Genesis 43-44

21st Century King James Version

43 And the famine was sore in the land.

² And it came to pass, when they had eaten up the corn which they had brought out of Egypt, their father said unto them, “Go again, buy us a little food.”

³ And Judah spoke unto him, saying, “The man did solemnly declare unto us, saying, ‘Ye shall not see my face, unless your brother be with you.’

⁴ If thou wilt send our brother with us, we will go down and buy thee food.

⁵ But if thou wilt not send him, we will not go down, for the man said unto us, ‘Ye shall not see my face, unless your brother be with you.’”

⁶ And Israel said, “Why dealt ye so ill with me, as to tell the man whether ye had yet a brother?”

⁷ And they said, “The man asked us strictly about our state, and about our kindred, saying, ‘Is your father yet alive? Have ye another brother?’ And we told him according to the tenor of these words. Could we certainly know that he would say, ‘Bring your brother down’?”

⁸ And Judah said unto Israel his father, “Send the lad 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; from my hand shalt thou require him. If I bring him not unto thee and set him before thee, then let me bear the blame for ever;

¹⁰ for had we not lingered, surely now we would have returned this second time.”

¹¹ And their father Israel said unto them, “If it must be so now, do this: Take of the best fruits in the land in your vessels, and carry down the man a present, a little balm and a little honey, spices and myrrh, nuts and almonds.

¹² And take double money in your hand; and the money that was brought again in the mouth of your sacks, carry it again in your hand. Perhaps it was an oversight.

¹³ Take also your brother, and arise, go again unto the man;

¹⁴ and God Almighty give you mercy before the man, that he may send away your other brother and Benjamin. If I am bereaved of my children, I am bereaved!”

¹⁵ And the men took that present, and they took double money in their hand, and Benjamin; and they rose up, and went down to Egypt, and stood before Joseph.

¹⁶ And when Joseph saw Benjamin with them, he said to the ruler of his house, “Bring these men home, and slay a beast and make ready; for these men shall dine with me at noon.”

¹⁷ And the man did as Joseph bade, and the man brought the men into Joseph’s house.

¹⁸ And the men were afraid because they were brought into Joseph’s house; and they said, “Because of the money that was returned in our sacks the first time are we brought in, that he may seek occasion against us and fall upon us, and take us for bondmen, and also our asses.”

¹⁹ And they came near to the steward of Joseph’s house, and they communed with him at the door of the house

²⁰ and said, “O sir, we came indeed down the first time to buy food.

²¹ And it came to pass, when we came to the inn, that we opened our sacks, and behold, every man’s money was in the mouth of his sack, our money in full weight; and we have brought it again in our hand.

²² And other money have we brought down in our hands to buy food. We cannot tell who put our money in our sacks.”

²³ And he said, “Peace be to you, fear not; your God and the God of your father hath given you treasure in your sacks. I had your money.” And he brought Simeon out unto them.

²⁴ And the man brought the men into Joseph’s house, and gave them water and they washed their feet; and he gave their asses provender.

²⁵ And they made ready the present for Joseph’s coming at noon, for they heard that they should eat bread there.

²⁶ And when Joseph came home, they brought him the present which was in their hand into the house, and bowed themselves before him to the earth.

²⁷ And he asked them of their welfare and said, “Is your father well, the old man of whom ye spoke? Is he yet alive?”

²⁸ And they answered, “Thy servant our father is in good health; he is yet alive.” And they bowed down their heads and made obeisance.

²⁹ And he lifted up his eyes and saw his brother Benjamin, his mother’s son, and said, “Is this your younger brother of whom ye spoke unto me?” And he said, “God be gracious unto thee, my son.”

³⁰ And Joseph made haste, for his heart yearned for his brother, and he sought somewhere to weep; and he entered into his chamber and wept there.

³¹ And he washed his face and went out, and restrained himself, and said, “Set on the bread.”

³² And they served him by himself, and them by themselves, and the Egyptians who ate with him by themselves, because the Egyptians might not eat bread with the Hebrews, for that is an abomination unto the Egyptians.

³³ And they sat before him, the firstborn according to his birthright and the youngest according to his youth; and the men marveled one at another.

³⁴ And he took and sent portions unto them from before him, but Benjamin’s portion was five times as much as any of theirs. And they drank and were merry with him.

44 And he commanded the steward of his house, saying, “Fill the men’s sacks with food, as much as they can carry, and put every man’s money in the mouth of his sack.

² And put my cup, the silver cup, in the sack’s mouth of the youngest, and his corn money.” And he did according to the word that Joseph had spoken.

³ As soon as the morning was light, the men were sent away, they and their asses.

⁴ And when they had gone out of the city, and not yet far off, Joseph said unto his steward, “Up, follow after the men; and when thou dost overtake them, say unto them, ‘Why have ye rewarded evil for good?

⁵ Is not this that from which my lord drinketh, and whereby indeed he divineth? Ye have done evil in so doing.’”

⁶ And he overtook them, and he spoke unto them these same words.

⁷ And they said unto him, “Why saith my lord these words? God forbid that thy servants should do according to this thing!

⁸ Behold, the money which we found in the mouths of our sacks we brought again unto thee out of the land of Canaan. How then would we steal out of thy lord’s house silver or gold?

⁹ With whomsoever of thy servants it be found, both let him die, and we also will be my lord’s bondmen.”

¹⁰ And he said, “Now also let it be according unto your words: he with whom it is found shall be my servant, and ye shall be blameless.”

¹¹ Then every man speedily took down his sack to the ground, and opened every man his sack.

¹² And he searched, and began with the eldest and ended with the youngest; and the cup was found in Benjamin’s sack.

¹³ Then they rent their clothes; and every man loaded his ass, and returned to the city.

¹⁴ And Judah and his brethren came to Joseph’s house (for he was yet there), and they fell before him on the ground.

¹⁵ And Joseph said unto them, “What deed is this that ye have done? Know ye not that such a man as I can certainly divine?”

¹⁶ And Judah said, “What shall we say unto my lord? What shall we speak? Or how shall we clear ourselves? God hath found out the iniquity of thy servants; behold, we are my lord’s servants, both we and he also with whom the cup was found.”

¹⁷ And he said, “God forbid that I should do so; but the man in whose hand the cup is found, he shall be my servant; and as for you, go up in peace unto your father.”

¹⁸ Then Judah came near unto him and said, “Oh my lord, let thy servant, I pray thee, speak a word in my lord’s ears, and let not thine anger burn against thy servant; for thou art even as Pharaoh.

¹⁹ My lord asked his servants, saying, ‘Have ye a father or a brother?’

²⁰ And we said unto my lord, ‘We have a father, an old man, and a child of his old age, a little one; and his brother is dead, and he alone is left of his mother, and his father loveth him.’

²¹ And thou saidst unto thy servants, ‘Bring him down unto me, that I may set mine eyes upon him.’

²² And we said unto my lord, ‘The lad cannot leave his father; for if he should leave his father, his father would die.’

²³ And thou saidst unto thy servants, ‘Unless 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 servant, my father, we told him the words of my lord.

²⁵ And our father said, ‘Go again, and buy us a little food.’

²⁶ And we said, ‘We cannot go down. If our youngest brother be with us, then will we go down, for we may not see the man’s face unless our youngest brother is with us.’

²⁷ And thy servant, my father, said unto us, ‘Ye know that my wife bore me two sons;

²⁸ and the one went out from me, and I said, “Surely he is torn in pieces”; and I saw him not since.

²⁹ And if ye take this also from me, and harm befall him, ye shall bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to the grave.’

³⁰ Now therefore when I come to thy servant my father and the lad be not with us, seeing that his life is bound up in the lad’s life,

³¹ it shall come to pass, when he seeth that the lad is not with us, that he will die; and thy servants shall bring down the gray hairs of thy servant our father with sorrow to the grave.

³² For thy servant became surety for the lad unto my father, saying, ‘If I bring him not unto thee, then I shall bear the blame to my father for ever.’

³³ Now therefore, I pray thee, let thy servant remain instead of the lad as a bondman to my lord, and let the lad go up with his brethren.

³⁴ For how shall I go up to my father and the lad be not with me, lest perhaps I see the evil that shall come upon my father?”