< Genesis 42 >
1 When Jacob learned that there was grain in Egypt, he said to his sons, “Why are you staring at one another?”
ἰδὼν δὲ Ιακωβ ὅτι ἔστιν πρᾶσις ἐν Αἰγύπτῳ εἶπεν τοῖς υἱοῖς αὐτοῦ ἵνα τί ῥᾳθυμεῖτε
2 “Look,” he added, “I have heard that there is grain in Egypt. Go down there and buy some for us, so that we may live and not die.”
ἰδοὺ ἀκήκοα ὅτι ἔστιν σῖτος ἐν Αἰγύπτῳ κατάβητε ἐκεῖ καὶ πρίασθε ἡμῖν μικρὰ βρώματα ἵνα ζῶμεν καὶ μὴ ἀποθάνωμεν
3 So ten of Joseph’s brothers went down to buy grain from Egypt.
κατέβησαν δὲ οἱ ἀδελφοὶ Ιωσηφ οἱ δέκα πρίασθαι σῖτον ἐξ Αἰγύπτου
4 But Jacob did not send Joseph’s brother Benjamin with his brothers, for he said, “I am afraid that harm might befall him.”
τὸν δὲ Βενιαμιν τὸν ἀδελφὸν Ιωσηφ οὐκ ἀπέστειλεν μετὰ τῶν ἀδελφῶν αὐτοῦ εἶπεν γάρ μήποτε συμβῇ αὐτῷ μαλακία
5 So the sons of Israel were among those who came to buy grain, since the famine had also spread to the land of Canaan.
ἦλθον δὲ οἱ υἱοὶ Ισραηλ ἀγοράζειν μετὰ τῶν ἐρχομένων ἦν γὰρ ὁ λιμὸς ἐν γῇ Χανααν
6 Now Joseph was the ruler of the land; he was the one who sold grain to all its people. So when his brothers arrived, they bowed down before him with their faces to the ground.
Ιωσηφ δὲ ἦν ἄρχων τῆς γῆς οὗτος ἐπώλει παντὶ τῷ λαῷ τῆς γῆς ἐλθόντες δὲ οἱ ἀδελφοὶ Ιωσηφ προσεκύνησαν αὐτῷ ἐπὶ πρόσωπον ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν
7 And when Joseph saw his brothers, he recognized them, but he treated them as strangers and spoke harshly to them. “Where have you come from?” he asked. “From the land of Canaan,” they replied. “We are here to buy food.”
ἰδὼν δὲ Ιωσηφ τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς αὐτοῦ ἐπέγνω καὶ ἠλλοτριοῦτο ἀπ’ αὐτῶν καὶ ἐλάλησεν αὐτοῖς σκληρὰ καὶ εἶπεν αὐτοῖς πόθεν ἥκατε οἱ δὲ εἶπαν ἐκ γῆς Χανααν ἀγοράσαι βρώματα
8 Although Joseph recognized his brothers, they did not recognize him.
ἐπέγνω δὲ Ιωσηφ τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς αὐτοῦ αὐτοὶ δὲ οὐκ ἐπέγνωσαν αὐτόν
9 Joseph remembered his dreams about them and said, “You are spies! You have come to see if our land is vulnerable.”
καὶ ἐμνήσθη Ιωσηφ τῶν ἐνυπνίων ὧν εἶδεν αὐτός καὶ εἶπεν αὐτοῖς κατάσκοποί ἐστε κατανοῆσαι τὰ ἴχνη τῆς χώρας ἥκατε
10 “Not so, my lord,” they replied. “Your servants have come to buy food.
οἱ δὲ εἶπαν οὐχί κύριε οἱ παῖδές σου ἤλθομεν πρίασθαι βρώματα
11 We are all sons of one man. Your servants are honest men, not spies.”
πάντες ἐσμὲν υἱοὶ ἑνὸς ἀνθρώπου εἰρηνικοί ἐσμεν οὐκ εἰσὶν οἱ παῖδές σου κατάσκοποι
12 “No,” he told them. “You have come to see if our land is vulnerable.”
εἶπεν δὲ αὐτοῖς οὐχί ἀλλὰ τὰ ἴχνη τῆς γῆς ἤλθατε ἰδεῖν
13 But they answered, “Your servants are twelve brothers, the sons of one man in the land of Canaan. The youngest is now with our father, and one is no more.”
οἱ δὲ εἶπαν δώδεκά ἐσμεν οἱ παῖδές σου ἀδελφοὶ ἐν γῇ Χανααν καὶ ἰδοὺ ὁ νεώτερος μετὰ τοῦ πατρὸς ἡμῶν σήμερον ὁ δὲ ἕτερος οὐχ ὑπάρχει
14 Then Joseph declared, “Just as I said, you are spies!
εἶπεν δὲ αὐτοῖς Ιωσηφ τοῦτό ἐστιν ὃ εἴρηκα ὑμῖν λέγων ὅτι κατάσκοποί ἐστε
15 And this is how you will be tested: As surely as Pharaoh lives, you shall not leave this place unless your youngest brother comes here.
ἐν τούτῳ φανεῖσθε νὴ τὴν ὑγίειαν Φαραω οὐ μὴ ἐξέλθητε ἐντεῦθεν ἐὰν μὴ ὁ ἀδελφὸς ὑμῶν ὁ νεώτερος ἔλθῃ ὧδε
16 Send one of your number to get your brother; the rest of you will be confined so that the truth of your words may be tested. If they are untrue, then as surely as Pharaoh lives, you are spies!”
ἀποστείλατε ἐξ ὑμῶν ἕνα καὶ λάβετε τὸν ἀδελφὸν ὑμῶν ὑμεῖς δὲ ἀπάχθητε ἕως τοῦ φανερὰ γενέσθαι τὰ ῥήματα ὑμῶν εἰ ἀληθεύετε ἢ οὔ εἰ δὲ μή νὴ τὴν ὑγίειαν Φαραω ἦ μὴν κατάσκοποί ἐστε
17 So Joseph imprisoned them for three days,
καὶ ἔθετο αὐτοὺς ἐν φυλακῇ ἡμέρας τρεῖς
18 and on the third day he said to them, “I fear God. So do this and you will live:
εἶπεν δὲ αὐτοῖς τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τῇ τρίτῃ τοῦτο ποιήσατε καὶ ζήσεσθε τὸν θεὸν γὰρ ἐγὼ φοβοῦμαι
19 If you are honest, leave one of your brothers in custody while the rest of you go and take back grain to relieve the hunger of your households.
εἰ εἰρηνικοί ἐστε ἀδελφὸς ὑμῶν εἷς κατασχεθήτω ἐν τῇ φυλακῇ αὐτοὶ δὲ βαδίσατε καὶ ἀπαγάγετε τὸν ἀγορασμὸν τῆς σιτοδοσίας ὑμῶν
20 Then bring your youngest brother to me so that your words can be verified, that you may not die.” And to this they consented.
καὶ τὸν ἀδελφὸν ὑμῶν τὸν νεώτερον ἀγάγετε πρός με καὶ πιστευθήσονται τὰ ῥήματα ὑμῶν εἰ δὲ μή ἀποθανεῖσθε ἐποίησαν δὲ οὕτως
21 Then they said to one another, “Surely we are being punished because of our brother. We saw his anguish when he pleaded with us, but we would not listen. That is why this distress has come upon us.”
καὶ εἶπεν ἕκαστος πρὸς τὸν ἀδελφὸν αὐτοῦ ναί ἐν ἁμαρτίᾳ γάρ ἐσμεν περὶ τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ ἡμῶν ὅτι ὑπερείδομεν τὴν θλῖψιν τῆς ψυχῆς αὐτοῦ ὅτε κατεδέετο ἡμῶν καὶ οὐκ εἰσηκούσαμεν αὐτοῦ ἕνεκεν τούτου ἐπῆλθεν ἐφ’ ἡμᾶς ἡ θλῖψις αὕτη
22 And Reuben responded, “Didn’t I tell you not to sin against the boy? But you would not listen. Now we must account for his blood!”
ἀποκριθεὶς δὲ Ρουβην εἶπεν αὐτοῖς οὐκ ἐλάλησα ὑμῖν λέγων μὴ ἀδικήσητε τὸ παιδάριον καὶ οὐκ εἰσηκούσατέ μου καὶ ἰδοὺ τὸ αἷμα αὐτοῦ ἐκζητεῖται
23 They did not realize that Joseph understood them, since there was an interpreter between them.
αὐτοὶ δὲ οὐκ ᾔδεισαν ὅτι ἀκούει Ιωσηφ ὁ γὰρ ἑρμηνευτὴς ἀνὰ μέσον αὐτῶν ἦν
24 And he turned away from them and wept. When he turned back and spoke to them, he took Simeon from them and had him bound before their eyes.
ἀποστραφεὶς δὲ ἀπ’ αὐτῶν ἔκλαυσεν Ιωσηφ καὶ πάλιν προσῆλθεν πρὸς αὐτοὺς καὶ εἶπεν αὐτοῖς καὶ ἔλαβεν τὸν Συμεων ἀπ’ αὐτῶν καὶ ἔδησεν αὐτὸν ἐναντίον αὐτῶν
25 Then Joseph gave orders to fill their bags with grain, to return each man’s silver to his sack, and to give them provisions for their journey. This order was carried out,
ἐνετείλατο δὲ Ιωσηφ ἐμπλῆσαι τὰ ἀγγεῖα αὐτῶν σίτου καὶ ἀποδοῦναι τὸ ἀργύριον ἑκάστου εἰς τὸν σάκκον αὐτοῦ καὶ δοῦναι αὐτοῖς ἐπισιτισμὸν εἰς τὴν ὁδόν καὶ ἐγενήθη αὐτοῖς οὕτως
26 and they loaded the grain on their donkeys and departed.
καὶ ἐπιθέντες τὸν σῖτον ἐπὶ τοὺς ὄνους αὐτῶν ἀπῆλθον ἐκεῖθεν
27 At the place where they lodged for the night, one of them opened his sack to get feed for his donkey, and he saw his silver in the mouth of the sack.
λύσας δὲ εἷς τὸν μάρσιππον αὐτοῦ δοῦναι χορτάσματα τοῖς ὄνοις αὐτοῦ οὗ κατέλυσαν εἶδεν τὸν δεσμὸν τοῦ ἀργυρίου αὐτοῦ καὶ ἦν ἐπάνω τοῦ στόματος τοῦ μαρσίππου
28 “My silver has been returned!” he said to his brothers. “It is here in my sack.” Their hearts sank, and trembling, they turned to one another and said, “What is this that God has done to us?”
καὶ εἶπεν τοῖς ἀδελφοῖς αὐτοῦ ἀπεδόθη μοι τὸ ἀργύριον καὶ ἰδοὺ τοῦτο ἐν τῷ μαρσίππῳ μου καὶ ἐξέστη ἡ καρδία αὐτῶν καὶ ἐταράχθησαν πρὸς ἀλλήλους λέγοντες τί τοῦτο ἐποίησεν ὁ θεὸς ἡμῖν
29 When they reached their father Jacob in the land of Canaan, they described to him all that had happened to them:
ἦλθον δὲ πρὸς Ιακωβ τὸν πατέρα αὐτῶν εἰς γῆν Χανααν καὶ ἀπήγγειλαν αὐτῷ πάντα τὰ συμβάντα αὐτοῖς λέγοντες
30 “The man who is lord of the land spoke harshly to us and accused us of spying on the country.
λελάληκεν ὁ ἄνθρωπος ὁ κύριος τῆς γῆς πρὸς ἡμᾶς σκληρὰ καὶ ἔθετο ἡμᾶς ἐν φυλακῇ ὡς κατασκοπεύοντας τὴν γῆν
31 But we told him, ‘We are honest men, not spies.
εἴπαμεν δὲ αὐτῷ εἰρηνικοί ἐσμεν οὔκ ἐσμεν κατάσκοποι
32 We are twelve brothers, sons of one father. One is no more, and the youngest is now with our father in the land of Canaan.’
δώδεκα ἀδελφοί ἐσμεν υἱοὶ τοῦ πατρὸς ἡμῶν ὁ εἷς οὐχ ὑπάρχει ὁ δὲ μικρότερος μετὰ τοῦ πατρὸς ἡμῶν σήμερον ἐν γῇ Χανααν
33 Then the man who is lord of the land said to us, ‘This is how I will know whether you are honest: Leave one brother with me, take food to relieve the hunger of your households, and go.
εἶπεν δὲ ἡμῖν ὁ ἄνθρωπος ὁ κύριος τῆς γῆς ἐν τούτῳ γνώσομαι ὅτι εἰρηνικοί ἐστε ἀδελφὸν ἕνα ἄφετε ὧδε μετ’ ἐμοῦ τὸν δὲ ἀγορασμὸν τῆς σιτοδοσίας τοῦ οἴκου ὑμῶν λαβόντες ἀπέλθατε
34 But bring your youngest brother back to me so I will know that you are not spies but honest men. Then I will give your brother back to you, and you can trade in the land.’”
καὶ ἀγάγετε πρός με τὸν ἀδελφὸν ὑμῶν τὸν νεώτερον καὶ γνώσομαι ὅτι οὐ κατάσκοποί ἐστε ἀλλ’ ὅτι εἰρηνικοί ἐστε καὶ τὸν ἀδελφὸν ὑμῶν ἀποδώσω ὑμῖν καὶ τῇ γῇ ἐμπορεύεσθε
35 As they began emptying their sacks, there in each man’s sack was his bag of silver! And when they and their father saw the bags of silver, they were dismayed.
ἐγένετο δὲ ἐν τῷ κατακενοῦν αὐτοὺς τοὺς σάκκους αὐτῶν καὶ ἦν ἑκάστου ὁ δεσμὸς τοῦ ἀργυρίου ἐν τῷ σάκκῳ αὐτῶν καὶ εἶδον τοὺς δεσμοὺς τοῦ ἀργυρίου αὐτῶν αὐτοὶ καὶ ὁ πατὴρ αὐτῶν καὶ ἐφοβήθησαν
36 Their father Jacob said to them, “You have deprived me of my sons. Joseph is gone and Simeon is no more. Now you want to take Benjamin. Everything is going against me!”
εἶπεν δὲ αὐτοῖς Ιακωβ ὁ πατὴρ αὐτῶν ἐμὲ ἠτεκνώσατε Ιωσηφ οὐκ ἔστιν Συμεων οὐκ ἔστιν καὶ τὸν Βενιαμιν λήμψεσθε ἐπ’ ἐμὲ ἐγένετο πάντα ταῦτα
37 Then Reuben said to his father, “You may kill my two sons if I fail to bring him back to you. Put him in my care, and I will return him.”
εἶπεν δὲ Ρουβην τῷ πατρὶ αὐτοῦ λέγων τοὺς δύο υἱούς μου ἀπόκτεινον ἐὰν μὴ ἀγάγω αὐτὸν πρὸς σέ δὸς αὐτὸν εἰς τὴν χεῖρά μου κἀγὼ ἀνάξω αὐτὸν πρὸς σέ
38 But Jacob replied, “My son will not go down there with you, for his brother is dead, and he alone is left. If any harm comes to him on your journey, you will bring my gray hair down to Sheol in sorrow.” (Sheol )
ὁ δὲ εἶπεν οὐ καταβήσεται ὁ υἱός μου μεθ’ ὑμῶν ὅτι ὁ ἀδελφὸς αὐτοῦ ἀπέθανεν καὶ αὐτὸς μόνος καταλέλειπται καὶ συμβήσεται αὐτὸν μαλακισθῆναι ἐν τῇ ὁδῷ ᾗ ἂν πορεύησθε καὶ κατάξετέ μου τὸ γῆρας μετὰ λύπης εἰς ᾅδου (Sheol )