Genesis 42:29-38

Contemporary English Version

²⁹ When they returned to the land of Canaan, they told their father Jacob everything that had happened to them:

³⁰ The governor of Egypt was rude and treated us like spies. ³¹ But we told him, “We're honest men, not spies. ³² We come from a family of twelve brothers. The youngest is still with our father in Canaan, and the other is dead.”

³³ Then the governor of Egypt told us, “I'll find out if you really are honest. Leave one of your brothers here with me, while you take the grain to your starving families. ³⁴ But bring your youngest brother to me, so I can be certain that you are honest men and not spies. After that, I'll let your other brother go free, and you can stay here and trade.”

³⁵ When the brothers started emptying their sacks of grain, they found their moneybags in them. They were frightened, and so was their father Jacob, ³⁶ who said, “You have already taken my sons Joseph and Simeon from me. And now you want to take away Benjamin! Everything is against me.”

³⁷ Reuben spoke up, “Father, if I don't bring Benjamin back, you can kill both of my sons. Trust me with him, and I'll bring him back.”

³⁸ But Jacob said, “I won't let my son Benjamin go down to Egypt with the rest of you. His brother is already dead, and he is the only son I have left.^[a] I am an old man, and if anything happens to him on the way, I'll die from sorrow, and all of you will be to blame.”