All of Jacob’s sons and daughters tried to comfort him, but Jacob was never comforted. He said, “I will be sad about my son until the day I die.” So Jacob continued to mourn his son Joseph.
At night my soul longs to be with you, and the spirit in me wants to be with you at the dawn of every new day. When your way of justice comes to the world, people will learn the right way of living.
While Jesus lived on earth he prayed to God, asking for help from the one who could save him from death. He prayed to God with loud cries and tears. And his prayers were answered because of his great respect for God.
Ephraim saw his sickness, and Judah saw his wound, so they went to Assyria for help. They told their problems to the great king, but he cannot heal you or cure your wound.
This is what the Lord says: “A sound is heard in Ramah— bitter crying and great sadness. Rachel cries for her children, and she refuses to be comforted, because her children are gone.”
The Jews who were in the house comforting Mary saw her get up and leave quickly. They thought she was going to the tomb to cry there. So they followed her.
“The land might become very dry so that no food will grow on it. Or maybe a great sickness will spread among the people. Maybe all the food that is growing will be destroyed by insects. Or your people might be attacked in some of their cities by their enemies. Or many of your people might get sick.
Then the man said, “Your name will not be Jacob. Your name will now be Israel. I give you this name because you have fought with God and with men, and you have won.”