< Genesis 43 >

1 Interim fames omnem terram vehementer premebat.
And the famine [is] severe in the land;
2 Consumptisque cibis quos ex Aegypto detulerant, dixit Iacob ad filios suos: Revertimini, et emite nobis pauxillum escarum.
and it comes to pass, when they have finished eating the grain which they brought from Egypt, that their father says to them, “Return, buy for us a little food.”
3 Respondit Iudas: Denunciavit nobis vir ille sub attestatione iurisiurandi, dicens: Non videbitis faciem meam, nisi fratrem vestrum minimum adduxeritis vobiscum.
And Judah speaks to him, saying, “The man protesting protested to us, saying, You do not see my face without your brother [being] with you;
4 Si ergo vis eum mittere nobiscum, pergemus pariter, et ememus tibi necessaria:
if you are sending our brother with us, we go down, and buy for you food,
5 sin autem non vis, non ibimus: vir enim, ut saepe diximus, denunciavit nobis, dicens: Non videbitis faciem meam absque fratre vestro minimo.
and if you are not sending—we do not go down, for the man said to us, You do not see my face without your brother [being] with you.”
6 Dixit eis Israel: In meam hoc fecistis miseriam, ut indicaretis ei et alium habere vos fratrem.
And Israel says, “Why did you do evil to me, by declaring to the man that you had yet a brother?”
7 At illi responderunt: Interrogavit nos homo per ordinem nostram progeniem: si pater viveret: si haberemus fratrem: et nos respondimus ei consequenter iuxta id quod fuerat sciscitatus: numquid scire poteramus quod dicturus esset: Adducite fratrem vestrum vobiscum?
And they say, “The man asked diligently concerning us, and concerning our family, saying, Is your father yet alive? Have you a brother? And we declare to him according to the tenor of these things; do we certainly know that he will say, Bring down your brother?”
8 Iudas quoque dixit patri suo: Mitte puerum mecum, ut proficiscamur, et possimus vivere: ne moriamur nos et parvuli nostri.
And Judah says to his father Israel, “Send the youth with me, and we arise, and go, and live, and do not die, both we, and you, and our infants.
9 Ego suscipio puerum: de manu mea require illum. nisi reduxero, et reddidero eum tibi, ero peccati reus in te omni tempore.
I am guarantor [for] him, from my hand you require him; if I have not brought him to you, and set him before you—then I have sinned against you all the days;
10 Si non intercessisset dilatio, iam vice alter venissemus.
for if we had not lingered, surely now we had returned these two times.”
11 Igitur Israel pater eorum dixit ad eos: Si sic necesse est, facite quod vultis: sumite de optimis terrae frugibus in vasis vestris, et deferte viro munera, modicum resinae, et mellis, et storacis, stactes, et terebinthi, et amygdalarum.
And their father Israel says to them, “If so, now, do this: take of the praised thing of the land in your vessels, and take down to the man a present, a little balm, and a little honey, spices and myrrh, nuts and almonds;
12 Pecuniam quoque duplicem ferte vobiscum: et illam, quam invenistis in sacculis, reportate, ne forte errore factum sit:
and double money take in your hand, even the money which is brought back in the mouth of your bags, you take back in your hand, it may be it [is] an oversight.
13 sed et fratrem vestrum tollite, et ite ad virum.
And take your brother, and rise, return to the man;
14 Deus autem meus omnipotens faciat vobis eum placabilem: et remittat vobiscum fratrem vestrum quem tenet in vinculis, et hunc Beniamin: ego autem quasi orbatus absque liberis ero.
and God Almighty give to you mercies before the man, so that he has sent to you your other brother and Benjamin; and I, when I am bereaved—I am bereaved.”
15 Tulerunt ergo viri munera, et pecuniam duplicem, et Beniamin: descenderuntque in Aegyptum, et steterunt coram Ioseph.
And the men take this present, double money also they have taken in their hand, and Benjamin; and they rise, and go down to Egypt, and stand before Joseph;
16 Quos cum ille vidisset, et Beniamin simul, praecepit dispensatori domus suae, dicens: Introduc viros domum, et occide victimas, et instrue convivium: quoniam mecum sunt comesturi meridie.
and Joseph sees Benjamin with them and says to him who [is] over his house, “Bring the men into the house, and slaughter an animal, and make ready, for the men eat with me at noon.”
17 Fecit ille sicut fuerat imperatum, et introduxit viros domum.
And the man does as Joseph has said, and the man brings in the men into the house of Joseph,
18 Ibique exterriti, dixerunt mutuo: Propter pecuniam, quam retulimus prius in saccis nostris, introducti sumus: ut devolvat in nos calumniam, et violenter subiiciat servituti et nos, et asinos nostros.
and the men are afraid because they have been brought into the house of Joseph, and they say, “For the matter of the money which was put back in our bags at the commencement are we brought in—to roll himself on us, and to throw himself on us, and to take us for servants—our donkeys also.”
19 Quamobrem in ipsis foribus accedentes ad dispensatorem domus
And they come near to the man who [is] over the house of Joseph, and speak to him at the opening of the house,
20 locuti sunt: Oramus domine ut audias nos. Iam ante descendimus ut emeremus escas:
and say, “O my lord, we really come down at the commencement to buy food;
21 quibus emptis, cum venissemus ad diversorium, aperuimus saccos nostros, et invenimus pecuniam in ore saccorum: quam nunc eodem pondere reportavimus.
and it comes to pass, when we have come to the lodging-place, and open our bags, that behold, each one’s money [is] in the mouth of his bag, our money in its weight, and we bring it back in our hand;
22 Sed et aliud attulimus argentum, ut emamus quae nobis necessaria sunt: non est in nostra conscientia quis posuerit eam in marsupiis nostris.
and other money have we brought down in our hand to buy food; we have not known who put our money in our bags.”
23 At ille respondit: Pax vobiscum, nolite timere: Deus vester, et Deus patris vestri dedit vobis thesauros in saccis vestris. nam pecuniam, quam dedistis mihi, probatam ego habeo. Eduxitque ad eos Simeon.
And he says, “Peace to you, do not fear: your God and the God of your father has given to you hidden treasure in your bags, your money came to me”; and he brings out Simeon to them.
24 Et introductis domum, attulit aquam, et laverunt pedes suos, deditque pabulum asinis eorum.
And the man brings in the men into Joseph’s house, and gives water, and they wash their feet; and he gives provender for their donkeys,
25 Illi vero parabant munera, donec ingrederetur Ioseph meridie: audierant enim quod ibi comesturi essent panem.
and they prepare the present until the coming of Joseph at noon, for they have heard that there they eat bread.
26 Igitur ingressus est Ioseph domum suam, obtuleruntque ei munera, tenentes in manibus suis: et adoraverunt proni in terram.
And Joseph comes into the house, and they bring to him the present which [is] in their hand, into the house, and bow themselves to him, to the earth;
27 At ille, clementer resalutatis eis, interrogavit eos, dicens: Sanusne est pater vester senex, de quo dixeratis mihi? Adhuc vivit?
and he asks of them of peace and says, “Is your father well? The aged man of whom you have spoken, is he yet alive?”
28 Qui responderunt: Sospes est servus tuus pater noster, adhuc vivit. Et incurvati, adoraverunt eum.
And they say, “Your servant our father [is] well, he is yet alive”; and they bow, and pay respect.
29 Attollens autem Ioseph oculos, vidit Beniamin fratrem suum uterinum, et ait: Iste est frater vester parvulus, de quo dixeratis mihi? Et rursum: Deus, inquit, misereatur tui, fili mi.
And he lifts up his eyes and sees his brother Benjamin, his mother’s son, and says, “Is this your young brother, of whom you have spoken to me?” And he says, “God favor you, my son.”
30 Festinavitque quia commota fuerant viscera eius super fratre suo, et erumpebant lacrymae: et introiens cubiculum flevit.
And Joseph hurries, for his bowels have been moved for his brother, and he seeks to weep, and enters the inner chamber, and weeps there;
31 Rursumque lota facie egressus, continuit se, et ait: Ponite panes.
and he washes his face, and goes out, and refrains himself, and says, “Place bread.”
32 Quibus appositis, seorsum Ioseph, et seorsum fratribus, Aegyptiis quoque qui vescebantur simul, seorsum (illicitum est enim Aegyptiis comedere cum Hebraeis, et profanum putant huiuscemodi convivium)
And they place for him by himself, and for them by themselves, and for the Egyptians who are eating with him by themselves: for the Egyptians are unable to eat bread with the Hebrews, for it [is] an abomination to the Egyptians.
33 sederunt coram eo, primogenitus iuxta primogenita sua, et minimus iuxta aetatem suam. Et mirabantur nimis,
And they sit before him, the firstborn according to his birthright, and the young one according to his youth, and the men wonder one at another;
34 sumptis partibus quas ab eo acceperant: maiorque pars venit Beniamin, ita ut quinque partibus excederet. Biberuntque et inebriati sunt cum eo.
and he lifts up gifts from before him to them, and the gift of Benjamin is five hands more than the gifts of all of them; and they drink, indeed, they drink abundantly with him.

< Genesis 43 >