²² Then Reuben said to them, “I told you not to harm the boy. But you refused to listen to me. So now we are being punished for what we did to him.”

²³ When Joseph talked to his brothers, he used an interpreter. So they did not know that Joseph understood what they were saying. ²⁴ Then Joseph left them and cried. After a short time he went back and spoke to them. He took Simeon and tied him up while the other brothers watched.