishmael and took Mahalath daughter of Abraham’s son Ishmael, and sister of Nebaioth, to be his wife in addition to the wives he had.
Jacob’s Dream at Bethel
10 Jacob left Beer-sheba and went toward Haran. 11 He came to a certain place and stayed there for the night, because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones of the place, he put it under his head and lay down in that place. 12 And he dreamed that there was a ladder set up on the earth, the top of it reaching to heaven; and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. 13 And the Lord stood beside him and said, “I am the Lord, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie I will give to you and to your offspring; 14 and your offspring shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south; and all the families of the earth shall be blessed in you and in your offspring. 15 Know that I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”
16 Then Jacob woke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in this place—and I did not know it!” 17 And he was afraid, and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.” 18 So Jacob rose early in the morning, and he took the stone that he had put under his head and set it up for a pillar and poured oil on the top of it. 19 He called that place Bethel; but the name of the city was Luz at the first. 20 Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat and clothing to wear, 21 so that I come again to my father’s house in peace, then the Lord shall be my God, 22 and this stone, which I have set up for a pillar, shall be God’s house; and of all that you give me I will surely give one-tenth to you.”
Discussion questions:
1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (Leader should point out a few things. First, that both Isaac and Rebecca are grieved by Esau’s choice of wives, and that Esau, seeing this, marries again, but this time a daughter of the covenant, a descendant of Ishmael. We noted that the tradition of the Church considers Job to be a descendant of Esau, and it is significant that Job is descended from Esau through this third wife; in the meantime, we should also note that Amalek, the persistent enemy of the people of God, is also descended from Esau, but by one of his Hittite wives. More importantly, we should note that the blessing Jacob receives from Isaac is distinct from the promise that he receives from God in his dream at Bethel. The promise from God is the same promise that Abraham and Isaac had received; this is what makes Jacob the chosen heir of the covenant, not the deceit, or even Isaac’s choice. This is very important for us to understand as we continue with this story…it is a reality that Jacob is learning through the entire process as well.)
2) Where do we see Christ in this text; what is He saying or doing here?
3) Do we see ourselves and the Church in this text; what does it say about us?
4) What do you find difficult about this reading? Is there anything confusing about it, or anything that you dislike? (This is an open question, as always. )
5) Does this reading make you think that you need to change anything in your life?
Day 2 (Wednesday)
A Prayer for 12 Noon (the 6th Hour)
Our Day 1 reading presents us with Jacob as he leaves his family home and goes into exile. On the way he has a vision in which he receives the Lord’s promise to him and his descendants, and beholds the ladder on which the angels are ascending and descending. In the Church, we often associate this vision with the Panagia, the Virgin Mary, through whom the Lord has come to us, but the fulfillment of this bridging of heaven and earth reaches its culmination in the Lord’s Crucifixion, and the larger reality of His death and resurrection.
In the course of the Church’s discipline of prayer, we pray the prayers of the Hours at the 1st Hour (around 6 am), the 3rd Hour (around 9 am), the 6th Hour (around noon), and the 9th Hour (around 3 pm). Especially for the 6th and 9th Hours, we reflect on the Lord’s time upon the Cross, as He was suspended there from the 3rd Hour until the 9th Hour. In this prayer of the 6th Hour, then, we reflect upon the Lord’s work of salvation and reconciliation for us, which He accomplished upon the Cross, and more generally take the Cross as a foundation for the life of faithfulness to which the Lord calls us.
We include below a link to the rest of the service of the 6th Hour. This short service includes three Psalms (53, 54, & 90), a hymn to the Theotokos, the general prayer of the Hours, and then this prayer for the 6th Hour. We will read both the general prayer of the Hours (although we have read this before, in week 16 of Year 1 & week 5 of Year 3), and the Prayer of the 6th Hour.
Prayer of the Hours
O Christ our God, who at all times and at every hour, both in heaven and on earth, are worshipped and glorified, long suffering and plenteous in mercy and compassion; who love the just and show mercy to the sinners; who call all men to salvation through the promise of the blessings to come: Do you, the same Lord, receive also our supplications at this present time, and direct our lives according to your commandments. Sanctify our souls; purify our bodies; set our minds right; clear up our thoughts, and deliver us from every sorrow, evil and distress. Surround us with your holy Angels so that being guarded and guided by their presence, we may arrive at the unity of the faith and the knowledge of your ineffable glory; for blessed are you unto the ages of ages. Amen.
Prayer at the 6th Hour
God and Lord of hosts and Maker of all creation, in Your unfathomable compassion and mercy You sent down Your Only-Begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, for the salvation of the human race; and by His precious Cross You tore up the record of our sins, and triumphed over the principalities and powers of darkness. O Lord and Lover of mankind, accept the thanksgiving and fervent prayers even of us sinners. Deliver us from every dark and destructive transgression and from all the visible and invisible enemies that seek to harm us. Nail our flesh with the fear of You, and do not incline our hearts to evil words or thoughts; but rather prick our souls with love for You, so that always looking toYou, and guided by Your light, and gazing onYou, the eternal and ineffable Light, we may send up unceasing praise and thanksgiving toYou, the Father without beginning, and YourOnly-Begotten Son, and Your all-holy, good and life-giving Spirit, now and forever and to ages of ages. (Amen.)
Discussion questions:
1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (The Leader should note that the prayer speaks of the Cross as the weapon with which the Lord conquered the evil powers arrayed against Him, and against us, and invokes the Lord’s experience upon the Cross as we ask for His help in turning away from the temptations and bondage of this world and holding fast to Him in all things.)
2) Where do we see Christ in this text; what is He saying or doing here?
3) Do we see ourselves and the Church in this text; what does it say about us?
4) What do you find difficult about this reading? Is there anything confusing about it, or anything that you dislike? (This is an open question, as always. )
5) Does this reading make you think that you need to change anything in your life?
Day 3 (Friday)
John 3:1-21 (Nicodemus Visits Jesus)
Last time we saw Jesus turn the water into wine at the wedding at Cana, and then go to Jerusalem and cleanse the temple, driving out the money changers and laying claim to the Temple as His Father’s house, dedicated to prayer and to holiness. This time, we will see a Pharisee respond to this sign, and come to the Lord confessing that He must come from God, because of the signs that He does.
Nicodemus Visits Jesus
3 Now there was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews. 2 He came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God.” 3 Jesus answered him, “Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above.” 4 Nicodemus said to him, “How can anyone be born after having grown old? Can one enter a second time into the mother’s womb and be born?”
5 Jesus answered, “Very truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit. 6 What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not be astonished that I said to you, ‘You must be born from above.’ 8 The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” 9 Nicodemus said to him, “How can these things be?” 10 Jesus answered him, “Are you a teacher of Israel, and yet you do not understand these things?
11 “Very truly, I tell you, we speak of what we know and testify to what we have seen; yet you do not receive our testimony. 12 If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you about heavenly things? 13 No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven, the Son of Man [He Who Is in heaven]. 14 And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15 that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.
16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. 17 “Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 18 Those who believe in him are not condemned; but those who do not believe are condemned already, because they have not believed in the name of the only Son of God.
19 And this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil. 20 For all who do evil hate the light and do not come to the light, so that their deeds may not be exposed. 21 But those who do what is true come to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that their deeds have been done in God.”
Discussion questions:
1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (The Leader should note first of all that we read this passage in the Church a few weeks ago, as we always do, on the Sunday before the Elevation of the Cross on September 14th. The reference to the Cross, of course, is in verses 14 & 15, with the discussion of Moses and the serpent he lifted up in the wilderness. The larger context, however, is striking, as it shows the Lord affirming unequivocally that He is not just sent by God, but is God Himself, and His general message to Nicodemus seems to be that, although Nicodemus is willing to acknowledge Him as sent from God because of His miracles, that Nicodemus must go further, and be born again, born from above, if he wishes truly to see the Kingdom of God. The other thing that should be noted is that the word translated as “wind” in verse 8, and as spirit everywhere else, are in fact the same word, πνεῦμα. Thus, there is a play on words and multiple meanings: the wind is indeed the example given, that one hears it, but doesn’t know where it comes from, and in the same way, the action of the Spirit of God, the Holy Spirit, may be seen in its effects, without being explained away. The point seems to be that, for those who are born of the Spirit, they too will pass beyond the understanding or comprehension of even the wise in the world.)
2) Where do we see Christ in this text; what is He saying or doing here?
3) Do we see ourselves and the Church in this text; what does it say about us?
4) What do you find difficult about this reading? Is there anything confusing about it, or anything that you dislike? (This is an open question, as always. )
5) Does this reading make you think that you need to change anything in your life?