Justin Houtz

Hi. I’m Justin. I write code and things but enough about that…

Let’s talk about Jesus.

  • Daily Bible Study

    Genesis 49-50; Psalm 8; Luke 20

    DateVersionReading Plan
    January 20, 2026ESV (2016)ESV Life Journal Plan – 2026

    Genesis 49-50

    Observation & Interpretation

    Gen. 49:4 – In his address of his sons, Jacob declared that Reuben was not have preeminence because he went up to Jacob’s bed and defiled it.

    • The birthright, with its double portion, belonged to him. But he forfeited his preeminence because he boiled over with dark passion and sinned with Bilhah, his father’s concubine (35:22). (BBC)

    Gen. 49:8-12 – Jacob’s blessing of Judah entails his rule and the submission of others to him.

    • Judah (meaning praise) would be praised and respected by his brothers because of his victories over his enemies. He is likened to a lion that goes forth to capture prey, then returns to well-deserved rest that no one dares disturb. Just as Joseph inherited the birthright with regard to territory, so Judah inherited it with regard to government. Rulership would continue in this tribe till Shiloh (the Messiah) came, and in Him it would remain forever. His people would give Him willing obedience in the day of His power. (BBC)

    Gen. 49:29-30 – Jacob commanded that he was to be buried in the cave in the field of Machpelah, the same place where Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Rebekah and Leah were buried.

    • The dying patriarch emphasized two matters in his final words: where he was to be buried, and with whom he was to be buried. The burial site was in Canaan, two miles north of Hebron and some seventeen miles west of the Dead Sea. Wishing to reestablish family solidarity in death, Jacob asked to be buried with his grandparents Abraham and his wife Sarah, his parents Isaac and his wife Rebekah, and his first wife Leah. (CSB Notes)

    Gen. 50:3 – The Egyptians wept over Jacob’s death.

    • The seventy days of mourning probably reflected Egyptian customs associated with deaths of particularly important individuals; normal Hebrew mourning periods were either seven days (1Sm 31:13) or thirty days (on lunar cycle; Dt 34:8). (CSB Notes)

    Luke 20

    Observation & Interpretation

    Luke 20:13-14 – In the parable of the wicked tenants, Jesus speaks of how the vineyard owner sent his beloved son, but upon seeing him, the wicked tenants killed him.

    • My beloved son stands for Jesus…The Jewish religious leaders did not want to kill Jesus to claim his inheritance but rather to forcefully and finally reject him as Messiah and heir to David’s throne. (CSB Notes)

    Luke 20:34-35 – Jesus responded to the Sadducees’ question about marriage that “those who are considered worthy to attain to that age and to the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage.” Jesus is not just speaking about the details of marriage but specifically about whom they apply, namely, the elect.

    • Jesus answered that marriage is confined to this age. Those who are counted worthy are those who place their faith in Christ because faith in Messiah is the only means by which anyone can be accepted by God (Rm 5:1; Gl 2:16). (CSB Notes)

    Application

    Luke 20:45-47 (ESV) And in the hearing of all the people he said to his disciples, “Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes, and love greetings in the marketplaces and the best seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at feasts, who devour widows’ houses and for a pretense make long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation.”

    While I do not wear long robes, I am most certainly guilty of desiring honor and recognition in the same way as the Sadducees. My prayers can also be long-winded, effected by the company in which I am keeping at the time of their speaking. Reading this passage convicts the heart that our walk with the Lord is to be from a place of humility and contrition, crushed by the gospel and understanding our desperate, wretched state apart from the grace of Christ. Father, help me by Your Spirit to rid me of my pride, that I would be a man of Christlike integrity, fully surrendered to You in service and self-sacrifice.

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