Genesis 43-46
Complete Jewish Bible
43 But the famine was severe in the land; 2 so when they had eaten up the grain which they had brought out of Egypt, their father said to them, “Go again, buy us a little food.” 3 Y’hudah said to him, “The man expressly warned us, ‘You will not see my face unless your brother is with you.’ 4 If you will send our brother with us, we will go down and buy you food; 5 but if you will not send him, we will not go down; for the man said to us, ‘You will not see my face unless your brother is with you.’” 6 Isra’el said, “Why did you bring such trouble my way by telling the man you had another brother?” 7 They answered, “The man kept questioning us about ourselves and about our kinsmen. He asked, ‘Is your father still alive?’ ‘Do you have another brother?’ and we answered according to the literal meaning of his questions. How were we to know he would say, ‘Bring your brother down’?”
8 Y’hudah said to Isra’el his father, “Send the boy with me; and we will make preparations and leave; so that we may stay alive and not die, both we and you, and also our little ones. 9 I myself will guarantee his safety; you can hold me responsible. If I fail to bring him to you and present him to your face, let me bear the blame forever. 10 Except for our lengthy delay, we would have been there again by now.”
11 Their father Isra’el answered them, “If that’s how it is, do this: take in your containers some of the land’s best products, and bring the man a gift — some healing resin, a little honey, aromatic gum, opium, pistachio nuts and almonds. 12 Take twice the amount of money with you; and return the money that came back with you in your packs — it could have been an oversight. 13 Yes, and take your brother too; and get ready; and go again to the man. 14 May El Shaddai give you favor in the man’s sight, so that he will release to you your other brother as well as Binyamin. As for me, if I must lose my children, lose them I will.” 15 The men took that gift, and they took twice the money with them, and Binyamin; then they prepared, went down to Egypt and stood before Yosef.
(vi) 16 When Yosef saw Binyamin with them, he said to his household manager, “Take the men inside the house, kill the animals and prepare the meat. These men will dine with me at noon.” 17 The man did as Yosef ordered and brought the men into Yosef’s house.
18 Upon being ushered inside Yosef’s house, the men became fearful. They said, “It’s because of the money that was returned in our packs the first time that we have been brought inside — so that he can use it as an excuse to attack us, take us as slaves and seize our donkeys too.” 19 So they approached the manager of Yosef’s household and spoke to him at the entrance of the house: 20 “Please, my lord, the first time we indeed came down to buy food; 21 but when we got to camp, we opened our packs, and there inside our packs was each man’s money, the full amount. We have brought it back with us; 22 moreover, we have brought down other money to buy food. We have no idea who put our money in our packs.” 23 “Stop worrying,” he replied, “don’t be afraid. Your God and the God of your father put treasure in your packs. As for your money — I was the one who received it.” Then he brought Shim‘on out to them.
24 The man brought the men into Yosef’s house and gave them water, and they washed their feet, and he provided fodder for their donkeys. 25 Then they got their gift ready for Yosef’s arrival at noon, for they had heard that they were going to eat a meal there. 26 When Yosef arrived home, they went in the house and presented him with the gift they had brought with them, then prostrated themselves before him on the ground. 27 He asked them how they were and inquired, “Is your father well, the old man of whom you spoke? Is he still alive?” 28 They answered, “Your servant our father is well; yes, he is still alive,” as they bowed in respect. 29 He looked up and saw Binyamin his brother, his mother’s son, and said, “Is this your youngest brother, of whom you spoke to me?” and added, “May God be good to you, my son.”
(vii) 30 Then Yosef hurried out, because his feelings toward his brother were so strong that he wanted to cry; he went into his bedroom and there he wept. 31 Then he washed his face and came out, but he controlled himself as he gave the order to serve the meal. 32 They served him by himself, the brothers by themselves, and the Egyptians included at the meal by themselves — Egyptians don’t eat with Hebrews, because that is abhorrent to them. 33 So they sat there facing him, the firstborn in the place of honor, the youngest in last place; and the men expressed their amazement to each other. 34 Each was given his serving there in front of him, but Binyamin’s portion was five times as large as any of theirs. So they drank and enjoyed themselves with him.
44 Then he ordered the manager of his household, “Fill the men’s packs with food, as much as they can carry, and put each man’s money just inside his pack. 2 And put my goblet, the silver one, just inside the pack of the youngest, along with his grain money.” He did what Yosef told him to do.
3 At daybreak the men were sent off with their donkeys; 4 but before they were far from the city Yosef said to his manager, “Up, go after the men; and when you overtake them, say to them, ‘Why have you repaid good with evil? 5 Isn’t this the goblet my lord drinks from, indeed the one he uses for divination? What you have done is evil!’” 6 So he caught up with them and said these words to them. 7 They replied, “Why does my lord speak this way? Heaven forbid that we should do such a thing! 8 Why, the money we found inside our packs we brought back to you from the land of Kena‘an! So how would we steal silver or gold from your lord’s house? 9 Whichever one of us the goblet is found with, let him be put to death — and the rest of us will be my lord’s slaves!” 10 He replied, “Fine; let it be as you have said: whichever one it is found with will be my slave. But the rest of you will be blameless.” 11 Then each hurried to put his pack down on the ground, and each one opened his pack. 12 He searched, starting with the oldest and ending with the youngest; and the goblet was found in the pack belonging to Binyamin. 13 At this, they tore their clothes from grief. Then each man loaded up his donkey and returned to the city.
(A: Maftir) 14 Y’hudah and his brothers arrived at Yosef’s house. He was still there, and they fell down before him on the ground. (S: Maftir) 15 Yosef said to them, “How could you do such a thing? Don’t you know that a man such as myself can learn the truth by divination?” 16 Y’hudah said, “There’s nothing we can say to my lord! How can we speak? There’s no way we can clear ourselves! God has revealed your servants’ guilt; so here we are, my lord’s slaves — both we and also the one in whose possession the cup was found.” 17 But he replied, “Heaven forbid that I should act in such a way. The man in whose possession the goblet was found will be my slave; but as for you, go in peace to your father.”
Haftarah Mikketz: M’lakhim Alef (1 Kings) 3:15–4:1
B’rit Hadashah suggested reading for Parashah Mikketz: Acts 7:9–16 (specifically vv. 11–12)
Parashah 11: Vayigash (He approached) 44:18–47:27
18 Then Y’hudah approached Yosef and said, “Please, my lord! Let your servant say something to you privately; and don’t be angry with your servant, for you are like Pharaoh himself. 19 My lord asked his servants, ‘Do you have a father? or a brother?’ 20 We answered my lord, ‘We have a father who is an old man, and a child of his old age, a little one whose brother is dead; so that of his mother’s children he alone is left; and his father loves him.’ 21 But you said to your servants, ‘Bring him down to me, so that I can see him.’ 22 We answered my lord, ‘The boy can’t leave his father; if he were to leave his father, his father would die.’ 23 You said to your servants, ‘You will not see my face again unless your brother is with you.’ 24 We went up to your servant my father and told him what my lord had said; 25 but when our father said, ‘Go again, and buy us some food,’ 26 we answered, ‘We can’t go down. Only if our youngest brother is with us will we go down, because we can’t see the man’s face unless our youngest brother is with us.’ 27 Then your servant my father said to us, ‘You know that my wife bore me two sons: 28 the one went out from me, and I said, “Surely he has been torn to pieces,” and I haven’t seen him since. 29 Now if you take this one away from me too, and something happens to him, you will bring my gray hair down to Sh’ol with grief.’ 30 So now if I go to your servant my father, and the boy isn’t with us — seeing how his heart is bound up with the boy’s heart — (ii) 31 when he sees that the boy isn’t with us, he will die; and your servants will bring the gray hair of your servant our father down to Sh’ol with grief. 32 For your servant himself guaranteed his safety; I said, ‘If I fail to bring him to you, then I will bear the blame before my father forever.’ 33 Therefore, I beg you, let your servant stay as a slave to my lord instead of the boy, and let the boy go up with his brothers. 34 For how can I go up to my father if the boy isn’t with me? I couldn’t bear to see my father so overwhelmed by anguish.”
45 At last Yosef could no longer control his feelings in front of his attendants and cried, “Get everybody away from me!” So no one else was with him when Yosef revealed to his brothers who he was. 2 He wept aloud, and the Egyptians heard, and Pharaoh’s household heard. 3 Yosef said to his brothers, “I am Yosef! Is it true that my father is still alive?” His brothers couldn’t answer him, they were so dumbfounded at seeing him. 4 Yosef said to his brothers, “Please! Come closer.” And they came closer. He said, “I am Yosef, your brother, whom you sold into Egypt. 5 But don’t be sad that you sold me into slavery here or angry at yourselves, because it was God who sent me ahead of you to preserve life. 6 The famine has been over the land for the last two years, and for yet another five years there will be neither plowing nor harvest. 7 God sent me ahead of you to ensure that you will have descendants on earth and to save your lives in a great deliverance. (iii) 8 So it was not you who sent me here, but God; and he has made me a father to Pharaoh, lord of all his household and ruler over the whole land of Egypt. 9 Hurry, go up to my father, and tell him, ‘Here is what your son Yosef says: “God has made me lord of all Egypt! Come down to me, don’t delay! 10 You will live in the land of Goshen and be near me — you, your children, your grandchildren, flocks, herds, everything you own. 11 I will provide for you there, so that you won’t become poverty-stricken, you, your household and all that you have; because five years of famine are yet to come.”’ 12 Here! Your own eyes see, and the eyes of my brother Binyamin, that it is my own mouth speaking to you. 13 Tell my father how honored I am in Egypt and everything you have seen, and quickly bring my father down here!” 14 Then he embraced his brother Binyamin and wept, and Binyamin wept on his neck, 15 and he kissed all his brothers and wept on them. After that, his brothers talked with him.
16 The report of this reached Pharaoh’s house: “Yosef’s brothers have come”; and Pharaoh and his servants were pleased. 17 Pharaoh said to Yosef, “Tell your brothers, ‘Here is what you are to do. Load up your animals, go to the land of Kena‘an, 18 take your father and your families, and come back to me. I will give you good property in Egypt, and you will eat the fat of the land.
(iv) 19 “‘Moreover — and this is an order — do this: take wagons from the land of Egypt to carry your little ones and your wives, and bring your father, and come. 20 Don’t worry about your stuff, because everything good in the land of Egypt is yours.’”
21 The sons of Isra’el acted accordingly; and Yosef gave them wagons, as Pharaoh had ordered, and gave them provisions for their journey. 22 To each of them he gave a set of new clothes; but to Binyamin he gave seven-and-a-half pounds of silver and five sets of new clothes. 23 Likewise, to his father he sent ten donkeys loaded with the finest goods Egypt produced, as well as ten female donkeys loaded with grain, bread and food for his father to eat on the return journey. 24 Thus he sent his brothers on their way, and they left; he said to them, “Don’t quarrel among yourselves while you’re traveling!”
25 So they went up out of Egypt, entered the land of Kena‘an and came to Ya‘akov their father. 26 They told him, “Yosef is still alive! He is ruler over the whole land of Egypt!” He was stunned at the news; he couldn’t believe them. 27 So they reported to him everything Yosef had said to them; but it was only when he saw the wagons which Yosef had sent to carry him that the spirit of Ya‘akov their father began to revive. (v) 28 Isra’el said, “Enough! My son Yosef is still alive! I must go and see him before I die.”
46 Isra’el took everything he owned with him on his journey. He arrived at Be’er-Sheva and offered sacrifices to the God of his father Yitz’chak. 2 In a vision at night God called to Isra’el, “Ya‘akov! Ya‘akov!” He answered, “Here I am.” 3 He said, “I am God, the God of your father. Don’t be afraid to go down to Egypt. It is there that I will make you into a great nation. 4 Not only will I go down with you to Egypt; but I will also bring you back here again, after Yosef has closed your eyes.”
5 So Ya‘akov left Be’er-Sheva; the sons of Isra’el brought Ya‘akov their father, their little ones and their wives in the wagons Pharaoh had sent to carry them. 6 They took their cattle and their possessions which they had acquired in the land of Kena‘an and arrived in Egypt, Ya‘akov and all his descendants with him — 7 his sons, grandsons, daughters, granddaughters and all his descendants he brought with him into Egypt.
8 These are the names of Isra’el’s children who came into Egypt, Ya‘akov and his sons: Re’uven Ya‘akov’s firstborn; 9 and the sons of Re’uven — Hanokh, Pallu, Hetzron and Karmi.
10 The sons of Shim‘on: Y’mu’el, Yamin, Ohad, Yakhin, Tzochar and Sha’ul the son of a Kena‘ani woman.
11 The sons of Levi: Gershon, K’hat and M’rari.
12 The sons of Y’hudah: ‘Er, Onan, Shelah, Peretz and Zerach; but ‘Er and Onan died in the land of Kena‘an. The sons of Peretz were Hetzron and Hamul.
13 The sons of Yissakhar: Tola, Puvah, Yov and Shimron.
14 The sons of Z’vulun: Sered, Elon and Yachle’el.
15 These were the children of Le’ah whom she bore to Ya‘akov in Paddan-Aram, with his daughter Dinah. In sum, his sons and daughters numbered thirty-three.
16 The sons of Gad: Tzifyon, Haggi, Shuni, Etzbon, ‘Eri, Arodi and Ar’eli.
17 The children of Asher: Yimnah, Yishvah, Yishvi, B’ri‘ah, and their sister Serach. The sons of B’ri‘ah were Hever and Malki’el.
18 These were the children of Zilpah, whom Lavan gave to Le’ah his daughter; she bore them to Ya‘akov — sixteen people.
19 The sons of Rachel Ya‘akov’s wife: Yosef and Binyamin.
20 To Yosef in the land of Egypt were born M’nasheh and Efrayim, whom Osnat the daughter of Poti-Fera priest of On bore to him.
21 The sons of Binyamin: Bela, Bekher, Ashbel, Gera, Na‘aman, Echi, Rosh, Mupim, Hupim and Ard.
22 These were the children of Rachel who were born to Ya‘akov — in sum, fourteen people.
23 The sons of Dan: Hushim.
24 The sons of Naftali: Yachtze’el, Guni, Yetzer and Shillem.
25 These were the sons of Bilhah, whom Lavan gave to Rachel his daughter; she bore them to Ya‘akov — in sum, seven people.
26 All the people belonging to Ya‘akov coming into Egypt, his direct descendants (not counting Ya‘akov’s sons’ wives), totaled sixty-six. 27 The sons of Yosef, born to him in Egypt, were two in number. Thus all the people in Ya‘akov’s family who entered Egypt numbered seventy.
(vi) 28 Ya‘akov sent Y’hudah ahead of him to Yosef, so that the latter might guide him on the road to Goshen; thus they arrived in the land of Goshen. 29 Yosef prepared his chariot and went up to Goshen to meet Isra’el his father. He presented himself to him, embraced him and wept on his neck for a long time. 30 Then Isra’el said to Yosef, “Now I can die, because I have seen your face and seen that you are still alive.”
31 Yosef said to his brothers and his father’s family, “I’m going up to tell Pharaoh. I’ll say to him, ‘My brothers and my father’s family, who were in the land of Kena‘an, have come to me. 32 The men are shepherds and keepers of livestock; they have brought their flocks, their herds and all their possessions.’ 33 Now when Pharaoh summons you and asks, ‘What is your occupation?’ 34 tell him, ‘Your servants have been keepers of livestock from our youth until now, both we and our ancestors.’ This will ensure that you will live in the land of Goshen — for any shepherd is abhorrent to the Egyptians.”
Bereshis 43-46
Orthodox Jewish Bible
43 And the ra’av (famine) was kaved (heavy, severe) in the land.
2 And it came to pass, when they had eaten up the shever (grain) which they had brought out of Mitzrayim, then Avihem said unto them, Shuvu (return)! Buy for us a little ochel.
3 And Yehudah spoke unto him, saying, The ish did solemnly warn us, saying, Ye shall not see my face, unless achichem be with you.
4 If thou wilt send achinu (our brother) with us, we will go down and buy thee ochel;
5 But if thou wilt not send him, we will not go down; for the ish said unto us, Ye shall not see my face, unless achichem be with you.
6 And Yisroel said, Why dealt ye so ill with me, as to tell the ish whether ye had yet another ach (brother)?
7 And they said, The ish asked in detail about us and about our moledet (kindred), saying, Is Avichem yet alive? Have ye another ach? And we declared to him according to these words of [his inquiry]; could we certainly know that he would say, Bring down achichem?
8 And Yehudah said unto Yisroel Aviv, Send na’ar with me, and we will arise and go; that we may live, and not die, both we, and thou, and also our little ones.
9 I will be surety for him; of my yad shalt thou require an accounting for him; if I bring him not back unto thee, and set him before thee, then let me bear the blame kol hayamim;
10 For if we had not delayed, surely now we had returned zeh pa’amayim (this second time).
11 And Yisroel Avihem said unto them, If it must be so now, do this; take of mizimerat HaAretz (the best fruits of the land) in your kelim (vessels), and carry down to the ish a minchah (present), a little balm, and a little devash (honey), nekhot (spices), loht (myrrh), batenim (pistachio nuts), and shekedim (almonds):
12 And take kesef mishneh (double money) in your yad; and the kesef that was returned in the mouth of your sacks, carry it back in your yad; perhaps it was mishgeh (mistake);
13 Take also achichem, and arise, shuvu (return) unto the ish;
14 And El Shaddai give you rachamim before the ish, that he may send away achichem acher (your other brother), and Binyamin. If I be bereaved of my children, I am bereaved.
15 And the anashim took that minchah, and they took mishneh kesef (double money) in their yad and Binyamin; and rose up, and went down to Mitzrayim, and stood before Yosef.
16 And when Yosef saw Binyamin with them, he said to the ish over Bais Yosef, Bring these anashim home, and slaughter the tevach, and make ready; for these anashim shall dine with me at tzahorayim (noon).
17 And the ish did as Yosef said; and the ish brought the anashim to the house of Yosef.
18 And the anashim were afraid, because they were brought into Bais Yosef; and they said, Because of the kesef that was returned in our sacks at the first time are we brought in; that he may seek occasion against us, and fall upon us, and seize us for avadim, and chamoreinu (our donkeys).
19 And they came near to the ish over Bais Yosef, and they spoke with him at the petach habayit,
20 And said, O adoni, we came indeed down at the first time to buy ochel:
21 And it came to pass, when we came to the malon, that we opened our sacks, and, hinei, kesef ish (every man’s money) was in the mouth of his sack, our kesef in full weight; and we have brought it back again in our yad.
22 And kesef acher (other money) have we brought down in our hands to buy ochel; we cannot tell who put our kesef in our sacks.
23 And he said, Shalom lachem, fear not; Eloheichem, and Elohei Avichem, hath given you matmon (treasure) in your sacks; I had your kesef. And he brought Shimon out unto them.
24 And the ish brought the anashim into the house of Yosef, and gave them mayim, and they washed their raglayim; and he gave their chamorim mispo (fodder).
25 And they made ready the minchah for bo Yosef (coming of Yosef) at tzahorayim; for they heard that they would eat lechem there.
26 And when Yosef came home, they presented him the minchah which was in their yad in the house, and prostrated themselves to the ground before him.
27 And he asked them l’shalom (about their welfare), and said, Is there shalom with avichem, the zaken of whom ye spoke? Is he still alive?
28 And they answered, There is shalom with thy eved avinu; he is still alive. And they bowed their heads, and prostrated themselves.
29 And he lifted up his eyes, and saw achiv Binyamin, ben immo, and said, Is this achichem hakaton (your younger brother), of whom ye spoke unto me? And he said, Elohim be gracious unto thee, beni.
30 And Yosef made haste; for his compassion was stirred upon achiv (his brother); and he sought where to weep; and he entered into his cheder, and wept there.
31 And he washed his face, and went out, and controlled himself, and said, Serve lechem.
32 And they served him by himself, and them by themselves, and the Mitzrim (Egyptians), which did eat with him, by themselves; because Mitzrim could not eat lechem with the Ivrim; for that is a to’evah (abomination) unto the Mitzrim.
33 And they sat before him, the bechor according to his bechorah (birthright), and the youngest according to his youth; and the anashim marvelled one with another.
34 And he took and sent masot (portions) unto them from before him; but masat Binyamin was five times as much as any of theirs. And they drank, and feasted with him.
44 And he commanded the ish over Bais Yosef, saying, Fill the sacks of the anashim with ochel, as much as they can carry, and put kesef ish in the mouth of his sack.
2 And put my cup, gevi’a hakesef (cup of silver), in the mouth of the sack of the katon, and his kesef for shever (grain). And he did according to the davar Yosef had spoken.
3 As soon as the boker ohr, the anashim were sent away, they and their chamorim.
4 And when they were gone out of the ir, and not yet far off, Yosef said unto the ish over Bais Yosef, Up, follow after the anashim; and when thou dost overtake them, say unto them, Wherefore have ye rewarded ra’ah for tovah?
5 Is not this it in which adoni drinketh, and whereby indeed he divineth? Ye have done ra’ah in so doing.
6 And he overtook them, and he spoke unto them these same devarim.
7 And they said unto him, Wherefore saith adoni these words? Chalilah (far be it) that thy avadim should do according to this thing;
8 Hinei, the kesef, which we found in the mouth of our sacks, we brought back unto thee out of Eretz Kena’an; how then should we be ganavim stealing kesef or zahav out of the bais adonecha?
9 With whomsoever of thy avadim it be found, both let him die, and we also will be avadim of adoni.
10 And he said, Now also let it be according unto your devarim; he with whom it is found shall be to me eved; and ye shall be nekiyim (blameless).
11 Then they speedily took down every ish his sack to the ground, and opened every ish his sack.
12 And he searched, and began at the gadol (eldest), and ended at the katon (youngest); and the gevi’a (cup, goblet) was found in the sack of Binyamin.
13 Then they tore their garments, and loaded every ish his chamor, and returned to the ir.
14 And Yehudah and his achim came to Bais Yosef; for he was yet there; and they fell before him on the ground.
15 And Yosef said unto them, What ma’aseh (deed) is this that ye have done? Know ye not that an ish like me can find things out as a menachesh (diviner)?
16 And Yehudah said, What shall we say unto adoni? What shall we speak? Or how hall we clear ourselves? HaElohim hath found out the avon (iniquity) of thy avadim; look at us, we are now avadim la’adoni, both we, and he also with whom the gevi’a (cup) is found.
17 And he [Yosef] said, Chalilah that I should do so; but the ish in whose yad the gevi’a is found, he shall be to me eved; and as for you, go back in shalom unto avichem.
[VAYIGGASH]
18 Then Yehudah came near unto him, and said, Oh, adoni, let thy eved speak now a davar in oznei adoni, and let not thine anger burn against thy eved; for thou art even like Pharaoh.
19 Adoni asked his avadim, saying, Have ye an av, or an ach?
20 And we said unto adoni, We have an av, a zaken, and a yeled zekunim katan (child of his old age, a little one); and achiv is dead, and he alone is left of immo, and aviv loveth him.
21 And thou saidst unto thy avadim, Bring him down unto me, that I may set mine eyes upon him.
22 And we said unto adoni, The na’ar cannot leave aviv; for if he should leave aviv, aviv would die.
23 And thou saidst unto thy avadim, Except achichem hakaton (your youngest brother) come down with you, ye shall see my face no more.
24 And it came to pass when we came up unto thy eved Avi we told him the divrei adoni.
25 And avinu said, Shuvu, (go back, return) and buy us a little ochel.
26 And we said, We cannot go down; if achinu hakaton (our youngest brother) be with us, then will we go down; for we may not see the face of HaIsh, except achinu hakaton be with us.
27 And thy eved Avi said unto us, Ye know that my wife bore me two banim;
28 And the one went out from me, and I said, Surely he is torn to pieces; and I saw him not ad-hennah (until now);
29 And if ye take this also from me, and ason (evil, harm) befall him, ye shall bring down my gray hair in ra’ah (misery) to Sheol.
30 Now therefore when I come to thy eved Avi, and the na’ar be not with us; seeing that his nefesh is bound up in the nefesh of the na’ar;
31 It shall come to pass, when he seeth that the na’ar is not with us, that he will die; and thy avadim shall bring down the gray hair of thy eved avinu with yagon (sorrow) to Sheol,
32 For thy eved became surety for the na’ar unto Avi, saying, If I bring him not unto thee, then I shall bear the blame before Avi kol hayamim.
33 Therefore, let thy eved, now, abide instead of the na’ar, an eved to adoni; and let the na’ar go up with his achim.
34 For how shall I go up to Avi, and the na’ar be not with me? Lest I see the rah that would overtake Avi.
45 Then Yosef could not control himself before all them that stood by him; and he cried, Cause kol ish to go out from me. And there stood no ish with him, while Yosef made himself known unto his achim.
2 And he wept aloud; and the Mitzrayim and the Bais Pharaoh heard.
3 And Yosef said unto his achim (brethren), I am Yosef; doth Avi yet live? And his achim could not answer him; for they were shocked with dismay at his presence.
4 And Yosef said unto his achim, Come near to me, now. And they came near. And he said, I am Yosef achichem (your brother), whom ye sold into Mitzrayim.
5 Now therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that ye sold me here; for Elohim did send me before you to save life.
6 For these two years hath the ra’av (famine) been in the land; and yet there are chamesh shanim (five years), in the which there shall neither be plowing nor harvest.
7 And Elohim sent me before you to save you a she’erit (remnant) in the earth, and to save life for you by a peletah gedolah (great deliverance, escape).
8 So now it was not you that sent me here, but HaElohim; and He hath made me as an Av to Pharaoh, and adon of all his Bais, and Moshel throughout kol Eretz Mitzrayim.
9 Haste ye, and go up to Avi, and say unto him, Thus saith thy ben, Yosef, Elohim hath made me as adon kol Mitzrayim; come down unto me, tarry not;
10 And thou shalt dwell in Eretz Goshen, and thou shalt be karov (near) unto me, thou, and thy banim, and thy bnei banecha, and thy tzon, and thy bakar, and all that thou hast [see Yn 14:3 OJBC]:
11 And there will I nourish thee; for yet there are chamesh shanim of ra’av (famine); lest thou, and thy bais, and all that thou hast, come to destitution.
12 And, hinei, your eyes see, and the eyes of achi Binyamin, that it is my mouth that speaketh unto you.
13 And ye shall tell Avi of kol kevod b’Mitzrayim, and of all that ye have seen; and ye shall haste and bring down Avi here.
14 And he fell upon the neck of Binyamin achiv, and wept; and Binyamin wept upon his neck.
15 Moreover he kissed all his achim, and wept upon them; and after that his achim talked with him.
16 And the news thereof was heard in Bais Pharaoh saying, Achei Yosef are come; and it pleased Pharaoh well, and his avadim.
17 And Pharaoh said unto Yosef, Say unto thy achim, This do ye; load your beasts, and go, get you unto Eretz Kena’an;
18 And take Avichem and your households, and come unto me; and I will give you the best of Eretz Mitzrayim, ye shall eat the chelev haaretz.
19 Now thou art commanded, this do ye; take you agalot (wagons) out of Eretz Mitzrayim for your little ones, and for your nashim, and bring Avichem, and come.
20 Also regard not your kelim; for the best of kol Eretz Mitzrayim is yours.
21 And the Bnei Yisroel did so; and Yosef gave them agalot, according to the commandment of Pharaoh, and gave them provision for the derech.
22 To all of them he gave each man chalifot semalot; but to Binyamin he gave three hundred pieces of kesef, and chamesh chalifot semalot.
23 And to Aviv he sent after this manner; ten chamorim loaded with the best of Mitzrayim, and ten female donkeys loaded with grain and lechem and provision for Aviv for the derech.
24 So he sent his achim away, and they departed; and he said unto them, See that ye not quarrel by the derech.
25 And they went up out of Mitzrayim, and came into Eretz Kena’an unto Ya’akov avihem,
26 And told him, saying, Yosef chai! Yosef is yet alive, and he is Moshel kol Eretz Mitzrayim. And Ya’akov’s lev fainted, for he believed them not [see Lk 24:10-11 OJBC].
27 And they told him kol divrei Yosef, which he had said unto them; and when he saw the agalot which Yosef had sent to carry him, the ruach Ya’akov avihem revived;
28 And Yisroel said, It is enough; Yosef Beni chai! Yosef Beni is yet alive; I will go and see him before I die.
46 And Yisroel took his journey with all that he had, and came to Be’erah Sheva, and offered zevakhim unto Elohei Aviv Yitzchak.
2 And Elohim spoke unto Yisroel in the marot halailah, and said, Ya’akov, Ya’akov. And he said, Hineni.
3 And He said, I am El Elohei Avicha; fear not to go down to Mitzrayim; for there I will make thee a Goy Gadol;
4 I will go down with thee to Mitzrayim; and I will also surely bring thee up again; and Yosef shall put his yad upon thine eyes.
5 And Ya’akov rose up from Be’er-Sheva; and the Bnei Yisroel carried Ya’akov Avichem, and their little ones, and their nashim, in the agalot which Pharaoh had sent to carry him.
6 And they took their mikneh, and their possessions, which they had acquired in Eretz Kena’an, and came to Mitzrayim, Ya’akov, and all his zera with him;
7 His banim, and his bnei banim with him, his banot, and his banot banim, and all his zera brought he with him to Mitzrayim.
8 And these are the shemot Bnei Yisroel, which came to Mitzrayim: Ya’akov and his banim: Reuven, bechor Ya’akov;
9 And the Bnei Reuven: Chanoch, and Phallu, and Chetzron, and Carmi.
10 And the Bnei Shimon: Yemuel, and Yamin, and Ohad, and Yachin, and Tzochar, and Shaul Ben HaKena’anit.
11 And the Bnei Levi: Gershon, Kehat, and Merari.
12 And the Bnei Yehudah: Er, and Onan, and Shelah, and Peretz, and Zarach; but Er and Onan died in Eretz Kena’an. And the Bnei Peretz were Chetzron and Chamul.
13 And the Bnei Yissakhar: Tola, and Phuvah, and Yov, and Shimron.
14 And the Bnei Zevulun: Sered, Elon, and Yachle’el.
15 These are the Bnei Leah, which she bore unto Ya’akov in Padan Aram, with his bat Dinah; kol nefesh of his banim and his banot were thirty and three.
16 And the Bnei Gad: Tziphyon, Chaggi, Shuni, Etzbon, Eri, Arodi, and Areli.
17 And the Bnei Asher: Yimnah, and Yishvah, and Yishvi, and Beriah, and Serach their achot; and the Bnei Beriah: Chever, and Malki’el.
18 These are the Bnei Zilpah, whom Lavan gave to Leah his bat, and these she bore unto Ya’akov, even sixteen nefesh.
19 The Bnei Rachel eshet Ya’akov: Yosef, and Binyamin.
20 And unto Yosef in Eretz Mitzrayim were born Menasheh and Ephrayim, which Asenat Bat Poti Phera kohen of On bore unto him.
21 And the Bnei Binyamin were Belah, and Becher, and Ashbel, Gera, and Naaman, Echi, and Rosh, Muppim, and Chuppim, and Ard.
22 These are the Bnei Rachel, which were born to Ya’akov; kol nefesh were fourteen.
23 And the Bnei Dan: Chushim.
24 And the Bnei Naphtali: Yachtze’el, and Guni, and Yetzer, and Shillem.
25 These are the Bnei Bilhah, which Lavan gave unto Rachel his bat, and she bore these unto Ya’akov; kol nefesh were shivah.
26 Kol hanefesh that came with Ya’akov to Mitzrayim, which came out of his loins, apart from the nashim of the Bnei Ya’akov, kol nefesh were threescore and six;
27 And the Bnei Yosef, which were born to him in Mitzrayim, were two nefesh; kol hanefesh of Bais Ya’akov, which came into Mitzrayim, were shivim (seventy).
28 And he sent Yehudah before him unto Yosef, to direct his face unto Goshen; and they came into Eretz Goshen.
29 And Yosef made ready his merkavah, and went up to meet Yisroel Aviv, to Goshen, and presented himself unto him; and he fell on his neck, and wept on his neck a long time.
30 And Yisroel said unto Yosef, Now let me die, since I have seen thy face, because thou art yet alive.
31 And Yosef said unto his achim, and unto Bais Aviv, I will go up, and speak to Pharaoh, and say unto him, My achim and Bais Avi, which were in Eretz Kena’an, are come unto me;
32 And the anashim are roei tzon (shepherds), keepers of livestock; and they have brought their tzon, and their bakar, and all that they have.
33 And it shall come to pass, when Pharaoh shall call you, and shall say, What is ma’aseichem (your occupation)?
34 That ye shall say, Thy avadim hath been keepers of livestock from our youth even until now, both we, and also Avoteinu; that ye may dwell in Eretz Goshen; for every ro’eh tzon is a toevat Mitzrayim.
Copyright © 1998 by David H. Stern. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2002, 2003, 2008, 2010, 2011 by Artists for Israel International