Genesis 42:29-38

Christian Standard Bible

²⁹ When they reached their father Jacob in the land of Canaan, they told him all that had happened to them: ³⁰ “The man who is the lord of the country spoke harshly to us and accused us of spying on the country. ³¹ But we told him, ‘We are honest and not spies. ³² We were twelve brothers, sons of the same^[a] father. One is no longer living, and the youngest is now with our father in the land of Canaan.’ ³³ The man who is the lord of the country said to us, ‘This is how I will know if you are honest: Leave one brother with me, take food to relieve the hunger of your households, and go. ³⁴ Bring back your youngest brother to me, and I will know that you are not spies but honest men. I will then give your brother back to you, and you can trade in the country.’”

³⁵ As they began emptying their sacks, there in each man’s sack was his bag of silver! When they and their father saw their bags of silver, they were afraid.

³⁶ Their father Jacob said to them, “It’s me that you make childless. Joseph is gone, and Simeon is gone. Now you want to take Benjamin. Everything happens to me!”

³⁷ Then Reuben said to his father, “You can kill my two sons if I don’t bring him back to you. Put him in my care,^[b] and I will return him to you.”

³⁸ But Jacob answered, “My son will not go down with you, for his brother is dead and he alone is left.^(A) If anything happens to him on your journey, you will bring my gray hairs down to Sheol in sorrow.”^(B)