Genesis42
King James Version · Public Domain
1 Now when Jacob saw that there was corn in Egypt, Jacob said unto his sons, Why do ye look one upon another?
2 And he said, Behold, I have heard that there is corn in Egypt: get you down thither, and buy for us from thence; that we may live, and not die.
3 And Joseph's ten brethren went down to buy corn in Egypt.
4 But Benjamin, Joseph's brother, Jacob sent not with his brethren; for he said, Lest peradventure mischief befall him.
5 And the sons of Israel came to buy corn among those that came: for the famine was in the land of Canaan.
6 And Joseph was the governor over the land, and he it was that sold to all the people of the land: and Joseph's brethren came, and bowed down themselves before him with their faces to the earth.
7 And Joseph saw his brethren, and he knew them, but made himself strange unto them, and spake roughly unto them; and he said unto them, Whence come ye? And they said, From the land of Canaan to buy food.
8 And Joseph knew his brethren, but they knew not him.
9 And Joseph remembered the dreams which he dreamed of them, and said unto them, Ye are spies; to see the nakedness of the land ye are come.
10 And they said unto him, Nay, my lord, but to buy food are thy servants come.
11 We are all one man's sons; we are true men, thy servants are no spies.
12 And he said unto them, Nay, but to see the nakedness of the land ye are come.
13 And they said, Thy servants are twelve brethren, the sons of one man in the land of Canaan; and, behold, the youngest is this day with our father, and one is not.
14 And Joseph said unto them, That is it that I spake unto you, saying, Ye are spies:
15 Hereby ye shall be proved: By the life of Pharaoh ye shall not go forth hence, except your youngest brother come hither.
16 Send one of you, and let him fetch your brother, and ye shall be kept in prison, that your words may be proved, whether there be any truth in you: or else by the life of Pharaoh surely ye are spies.
17 And he put them all together into ward three days.
18 And Joseph said unto them the third day, This do, and live; for I fear God:
19 If ye be true men, let one of your brethren be bound in the house of your prison: go ye, carry corn for the famine of your houses:
20 But bring your youngest brother unto me; so shall your words be verified, and ye shall not die. And they did so.
21 And they said one to another, We are verily guilty concerning our brother, in that we saw the anguish of his soul, when he besought us, and we would not hear; therefore is this distress come upon us.
22 And Reuben answered them, saying, Spake I not unto you, saying, Do not sin against the child; and ye would not hear? therefore, behold, also his blood is required.
23 And they knew not that Joseph understood them; for he spake unto them by an interpreter.
24 And he turned himself about from them, and wept; and returned to them again, and communed with them, and took from them Simeon, and bound him before their eyes.
25 Then Joseph commanded to fill their sacks with corn, and to restore every man's money into his sack, and to give them provision for the way: and thus did he unto them.
26 And they laded their asses with the corn, and departed thence.
27 And as one of them opened his sack to give his ass provender in the inn, he espied his money; for, behold, it was in his sack's mouth.
28 And he said unto his brethren, My money is restored; and, lo, it is even in my sack: and their heart failed them, and they were afraid, saying one to another, What is this that God hath done unto us?
29 And they came unto Jacob their father unto the land of Canaan, and told him all that befell unto them; saying,
30 The man, who is the lord of the land, spake roughly to us, and took us for spies of the country.
31 And we said unto him, We are true men; we are no spies:
32 We be twelve brethren, sons of our father; one is not, and the youngest is this day with our father in the land of Canaan.
33 And the man, the lord of the country, said unto us, Hereby shall I know that ye are true men; leave one of your brethren here with me, and take food for the famine of your households, and be gone:
34 And bring your youngest brother unto me: then shall I know that ye are no spies, but that ye are true men: so will I deliver you your brother, and ye shall traffick in the land.
35 And it came to pass as they emptied their sacks, that, behold, every man's bundle of money was in his sack: and when both they and their father saw the bundles of money, they were afraid.
36 And Jacob their father said unto them, Me have ye bereaved of my children: Joseph is not, and Simeon is not, and ye will take Benjamin away: all these things are against me.
37 And Reuben spake unto his father, saying, Slay my two sons, if I bring him not to thee: deliver him into my hand, and I will bring him to thee again.
38 And he said, My son shall not go down with you; for his brother is dead, and he is left alone: if mischief befall him by the way in the which ye go, then shall ye bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to the grave.
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Genesis 42Public-domain commentary and original-language notes for Genesis 42. The full AI study guide (summary, themes, context) has its own page.
Chapter Summary
In this chapter: Jacob sends ten sons to buy corn. (1–6). Joseph's treatment of his brethren. (7–20). Their remorse, Simeon detained. (21–24). The rest return with corn. (25–28). Jacob refuses to send Benjamin to Egypt. (29–38).
vv1-6
Jacob saw the corn his neighbours had bought in Egypt, and brought home. It is a spur to exertion to see others supplied. Shall others get food for their souls, and shall we starve while it is to be had? Having discovered where help is to be had, we should apply for it without delay, without shrinking from labour, or grudging expense, especially as regards our never-dying souls. There is provision in Christ; but we must come to him, and seek it from him.
vv7-20
Joseph was hard upon his brethren, not from a spirit of revenge, but to bring them to repentance. Not seeing his brother Benjamin, he suspected that they had made away with him, and he gave them occasion to speak of their father and brother. God, in his providence, sometimes seems harsh with those he loves, and speaks roughly to those for whom yet he has great mercy in store. Joseph settled at last, that one of them should be left, and the rest go home and fetch Benjamin. It was a very encouraging word he said to them, “I fear God;” as if he had said, You may be assured I will do you no wrong; I dare not, for I know there is one higher than I. With those that fear God, we may expect fair dealing.
vv21-24
The office of conscience is to bring to mind things long since said and done. When the guilt of this sin of Joseph's brethren was fresh, they made light of it, and sat down to eat bread; but now, long afterward, their consciences accused them of it. See the good of afflictions; they often prove the happy means of awakening conscience, and bringing sin to our remembrance. Also, the evil of guilt as to our brethren. Conscience now reproached them for it. Whenever we think we have wrong done us, we ought to remember the wrong we have done to others. Reuben alone remembered with comfort, that he had done what he could to prevent the mischief. When we share with others in their sufferings, it will be a comfort if we have the testimony of our consciences for us, that we did not share in their evil deeds, but in our places witnessed against them. Joseph retired to weep. Though his reason directed that he should still carry himself as a stranger, because they were not as yet humbled enough, yet natural affection could not but work.
Key Words
יַעֲקֹב: Jaakob, the Israelitish patriarch
רָאָה: to see, literally or figuratively (in numerous applications, direct and implied, transitive, intransitive and causative)
כִּי: (by implication) very widely used as a relative conjunction or adverb (as below); often largely modified by other particles annexed
יֵשׁ: there is or are (or any other form of the verb to be, as may suit the connection)
שֶׁבֶר: grain (as if broken into kernels)
מִצְרַיִם: Mitsrajim, i.e. Upper and Lower Egypt
אָמַר: to say (used with great latitude)
בֵּן: a son (as a builder of the family name), in the widest sense (of literal and figurative relationship, including grandson, subject, nation, quality or condition, etc., (like father or brother), etc.)
מָה: properly, interrogative what? (including how? why? when?); but also exclamation, what! (including how!), or indefinitely what (including whatever, and even relatively, that which); often used with prefixes in various adverbial or conjunctive senses
הִנֵּה: lo!
Cross References
Genesis 42Joseph's brethren bow down to the earth, fulfilling his first dream of the sheaves.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
Joseph's intense natural affection forces him to seek a private place to weep.
Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole
Stephen's speech explicitly references Jacob hearing of corn in Egypt and sending his sons.
Supported by John Calvin
Joseph remembers his prophetic dreams of his family bowing down to him.
Supported by Matthew Poole, John Calvin, JFB
Reuben's reminder of his earlier attempt to rescue and deliver Joseph from their conspiracy.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Reuben recognizes the divine law where a brother's blood is strictly required.
Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole
Jacob says 'all these things are against me,' contrasting God's purpose of working all for good.
Supported by Matthew Henry
The sons repeat that one brother is with their father and 'one is not' before Joseph.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
Joseph's assertion 'for I fear God' mirrors Nehemiah's restraint because of the fear of God.
Supported by Matthew Henry
The original distress of Joseph they ignored, now remembered in their own hour of distress.
Supported by Matthew Henry, JFB
Simeon (whose name relates to hearing) is bound because he heard not Joseph's anguish.
Supported by JFB
The brothers recount discovering their money in their sacks when they opened them.
Supported by JFB
The full realization and terror of finding all their money restored in their sacks.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Jacob's identical, grief-stricken warning about bringing his gray hairs with sorrow to the grave.
Supported by Matthew Poole
The Hebrew euphemism 'one is not' is used here and later of Ephraim/Rachel's children.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Joseph's Egyptian oath 'by the life of Pharaoh' contrasted with Christ's teaching on swearing.
Supported by JFB
Since they stopped their ears to Joseph's cry, they now face unanswered distress.
Supported by Matthew Henry
The continuing work of conscience leading the brothers to confess God has found out their iniquity.
Supported by JFB
Judah's more acceptable suretyship of Benjamin, contrasting Reuben's rash offer of his sons' lives.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Judah later repeats this exact defense of Jacob's deep attachment to Benjamin.
Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole
The verb 'saw' is used in the sense of 'heard' or perceived, as in Sinai.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Jacob keeps Benjamin back; he is Joseph's full brother, highly beloved and protected.
Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole, John Calvin
Reuben previously used 'the child is not' to describe the missing Joseph.
Supported by Matthew Poole
The use of translation and different languages to conceal identity and understanding.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Joseph as the rich ruler speaking roughly, fulfilling the proverbial description of the powerful.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Canaan is geographically and spiritually higher; going to Egypt is described as going 'down'.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Joseph is unrecognized by his brethren, similar to Jesus' appearance on the Emmaus road.
Supported by Matthew Henry