Genesis 42
42
The Dreams Come True
1During the famine in Canaan, Jacob learned that there was grain in Egypt. So he said to his sons, “Why are you sitting here doing nothing? 2I have heard that there is grain for sale in Egypt. Go there and buy grain for us so that we will live and not die!”
3So ten of Joseph’s brothers went to Egypt to buy grain. 4Jacob did not send Benjamin. (Benjamin was Joseph’s only full brother.#42:4 full brother Literally, “brother.” Joseph and Benjamin had the same mother.) Jacob was afraid that something bad might happen to Benjamin.
5The famine was very bad in Canaan, so there were many people from Canaan who went to Egypt to buy grain. Among them were the sons of Israel.
6Joseph was the governor of Egypt at the time. He was the one who checked the sale of grain to people who came to Egypt to buy it. Joseph’s brothers came to him and bowed before him. 7Joseph saw his brothers and recognized them, but he acted like he didn’t know them. He was rude when he spoke to them. He said, “Where do you come from?”
The brothers answered, “We have come from the land of Canaan to buy food.”
8Joseph recognized his brothers, but they did not know who he was. 9Then Joseph remembered the dreams that he had dreamed about his brothers.
Joseph said to his brothers, “You have not come to buy food! You are spies. You came to learn where we are weak.”
10But the brothers said to him, “No, sir, we come as your servants. We have come only to buy food. 11We are all brothers—we all have the same father. We are honest men. We have come only to buy food.”
12Then Joseph said to them, “No, you have come to spy on us!”
13And the brothers said, “No, sir, we come as servants from Canaan. We are all brothers, sons of the same father. There were twelve brothers in our family. Our youngest brother is still at home with our father, and the other brother died a long time ago.”
14But Joseph said to them, “No! I can see that I am right. You are spies. 15But I will let you prove that you are telling the truth. In the name of Pharaoh, I swear that I will not let you go until your youngest brother comes here. 16One of you must go back to get your youngest brother while the rest of you stay here in prison. Then we can prove whether you are telling the truth or not. If you are not telling the truth, then by Pharaoh, I swear that you are spies!” 17Then Joseph put them all in prison for three days.
The Troubles Begin
18After three days Joseph said to them, “I am a God-fearing man. Do this, and I will let you live. 19If you are honest men, one of your brothers can stay here in prison, and the others can go and carry grain back to your people. 20But then you must bring your youngest brother back here to me. Then I will know that you are telling the truth, and you will not have to die.”
The brothers agreed to this. 21They said to each other, “We are being punished for the bad thing we did to our younger brother Joseph. We saw the trouble he was in. He begged us to save him, but we refused to listen. So now we are in trouble.”
22Then Reuben said to them, “I told you not to do anything bad to that boy, but you refused to listen to me. Now we are being punished for his death.”
23-24Joseph was using an interpreter to talk to his brothers, so the brothers did not know that he understood their language. He heard and understood everything they said, and that made him want to cry. So he turned away and left the room. When he came back, he took one of the brothers, Simeon, and tied him up while the others watched. 25Joseph told the servants to fill the bags with grain. The brothers had given Joseph the money for the grain, but he didn’t keep the money. He put the money in their bags of grain. Then he gave them what they would need for their trip back home.
26So the brothers put the grain on their donkeys and left. 27That night the brothers stopped at a place to spend the night. One of the brothers opened his sack to get some grain for his donkey. And there in the sack, he saw his money! 28He said to the other brothers, “Look! Here is the money I paid for the grain. Someone put the money back in my sack.” The brothers were very afraid. They said to one another, “What is God doing to us?”
The Brothers Report to Jacob
29The brothers went back to their father Jacob in the land of Canaan. They told him about everything that had happened. 30They said, “The governor of that country spoke rudely to us. He thought that we were spies! 31We told him, ‘We are honest men, not spies. 32There are twelve of us brothers, all from the same father. But one of our brothers is no longer living, and the youngest is still at home with our father in Canaan.’
33“Then the governor of that country said to us, ‘Here is a way to prove that you are honest men: Leave one of your brothers here with me. Take your grain back to your families. 34Bring your youngest brother to me. Then I will know if you are honest men or if you were sent from an army to destroy us. If you are telling the truth, I will give your brother back to you. I will give him to you, and you will be free to buy grain in our country.’”
35Then the brothers started taking the grain out of their sacks, and every brother found his bag of money in his sack of grain. When the brothers and their father saw the money, they were afraid.
36Jacob said to them, “Do you want me to lose all of my children? Joseph is gone. Simeon is gone, and now you want to take Benjamin away too!”
37But Reuben said to his father, “Father, you may kill my two sons if I don’t bring Benjamin back to you. Trust me. I will bring him back to you.”
38But Jacob said, “I will not let Benjamin go with you. His brother is dead, and he is the only son left from my wife Rachel. It would kill me if anything happened to him during the trip to Egypt. You would send me to the grave#42:38 grave Or “Sheol,” the place of death. a very sad, old man.”
© 1987, 2004 Bible League International
Genesis 42
42
1And Jacob hearing that food was sold in Egypt, said to his sons: Why are ye careless?
2I have heard that wheat is sold in Egypt. Go ye down, and buy us necessaries, that we may live, and not be consumed with want.
3So the ten brethren of Joseph went down, to buy corn in Egypt:
4Whilst Benjamin was kept at home by Jacob, who said to his brethren: Lest perhaps he take any harm in the journey.
5And they entered into the land of Egypt with others that went to buy. For the famine was in the land of Chanaan.
6And Joseph was governor in the land of Egypt, and corn was sold by his direction to the people. And when his brethren had bowed down to him,
7And he knew them, he spoke as it were to strangers somewhat roughly, asking them: Whence came you? They answered: From the land of Chanaan, to buy necessaries of life.
8And though he knew his brethren, he was not known by them.
9And remembering the dreams, which formerly he had dreamed, he said to them: You are spies. You are come to view the weaker parts of the land.
10But they said: It is not so, my lord; but thy servants are come to buy food.
11We are all the sons of one man: we are come as peaceable men; neither do thy servants go about any evil.
12And he answered them: It is otherwise: you are come to consider the unfenced parts of this land.
13But they said: We thy servants are twelve brethren, the sons of one man in the land of Chanaan. The youngest is with our father, the other is not living.
14He saith: This is it that I said: You are spies.
15I shall now presently try what you are. By the health of Pharao, you shall not depart hence, until your youngest brother come.
16Send one of you to fetch him: and you shall be in prison, till what you have said be proved, whether it be true or false: or else by the health of Pharao you are spies.
17So he put them in prison three days.
18And the third day he brought them out of prison, and said: Do as I have said, and you shall live; for I fear God.
19If you be peaceable men, let one of your brethren be bound in prison: and go ye your ways and carry the corn that you have bought, unto your houses.
20And bring your youngest brother to me, that I may find your words to be true, and you may not die. And they did as he had said.
21And they talked one to another: We deserve to suffer these things, because we have sinned against our brother, seeing the anguish of his soul, when he besought us, and we would not hear. Therefore is this affliction come upon us.
22And Ruben, one of them, said: Did not I say to you: Do not sin against the boy; and you would not hear me? Behold, his blood is required.
23And they knew not that Joseph understood; because he spoke to them by an interpreter.
24And he turned himself away a little while, and wept: and returning he spoke to them.
25And taking Simeon, and binding him in their presence, he commanded his servants to fill their sacks with wheat, and to put every man's money again in their sacks, and to give them besides provisions for the way. And they did so.
26But they having loaded their asses with the corn, went their way.
27And one of them opening his sack, to give his beast provender in the inn, saw the money in the sack's mouth;
28And said to his brethren: My money is given me again; behold it is in the sack. And they were astonished, and troubled, and said to one another: What is this that God hath done unto us?
29And they came to Jacob their father in the land of Chanaan; and they told him all things that had befallen them, saying:
30The lord of the land spoke roughly to us, and took us to be spies of the country.
31And we answered him: We are peaceable men, and we mean no plot.
32We are twelve brethren born of one father. One is not living; the youngest is with our father in the land of Chanaan.
33And he said to us: Hereby shall I know that you are peaceable men; Leave one of your brethren with me, and take ye necessary provision for your houses, and go your ways.
34And bring your youngest brother to me, that I may know you are not spies: and you may receive this man again, that is kept in prison: and afterwards may have leave to buy what you will.
35When they had told this, they poured out their corn, and every man found his money tied in the mouth of his sack. And all being astonished together,
36Their father Jacob said: You have made me to be without children: Joseph is not living, Simeon is kept in bonds, and Benjamin you will take away. All these evils are fallen upon me.
37And Ruben answered him: Kill my two sons, if I bring him not again to thee. Deliver him unto my hand, and I will restore him to thee.
38But he said: My son shall not go down with you. His brother is dead, and he is left alone: if any mischief befall him in the land to which you go, you will bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to hell.
An historical text maintained by the British and Foreign Bible Society.