Genesis 45
45
1 THEN JOSEPH could not restrain himself [any longer] before all those who stood by him, and he called out, Cause every man to go out from me! So no one stood there with Joseph while he made himself known to his brothers.
2 And he wept and sobbed aloud, and the Egyptians [who had just left him] heard it, and the household of Pharaoh heard about it.
3 And Joseph said to his brothers, I am Joseph! Is my father still alive? And his brothers could not reply, for they were distressingly disturbed and dismayed at [the startling realization that they were in] his presence.
4 And Joseph said to his brothers, Come near to me, I pray you. And they did so. And he said, I am Joseph your brother, whom you sold into Egypt!
5 But now, do not be distressed and disheartened or vexed and angry with yourselves because you sold me here, for God sent me ahead of you to preserve life.
6 For these two years the famine has been in the land, and there are still five years more in which there will be neither plowing nor harvest.
7 God sent me before you to preserve for you a posterity and to continue a remnant on the earth, to save your lives by a great escape and save for you many survivors.
8 So 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 house and ruler over all the land of Egypt.
9 Hurry and go up to my father and tell him, Your son Joseph says this to you: God has put me in charge of all Egypt. Come down to me; do not delay.
10 You will live in the land of Goshen, and you will be close to me–you and your children and your grandchildren, your flocks, your herds, and all you have.
11 And there I will sustain and provide for you, so that you and your household and all that are yours may not come to poverty and want, for there are yet five [more] years of [the scarcity, hunger, and starvation of] famine.
12 Now notice! Your own eyes and the eyes of my brother Benjamin can see that I am talking to you personally [in your language and not through an interpreter].
13 And you shall tell my father of all my glory in Egypt and of all that you have seen; and you shall hurry and bring my father down here.
14 And he fell on his brother Benjamin's neck and wept, and Benjamin wept on his neck.
15 Moreover, he kissed all his brothers and wept upon them; and after that his brothers conversed with him.
16 When the report was heard in Pharaoh's house that Joseph's brothers had come, it pleased Pharaoh and his servants well.
17 And Pharaoh said to Joseph, Tell your brothers this: Load your animals and return to the land of Canaan,
18 And get your father and your households and come to me. And I will give you the best in the land of Egypt and you will live on the fat of the land.
19 You therefore command them, saying, You do this: take wagons from the land of Egypt for your little ones and for your wives, and bring your father and come.
20 Also do not look with regret or concern upon your goods, for the best of all the land of Egypt is yours.
21 And the sons of Israel did so; and Joseph gave them wagons, as the order of Pharaoh permitted, and gave them provisions for the journey.
22 To each of them he gave changes of raiment, but to Benjamin he gave 300 pieces of silver and five changes of raiment.
23 And to his father he sent as follows: ten donkeys loaded with the good things of Egypt, and ten she-donkeys laden with grain, bread, and nourishing food and provision for his father [to supply all who were with him] on the way.
24 So he sent his brothers away, and they departed, and he said to them, See that you do not disagree (get excited, quarrel) along the road.
25 So they went up out of Egypt and came into the land of Canaan to Jacob their father,
26 And they said to him, Joseph is still alive! And he is governor over all the land of Egypt! And Jacob's heart began to stop beating and [he almost] fainted, for he did not believe them.
27 But when they told him all the words of Joseph which he had said to them, and when he saw the wagons which Joseph had sent to carry him, the spirit of Jacob their father revived [and warmth and life returned].
28 And Israel 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: AMPC
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1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation
Genesis 45
45
Joseph Tells His Brothers Who He Is
1Joseph couldn’t control himself anymore in front of all his attendants. He cried out, “Have everyone leave me!” So there wasn’t anyone with Joseph when he told his brothers who he was. 2He wept so loudly that the Egyptians heard him. Everyone in Pharaoh’s house heard about it.
3Joseph said to his brothers, “I am Joseph! Is my father still alive?” But his brothers weren’t able to answer him. They were too afraid of him.
4Joseph said to his brothers, “Come close to me.” So they did. Then he said, “I am your brother Joseph. I’m the one you sold into Egypt. 5But don’t be upset. And don’t be angry with yourselves because you sold me here. God sent me ahead of you to save many lives. 6For two years now, there hasn’t been enough food in the land. And for the next five years, people won’t be plowing or gathering crops. 7But God sent me ahead of you to keep some of you alive on earth. He sent me here to save your lives by an act of mighty power.
8“So then, it wasn’t you who sent me here. It was God. He made me like a father to Pharaoh. He made me master of Pharaoh’s entire house. God made me ruler of the whole land of Egypt. 9Now hurry back to my father. Say to him, ‘Your son Joseph says, “God has made me master of the whole land of Egypt. Come down to me. Don’t waste any time. 10You will live in the area of Goshen. You, your children and grandchildren, your flocks and herds, and everything you have will be near me. 11There I will provide everything you need. There are still five years to come when there won’t be enough food. If you don’t come down here, you and your family and everyone who belongs to you will lose everything.” ’
12“My brothers, I am Joseph. You can see for yourselves that I am the one speaking to you. My brother Benjamin can see it too. 13Tell my father about all the honor given to me in Egypt. Tell him about everything you have seen. And bring my father down here quickly.”
14Then Joseph threw his arms around his brother Benjamin and wept. Benjamin also hugged him and wept. 15Joseph kissed all his brothers and wept over them. After that, his brothers talked with him.
16The news reached Pharaoh’s palace that Joseph’s brothers had come. Pharaoh and all his officials were pleased. 17Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Here’s what I want you to tell your brothers. Say to them, ‘Load your animals. Return to the land of Canaan. 18Bring your father and your families back to me. I’ll give you the best land in Egypt. You can enjoy all the good things in the land.’
19“And here’s something else I want you to tell them. Say to them, ‘Take some carts from Egypt. Your children and your wives can use them. Get your father and come back. 20Don’t worry about the things you have back there. The best of everything in Egypt will belong to you.’ ”
21Then the sons of Israel did so. Joseph gave them carts, as Pharaoh had commanded. He also gave them supplies for their journey. 22He gave new clothes to each of them. But he gave Benjamin more than seven pounds of silver. He also gave him five sets of clothes. 23He sent his father ten male donkeys loaded with the best things from Egypt. He also sent ten female donkeys loaded with grain and bread and other supplies for his journey. 24Then Joseph sent his brothers away. As they were leaving he said to them, “Don’t argue on the way!”
25So they went up out of Egypt. They came to their father Jacob in the land of Canaan. 26They told him, “Joseph is still alive! In fact, he is ruler of the whole land of Egypt.” Jacob was shocked. He didn’t believe them. 27So they told him everything Joseph had said to them. Jacob saw the carts Joseph had sent to carry him back. That gave new life to their father Jacob. 28Israel said, “I believe it now! My son Joseph is still alive. I’ll go and see him before I die.”
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