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Genesis 44-45
Christian Standard Bible
Genesis 44-45
Christian Standard Bible
Joseph’s Final Test
44 Joseph commanded his steward, “Fill the men’s bags with as much food as they can carry, and put each one’s silver 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 the silver for his grain.” 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? 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 silver we found at the top of our bags. How could we steal silver or gold from your master’s house? 9 If it is found with one of us, your servants, he must die, and the rest of us 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 have you 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, “My lord, please let your servant speak personally to my lord. 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 to him the words of my lord. 25 But our father said, ‘Go again, and buy us a little food.’(J) 26 We told him, ‘We cannot go down unless our younger brother goes with us. 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 is gone from me—I said 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,[a] 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 grieved 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.[b] 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 your grandchildren, your flocks, your herds, 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 the eyes of my brother Benjamin can see that I’m[c] the one 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 his brother Benjamin and wept, and Benjamin wept on his shoulder. 15 Joseph kissed each of his brothers as he wept,[d] 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 to tell them, ‘Do this: Take wagons from the land of Egypt for your dependents 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 three hundred pieces of silver and five changes of clothes.(W) 23 He sent his father the following: ten donkeys carrying the best products of Egypt and ten 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[e] 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,[f] 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.”
Genesis 44-45
New International Version
Genesis 44-45
New International Version
A Silver Cup in a Sack
44 Now Joseph gave these instructions to the steward of his house:(A) “Fill the men’s sacks with as much food as they can carry, and put each man’s silver in the mouth of his sack.(B) 2 Then put my cup,(C) the silver one,(D) in the mouth of the youngest one’s sack, along with the silver for his grain.” And he did as Joseph said.
3 As morning dawned, the men were sent on their way with their donkeys.(E) 4 They had not gone far from the city when Joseph said to his steward,(F) “Go after those men at once, and when you catch up with them, say to them, ‘Why have you repaid good with evil?(G) 5 Isn’t this the cup(H) my master drinks from and also uses for divination?(I) This is a wicked thing you have done.’”
6 When he caught up with them, he repeated these words to them. 7 But they said to him, “Why does my lord say such things? Far be it from your servants(J) to do anything like that!(K) 8 We even brought back to you from the land of Canaan(L) the silver(M) we found inside the mouths of our sacks.(N) So why would we steal(O) silver or gold from your master’s house? 9 If any of your servants(P) is found to have it, he will die;(Q) and the rest of us will become my lord’s slaves.(R)”
10 “Very well, then,” he said, “let it be as you say. Whoever is found to have it(S) will become my slave;(T) the rest of you will be free from blame.”(U)
11 Each of them quickly lowered his sack to the ground and opened it. 12 Then the steward(V) proceeded to search,(W) beginning with the oldest and ending with the youngest.(X) And the cup was found in Benjamin’s sack.(Y) 13 At this, they tore their clothes.(Z) Then they all loaded their donkeys(AA) and returned to the city.
14 Joseph was still in the house(AB) when Judah(AC) and his brothers came in, and they threw themselves to the ground before him.(AD) 15 Joseph said to them, “What is this you have done?(AE) Don’t you know that a man like me can find things out by divination?(AF)”
16 “What can we say to my lord?(AG)” Judah(AH) replied. “What can we say? How can we prove our innocence?(AI) God has uncovered your servants’(AJ) guilt. We are now my lord’s slaves(AK)—we ourselves and the one who was found to have the cup.(AL)”
17 But Joseph said, “Far be it from me to do such a thing!(AM) Only the man who was found to have the cup will become my slave.(AN) The rest of you, go back to your father in peace.”(AO)
18 Then Judah(AP) went up to him and said: “Pardon your servant, my lord,(AQ) let me speak a word to my lord. Do not be angry(AR) with your servant, though you are equal to Pharaoh himself. 19 My lord asked his servants,(AS) ‘Do you have a father or a brother?’(AT) 20 And we answered, ‘We have an aged father, and there is a young son born to him in his old age.(AU) His brother is dead,(AV) and he is the only one of his mother’s sons left, and his father loves him.’(AW)
21 “Then you said to your servants,(AX) ‘Bring him down to me so I can see him for myself.’(AY) 22 And we said to my lord,(AZ) ‘The boy cannot leave his father; if he leaves him, his father will die.’(BA) 23 But you told your servants, ‘Unless your youngest brother comes down with you, you will not see my face again.’(BB) 24 When we went back to your servant my father,(BC) we told him what my lord(BD) had said.(BE)
25 “Then our father said, ‘Go back and buy a little more food.’(BF) 26 But we said, ‘We cannot go down. Only if our youngest brother is with us will we go. We cannot see the man’s face unless our youngest brother is with us.’(BG)
27 “Your servant my father(BH) said to us, ‘You know that my wife bore me two sons.(BI) 28 One of them went away from me, and I said, “He has surely been torn to pieces.”(BJ) And I have not seen him since.(BK) 29 If you take this one from me too and harm comes to him, you will bring my gray head down to the grave(BL) in misery.’(BM)
30 “So now, if the boy is not with us when I go back to your servant my father,(BN) and if my father, whose life is closely bound up with the boy’s life,(BO) 31 sees that the boy isn’t there, he will die.(BP) Your servants(BQ) will bring the gray head of our father down to the grave(BR) in sorrow. 32 Your servant guaranteed the boy’s safety to my father. I said, ‘If I do not bring him back to you, I will bear the blame before you, my father, all my life!’(BS)
33 “Now then, please let your servant remain here as my lord’s slave(BT) in place of the boy,(BU) and let the boy return with his brothers. 34 How can I go back to my father if the boy is not with me? No! Do not let me see the misery(BV) that would come on my father.”(BW)
Joseph Makes Himself Known
45 Then Joseph could no longer control himself(BX) before all his attendants, and he cried out, “Have everyone leave my presence!”(BY) So there was no one with Joseph when he made himself known to his brothers. 2 And he wept(BZ) so loudly that the Egyptians heard him, and Pharaoh’s household heard about it.(CA)
3 Joseph said to his brothers, “I am Joseph! Is my father still living?”(CB) But his brothers were not able to answer him,(CC) because they were terrified at his presence.(CD)
4 Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Come close to me.”(CE) When they had done so, he said, “I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt!(CF) 5 And now, do not be distressed(CG) and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here,(CH) because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you.(CI) 6 For two years now there has been famine(CJ) in the land, and for the next five years there will be no plowing and reaping. 7 But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant(CK) on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance.[a](CL)
8 “So then, it was not you who sent me here, but God.(CM) He made me father(CN) to Pharaoh, lord of his entire household and ruler of all Egypt.(CO) 9 Now hurry(CP) back 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; don’t delay.(CQ) 10 You shall live in the region of Goshen(CR) and be near me—you, your children and grandchildren, your flocks and herds, and all you have.(CS) 11 I will provide for you there,(CT) because five years of famine(CU) are still to come. Otherwise you and your household and all who belong to you will become destitute.’(CV)
12 “You can see for yourselves, and so can my brother Benjamin,(CW) that it is really I who am speaking to you.(CX) 13 Tell my father about all the honor accorded me in Egypt(CY) and about everything you have seen. And bring my father down here quickly.(CZ)”
14 Then he threw his arms around his brother Benjamin and wept, and Benjamin(DA) embraced him,(DB) weeping. 15 And he kissed(DC) all his brothers and wept over them.(DD) Afterward his brothers talked with him.(DE)
16 When the news reached Pharaoh’s palace that Joseph’s brothers had come,(DF) Pharaoh and all his officials(DG) were pleased.(DH) 17 Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Tell your brothers, ‘Do this: Load your animals(DI) and return to the land of Canaan,(DJ) 18 and bring your father and your families back to me. I will give you the best of the land of Egypt(DK) and you can enjoy the fat of the land.’(DL)
19 “You are also directed to tell them, ‘Do this: Take some carts(DM) from Egypt for your children and your wives, and get your father and come. 20 Never mind about your belongings,(DN) because the best of all Egypt(DO) will be yours.’”
21 So the sons of Israel did this. Joseph gave them carts,(DP) as Pharaoh had commanded, and he also gave them provisions for their journey.(DQ) 22 To each of them he gave new clothing,(DR) but to Benjamin he gave three hundred shekels[b] of silver and five sets of clothes.(DS) 23 And this is what he sent to his father: ten donkeys(DT) loaded with the best things(DU) of Egypt, and ten female donkeys loaded with grain and bread and other provisions for his journey.(DV) 24 Then he sent his brothers away, and as they were leaving he said to them, “Don’t quarrel on the way!”(DW)
25 So they went up out of Egypt(DX) and came to their father Jacob in the land of Canaan.(DY) 26 They told him, “Joseph is still alive! In fact, he is ruler of all Egypt.”(DZ) Jacob was stunned; he did not believe them.(EA) 27 But when they told him everything Joseph had said to them, and when he saw the carts(EB) Joseph had sent to carry him back, the spirit of their father Jacob revived. 28 And Israel said, “I’m convinced!(EC) My son Joseph is still alive. I will go and see him before I die.”(ED)
Footnotes
- Genesis 45:7 Or save you as a great band of survivors
- Genesis 45:22 That is, about 7 1/2 pounds or about 3.5 kilograms
Christian Standard Bible (CSB)
The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.
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