Genesis 43

The famine was severe in the land.

1And the famine was sore in the land.

NoteFamine here means a prolonged failure of the harvest across a whole region. Canaan depended on seasonal rain, while Egypt was watered by the annual flooding of the Nile, so Egypt could still have grain in storage when the surrounding lands had none.

2When they had eaten all the grain they had brought from Egypt, their father said to them, "Go back and buy us a little food."

2And it came to pass, when they had eaten up the corn which they had brought out of Egypt, their father said unto them, Go again, buy us a little food.

3But Judah said to him, "The man gave us a solemn warning. He said, 'You will not see my face unless your brother is with you.'

3And Judah spake unto him, saying, The man did solemnly protest unto us, saying, Ye shall not see my face, except your brother be with you.

Note"The man" is the Egyptian official who controls the sale of grain. He is in fact Joseph, the brother these men sold into slavery years earlier, but they do not recognize him. "You will not see my face" is court language: to see a ruler's face is to be granted an audience with him.

4If you will send our brother with us, we will go down and buy food for you.

4If thou wilt send our brother with us, we will go down and buy thee food:

5But if you will not send him, we will not go down. For the man said to us, 'You will not see my face unless your brother is with you.'"

5But if thou wilt not send him, we will not go down: for the man said unto us, Ye shall not see my face, except your brother be with you.

6Israel said, "Why did you treat me so badly, telling the man that you had another brother?"

6And Israel said, Wherefore dealt ye so ill with me, as to tell the man whether ye had yet a brother?

NoteIsrael and Jacob are the same person, the father of these men. The narrative uses both names for him, sometimes within a few verses.

7They said, "The man questioned us closely about ourselves and our family. He asked, 'Is your father still alive? Do you have another brother?' And we answered him according to what he asked. How could we possibly know that he would say, 'Bring your brother down here'?"

7And they said, The man asked us straitly of our state, and of our kindred, saying, Is your father yet alive? have ye another brother? and we told him according to the tenor of these words: could we certainly know that he would say, Bring your brother down?

8Then Judah said to Israel his father, "Send the boy with me, and we will get up and go, so that we may live and not die, we and you and our little children as well.

8And Judah said unto Israel his father, Send the lad with me, and we will arise and go; that we may live, and not die, both we, and thou, and also our little ones.

NoteThe word translated "boy" covers anyone from a child to a young man still under his father's authority. Benjamin is the youngest son, but by this point he is a grown man with children of his own.

9I will be the guarantee for him. You may hold me responsible for him. If I do not bring him back to you and set him in front of you, then let me carry the blame forever.

9I will be surety for him; of my hand shalt thou require him: if I bring him not unto thee, and set him before thee, then let me bear the blame for ever:

NoteJudah is offering himself as legal security for Benjamin, the way a person could stand as guarantor for another's debt. "You may hold me responsible" means Jacob can demand Benjamin back from Judah personally, and if Judah fails, the liability is his permanently.

10For if we had not delayed, we would have been back by now for the second time."

10For except we had lingered, surely now we had returned this second time.

11Then their father Israel said to them, "If it must be this way, then do this. Take some of the best products of the land in your bags, and carry them down to the man as a gift: a little balm and a little honey, spices and myrrh, nuts and almonds.

11And their father Israel said unto them, If it must be so now, do this; take of the best fruits in the land in your vessels, and carry down the man a present, a little balm, and a little honey, spices, and myrrh, nuts, and almonds:

NoteThese are the luxury products of Canaan, valuable because they were light, kept well, and were not grown in Egypt. Balm and myrrh are fragrant tree resins used in medicine, perfume and embalming; the "honey" may be bee honey or a thick syrup boiled down from dates or grapes; the nuts are pistachios. Bringing a gift was the normal way to approach a powerful official: it acknowledged his rank and asked for his goodwill.

12Take double the silver with you, and carry back the silver that was put back in the mouth of your sacks. Perhaps it was a mistake.

12And take double money in your hand; and the money that was brought again in the mouth of your sacks, carry it again in your hand; peradventure it was an oversight:

NoteThere was no coined money in this period. Payment was made in silver weighed out on scales, which is why the amount can be described as being of "full weight." "Double the silver" means enough to pay for the new grain plus the silver they found in their sacks after the first trip.

13Take your brother too. Get up and go back to the man.

13Take also your brother, and arise, go again unto the man:

14And may God Almighty give you mercy in front of the man, so that he will let your other brother go, and Benjamin as well. If I am robbed of my children, then I am robbed of them."

14And God Almighty give you mercy before the man, that he may send away your other brother, and Benjamin. If I be bereaved of my children, I am bereaved.

Note"God Almighty" translates the Hebrew title El Shaddai, an ancient name for God used especially in the stories of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; its exact original sense is uncertain. "If I am robbed of my children, then I am robbed of them" is a formula of resignation, Jacob is saying he has given up trying to control the outcome.

15So the men took that gift, and they took double the silver with them, and Benjamin. They set out and went down to Egypt, and they stood in front of Joseph.

15And the men took that present, and they took double money in their hand, and Benjamin; and rose up, and went down to Egypt, and stood before Joseph.

16When Joseph saw Benjamin with them, he said to the man in charge of his house, "Bring these men to my house. Kill an animal and get it ready, for these men will eat with me at noon."

16And when Joseph saw Benjamin with them, he said to the ruler of his house, Bring these men home, and slay, and make ready; for these men shall dine with me at noon.

NoteThe "man in charge of his house" is the steward: the chief servant who ran a great household's staff, stores and accounts, and who could act with his master's authority. Killing an animal signals a formal meal; meat was eaten rarely and marked an occasion. Noon was the time of the main meal of the day.

17The man did as Joseph told him, and he brought the men into Joseph's house.

17And the man did as Joseph bade; and the man brought the men into Joseph’s house.

18The men were afraid, because they had been brought into Joseph's house. They said, "We have been brought in because of the silver that was put back in our sacks the first time, so that he can fall upon us and throw himself on us, and take us as slaves, and take our donkeys."

18And the men were afraid, because they were brought into Joseph’s house; and they said, Because of the money that was returned in our sacks at the first time are we brought in; that he may seek occasion against us, and fall upon us, and take us for bondmen, and our asses.

NoteTheir fear is specific and realistic. A person accused of theft who could not repay could be seized as a slave in settlement, and their donkeys (the pack animals that were their livelihood and their means of getting home) would be taken as well.

19So they came up to the steward of Joseph's house and spoke with him at the door of the house.

19And they came near to the steward of Joseph’s house, and they communed with him at the door of the house,

20They said, "Please, sir, we really did come down the first time to buy food.

20And said, O sir, we came indeed down at the first time to buy food:

21But when we came to the place where we stayed for the night, we opened our sacks, and there was each man's silver in the mouth of his sack, our silver in its full weight. We have brought it back with us.

21And it came to pass, when we came to the inn, that we opened our sacks, and, behold, every man’s money was in the mouth of his sack, our money in full weight: and we have brought it again in our hand.

22And we have brought more silver with us to buy food. We cannot tell who put our silver in our sacks."

22And other money have we brought down in our hands to buy food: we cannot tell who put our money in our sacks.

23He said, "Peace be with you. Do not be afraid. Your God, the God of your father, has given you treasure in your sacks. I received your silver." Then he brought Simeon out to them.

23And he said, Peace be to you, fear not: your God, and the God of your father, hath given you treasure in your sacks: I had your money. And he brought Simeon out unto them.

Note"Peace be with you" is the ordinary Hebrew greeting, shalom, used here to mean "all is well, nothing is wrong." Simeon is the brother the official kept in custody on their first visit as a guarantee that they would return with Benjamin.

24The man brought the men into Joseph's house and gave them water, and they washed their feet. He also gave their donkeys feed.

24And the man brought the men into Joseph’s house, and gave them water, and they washed their feet; and he gave their asses provender.

NoteWashing a guest's feet was standard hospitality. People walked dusty roads in open sandals, and providing water for the feet, along with fodder for the animals, was how a host signaled that visitors were received as guests rather than held as suspects.

25They got the gift ready for when Joseph would come at noon, because they had heard that they were to eat a meal there.

25And they made ready the present against Joseph came at noon: for they heard that they should eat bread there.

26When Joseph came home, they brought him the gift they had with them into the house, and they bowed down to the ground in front of him.

26And when Joseph came home, they brought him the present which was in their hand into the house, and bowed themselves to him to the earth.

NoteBowing to the ground was the customary way to greet a high official in Egypt and the surrounding world. It was a gesture of political respect for someone's rank, not necessarily an act of worship.

27He asked how they were, and he said, "Is your father well, the old man you spoke about? Is he still alive?"

27And he asked them of their welfare, and said, Is your father well, the old man of whom ye spake? Is he yet alive?

28They answered, "Your servant our father is in good health. He is still alive." And they bowed their heads low to honor him.

28And they answered, Thy servant our father is in good health, he is yet alive. And they bowed down their heads, and made obeisance.

29He looked up and saw his brother Benjamin, his own mother's son, and he said, "Is this your youngest brother, the one you told me about?" And he said, "God be gracious to you, my son."

29And he lifted up his eyes, and saw his brother Benjamin, his mother’s son, and said, Is this your younger brother, of whom ye spake unto me? And he said, God be gracious unto thee, my son.

NoteJacob had children by four women. Benjamin is the only one of the brothers who shares both parents with Joseph, both were sons of Rachel. The rest are half-brothers, which is why Benjamin is singled out as "his own mother's son."

30Joseph hurried out, because his heart ached with feeling for his brother, and he looked for a place to weep. He went into his room and wept there.

30And Joseph made haste; for his bowels did yearn upon his brother: and he sought where to weep; and he entered into his chamber, and wept there.

NoteThe King James Version says his "bowels did yearn." Hebrew locates strong feeling in the inner organs rather than in the heart, so the phrase describes a physical surge of emotion, the way English might say something turned his stomach or gripped him inside.

31Then he washed his face and came out. He held himself back and said, "Serve the food."

31And he washed his face, and went out, and refrained himself, and said, Set on bread.

32They served him by himself, and the brothers by themselves, and the Egyptians who ate with him by themselves. This was because the Egyptians were not allowed to eat with the Hebrews; that is something the Egyptians find disgusting.

32And they set on for him by himself, and for them by themselves, and for the Egyptians, which did eat with him, by themselves: because the Egyptians might not eat bread with the Hebrews; for that is an abomination unto the Egyptians.

NoteEgyptians observed strict rules about ritual purity, including who could share a table. Foreigners were considered unclean by those rules, so eating with them would defile an Egyptian. "Hebrews" is the term outsiders used for Jacob's family and people like them. "Disgusting" here is a word for what is ritually offensive and forbidden, not merely distasteful.

33They sat in front of him, the firstborn by the rank of the firstborn, and the youngest by his youth. And the men looked at one another in amazement.

33And they sat before him, the firstborn according to his birthright, and the youngest according to his youth: and the men marvelled one at another.

NoteThey are seated in exact order of birth, from oldest to youngest. Seating by rank was normal at a formal meal, and the firstborn held first place; what astonishes the brothers is that a foreign official could not possibly have known their birth order.

34He took portions of food from his own table and sent them to the brothers, but Benjamin's portion was five times as much as any of theirs. And they drank with him and became drunk.

34And he took and sent messes unto them from before him: but Benjamin’s mess was five times so much as any of theirs. And they drank, and were merry with him.

NoteA host honored a guest by sending him portions from his own table, and the size of the portion showed the degree of honor. Five times as much is a strikingly public singling-out of Benjamin, and a test of whether the older brothers will resent the favoritism shown to Rachel's remaining son. The Hebrew verb here plainly means to become drunk; "were merry" is the King James softening it. It is the one moment of ease in the story, and it comes just before Joseph springs his test.