Genesis 45
45
Joseph Shows Kindness to His Brothers
1Then Joseph could not control himself [any longer] in front of all those who attended him, and he called out, “Have everyone leave me.” So no man stood there when Joseph revealed himself to his brothers. 2Joseph wept aloud, and the Egyptians [who had just left him] heard it, and the household of Pharaoh heard of it. 3Then Joseph said to his brothers, “I am Joseph! Is my father still alive?” But his brothers were speechless, for they were stunned and dismayed by [the fact that they were in] Joseph’s presence.
4And Joseph said to his brothers, “Please come closer to me.” And they approached him. And he said, “I am Joseph your brother, whom you sold into Egypt. 5Now do not be distressed or angry with yourselves because you sold me here, for God sent me ahead of you to save life and preserve our family. 6For the famine has been in the land these two years, and there are still five more years in which there will be no plowing and harvesting. 7God sent me [to Egypt] ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on the earth, and to keep you alive by a great escape. 8So now it was not you who sent me here, but God; and He has made me a father to Pharaoh and lord of all his household and ruler over all the land of Egypt. 9Hurry and go up to my father, and tell him, ‘Your son Joseph says this to you: “God has made me lord of all Egypt; come down to me, do not delay. 10You shall live in the land of Goshen [the best pasture land of Egypt], and you shall be close to me—you and your children and your grandchildren, your flocks and your herds and all you have. 11There I will provide for you and sustain you, so that you and your household and all that are yours may not become impoverished, for there are still five years of famine to come.” ’ 12Look! Your eyes see, and the eyes of my brother Benjamin see, that I am speaking to you [personally in your language and not through an interpreter]. 13Now you must tell my father of all my splendor and power in Egypt, and of everything that you have seen; and you must hurry and bring my father down here.” 14Then he embraced his brother Benjamin’s neck and wept, and Benjamin wept on his neck. 15He kissed all his brothers and wept on them, and afterward his brothers talked with him.
16When the news was heard in Pharaoh’s house that Joseph’s brothers had come, it pleased Pharaoh and his servants. 17Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Tell your brothers, ‘Do this: load your animals and return to the land of Canaan [without delay], 18and get your father and your households and come to me. I will give you the best of the land of Egypt and you will eat the fat (the finest produce) of the land.’ 19Now you [brothers of Joseph] are ordered [by Pharaoh], ‘Do this: take wagons from the land of Egypt for your little ones and for your wives, and bring your father and come. 20Do not be concerned with your goods, for the best of all the land of Egypt is yours.’ ”
21Then the sons of Israel did so; and Joseph gave them wagons according to the command of Pharaoh, and gave them provisions for the journey. 22To each of them Joseph gave changes of clothing, but to Benjamin he gave three hundred pieces of silver and five changes of clothing. 23To his father he sent the following: ten male donkeys loaded with the good things of Egypt, and ten female donkeys loaded with grain and bread and provision for his father [to supply all who were with him] on the journey.
24So he sent his brothers away, and as they departed, he said to them, “See that you do not quarrel on the journey [about how to explain this to our father].” 25So they went up from Egypt, and came to the land of Canaan to Jacob their father, 26and they said to him, “Joseph is still alive, and indeed he is ruler over all the land of Egypt.” But Jacob was stunned and his heart almost stopped beating, because he did not believe them. 27When they told him everything that Joseph had said to them, and when he saw the wagons which Joseph had sent to carry him, the spirit of their father Jacob revived. 28And Israel (Jacob) said, “It is enough! Joseph my son is still alive. I will go and see him before I die.”
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Genesis 45
45
Joseph Tells Who He Is
1Joseph could not control himself any longer. He cried in front of all the people who were there. Joseph said, “Tell everyone to leave here.” So all the people left. Only the brothers were left with Joseph. Then he told them who he was. 2Joseph continued to cry, and all the Egyptian people in Pharaoh’s house heard it. 3He said to his brothers, “I am your brother Joseph. Is my father doing well?” But the brothers did not answer him because they were confused and afraid.
4So Joseph said to his brothers again, “Come here to me. I beg you, come here.” When the brothers went to him, he said to them, “I am your brother Joseph. I am the one you sold as a slave to Egypt. 5Now don’t be worried. Don’t be angry with yourselves for what you did. It was God’s plan for me to come here. I am here to save people’s lives. 6This terrible famine has continued for two years now, and there will be five more years without planting or harvest. 7So God sent me here ahead of you so that I can save your people in this country. 8It was not your fault that I was sent here. It was God’s plan. God made me like a father to Pharaoh. I am the governor over all his house and over all Egypt.”
Israel Invited to Egypt
9Joseph said, “Hurry up and go to my father. Tell him his son Joseph sent this message: ‘God made me the governor of Egypt. So come here to me quickly. Don’t wait. 10You can live near me in the land of Goshen. You, your children, your grandchildren, and all of your animals are welcome here. 11I will take care of you during the next five years of hunger. So you and your family will not lose everything you own.’
12“Surely you can see that I really am Joseph. Even my brother Benjamin knows it is me, your brother, talking to you. 13So tell my father about the honor I have received here in Egypt. Tell him about everything you have seen here. Now hurry, go bring my father back to me.” 14Then Joseph hugged his brother Benjamin, and they both began crying. 15Then Joseph cried as he kissed all his brothers. After this, the brothers began talking with him.
16Pharaoh learned that Joseph’s brothers had come to him. This news spread throughout Pharaoh’s house. Pharaoh and his servants were very excited! 17So Pharaoh told Joseph, “Tell your brothers to take all the food they need and go back to the land of Canaan. 18Tell them to bring your father and their families back here to me. I will give you the best land in Egypt to live on. And your family can eat the best food we have here. 19Also give your brothers some of our best wagons. Tell them to go to Canaan and bring your father and all the women and children back in the wagons. 20Don’t worry about bringing all of their belongings. We can give them the best of Egypt.”
21So the sons of Israel did this. Joseph gave them good wagons just as Pharaoh had promised. And Joseph gave them enough food for their trip. 22He gave each brother a suit of beautiful clothes. But to Benjamin he gave five suits of beautiful clothes and 300 pieces of silver. 23Joseph also sent gifts to his father. He sent ten donkeys with bags full of many good things from Egypt. And he sent ten female donkeys loaded with grain, bread, and other food for his father on his trip back. 24Then Joseph told his brothers to go. While they were leaving, he said to them, “Go straight home, and don’t fight on the way.”
25So the brothers left Egypt and went to their father in the land of Canaan. 26They told him, “Father, Joseph is still alive! And he is the governor over the whole country of Egypt.”
Their father did not know what to think. At first he didn’t believe them. 27But then they told him everything Joseph had said. Then their father saw the wagons that Joseph had sent to bring him back to Egypt, and he became excited and very happy. 28Israel said, “Now I believe you. My son Joseph is still alive! I am going to see him before I die!”
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