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Genesis 45
English Standard Version
Genesis 45
English Standard Version
Joseph Provides for His Brothers and Family
45 Then Joseph could not (A)control himself before all those who stood by him. He cried, “Make everyone go out from me.” So no one stayed with him when Joseph made himself known to his brothers. 2 And he wept aloud, so that the Egyptians heard it, and the household of Pharaoh heard it. 3 And Joseph said to his brothers, (B)“I am Joseph! Is my father still alive?” But his brothers could not answer him, for they were dismayed at his presence.
4 So Joseph said to his brothers, “Come near to me, please.” And they came near. And he said, “I am your brother, Joseph, (C)whom you sold into Egypt. 5 And now do not be distressed or angry with yourselves because you sold me here, (D)for God sent me before you to preserve life. 6 For the famine has been in the land these two years, and there are (E)yet five years in which there will be neither (F)plowing nor harvest. 7 And God sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant on earth, and to keep alive for you many survivors. 8 So it was not you who sent me here, but God. He has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house and (G)ruler over all the land of Egypt. 9 Hurry and go up to my father and say to him, ‘Thus says your son Joseph, God has made me lord of all Egypt. Come down to me; do not tarry. 10 (H)You shall dwell in the land of Goshen, and you shall be near me, you and your children and your children's children, and your flocks, your herds, and all that you have. 11 (I)There I will provide for you, for there are yet five years of famine to come, so that you and your household, and all that you have, do not come to poverty.’ 12 And now your eyes see, and the eyes of my brother Benjamin see, that it is (J)my mouth that speaks to you. 13 You must tell my father of all my honor in Egypt, and of all that you have seen. Hurry and (K)bring my father down here.” 14 Then he fell upon his brother Benjamin's neck and wept, and Benjamin wept upon his neck. 15 And he kissed all his brothers and wept upon them. After that his brothers talked with him.
16 When the report was heard in Pharaoh's house, “Joseph's brothers have come,” it pleased Pharaoh and his servants. 17 And Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Say to your brothers, ‘Do this: load your beasts and go back to the land of Canaan, 18 and take your father and your households, and come to me, and (L)I will give you the best of the land of Egypt, and you shall eat the fat of the land.’ 19 And you, Joseph, are commanded to say, ‘Do this: take (M)wagons from the land of Egypt for your little ones and for your wives, and bring your father, and come. 20 Have no concern for[a] your goods, for the best of all the land of Egypt is yours.’”
21 The sons of Israel did so: and Joseph gave them (N)wagons, according to the command of Pharaoh, and gave them provisions for the journey. 22 To each and all of them he gave (O)a change of clothes, but to Benjamin he gave three hundred shekels[b] of silver and (P)five changes of clothes. 23 To his father he sent as follows: ten donkeys loaded with the good things of Egypt, and ten female donkeys loaded with grain, bread, and provision for his father on the journey. 24 Then he sent his brothers away, and as they departed, he said to them, (Q)“Do not quarrel on the way.”
25 So they went up out of Egypt and came to the land of Canaan to their father Jacob. 26 And they told him, “Joseph is still alive, and he is ruler over all the land of Egypt.” And his heart became numb, 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 (R)the wagons that Joseph had sent to carry him, the spirit of their father Jacob revived. 28 And Israel said, “It is enough; Joseph my son is still alive. I will go and see him before I die.”
Footnotes
- Genesis 45:20 Hebrew Let your eye not pity
- Genesis 45:22 A shekel was about 2/5 ounce or 11 grams
Genesis 45
International Standard Version
Genesis 45
International Standard Version
Joseph Reveals Himself
45 At this point, Joseph could not control his emotions any longer, so he cried out to everyone who was standing nearby, “Everybody! Leave me!” As a result, none of his staff[a] was anywhere near[b] him when he revealed himself to his brothers. 2 He cried so loudly that the Egyptians heard him, including Pharaoh’s household.
3 Joseph blurted out, “I’m Joseph! Is my father really alive?” But his brothers could not answer him, because they had become terrified[c] to be in his presence.
4 Joseph implored his brothers, “Please come close to me.” So they did.
“I’m your brother Joseph, whom you sold into slavery in[d] Egypt!” he told them. 5 “But[e] don’t be distressed or angry at yourselves because you sold me here, because God sent me ahead of you all in order to deliver us.[f] 6 That’s because this famine has been going on for two years now in this region, and there are still five years left, during which there won’t be any plowing or harvesting. 7 God sent me ahead of you to keep you alive on the earth, and to save you all in a magnificent way. 8 As a result, it wasn’t you who sent me here, but God himself! He established me as a father-figure to Pharaoh himself! I’m in charge of his entire palace and ruler over the entire land of Egypt. 9 So hurry up, go back to my father, and tell him that his son Joseph tells him, ‘God has made me master of all of Egypt. Hurry up! Come live with me!’ 10 You are to live in the land of Goshen, near where I am—you, your children, your grandchildren, your flocks, your herds, and everything that you own. 11 I’ll provide for you there, since there are still five years of famine left to go, and you, your households, and everything you own would have otherwise become impoverished.
12 “Look, now! All of you can see me! And my own brother Benjamin can tell that it’s really me[g] speaking to you! 13 So go tell my father about all of my splendor in Egypt. Tell him about everything that you’ve seen. Be quick about it, and bring my father down here!”
14 Then he threw his arms around Benjamin[h] and wept as they embraced.[i] 15 He kissed all of his brothers and wept with them, too, and then his brothers were able to talk with him.
Pharaoh is Pleased
16 As soon as the news reached Pharaoh’s palace that Joseph’s brothers had arrived, Pharaoh and his servants were ecstatic. 17 Pharaoh told Joseph, “Be sure to tell your brothers, ‘Do this: load up your livestock, go back to the land of Canaan, 18 get your father and your households, and come back to me. I’ll give you the best of the land of Egypt and you can live off the abundance of the land.’ 19 In addition,” Pharaoh ordered, “Do this: take some transport wagons from the land of Egypt for your little ones to ride in, along with your wives, and bring your father and come! 20 Don’t worry about your household goods, because the best of all the land of Egypt is yours.”
Joseph’s Brothers Go Back Home
21 So Israel’s sons did what they were asked to do, and Joseph provided wagons for them, as Pharaoh had commanded. He also gave them provisions for the journey. 22 He gave each of them some changes of clothes, but he also gave Benjamin 300 pieces of silver and five changes of clothes. 23 He sent his father ten male donkeys loaded with the best of Egyptian goods and ten female donkeys loaded with grain, bread, and provisions for his father during the journey. 24 Then Joseph[j] sent his brothers away, and they left for home.[k] As they were leaving, Joseph admonished them, “Don’t quarrel on the way back!”
25 So Joseph’s brothers[l] left Egypt and returned to the land of Canaan and to their father Jacob, 26 where they informed their father, “Joseph is still alive! As a matter of fact, he’s ruling the entire land of Egypt.” But Jacob didn’t believe them, because he had become cynical.[m] 27 However, as soon as his sons[n] had told him everything Joseph had said, and after he saw the wagons that Joseph had sent along to carry him, their father Jacob’s spirit was encouraged.
28 “It’s enough,” Israel replied. “My son Joseph is still alive. I’m going to go see him before I die!”
Footnotes
- Genesis 45:1 Lit. result, no man
- Genesis 45:1 Lit. was standing nearby
- Genesis 45:3 Or dismayed
- Genesis 45:4 The Heb. lacks slavery in
- Genesis 45:5 Or So
- Genesis 45:5 The Heb. lacks us
- Genesis 45:12 Lit. it’s my mouth
- Genesis 45:14 Lit. he collapsed on Benjamin’s neck
- Genesis 45:14 Lit. as Benjamin wept on his neck
- Genesis 45:24 Lit. he
- Genesis 45:24 The Heb. lacks for home
- Genesis 45:25 Lit. So they
- Genesis 45:26 Lit. because his heart had become numb
- Genesis 45:27 Lit. as they
Genesis 45
New International Version
Genesis 45
New International Version
Joseph Makes Himself Known
45 Then Joseph could no longer control himself(A) before all his attendants, and he cried out, “Have everyone leave my presence!”(B) So there was no one with Joseph when he made himself known to his brothers. 2 And he wept(C) so loudly that the Egyptians heard him, and Pharaoh’s household heard about it.(D)
3 Joseph said to his brothers, “I am Joseph! Is my father still living?”(E) But his brothers were not able to answer him,(F) because they were terrified at his presence.(G)
4 Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Come close to me.”(H) When they had done so, he said, “I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt!(I) 5 And now, do not be distressed(J) and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here,(K) because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you.(L) 6 For two years now there has been famine(M) in the land, and for the next five years there will be no plowing and reaping. 7 But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant(N) on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance.[a](O)
8 “So then, it was not you who sent me here, but God.(P) He made me father(Q) to Pharaoh, lord of his entire household and ruler of all Egypt.(R) 9 Now hurry(S) back to my father and say to him, ‘This is what your son Joseph says: God has made me lord of all Egypt. Come down to me; don’t delay.(T) 10 You shall live in the region of Goshen(U) and be near me—you, your children and grandchildren, your flocks and herds, and all you have.(V) 11 I will provide for you there,(W) because five years of famine(X) are still to come. Otherwise you and your household and all who belong to you will become destitute.’(Y)
12 “You can see for yourselves, and so can my brother Benjamin,(Z) that it is really I who am speaking to you.(AA) 13 Tell my father about all the honor accorded me in Egypt(AB) and about everything you have seen. And bring my father down here quickly.(AC)”
14 Then he threw his arms around his brother Benjamin and wept, and Benjamin(AD) embraced him,(AE) weeping. 15 And he kissed(AF) all his brothers and wept over them.(AG) Afterward his brothers talked with him.(AH)
16 When the news reached Pharaoh’s palace that Joseph’s brothers had come,(AI) Pharaoh and all his officials(AJ) were pleased.(AK) 17 Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Tell your brothers, ‘Do this: Load your animals(AL) and return to the land of Canaan,(AM) 18 and bring your father and your families back to me. I will give you the best of the land of Egypt(AN) and you can enjoy the fat of the land.’(AO)
19 “You are also directed to tell them, ‘Do this: Take some carts(AP) from Egypt for your children and your wives, and get your father and come. 20 Never mind about your belongings,(AQ) because the best of all Egypt(AR) will be yours.’”
21 So the sons of Israel did this. Joseph gave them carts,(AS) as Pharaoh had commanded, and he also gave them provisions for their journey.(AT) 22 To each of them he gave new clothing,(AU) but to Benjamin he gave three hundred shekels[b] of silver and five sets of clothes.(AV) 23 And this is what he sent to his father: ten donkeys(AW) loaded with the best things(AX) of Egypt, and ten female donkeys loaded with grain and bread and other provisions for his journey.(AY) 24 Then he sent his brothers away, and as they were leaving he said to them, “Don’t quarrel on the way!”(AZ)
25 So they went up out of Egypt(BA) and came to their father Jacob in the land of Canaan.(BB) 26 They told him, “Joseph is still alive! In fact, he is ruler of all Egypt.”(BC) Jacob was stunned; he did not believe them.(BD) 27 But when they told him everything Joseph had said to them, and when he saw the carts(BE) Joseph had sent to carry him back, the spirit of their father Jacob revived. 28 And Israel said, “I’m convinced!(BF) My son Joseph is still alive. I will go and see him before I die.”(BG)
Footnotes
- Genesis 45:7 Or save you as a great band of survivors
- Genesis 45:22 That is, about 7 1/2 pounds or about 3.5 kilograms
English Standard Version (ESV) 
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
International Standard Version (ISV) 
Copyright © 1995-2014 by ISV Foundation. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED INTERNATIONALLY. Used by permission of Davidson Press, LLC.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.