Genesis 42

1 And Jacob sees that there is grain in Egypt, and Jacob says to his sons, “Why do you look at each other?”

And Jacob having seen that there was a sale [of corn] in Egypt, said to his sons, Why are you indolent?

2 He also says, “Behold, I have heard that there is grain in Egypt, go down there, and buy for us from there, and we live and do not die”;

Behold, I have heard that there is corn in Egypt; go down there, and buy for us a little food, that we may live, and not die.

3 and the ten brothers of Joseph go down to buy grain in Egypt,

And the ten brethren of Joseph went down to buy corn out of Egypt.

4 and Benjamin, Joseph’s brother, Jacob has not sent with his brothers, for he said, “Lest harm meet him.”

But [Jacob] sent not Benjamin, the brother of Joseph, with his brethren; for he said, Lest, haply, disease befall him.

5 And the sons of Israel come to buy in the midst of those coming, for the famine has been in the land of Canaan,

And the sons of Israel came to buy with those that came, for the famine was in the land of Chanaan.

6 and Joseph is the ruler over the land, he who is selling to all the people of the land, and Joseph’s brothers come and bow themselves to him—face to the earth.

And Joseph was ruler of the land; he sold to all the people of the land. And the brethren of Joseph, having come, did reverence to him, [bowing] with the face to the ground.

7 And Joseph sees his brothers, and discerns them, and makes himself strange to them, and speaks sharp things with them, and says to them, “From where have you come?” And they say, “From the land of Canaan—to buy food.”

And when Joseph saw his brethren, he knew them, and estranged himself from them, and spoke hard words to them; and said to them, Whence are you come? And they said, Out of the land of Chanaan, to buy food.

8 And Joseph discerns his brothers, but they have not discerned him,

And Joseph knew his brethren, but they knew not him.

9 and Joseph remembers the dreams which he dreamed of them and says to them, “You [are] spies; you have come to see the nakedness of the land.”

And Joseph remembered his dream, which he saw; and he said to them, You are spies; to observe the marks of the land are you come.

10 And they say to him, “No, my lord, but your servants have come to buy food;

But they said, Nay, Sir, we your servants are come to buy food;

11 we [are] all of us sons of one man, we [are] right men; your servants have not been spies”;

we are all sons of one man; we are peaceful, your servants are not spies.

12 and he says to them, “No, but you have come to see the nakedness of the land”;

And he said to them, Nay, but you are come to observe the marks of the land.

13 and they say, “Your servants [are] twelve brothers; we [are] sons of one man in the land of Canaan, and behold, the young one [is] with our father today, and one is not.”

And they said, We your servants are twelve brethren, in the land of Chanaan; and, behold, the youngest is with our father today, but the other one is not.

14 And Joseph says to them, “This [is] that which I have spoken to you, saying, You [are] spies,

And Joseph said to them, This is it that I spoke to you, saying, you are spies;

15 by this you are proved: [as] Pharaoh lives, if you go out from this—except by your young brother coming here;

herein shall you be manifested; by the health of Pharao, you shall not depart hence, unless your younger brother come here.

16 send one of you, and let him bring your brother, and you, remain bound, and let your words be proved, whether truth be with you: and if not, [as] Pharaoh lives, surely you [are] spies”;

Send one of you, and take your brother; and go you to prison, till your words be clear, whether you speak the truth or not; but, if not, by the health of Pharao, verily you are spies.

17 and he gathers them into confinement [for] three days.

And he put them in prison three days.

18 And Joseph says to them on the third day, “Do this and live; I fear God!

And he said to them on the third day, This do, and you shall live, for I fear God.

19 If you [are] right men, let one of your brothers be bound in the house of your confinement, and you, go, carry in grain [for] the famine of your houses,

If you be peaceful, let one of your brethren be detained in prison; but go you, and carry back the corn you have purchased.

20 and you bring your young brother to me, and your words are established, and you do not die”; and they do so.

And bring your younger brother to me, and your words shall be believed; but, if not, you shall die. And they did so.

21 And they say to one another, “Truly we [are] guilty concerning our brother, because we saw the distress of his soul, in his making supplication to us, and we did not listen: therefore this distress has come on us.”

And each said to his brother, Yes, indeed, for we are in fault concerning our brother, when we disregarded the anguish of his soul, when he implored us, and we listened not to him; and therefore has this affliction come upon us.

22 And Reuben answers them, saying, “Did I not speak to you, saying, Do not sin against the boy? And you did not listen; and his blood also, behold, it is required.”

And Ruben answered them, saying, Did I not speak to you, saying, Hurt not the boy, and you heard me not? and, behold, his blood is required.

23 And they have not known that Joseph understands, for the interpreter [is] between them;

But they knew not that Joseph understood them; for there was an interpreter between them.

24 and he turns around from them, and weeps, and turns back to them, and speaks to them, and takes Simeon from them, and binds him before their eyes.

And Joseph turned away from them, and wept; and again he came to them, and spoke to them; and he took Symeon from them, and bound him before their eyes.

25 And Joseph commands, and they fill their vessels [with] grain, also to put back the money of each of them into his sack, and to give to them provision for the way; and one does to them so.

And Joseph gave orders to fill their vessels with corn, and to return their money to each into his sack, and to give them provision for the way; and it was so done to them.

26 And they lift up their grain on their donkeys, and go from there,

And having put the corn on the asses, they departed thence.

27 and the one opens his sack to give provender to his donkey at a lodging-place, and he sees his money, and behold, it [is] in the mouth of his bag,

And one having opened his sack to give his asses fodder, at the place where they rested, saw also his bundle of money, for it was on the mouth of his sack.

28 and he says to his brothers, “My money has been put back, and also, behold, in my bag”: and their heart goes out, and they tremble, to one another saying, “What [is] this God has done to us!”

And he said to his brethren, My money has been restored to me, and behold this is in my sack. And their heart was wonder-struck, and they were troubled, saying one to another, What is this that God has done to us?

29 And they come to their father Jacob, to the land of Canaan, and they declare to him all the things meeting them, saying,

And they came to their father, Jacob, into the land of Chanaan, and reported to him all that had happened to them, saying,

30 “The man, the lord of the land, has spoken with us sharp things, and makes us as spies of the land;

The man, the lord of the land, spoke harsh words to us, and put us in prison as spies of the land.

31 and we say to him, We [are] right men, we have not been spies,

And we said to him, We are men of peace, we are not spies.

32 we [are] twelve brothers, sons of our father, one is not, and the young one [is] today with our father in the land of Canaan.

We are twelve brethren, sons of our father; one is not, and the youngest is with his father today in the land of Chanaan.

33 And the man, the lord of the land, says to us, By this I know that you [are] right men—leave one of your brothers with me, and take [for] the famine of your houses and go,

And the man, the lord of the land, said to us, Herein shall I know that you are peaceful; leave one brother here with me, and having taken the corn you have purchased for your family, depart.

34 and bring your young brother to me, and I know that you [are] not spies, but you [are] right men; I give your brother to you, and you trade with the land.”

And bring to me your younger brother; then I shall know that you are not spies, but that you are men of peace: and I will restore you your brother, and you shall trade in the land.

35 And it comes to pass, they are emptying their sacks, and behold, the bundle of each man’s silver [is] in his sack, and they see their bundles of silver, they and their father, and are afraid;

And it came to pass as they were emptying their sacks, there was each man's bundle of money in his sack; and they and their father saw their bundles of money, and they were afraid.

36 and their father Jacob says to them, “You have bereaved me; Joseph is not, and Simeon is not, and Benjamin you take—all these [things] have been against me.”

And their father Jacob said to them, You have bereaved me. Joseph is not, Symeon is not, and will you take Benjamin? all these things have come upon me.

37 And Reuben speaks to his father, saying, “You put to death my two sons, if I do not bring him to you; give him into my hand, and I bring him back to you”;

And Ruben spoke to his father, saying, Slay my two sons, if I bring him not to you; give him into my hand, and I will bring him back to you.

38 and he says, “My son does not go down with you, for his brother [is] dead, and he by himself is left; when harm has met him in the way in which you go, then you have brought down my grey hairs in sorrow to Sheol.” (Sheol h7585)

But he said, My son shall not go down with you, because his brother is dead, and he only has been left; and [suppose] it shall come to pass that he is afflicted by the way by which you go, then you shall bring down my old age with sorrow to Hades. (Sheol h7585)