Song of Songs 2:8-13

New International Version

⁸Listen! My beloved!
    Look! Here he comes,
leaping across the mountains,
    bounding over the hills.^(A)
⁹My beloved is like a gazelle^(B) or a young stag.^(C)
    Look! There he stands behind our wall,
gazing through the windows,
    peering through the lattice.
¹⁰My beloved spoke and said to me,
    “Arise, my darling,
    my beautiful one, come with me.
¹¹See! The winter is past;
    the rains are over and gone.
¹²Flowers appear on the earth;
    the season of singing has come,
the cooing of doves
    is heard in our land.
¹³The fig tree forms its early fruit;^(D)
    the blossoming^(E) vines spread their fragrance.
Arise, come, my darling;
    my beautiful one, come with me.”

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Genesis 29:31-35

New International Version

Jacob’s Children

³¹When the Lord saw that Leah was not loved,^(A) he enabled her to conceive,^(B) but Rachel remained childless. ³²Leah became pregnant and gave birth to a son.^(C) She named him Reuben,^[a]^(D) for she said, “It is because the Lord has seen my misery.^(E) Surely my husband will love me now.”

³³She conceived again, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “Because the Lord heard that I am not loved,^(F) he gave me this one too.” So she named him Simeon.^[b]^(G)

³⁴Again she conceived, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “Now at last my husband will become attached to me,^(H) because I have borne him three sons.” So he was named Levi.^[c]^(I)

³⁵She conceived again, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “This time I will praise the Lord.” So she named him Judah.^[d]^(J) Then she stopped having children.^(K)

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Footnotes

Genesis 29:32 Reuben sounds like the Hebrew for he has seen my misery; the name means see, a son.
Genesis 29:33 Simeon probably means one who hears.
Genesis 29:34 Levi sounds like and may be derived from the Hebrew for attached.
Genesis 29:35 Judah sounds like and may be derived from the Hebrew for praise.

John 13:1-17

New International Version

Jesus Washes His Disciples’ Feet

13 It was just before the Passover Festival.^(A) Jesus knew that the hour had come^(B) for him to leave this world and go to the Father.^(C) Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end.

²The evening meal was in progress, and the devil had already prompted Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot, to betray Jesus.^(D) ³Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power,^(E) and that he had come from God^(F) and was returning to God; ⁴so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist.^(G) ⁵After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet,^(H) drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.

⁶He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?”

⁷Jesus replied, “You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand.”^(I)

⁸“No,” said Peter, “you shall never wash my feet.”

Jesus answered, “Unless I wash you, you have no part with me.”

⁹“Then, Lord,” Simon Peter replied, “not just my feet but my hands and my head as well!”

¹⁰Jesus answered, “Those who have had a bath need only to wash their feet; their whole body is clean. And you are clean,^(J) though not every one of you.”^(K) ¹¹For he knew who was going to betray him,^(L) and that was why he said not every one was clean.

¹²When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place. “Do you understand what I have done for you?” he asked them. ¹³“You call me ‘Teacher’^(M) and ‘Lord,’^(N) and rightly so, for that is what I am. ¹⁴Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet.^(O) ¹⁵I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you.^(P) ¹⁶Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master,^(Q) nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. ¹⁷Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.^(R)