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Joseph’s Final Test
44 Then Joseph commanded his steward: “Fill the men’s bags with as much food as they can carry, and put each one’s money at the top of his bag.(A) 2 Put my cup, the silver one, at the top of the youngest one’s bag, along with his grain money.” So he did as Joseph told him.
3 At morning light, the men were sent off with their donkeys. 4 They had not gone very far from the city when Joseph said to his steward, “Get up. Pursue the men, and when you overtake them, say to them, ‘Why have you repaid evil for good?[a] 5 Isn’t this the cup that my master drinks from and uses for divination?(B) What you have done is wrong!’”
6 When he overtook them, he said these words to them. 7 They said to him, “Why does my lord say these things? Your servants could not possibly do such a thing. 8 We even brought back to you from the land of Canaan the money we found at the top of our bags. How could we steal gold and silver from your master’s house? 9 If any of us is[b] found to have it, he must die, and we also will become my lord’s slaves.”(C)
10 The steward replied, “What you have said is right, but only the one who is found to have it will be my slave, and the rest of you will be blameless.”
11 So each one quickly lowered his sack to the ground and opened it. 12 The steward searched, beginning with the oldest and ending with the youngest, and the cup was found in Benjamin’s sack. 13 Then they tore their clothes,(D) and each one loaded his donkey and returned to the city.
14 When Judah and his brothers reached Joseph’s house, he was still there. They fell to the ground before him.(E) 15 “What is this you have done?” Joseph said to them. “Didn’t you know that a man like me could uncover the truth by divination?”
16 “What can we say to my lord?” Judah replied. “How can we plead? How can we justify ourselves? God has exposed your servants’ iniquity. We are now my lord’s slaves—both we and the one in whose possession the cup was found.”
17 Then Joseph said, “I swear that I will not do this. The man in whose possession the cup was found will be my slave. The rest of you can go in peace to your father.”
Judah’s Plea for Benjamin
18 But Judah approached him and said, “Sir, please let your servant speak personally to my lord.[c] Do not be angry with your servant, for you are like Pharaoh.(F) 19 My lord asked his servants, ‘Do you have a father or a brother?’ 20 and we answered my lord, ‘We have an elderly father and a younger brother, the child of his old age.(G) The boy’s brother is dead. He is the only one of his mother’s sons left, and his father loves him.’ 21 Then you said to your servants, ‘Bring him to me so that I can see him.’(H) 22 But we said to my lord, ‘The boy cannot leave his father. If he were to leave, his father would die.’ 23 Then you said to your servants, ‘If your younger brother does not come down with you, you will not see me again.’(I)
24 “This is what happened when we went back to your servant my father: We reported your words to him. 25 But our father said, ‘Go again, and buy us some food.’(J) 26 We told him, ‘We cannot go down unless our younger brother goes with us. So if our younger brother isn’t with us, we cannot see the man.’ 27 Your servant my father said to us, ‘You know that my wife bore me two sons. 28 One left—I said that he must have been torn to pieces—and I have never seen him again.(K) 29 If you also take this one from me and anything happens to him, you will bring my gray hairs down to Sheol in sorrow.’(L)
30 “So if I come to your servant my father and the boy is not with us—his life is wrapped up with the boy’s life— 31 when he sees that the boy is not with us, he will die. Then your servants will have brought the gray hairs of your servant our father down to Sheol in sorrow. 32 Your servant became accountable to my father for the boy, saying, ‘If I do not return him to you, I will always bear the guilt for sinning against you, my father.’(M) 33 Now please let your servant remain here as my lord’s slave, in place of the boy. Let him go back with his brothers. 34 For how can I go back to my father without the boy? I could not bear to see the grief that would overwhelm my father.”
Joseph Reveals His Identity
45 Joseph could no longer keep his composure in front of all his attendants,[d] so he called out, “Send everyone away from me!” No one was with him when he revealed his identity to his brothers.(N) 2 But he wept so loudly that the Egyptians heard it, and also Pharaoh’s household heard it. 3 Joseph said to his brothers, “I am Joseph! Is my father still living?” But they could not answer him because they were terrified in his presence.
4 Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Please, come near me,” and they came near. “I am Joseph, your brother,” he said, “the one you sold into Egypt.(O) 5 And now don’t be worried or angry with yourselves for selling me here, because God sent me ahead of you to preserve life.(P) 6 For the famine has been in the land these two years, and there will be five more years without plowing or harvesting. 7 God sent me ahead of you to establish you as a remnant within the land and to keep you alive by a great deliverance.[e] 8 Therefore it was not you who sent me here, but God. He has made me a father to Pharaoh, lord of his entire household, and ruler over all the land of Egypt.
9 “Return quickly 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 without delay. 10 You can settle in the land of Goshen(Q) and be near me—you, your children, and grandchildren, your sheep, cattle, and all you have. 11 There I will sustain you, for there will be five more years of famine. Otherwise, you, your household, and everything you have will become destitute.”’(R) 12 Look! Your eyes and my brother Benjamin’s eyes can see that it is I , Joseph, who am[f] speaking to you. 13 Tell my father about all my glory in Egypt and about all you have seen. And bring my father here quickly.”(S)
14 Then Joseph threw his arms around Benjamin and wept, and Benjamin wept on his shoulder. 15 Joseph kissed each of his brothers as he wept,[g] and afterward his brothers talked with him.
The Return for Jacob
16 When the news reached Pharaoh’s palace, “Joseph’s brothers have come,” Pharaoh and his servants were pleased. 17 Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Tell your brothers, ‘Do this: Load your animals and go on back to the land of Canaan. 18 Get your father and your families, and come back to me. I will give you the best of the land of Egypt, and you can eat from the richness of the land.’ 19 You are also commanded, ‘Do this: Take wagons from the land of Egypt for your young children and your wives and bring your father here.(T) 20 Do not be concerned about your belongings, for the best of all the land of Egypt is yours.’”(U)
21 The sons of Israel did this. Joseph gave them wagons as Pharaoh had commanded, and he gave them provisions for the journey. 22 He gave each of the brothers changes of clothes,(V) but he gave Benjamin 300 pieces of silver and five changes of clothes.(W) 23 He sent his father the following: 10 donkeys carrying the best products of Egypt and 10 female donkeys carrying grain, food, and provisions for his father on the journey. 24 So Joseph sent his brothers on their way, and as they were leaving, he said to them, “Don’t argue on the way.”
25 So they went up from Egypt and came to their father Jacob in the land of Canaan. 26 They said, “Joseph is still alive, and he is ruler over all the land of Egypt!” Jacob was stunned,[h] for he did not believe them. 27 But when they told Jacob all that Joseph had said to them, and when he saw the wagons that Joseph had sent to transport him, the spirit of their father Jacob revived.
28 Then Israel said, “Enough! My son Joseph is still alive. I will go to see him before I die.”
Feeding 5,000
13 When Jesus heard about it,(A) He withdrew from there by boat to a remote place to be alone. When the crowds heard this, they followed Him on foot from the towns. 14 As He stepped ashore,[a] He saw a huge crowd, felt compassion for them, and healed their sick.(B)
15 When evening came, the disciples(C) approached Him and said, “This place is a wilderness, and it is already late.[b] Send the crowds away so they can go into the villages and buy food for themselves.”
16 “They don’t need to go away,” Jesus told them. “You give them something to eat.”
17 “But we only have five loaves and two fish here,” they said to Him.
18 “Bring them here to Me,” He said. 19 Then He commanded the crowds to sit down[c] on the grass. He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, He blessed them. He broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds.(D) 20 Everyone ate and was filled. Then they picked up 12 baskets full of leftover pieces!(E) 21 Now those who ate were about 5,000 men, besides women and children.
Walking on the Water
22 Immediately(F) He[d] made the disciples get into the boat and go ahead of Him to the other side, while He dismissed the crowds. 23 After dismissing the crowds, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray. When evening came, He was there alone.(G) 24 But the boat was already over a mile[e] from land,[f] battered by the waves, because the wind was against them. 25 Around three in the morning,[g] He came toward them walking on the sea.(H) 26 When the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost!” they said, and cried out in fear.
27 Immediately Jesus spoke to them. “Have courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”(I)
28 “Lord, if it’s You,” Peter answered Him, “command me to come to You on the water.”
29 “Come!” He said.
And climbing out of the boat, Peter started walking on the water and came toward Jesus. 30 But when he saw the strength of the wind,[h] he was afraid. And beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord, save me!”
31 Immediately Jesus reached out His hand, caught hold of him, and said to him, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?”(J) 32 When they got into the boat, the wind ceased. 33 Then those in the boat worshiped Him and said, “Truly You are the Son of God!”(K)
Miraculous Healings
34 Once they crossed over,(L) they came to land at Gennesaret.(M) 35 When the men of that place recognized Him, they alerted[i] the whole vicinity and brought to Him all who were sick. 36 They were begging Him that they might only touch the tassel on His robe. And as many as touched it were made perfectly well.(N)
37 I pursue my enemies and overtake them;
I do not turn back until they are wiped out.(A)
38 I crush them, and they cannot get up;
they fall beneath my feet.(B)
39 You have clothed me with strength for battle;(C)
You subdue my adversaries beneath me.(D)
40 You have made my enemies retreat before me;[a](E)
I annihilate those who hate me.(F)
41 They cry for help, but there is no one to save them(G)—
they cry to the Lord, but He does not answer them.(H)
42 I pulverize them like dust before the wind;(I)
I trample them[b] like mud in the streets.(J)
43 You have freed me from the feuds among the people;
You have appointed me the head of nations;(K)
a people I had not known serve me.(L)
44 Foreigners submit to me grudgingly;
as soon as they hear,[c] they obey me.(M)
45 Foreigners lose heart
and come trembling from their fortifications.(N)
46 The Lord lives—may my rock be praised!
The God of my salvation is exalted.(O)
47 God—He gives me vengeance(P)
and subdues peoples under me.(Q)
48 He frees me from my enemies.
You exalt me above my adversaries;
You rescue me from violent men.(R)
49 Therefore I will praise You, Yahweh, among the nations;
I will sing about Your name.(S)
50 He gives great victories to His king;(T)
He shows loyalty to His anointed,
to David and his descendants forever.(U)
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