Genesis 42
1 When Jacob found out grain was available in Egypt, he asked his sons, “Why do you keep on looking at each other to do something?
And when Jacob saw that there was corn in Egypt, Jacob said unto his sons, Why do ye look at one another?
2 I've heard there's grain in Egypt. Go there and buy some for us so we can stay alive—if not, we're going to die!”
And he said, Behold, I have heard that there is corn in Egypt; get you down thither, and buy for us provision from there, that we may live, and not die.
3 So ten of Joseph's brothers went to Egypt to buy grain.
And ten brothers of Joseph went down to buy corn in Egypt,
4 But Jacob did not send Joseph's brother Benjamin with his other brothers, for he said, “I'm afraid something bad might happen to him.”
But Benjamin, Joseph's brother, Jacob sent not with his brothers; for he said, Lest mischief befall him.
5 So Israel's sons went to buy grain along with everyone else, because there was famine in Canaan too.
And the sons of Israel came to buy corn among those that came; for the famine was in the land of Canaan.
6 Joseph was the governor of the country and he sold grain to all the people there. So Joseph's brothers went to him, and bowed low before him with their faces to the ground.
And Joseph—he was the governor over the land, it was he that sold corn to all the people of the land; and Joseph's brothers came, and bowed themselves down before him with the face to the earth.
7 Joseph recognized them as soon as he saw them, but he acted like a stranger towards them and spoke to them in a severe way, saying, “Where are you from?” “From the country of Canaan,” they replied. “We've come to buy food.”
And Joseph saw his brothers, and he recognized them; but made himself strange unto them and spoke roughly unto them; and he said unto them, Whence come ye? And they said, From the land of Canaan to buy food.
8 Even though Joseph recognized his brothers, they didn't recognize him.
And Joseph recognized his brothers, but they recognized not him.
9 Joseph thought back to the dreams he'd had about them, and told them, “No! You're spies! You've come to discover our country's weaknesses!”
And Joseph remembered the dreams which he had dreamed concerning them, and he said unto them, Ye are spies; to see the nakedness of the land are ye come.
10 “That's not true, my lord!” they responded. “We, your servants, have just come to buy food.
And they said unto him, No, my lord, thy servants are only come to buy food.
11 We're all the sons of one man and we're honest. We're not spies!”
We are all sons of one man; we are true men; thy servants have never been spies.
12 “No! You've come to find our country's weaknesses!” he insisted.
And he said unto them, No! but to see the nakedness of the land are ye come.
13 “Your servants are twelve brothers, the sons of one man living in the country of Canaan,” they explained. “The youngest is right now with our father, and one has passed away.”
And they said, We, thy servants, are twelve brothers, sons of one man in the land of Canaan; and, behold, the youngest is this day with our father, and one is no more.
14 “As I said before, you're spies!” Joseph declared.
And Joseph said unto them, It is as I have spoken unto you, saying, Ye are spies;
15 “This is how your story will be checked. I swear on Pharaoh's life that you'll never leave this country unless your younger brother comes here.
Hereby shall ye be proved: By the life of Pharaoh, ye shall not go forth hence, except your youngest brother come hither.
16 One of you go back and bring your other brother here. The others of you will be kept here in prison until it's clear that you're telling the truth. If not, then I swear on Pharaoh's life it proves you're spies!”
Send one of you, and let him fetch your brother, and ye shall be kept in prison, that your words may be proved, whether the truth be with you; and if not, by the life of Pharaoh, ye are surely spies.
17 So Joseph put all of them in prison for three days.
And he put them together into ward three days.
18 On the third day he told them, “Since I'm someone who respects God, do as I tell you and you'll live.
And Joseph said unto them on the third day, This do, and live; I fear God.
19 If you're truly honest, choose one of your brothers to stay here in prison. The rest of you can go back home with grain for your hungry families.
If ye be true men, let one of your brothers remain imprisoned in the house of your confinement; but ye, go, carry home what you have bought for the want of your household.
20 But you must bring your youngest brother here to me to prove what you're saying is true. If not, you will all die.” They agreed to do this.
But your youngest brother bring unto me; so shall your words be verified, and ye shall not die. And they did so.
21 “Clearly we're being punished for what we did to our brother,” they said to each other. “We watched him in agony pleading with us for mercy, but we refused to listen to him. That's why we're in all this trouble.”
And they said to one another, Truly we are guilty concerning our brother, in that we saw the anguish of his soul, when he besought us, and we would not hear; therefore is this distress come upon us.
22 Reuben said to them, “Didn't I tell you, ‘Don't harm the boy!’ But you didn't listen to me. Now we're paying the price for what we did to him.”
And Reuben answered them, saying, Did I not say unto you, thus, Do not sin against the child; and ye would not hear? and behold, his blood also is now required.
23 They didn't realize that Joseph understood what they were saying because they were talking to him through an interpreter.
And they knew not that Joseph understood them; for he spoke unto them by an interpreter.
24 Joseph stepped away from them because he started crying. He came back when he was able to speak to them again. He chose Simeon and had him tied up as they watched.
And he turned himself away from them, and wept; and returned to them again, and spoke with them, and took from them Simeon, and bound him before their eyes.
25 Joseph gave the order to fill up their sacks with grain, and also to return the money they had paid by placing it in the sacks as well. He also ordered that they should be provided with food for their journey home. All this was done.
And Joseph commanded to fill their sacks with corn, and to restore every man's money into his sack, and to give them provision for the way; and he did unto them thus.
26 The brothers loaded the grain onto their donkeys and then set off.
And they loaded their asses with their corn, and departed thence.
27 On their way they stopped for the night, and one of them opened up his sack to give his donkey something to eat and saw his money there at the top of the sack.
And one of them opened his sack to give his ass provender in the inn: when he espied his money, for, behold, it was in the mouth of his sack.
28 He told his brothers, “My money's been returned to me. It's right here at the top of my sack!” They were horrified! Trembling with fear they asked each other, “What is this that God's done to us?”
And he said unto his brothers, My money hath been restored; and, lo, it is even in my sack: and their heart failed them, and they were afraid, saying one to another, What is this that God hath done unto us?
29 When they arrived home in Canaan, they told their father Jacob everything that had happened.
And they came unto Jacob their father unto the land of Canaan, and they told him all that had befallen them; saying,
30 “The man who is the country's governor spoke to us in a severe way, and accused us of spying on the land,” they explained.
The man, the lord of the land, spoke roughly to us, and took us as though we were espying the country.
31 “We told him, ‘We are honest men. We're not spies!
And we said unto him, We are true men; we have never been spies:
32 We are twelve brothers, the sons of one father. One has passed away and the youngest is right now with our father in the country of Canaan.’
We are twelve brothers, sons of our father; the one is no more, and the youngest is this day with our father in the land of Canaan.
33 Then the man who is the country's governor said to us, ‘This is how I'll find out if you're telling the truth: you are to leave one of your brothers here with me while the rest take grain home for your hungry families.
And the man, the lord of the country, said unto us, Hereby shall I know that ye are true men: leave one of your brothers here with me, and [the food for] the want of your households take ye and be gone;
34 Then bring your youngest brother to me. That way I'll know you're not spies but you're telling the truth. I'll release your brother to you, and you can stay in the country and trade.’”
And bring your youngest brother unto me; then shall I know that ye are no spies, but that ye are true men; your brother I will give up to you, and in the land ye shall be allowed to traffic.
35 As they emptied their sacks, each one's money bag was there in his sack! When they and their father saw the money bags, they were horrified.
And it came to pass as they were emptying their sacks, that, behold, every man's bundle of money was in his sack: and when they saw the bundles of their money, they and their father, they were afraid.
36 Jacob their father accused them, “You have taken Joseph from me—he's gone! Simeon is gone too! Now you want to take Benjamin away! I'm the one who's suffering from all of this!”
And Jacob their father said unto them, Me ye have bereaved of my children: Joseph is gone, and Simeon is gone, and Benjamin ye will take away; all these things are against me.
37 “You can kill my two sons if I don't bring him back to you,” Reuben assured him. “Trust me with him, and I will bring him home to you myself.”
And Reuben said unto his father, thus, Two of my sons shalt thou slay, if I bring him not to thee; deliver him into my hand, and I will bring him back to thee.
38 “My son won't go there with you!” Jacob declared. “His brother is dead, and he's the only one I have left. If anything bad happens to him on the journey you're planning, you'll send this old man to his grave in grief.” (Sheol h7585)
And he said, My son shall not go down with you; for his brother is dead, and he alone is left: and if mischief befall him by the way in which ye go, then will ye bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to the grave. (Sheol h7585)
