Genesis 42:18-28

Common English Bible

¹⁸ On the third day, Joseph said to them, “Do this and you will live, for I’m a God-fearing man. ¹⁹ If you are honest men, let one of your brothers stay in prison, and the rest of you, go, take grain back to those in your households who are hungry. ²⁰ But bring your youngest brother back to me so that your words will prove true and you won’t die.”

So they prepared to do this. ²¹ The brothers said to each other, “We are clearly guilty for what we did to our brother when we saw his life in danger and when he begged us for mercy, but we didn’t listen. That’s why we’re in this danger now.”

²² Reuben responded to them, “Didn’t I tell you, ‘Don’t do anything wrong to the boy’? But you wouldn’t listen. So now this is payback for his death.” ²³ They didn’t know that Joseph was listening to them because they were using an interpreter. ²⁴ He stepped away from them and wept. When he returned, he spoke with them again. Then he took Simeon from them and tied him up in front of them.

²⁵ Then Joseph gave orders to fill their bags with grain, to put back each man’s silver into his own sack, and to give them provisions for their trip, and it was done. ²⁶ They loaded their grain onto their donkeys, and they set out. ²⁷ When they stopped to spend the night, one of them opened his sack to feed his donkey, and he saw his silver at the top of his sack. ²⁸ He said to his brothers, “My silver’s been returned. It’s right here in my sack.” Their hearts stopped. Terrified, they said to each other, “What has God done to us?”