Genesis 42
New Catholic Bible
Chapter 42
The Sons of Jacob Seek Food in Egypt.[a] 1 When Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he said to his sons, “Why are you standing around looking at each other?” 2 He continued, “Behold, I have heard that there is grain in Egypt. Go down there and buy some for us, so that we may stay alive and not die.”
3 So ten brothers of Joseph went down to buy grain in Egypt. 4 But Jacob did not send Joseph’s brother Benjamin with the others, for he said, “Some misfortune might befall him.” 5 The sons of Israel, therefore, arrived to buy grain along with all the others who had also come, for there was famine in Canaan.
6 Joseph had authority over the land, and he sold grain to all the people of the land. Therefore, the brothers of Joseph came to him and bowed down to the earth. 7 Joseph saw his brothers and recognized them, but he hid his identity from them. He spoke harshly and said, “Where do you come from?”
They answered, “From the land of Canaan to buy food.”
8 Joseph recognized his brothers, but they did not recognize him. 9 Joseph remembered the dreams he had concerning them, and he said to them, “You are spies. You have come to see the nakedness of the land.”
10 They answered, “No, my lord, your servants have come to buy food. 11 We are all sons of one man. We are honest. Your servants are not spies.”
12 But he said to them, “No, you have come to spy out the nakedness of the land.”
13 They said, “Your servants are twelve in all. We are brothers, sons of one man from the land of Canaan. The youngest is now with his father, and one is no more.”
14 Joseph said to them, “Things are just as I have said: you are spies. 15 This is how you shall be put to the test. By the life of Pharaoh, you shall not leave here until your youngest brother has arrived. 16 Send one of your number to bring your brother; the rest will remain as prisoners. You will thus be put to the test concerning what you have said, to see if you have told the truth. If not, by the life of Pharaoh, you are spies.” 17 And he then held them in prison for three days.
18 On the third day, Joseph said to them, “Do this and you shall live, for I fear God! 19 If you are honest, then leave one of your brothers in prison and go to bring the grain to ease the hunger of your household. 20 Then bring me your youngest brother. In this way, your words will be seen to be true and you will not die.” They agreed.
21 They said among themselves, “Surely this terrible thing has come upon us because of our brother. We saw his torment when he begged us, and we did not listen to him. That is why this trouble has come upon us.”
22 Reuben spoke to them, “Did I not tell you not to sin against the boy? But you refused to listen. Now we will pay for his blood.” 23 They did not know that Joseph understood them because he was using an interpreter.
24 He walked away from them and cried. Then he returned and spoke with them. He selected Simeon and had him placed in chains while they were watching.
25 The Sons of Jacob Return to Canaan.[b] Joseph gave orders that their sacks be filled with grain, and that each one’s money be placed in his sack, and that they be given provisions for their journey. This was done for them. 26 Then they loaded the grain on their donkeys and departed.
27 At their night encampment, one of them opened his sack to take out forage for his donkey and saw his money lying at the mouth of the sack. 28 He told his brothers, “My money has been returned to me. Look, it was in my sack.”
Their hearts sank, and they began to shake, saying to one another, “What is this that God has done to us?”
29 When they reached their father Jacob in the land of Canaan, they told him everything that had happened to them. 30 “That man who is the lord of the land spoke harshly to us and placed us in prison as spies of the land. 31 We told him, ‘We are honest men, not spies! 32 We are twelve brothers, sons of one father. One is no more, and the youngest is at home with our father in the land of Canaan.’
33 “But the man who is lord of the land answered us, ‘This is how I shall know if you are honest: leave one of your brothers here with me, take the grain you need for your household, and go. 34 Then bring your youngest brother back to me. In that way I shall know that you are not spies, but that you are honest. I will return your brother and you will have the freedom of the land.’ ”
35 As they emptied their sacks, each one found his money bag in his sack. When they and their father saw their money bags, they were filled with fear. 36 And their father Jacob said, “You have taken away my sons. Joseph is no more, and Simeon is no more, and now you would like to take away Benjamin. Everything is against me!”
37 Reuben said to his father, “You can kill my two sons if we do not bring him back to you. Entrust him to me, and I will bring him back.”
38 But he answered, “My son shall not go down there with you because his brother is dead and he alone remains. If something bad were to happen to him during the journey that you were making, you would make these gray hairs go down into the netherworld.”
Footnotes
- Genesis 42:1 Joseph’s dreams (Gen 37:5-11) are fulfilled: without knowing it, his brothers prostrate themselves at his feet. In a moving scene in which he feigns severity and hides his feelings, Joseph leads them to bare their guilt in having sold their brother as a slave. The rhythm of the account demands the lengthy suspense in these chapters, which might seem at times to be deliberately cruel.
- Genesis 42:25 The sons of Jacob wend their way home in sadness. Simeon has been retained as a hostage, the viceroy demands Benjamin, and the gold of the payment is stashed in the sacks. One would be worried over less.
Genesis 42
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Joseph’s Brothers Go to Egypt
42 When Jacob learned that there was grain in Egypt, he said to his sons, “Why do you keep looking at one another?(A) 2 I have heard,” he said, “that there is grain in Egypt; go down and buy grain for us there, that we may live and not die.”(B) 3 So ten of Joseph’s brothers went down to buy grain in Egypt. 4 But Jacob did not send Joseph’s brother Benjamin with his brothers, for he feared that harm might come to him.(C) 5 Thus the sons of Israel were among the people who came to buy grain, for the famine had reached the land of Canaan.(D)
6 Now Joseph was governor over the land; it was he who sold to all the people of the land. And Joseph’s brothers came and bowed themselves before him with their faces to the ground.(E) 7 When Joseph saw his brothers, he recognized them, but he treated them like strangers and spoke harshly to them. “Where do you come from?” he said. They said, “From the land of Canaan to buy food.”(F) 8 Although Joseph had recognized his brothers, they did not recognize him. 9 Joseph also remembered the dreams that he had dreamed about them. He said to them, “You are spies; you have come to see the nakedness of the land!”(G) 10 They said to him, “No, my lord; your servants have come to buy food. 11 We are all sons of one man; we are honest men; your servants have never been spies.” 12 But he said to them, “No, you have come to see the nakedness of the land!” 13 They said, “We, your servants, are twelve brothers, the sons of a certain man in the land of Canaan; the youngest, however, is now with our father, and one is no more.”(H) 14 But Joseph said to them, “It is just as I have said to you; you are spies! 15 Here is how you shall be tested: as Pharaoh lives, you shall not leave this place unless your youngest brother comes here! 16 Let one of you go and bring your brother, while the rest of you remain in prison, in order that your words may be tested, whether there is truth in you, or else, as Pharaoh lives, surely you are spies.” 17 And he put them all together in prison for three days.
18 On the third day Joseph said to them, “Do this and you will live, for I fear God:(I) 19 if you are honest men, let one of your brothers stay here where you are imprisoned. The rest of you shall go and carry grain for the famine of your households 20 and bring your youngest brother to me. Thus your words will be verified, and you shall not die.” And they agreed to do so.(J) 21 They said to one another, “Alas, we are paying the penalty for what we did to our brother; we saw his anguish when he pleaded with us, but we would not listen. That is why this anguish has come upon us.”(K) 22 Then Reuben answered them, “Did I not tell you not to wrong the boy? But you would not listen. So now there comes a reckoning for his blood.”(L) 23 They did not know that Joseph understood them, since he spoke with them through an interpreter. 24 He turned away from them and wept; then he returned and spoke to them. And he picked out Simeon and had him bound before their eyes.(M) 25 Joseph then gave orders to fill their bags with grain, to return every man’s money to his sack, and to give them provisions for their journey. This was done for them.(N)
Joseph’s Brothers Return to Canaan
26 They loaded their donkeys with their grain and departed.(O) 27 When one of them opened his sack to give his donkey fodder at the lodging place, he saw his money at the top of the sack. 28 He said to his brothers, “My money has been put back; here it is in my sack!” At this they lost heart and turned trembling to one another, saying, “What is this that God has done to us?”
29 When they came to their father Jacob in the land of Canaan, they told him all that had happened to them, saying, 30 “The man, the lord of the land, spoke harshly to us and charged us with spying on the land.(P) 31 But we said to him, ‘We are honest men; we are not spies.(Q) 32 We are twelve brothers, sons of our father; one is no more, and the youngest is now with our father in the land of Canaan.’ 33 Then the man, the lord of the land, said to us, ‘By this I shall know that you are honest men: leave one of your brothers with me, take grain for the famine of your households, and go your way.(R) 34 Bring your youngest brother to me, and I shall know that you are not spies but honest men. Then I will release your brother to you, and you may trade in the land.’ ”
35 As they were emptying their sacks, there in each one’s sack was his bag of money. When they and their father saw their bundles of money, they were dismayed.(S) 36 And their father Jacob said to them, “I am the one you have bereaved of children: Joseph is no more, and Simeon is no more, and now you would take Benjamin. All this has happened to me!”(T) 37 Then Reuben said to his father, “You may kill my two sons if I do not bring him back to you. Put him in my hands, and I will bring him back to you.” 38 But he said, “My son shall not go down with you, for his brother is dead, and he alone is left. If harm should come to him on the journey that you are to make, you would bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to Sheol.”(U)
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.