Genesis 42
1 When someone told Jacob that there was grain in Egypt that people could buy, he said to his sons, “(Why do you just sit there looking at each other?/Do not just sit there looking at each other!) [RHQ] We need some grain!”
Now Jacob, hearing that there was grain in Egypt, said to his sons, Why are you looking at one another?
2 He said to them, “Someone told me that there is grain for sale in Egypt. Go down there and buy some for us, in order that we will not die!”
And he said, I have had news that there is grain in Egypt: go down there and get grain for us, so that life and not death may be ours.
3 So Joseph’s ten [older] brothers went down to Egypt to buy some grain.
So Joseph's ten brothers went down to get grain from Egypt.
4 But Jacob did not send Benjamin, Joseph’s [younger] brother, to go with the others, because he was afraid/worried that something terrible might happen to him like what happened to Joseph.
But Jacob did not send Benjamin, Joseph's brother, with them, for fear, as he said, that some evil might come to him.
5 So Jacob’s other sons went down from Canaan to Egypt to buy grain, and others from there went too, because there was a famine in Canaan also.
And the sons of Israel came with all the others to get grain: for they were very short of food in the land of Canaan.
6 At that time Joseph was the governor of Egypt. He was the one who sold grain to people who came from all over Egypt and from many other countries [HYP] to buy grain. So when Joseph’s brothers arrived, [they were told that it was necessary for them to talk with Joseph. So they went to him and] prostrated themselves before him with their faces to the ground.
Now Joseph was ruler over all the land, and it was he who gave out the grain to all the people of the land; and Joseph's brothers came before him and went down on their faces to the earth.
7 As soon as Joseph saw his brothers, he recognized them. But he pretended that he did not know them. He spoke harshly to them, saying, “Where do you come from?” One of them replied, “We have come from Canaan, to buy some grain.”
And when Joseph saw his brothers, it was clear to him who they were, but he made himself strange to them, and talking roughly to them, said, Where do you come from? And they said, From the land of Canaan, to get food.
8 Although Joseph recognized his brothers, they did not recognize him.
Now though Joseph saw that these were his brothers, they had no idea who he was.
9 And then Joseph remembered what he had dreamed about them many years previously. [But he decided not to tell them yet that he was their younger brother]. He said to them, “You are spies! You have come to find out whether we will be able to defend ourselves [if you attack us]!”
Then the memory of his dreams about them came back to Joseph, and he said to them, You have come secretly to see how poor the land is.
10 One of them replied, “No, sir! We have come to buy grain.
And they said to him, Not so, my lord: your servants have come with money to get food.
11 We are all sons of one man. We are honest men, not spies.”
We are all one man's sons, we are true men; we have not come with any secret purpose.
12 He said to them, “[I do not believe you]. You have come just to see whether we would be able to defend ourselves if we were attacked!”
And he said to them, No, but you have come to see how poor the land is.
13 But one of them replied, “No, that is not true! Originally there were twelve of us who were brothers, the sons of one man. Our younger brother is with our father. One [younger] brother has died. [EUP]”
Then they said, We your servants are twelve brothers, sons of one man in the land of Canaan; the youngest of us is now with our father, and one is dead.
14 Joseph replied, “[You are lying! I think] it is just as I told you. You are spies!
And Joseph said, It is as I said; you have come with some secret purpose;
15 But this is how I will determine whether what you are saying is true. I think that as surely as the king lives, you are spies. And you will not leave this place until your youngest brother comes here!
But in this way will you be put to the test: by the life of Pharaoh, you will not go away from this place till your youngest brother comes here.
16 Send one of your group to go and get your younger brother and bring him here. I will put the rest of you in prison, in order that I may test what you have said to find out whether what you are telling me is true. If the one who goes does not bring your younger brother here, then, just as surely as the king lives, it will be clear that you are lying and that you are spies.”
Send one of your number to get your brother, and the rest of you will be kept in prison, so that your words may be tested to see if you are true; if not, by the life of Pharaoh, your purpose is certainly secret.
17 Then Joseph put them all in prison for three days.
So he put them in prison for three days.
18 On the third day, Joseph went to the prison and said to them, “I am a man who fears that God [will punish me if I do not do what I promise]. So do what I tell you, and I will spare your lives.
And on the third day Joseph said to them, Do this, if you would keep your lives: for I am a god-fearing man:
19 If you are honest men, let one of your brothers stay here in prison, and the rest of you can take some grain back to your families who are very hungry because of the famine.
If you are true men, let one of you be kept in prison, while you go and take grain for the needs of your families;
20 But if you come back here again, you must bring your youngest brother to me, so that you can prove that what you told me is true, and as a result I will not have you executed.” So they agreed to do that.
And come back to me with your youngest brother, so that your words may be seen to be true, and you will not be put to death. This is what you are to do.
21 They said to each other, “It is surely because of what we did to our [younger] brother that (we are being punished/God is punishing us)! We saw that he [SYN] was very distressed when he pleaded with us not to harm him. But we did not pay any attention to him, and that is why we are having this trouble!”
And they said to one another, Truly, we did wrong to our brother, for we saw his grief of mind, and we did not give ear to his prayers; that is why this trouble has come on us.
22 Reuben said to them, “I told you not to harm the boy [RHQ], but you did not pay attention to what I said! Now we are being (paid back/punished) for killing him [MTY]!”
And Reuben said to them, Did I not say to you, Do the child no wrong? but you gave no attention; so now, punishment has come on us for his blood.
23 While they were talking with Joseph, they were speaking through (an interpreter/someone who knew their language and the Egyptian language), but when they said these things among themselves, they were speaking in their own language, and they did not know that Joseph could understand their language, and that he could understand what they were saying.
They were not conscious that the sense of their words was clear to Joseph, for he had been talking to them through one who had knowledge of their language.
24 [Because of what they said, Joseph realized that they admitted that what they had done to him many years previously was wrong]. He could not keep from crying, [and he did not want them to see him crying], so he left them and went outside the room and began to cry. But then he returned to them and talked to them again. Then he took Simeon, and while they were watching, he told his servants to tie him up. He left Simeon in the prison and told the others that they could go.
And turning away from them, he was overcome with weeping; then he went on talking to them again and took Simeon and put chains on him before their eyes.
25 Joseph told his servants to fill the men’s sacks with grain, but he also told them to put the money that each one had paid for the grain in the top of his sack. He also told them to give them food to eat along the way. After the servants did those things for Joseph’s older brothers,
Then Joseph gave orders for their bags to be made full of grain, and for every man's money to be put back into his bag, and for food to be given them for the journey: which was done.
26 his older brothers loaded the sacks of grain on their donkeys and left.
Then they put the bags of grain on their asses and went away.
27 At the place where they stopped to sleep that night, one of them opened his sack to get some grain for his donkey. He was amazed to see his money in the top of the sack.
Now at their night's resting-place one of them, opening his bag to give his ass some food, saw his money in the mouth of the bag.
28 He exclaimed to his brothers, “Someone has returned my money! Here it is in my sack!” They started shaking with fear, and said to each other, “What is this that God has done to us?”
And he said to his brothers, My money has been given back: it is in my bag; then their hearts became full of fear, and turning to one another they said, What is this which God has done to us?
29 When they returned to their father in Canaan land, they told him all that had happened to them. One of them said,
So when they came to Jacob their father, in the land of Canaan, they gave him an account of all their experiences, saying,
30 “The man who governs the whole land of Egypt talked very harshly to us. He acted toward us as though we were spying on his country.
The man who is the ruler of the country was rough with us and put us in prison, saying that we had come with a secret evil purpose.
31 But we told him, ‘We are honest men! We are not spies.
And we said to him, We are true men, we have no evil designs;
32 Originally there were twelve of us who were brothers, the sons of one father. One has died [EUP], and our youngest brother is with our father in Canaan.’
We are twelve brothers, sons of our father; one is dead, and the youngest is now with our father in the land of Canaan.
33 The man who is the governor of the land [did not believe us], so he said to us, ‘This is how I will know if you are truly honest men: Leave one of your brothers here with me. Then the rest of you can take some grain for your families that are starving from hunger and go.
And the ruler of the land said, In this way I may be certain that you are true men; let one of you be kept here with me, while you go and take grain for the needs of your families;
34 But when you return, bring your youngest brother to me, in order that I will know that you are not spies, but instead, that you are honest men. Then I will release your brother for you. And then you can buy whatever you want in this country.’”
And come back to me with your youngest brother: then I will be certain that you are true men, and I will give your brother back to you and let you do trade in the land.
35 As they were emptying their sacks, they were surprised that in each man’s sack was his pouch of money! When they and their father saw all the pouches of money, they were frightened.
And when they took the grain out of their bags, it was seen that every man's parcel of money was in his bag; and when they and their father saw the money, they were full of fear.
36 Their father Jacob said to them, “You have caused two of my children to be taken from me! Joseph is dead, and Simeon is gone! And now you want to take Benjamin from me! It is I who am suffering because of all these things that are happening!”
And Jacob their father said to them, You have taken my children from me: Joseph is gone and Simeon is gone, and now you would take Benjamin away; all these things have come on me.
37 Reuben said to his father, “I will be responsible for Benjamin. [I will take him to Egypt and] bring him back to you. Let me take care of him. If I do not bring Benjamin back to you, you may kill both of my sons.”
And Reuben said, Put my two sons to death if I do not come back to you with him; let him be in my care and I will give him safely back to you.
38 But Jacob said, “No, I will not let my son go down there with you. His [older] brother is dead, and he is the only [one of my wife Rachel’s] sons who is left! If something harms him while you are traveling, you would cause me, a gray-haired old man, to die because of sorrow.” (Sheol h7585)
And he said, I will not let my son go down with you; for his brother is dead and he is all I have: if evil overtakes him on the journey, then through you will my grey head go down to the underworld in sorrow. (Sheol h7585)
