Genesis 44
44
Chapter 44
Joseph tests his brothers
1Joseph told the servant who took care of his house, ‘Fill the men's bags. Give them as much food as their animals can carry. Put each man's money back in the top of his bag. 2Then take my silver cup and put it in the top of the youngest man's bag. Put it with the money that he brought to pay for his food.’ The servant did what Joseph had told him to do. 3When morning came, the men started their journey with their donkeys. 4They had travelled only a short way from the city. Then Joseph said to his servant, ‘Go now and follow those men. When you find them, say to them, “My master was kind to you. So why have you done this bad thing against us? 5You have taken my master's own special cup. It is the cup that he drinks from. He also uses it to find out about future things. You have done a very bad thing!” ’
6So Joseph's servant followed the men and he reached them. He told them Joseph's message. 7But the brothers said to him, ‘Sir, why do you say these things? We are your servants. We would not do anything like that! 8When we found the money in our bags last time, we brought it back to you from Canaan. So we would never take valuable silver or gold things from your master's house. 9If any one of us has this silver cup, he must die. We others will become your slaves, sir.’ 10The servant said, ‘What you say is fair. Whoever has the cup, will become my slave. The rest of you will go free.’
11Each of the brothers quickly put his bag on the ground and opened it. 12Then the servant began to look in the bags. He began with the oldest brother's bag and he finished with the youngest brother's bag. Then he found the cup in Benjamin's bag! 13When this happened, all the brothers were very upset. They tore their clothes. Then they put their bags back on their donkeys. They returned to the city.
14Joseph was still in his house when Judah and his brothers arrived. They threw themselves on the ground in front of Joseph. 15Joseph said, ‘Why have you done this bad thing? You should have known about an important man like me. I can use magic to find out what people do.’ 16Judah said, ‘We do not know what to say to you, my lord. We cannot say that we did not do this. God has shown that we are guilty of this sin. Now we are your slaves. We are all your slaves, as well as the one who had your cup in his bag.’
17But Joseph said, ‘I would not do a thing like that! Only the man who had the cup will be my slave. The rest of you can return to your father. You may go as my friends.’
18Then Judah went and he spoke to Joseph. He said, ‘Please, my lord. Let me speak to you. You have all of Pharaoh's authority, but please do not be angry with me, your servant. 19You asked us, “Do you have a father or another brother?” 20And we replied, “We have a father who is very old. He has a young son who was born when our father was already old. That son's brother is dead. He is the only son of his mother who still lives. His father loves him.” 21Then you said, “Bring your youngest brother to me so that I can see him.” 22And we said, “The boy cannot leave his father. If he leaves him, his father will die.” 23But you said to us, “Your youngest brother must come with you. If he does not come, I will not let you see me again.” 24We returned to our father and we told him what you said. 25After some time, our father said, “Go back to Egypt and buy some more food for us.” 26But we said, “We cannot go back there. We can only go if our youngest brother goes with us. If he is not with us, we will not be able to see the man again.” 27Then my father said to us, “My wife gave birth to two sons. 28One of them went away and he never returned. So I said, ‘A wild animal must have eaten him.’ I have not seen him since that happened. 29If you take my youngest son away from me too, something bad may happen to him. I am already an old man. If I lose Benjamin, I would be so sad that I would die.” ’
30Judah continued and he said, ‘So, my lord, I could not go back to my father without his youngest son. My father stays alive because of this boy. 31If my father sees that his son is not with us, he will die. Because we did not bring the boy back to him, he will be sad enough to die. 32I promised my father that I would take care of the boy. I said, “I will bring the boy back. If I do not, then you can say that I am guilty. I will be guilty for all of my life.” 33Please sir, let me stay here as your slave, instead of the boy. Let the boy return home with his brothers. 34I cannot go back to my father if the boy is not with me. I never want to see how upset my father would be.’ #44:34 In chapter 44, Joseph wants to see if his brothers have changed. Will they leave Benjamin in Egypt, so that they can return to Canaan? Judah shows that he has changed. He says that he will stay in Egypt, as a slave. He will stay so that Benjamin can go home to his father.
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Genesis 44
44
Joseph Tests His Brothers
1Joseph ordered his chief servant, “Fill the men’s sacks with grain, with as much as they can hold, and put each one’s money back in the mouth of his bag. 2As for the youngest one, place my silver goblet in the mouth of his sack, along with the money he paid for his grain.” And he did as Joseph said.
3At dawn, the men loaded their donkeys and set off for home. 4They hadn’t gone far outside of the city when Joseph said to his chief servant, “Now, go at once and pursue the men! And when you catch up to them, say to them, ‘Why did you repay good with evil? 5Why have you stolen the silver goblet # 44:5 As translated from the Septuagint and Vulgate and implied in the Hebrew. from which my master drinks, and the one he uses to discover secrets hidden from men? # 44:5 Or “for divination.” Some historians tell that water was poured into a certain vessel, and then pieces of gold, silver, or precious stones were added, and then, by the shape of the designs that appeared at the surface of the water, the diviner could interpret events. Joseph did not say that he used the goblet for divination but wanted his brothers to think he did. You have done an evil thing!’ ”
6When the chief servant caught up with them, he repeated his master’s words to them. 7They answered him, “Why does my lord accuse us of such things? Far be it from your servants to do anything of the kind! 8Didn’t we return from Canaan with the money we found in our grain sacks? Why then would we steal silver or gold from the house of your lord? 9Look for yourself. If any of your servants is found to have it, then he will die, and the rest of us will become your master’s slaves!”
10“Very well then,” Joseph’s servant replied, “as you have said. But I will show you leniency. The one who has it will be my slave, but the rest of you will go free.”
11Each one quickly lowered his bag to the ground and opened it. 12Then the chief servant searched each bag, beginning with oldest and ending with the youngest—and he found the silver goblet in Benjamin’s bag! # 44:12 They had not stolen Joseph’s silver goblet, but they had stolen Joseph’s dignity and threw him into a pit. They were responsible for all of Joseph’s afflictions. God was seeking to reveal their hearts through how they endured this false accusation. Joseph’s silver goblet, hidden in Benjamin’s bag, was a picture of the years of suffering Joseph went through as a slave sold for “silver.” Joseph was testing their loyalty. Would they stand with Benjamin and love him, or would they sacrifice Benjamin as they had Joseph? Would they be loyal brothers now? Joseph gave them a chance to do away with Benjamin as they had done away with him. 13Aghast, the brothers ripped their clothes in despair. They all loaded their donkeys again and returned to the city.
14Joseph was waiting in his house when Judah and his brothers arrived. When they saw Joseph, they all fell to the ground before him. # 44:14 For the third time, Joseph’s brothers bowed before him. What a sight for Joseph to see them all return. He had to know if they had really changed. Joseph was truly doing them a kindness. He was giving them a chance to pass a test they once had failed! Their guilt could be removed not only by the mercy of Joseph but also by proving their “repentance by a changed life” (Matt. 3:8). 15Joseph said to them, “What have you done? Don’t you know that divination would have given insight to a man like me?”
16Judah replied, “What can we say, my lord? How can we plead our case? How can we prove our innocence? God has revealed the guilt of your servants, # 44:16 Their long-suppressed feelings of guilt surfaced. God was awakening their consciences to what they had done to Joseph. and here we are—our lord’s slaves, both we and the one in whose sack the silver goblet was found.”
17“No,” Joseph commanded. “Only the one who stole my silver goblet will be my slave; the rest of you will go on home in peace to your father.”
Judah Pleads for Benjamin
18Then Judah stepped forward and offered, “My lord, please, may I have a word with you? You are the equal of Pharaoh. Please don’t be angry with me, your servant. 19My lord asked his servants, ‘Do you have a father or another brother?’ 20We answered my lord, ‘We have an aged father and our youngest brother, who is a child of his old age. The child’s full brother is dead, so now he is the only child left of his mother, and his father loves him very much.’ 21Then you said to your servants, ‘Bring him here to me so that I might see him myself.’ 22We said to my lord, ‘But he cannot leave his father; if he were to leave him, his father would die.’ 23Then you said to your servants, ‘You will not see my face again if I do not see your youngest brother.’ 24When we arrived home to your servant, my father, we told him every word you had spoken to us.
25“Sometime later, our father said to us, ‘Go back and buy some more food for us.’ 26We answered, ‘We can only return to Egypt if we take our youngest brother with us. We won’t see the man’s face again, if he doesn’t see our youngest brother.’ 27Then, your servant, my father, said to us, ‘You know that my wife Rachel only gave me two sons. 28One is gone from me—torn by a beast! I haven’t seen him since. 29If you take this one also from me, and something happens to him, you will send my gray hairs in grief down to the grave.’ ”
30-31Judah continued, “My lord, if I went to your servant, my father, without the boy, and he saw that the boy was not with us, he would die! His very life is wrapped up with the life of the boy. # 44:30–31 As father and son, the souls of Jacob and Benjamin were bound together in the bundle of life. Now he is so old that the grief of his loss would kill him. 32Furthermore, I, your servant, have guaranteed the boy’s safety to my father. I told him, ‘If I don’t return the boy back to you, I will bear the blame before you, my father, for the rest of my life!’
33-34“So, please let me take the place of the boy, and I will remain here as a slave to you, my lord. Please let the boy go back with his brothers. # 44:33–34 As Judah spoke for his brothers, he did not attempt to justify himself or pass the blame off onto Benjamin. Unlike in the past, they did not turn on Benjamin as they had turned on Joseph. Judah stood as a savior for his brother. He had changed greatly from the one who conspired to sell his brother into slavery (see Gen. 37:26–27) and now offered himself to be a slave as a substitute for his brother Benjamin. Jewish historians note that for many long years after this event, the tribe of Benjamin walked in faithful love toward the tribe of Judah even when the other ten tribes deserted them. How could I return to my father without the boy? I don’t want to witness the woe and grief that would overtake my father.”
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