Genesis 43:1-34
43 And the famine was severe in the land.+
2 And it came about that as soon as they had finished eating up the cereals they had brought from Egypt,+ their father proceeded to say to them: “Return, buy a little food for us.”+
3 Then Judah said to him:+ “The man unmistakably bore witness to us, saying, ‘YOU must not see my face again unless YOUR brother is with YOU.’+
4 If you are sending our brother with us,+ we are willing to go down and buy food for you.
5 But if you are not sending him, we shall not go down, because the man did say to us, ‘YOU must not see my face again unless YOUR brother is with YOU.’”+
6 And Israel exclaimed:+ “Why did YOU have to do harm to me by telling the man YOU had another brother?”
7 At this they said: “The man directly inquired concerning us and our relatives, saying, ‘Is YOUR father yet alive?+ Do YOU have another brother?’ and we went on to tell him according to these facts.+ How could we know for certain that he would say, ‘Bring YOUR brother down’?”+
8 Finally Judah said to Israel his father: “Send the boy with me,+ that we may get up and go and that we may keep alive and not die off,+ both we and you and our little children.+
9 I shall be the one to be surety for him.+ Out of my hand you may exact the penalty for him.+ If I fail to bring him to you and present him to you, then I shall have sinned against you for all time.*
10 But if we had not lingered around, we should by now have been there and back these two times.”+
11 So Israel their father said to them: “If, then, that is the case,+ do this: Take the finest products of the land in YOUR receptacles and carry them down to the man as a gift:+ a little balsam,*+ and a little honey,+ labdanum and resinous bark,+ pistachio nuts and almonds.+
12 Also, take double the money* in YOUR hand; and the money that was returned in the mouth of YOUR bags YOU will take back in YOUR hand.+ Maybe it was a mistake.+
13 And take YOUR brother and get up, return to the man.
14 And may God Almighty* give YOU pity before the man,+ that he may certainly release to YOU YOUR other brother and Benjamin. But I, in case I must be bereaved, I shall certainly be bereaved!”+
15 Accordingly the men took this gift, and they took double the money in their hand and Benjamin. Then they rose and went their way down to Egypt and got to stand before Joseph.+
16 When Joseph saw Benjamin with them, he at once said to the man who was over his house: “Take the men to the house and slaughter animals and make preparation,+ because the men are to eat with me at noon.”
17 Immediately the man did just as Joseph had said.+ So the man took the men to Joseph’s house.
18 But the men got afraid because they had been taken to Joseph’s house,+ and they began to say: “It is because of the money that went back with us in our bags at the start that we are being brought here for them to fall upon us and attack us and to take us for slaves and also our asses!”+
19 Hence they approached the man who was over Joseph’s house and spoke to him at the entrance of the house,
20 and they said: “Excuse us, my lord! We surely did come down at the start to buy food.+
21 But what occurred was that when we came to the lodging place+ and began opening our bags, why, here was the money of each one in the mouth of his bag, our money in full weight. So we would like to return it with our own hands.+
22 And more money we have brought down in our hands to buy food. We certainly do not know who placed our money in our bags.”+
23 Then he said: “It is all right with YOU. Do not be afraid.+ YOUR God and the God of YOUR father gave YOU treasure in YOUR bags.+ YOUR money came first to me.” After that he brought out Simʹe·on to them.+
24 Then the man brought the men into Joseph’s house and gave water that they might have their feet washed,+ and he gave fodder for their asses.+
25 And they proceeded to get the gift+ ready for Joseph’s coming at noon, because they had heard that it was there they were going to eat bread.+
26 When Joseph went on into the house, then they brought the gift that was in their hand to him into the house, and prostrated themselves to him to the earth.+
27 After this he inquired whether they were getting along well* and said:+ “Is YOUR father, the aged man of whom YOU have spoken, getting along well?* Is he still alive?”+
28 To this they said: “Your servant our father is getting along well. He is still alive.” Then they bowed down and prostrated themselves.+
29 When he raised his eyes and saw Benjamin his brother, the son of his mother,+ he went on to say: “Is this YOUR brother, the youngest one of whom YOU have spoken to me?”+ And he added: “May God show you his favor,+ my son.”
30 Joseph was now in a hurry, because his inward emotions were excited toward his brother,+ so that he looked for a place to weep and he went into an interior room and gave way to tears there.+
31 After that he washed his face and went out and kept control of himself and said:+ “SET on the meal.”+
32 And they proceeded to set it on for him by himself and for them by themselves and for the Egyptians who were eating with him by themselves; for the Egyptians were not able to eat a meal with the Hebrews, because that is a detestable thing to the Egyptians.+
33 And they were seated before him, the firstborn according to his right as firstborn+ and the youngest according to his youngness; and the men kept looking at one another in amazement.
34 And he kept having portions carried from before him to them, but he would increase Benjamin’s portion five times the size of the portions of all the others.+ So they continued banqueting and drinking with him to the full.+
Footnotes
^ Lit., “all the days.”
^ Or, “balm,” that is, of Gilead.
^ Lit., “silver.”
^ “And . . . God Almighty.” Heb., weʼElʹ Shad·daiʹ. Neither ʼEl, “God,” nor Shad·daiʹ, “Almighty,” has the definite article.
^ Lit., “Does your father . . . have peace (welfare)?”
^ Lit., “he asked them about the peace (welfare).”
