Joseph was both a savior and a scourge
to his brothers. He saved his family from starvation by sending them
away with full sacks of corn. A scourge because he set the brothers
up by hiding his cup in Benjamin’s sack. He sent his steward after
them and force them to return, charging them with taking the cup. The
cup was found in Benjamin’s cup and Judah made an eloquent plea for
the life of Benjamin’s life.
You see Joseph was testing his
brothers' relationship with Benjamin and their father. Joseph wanted
to satisfy in his mind that his brothers really had changed. The test
he used here gave him absolute proof that his brothers would not
repeat the episode with Benjamin that he had experienced at their
hands.
Judah is the spokesman for the group
and makes an eloquent defense of Benjamin, and his willingness, even
his insistence, that he takes Benjamin’s place is admirable. It is
one of the most moving passages in the Bible.
Chapter 43 At A Glance:
The famine
continuing, Jacob desires his sons to return to Egypt and buy some
more food, v. 1-2.
Judah reminds Jacob
of the necessity of Benjamin's accompanying them, without whom it
would be useless to return to Egypt, v. 3-5.
Jacob argues with
Judah, v. 6.
Judah replies and
offers to become a guarantor for Benjamin, v. 7-10.
Finally Jacob
consents and wants them to take a present with them for the governor
of Egypt, as well as a double-payment-- what they had brought back in
their sacks' mouth AND the price of the load that they were now to
bring; and, having prayed for them, Jacob sends them away, v. 11-15.
They arrive in
Egypt and are brought to Joseph's house to dine with him, at which
they are greatly alarmed, v. 16-18.
They speak to the
steward of Joseph's house concerning the money returned in their
sacks, v. 19-22.
He gives them
encouragement, v. 23-24.
Having made ready
the present, they bring it to Joseph when he came home to dine, v.
25-26.
He speaks kindly to
them, and inquires concerning their health and that of their father,
v. 27-28.
Joseph is greatly
affected emotionally upon seeing his young full-brother Benjamin, v.
29-31.
They dine with him
and are distinguished according to their seniority, but Benjamin
receives marks of special favor, v. 32-34.
(from
Adam Clarke's Commentary, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1996 by
Biblesoft)
Genesis
43:1-12
43:1
Now the famine was still severe in the land. 2 So when they had eaten
all the grain they had brought from Egypt, their father said to them,
"Go back and buy us a little more food."
3
But Judah said to him, "The man warned us solemnly, `You will
not see my face again unless your brother is with you.' 4 If you will
send our brother along with us, we will go down and buy food for you.
5 But if you will not send him, we will not go down, because the man
said to us, `You will not see my face again unless your brother is
with you.'"
6
Israel asked, "Why did you bring this trouble on me by telling
the man you had another brother?"
7
They replied, "The man questioned us closely about ourselves and
our family. `Is your father still living?' he asked us. `Do you have
another brother?' We simply answered his questions. How were we to
know he would say, `Bring your brother down here'?"
8
Then Judah said to Israel his father, "Send the boy along with
me and we will go at once, so that we and you and our children may
live and not die. 9 I myself will guarantee his safety; you can hold
me personally responsible for him. If I do not bring him back to you
and set him here before you, I will bear the blame before you all my
life. 10 As it is, if we had not delayed, we could have gone and
returned twice."
11
Then their father Israel said to them, "If it must be, then do
this: Put some of the best products of the land in your bags and take
them down to the man as a gift--a little balm and a little honey,
some spices and myrrh, some pistachio nuts and almonds. 12 Take
double the amount of silver with you, for you must return the silver
that was put back into the mouths of your sacks. Perhaps it was a
mistake. 13 Take your brother also and go back to the man at once. 14
And may God Almighty grant you mercy before the man so that he will
let your other brother and Benjamin come back with you. As for me, if
I am bereaved, I am bereaved."
15
So the men took the gifts and double the amount of silver, and
Benjamin also. They hurried down to Egypt and presented themselves to
Joseph
1. Jacob’s
Boys Go Back To Egypt: Gen. 43: 1-11
This chapter seems to take place about
a year after their first visit. It was no easy matter to bring Jacob
to agree to the only condition on which his sons could return to
Egypt (Genesis 42:15). The necessity of immediately getting fresh
supplies for themselves and their families overcame every other
consideration, and facilitated his consent to Benjamin joining in the
journey.
Judah then declared, that they could
not go there again unless their father sent Benjamin with them; for
the man (Joseph) had solemnly demanded that they could not come back
without their youngest brother. Judah undertook the consultation with
his father about Benjamin's going, because Reuben, the eldest son,
had already been refused, and Levi, who followed Reuben and Simeon,
had forfeited his father's confidence through his treachery to the
Shechemites (ch. 34).
Joseph had not made direct inquiries,
indeed, about their father and their brother; but by his accusation
that they were spies, he had compelled them to give an exact account
of their family relationships. So that Judah, when repeating the main
points of the interview, could very justly give them in the form just
mentioned.
Judah then repeated the only condition
on which they could go to Egypt again, referring to the death by
famine which threatened them, their father, and their children, and
promising that he would himself be security for the youth, Benjamin
was twenty-three years old), and saying, that if he did not bring him
back him, he would bear the guilt of this sin his whole life long. He
then concluded with the deciding words,
10 “As it is,
if we had not delayed, we could have gone and returned twice."
After this, Jacob gave way to what
could not be avoided, and let Benjamin go. But that nothing might be
lacking on his part, that could contribute to the success of the
journey, he suggested that they should take a present for the man,
and that they should also take the money which was brought back in
their sacks, in addition to what was necessary for the corn they were
to purchase; and he then commended them to the mercy of Almighty God.
Genesis 43:16-34
16
When Joseph saw Benjamin with them, he said to the steward of his
house, "Take these men to my house, slaughter an animal and
prepare dinner; they are to eat with me at noon."
17
The man did as Joseph told him and took the men to Joseph's house. 18
Now the men were frightened when they were taken to his house. They
thought, "We were brought here because of the silver that was
put back into our sacks the first time. He wants to attack us and
overpower us and seize us as slaves and take our donkeys."
19
So they went up to Joseph's steward and spoke to him at the entrance
to the house. 20 "Please, sir," they said, "we came
down here the first time to buy food. 21 But at the place where we
stopped for the night we opened our sacks and each of us found his
silver--the exact weight--in the mouth of his sack. So we have
brought it back with us. 22 We have also brought additional silver
with us to buy food. We don't know who put our silver in our sacks."
23
"It's all right," he said. "Don't be afraid. Your God,
the God of your father, has given you treasure in your sacks; I
received your silver." Then he brought Simeon out to them.
24
The steward took the men into Joseph's house, gave them water to wash
their feet and provided fodder for their donkeys. 25 They prepared
their gifts for Joseph's arrival at noon, because they had heard that
they were to eat there.
26
When Joseph came home, they presented to him the gifts they had
brought into the house, and they bowed down before him to the ground.
27 He asked them how they were, and then he said, "How is your
aged father you told me about? Is he still living?"
28
They replied, "Your servant our father is still alive and well."
And they bowed low to pay him honor.
29
As he looked about and saw his brother Benjamin, his own mother's
son, he asked, "Is this your youngest brother, the one you told
me about?" And he said, "God be gracious to you, my son."
30 Deeply moved at the sight of his brother, Joseph hurried out and
looked for a place to weep. He went into his private room and wept
there.
31
After he had washed his face, he came out and, controlling himself,
said, "Serve the food."
32
They served him by himself, the brothers by themselves, and the
Egyptians who ate with him by themselves, because Egyptians could not
eat with Hebrews, for that is detestable to Egyptians. 33 The men had
been seated before him in the order of their ages, from the firstborn
to the youngest; and they looked at each other in astonishment. 34
When portions were served to them from Joseph's table, Benjamin's
portion was five times as much as anyone else's. So they feasted and
drank freely with him.
2. The Brothers
Come Before Joseph: Gen 43:16-34
When the brethren appeared before
Joseph, he ordered his steward to take them into the house, and
prepare a dinner for them and for him. The brothers were alarmed at
this, thinking that they were being taken into the house because of
the money which was returned the first time which came. They were
afraid that Joseph might take them unawares (lit., roll upon them),
and keep them as salves, along with their donkeys. To avert what they
dreaded, they approached (v. 19) the steward and told him, 20
"Please, sir," they said, "we came down here the first
time to buy food. 21 But at the place where we stopped for the night
we opened our sacks and each of us found his silver--the exact
weight--in the mouth of his sack. So we have brought it back with us.
22 We have also brought additional silver with us to buy food. We
don't know who put our silver in our sacks."
The steward, who was in on Joseph's
plans, replied in a comforting tone, 23
"It's all right," he said. "Don't be afraid. Your God,
the God of your father, has given you treasure in your sacks; I
received your silver." Then he brought Simeon out to them. He
then conducted them into Joseph's house, and received them in
Oriental fashion as the guests of his lord. But, previous to Joseph's
arrival, they arranged the present which they had brought with them,
as they heard that they were to dine with him.
Separate tables were prepared, one for
his brothers, and one for the Egyptians who dined with them. This was
required by the Egyptian spirit of caste, which neither allowed
Joseph, as minister of state and a member of the priestly order, to
eat along with Egyptians who were below him, nor the latter along
with the Hebrews as foreigners.
The brothers sat in front of Joseph, 33
The men had been seated before him in the order of their ages, from
the firstborn to the youngest; and they looked at each other in
astonishment, since this arrangement impressed them
with the idea that this great man had been supernaturally enlightened
as to their family affairs. To do them honor, they brought them
dishes from Joseph, i.e., from his table; and to show especial honor
to Benjamin, his portion was five times larger than that of any of
the others.
By this partiality Joseph intended,
with a view to his further plans, to draw out his brethren to show
their real feelings towards Benjamin, so that he could see whether
they would envy and hate him on account of this distinction, as they
had formerly envied him for his long coat with sleeves, and hated him
because he was his father's favorite (Genesis 37:3-4). This honorable
treatment and entertainment banished all their anxiety and fear.
Review Questions for Chapter 42 &
43:
- How long had it been sense Joseph had seen his brothers?
- Why do Joseph’s brothers go to Egypt?
- Did Joseph recognize his brothers? How about them?
- What does Joseph do with his brothers? Was it revenge?
- How does the chapter end?
- Why do the brothers go back to Egypt?
- How does Jacob feel about Benjamin going to Egypt?
- What happens when the brothers get there?
- How does this chapter end?
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