Genesis, 42

1. Jacob, seeing that there were supplies to be had in Egypt, said to his sons, 'Why do you keep staring at one another?

1. Now when Jacob saw that there was corn in Egypt, Jacob said unto his sons, Why do ye look one upon another?

2. I hear', he said, 'that there are supplies in Egypt. Go down and procure some for us there, so that we may survive and not die.'

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. So ten of Joseph's brothers went down to procure grain in Egypt.

3. And Joseph's ten brethren went down to buy corn in Egypt.

4. But Jacob did not send Joseph's brother Benjamin with his brothers. 'Nothing must happen to him,' he thought.

4. But Benjamin, Joseph's brother, Jacob sent not with his brethren; for he said, Lest peradventure mischief befall him.

5. Thus the sons of Israel were among the other people who came to get supplies, there being famine in Canaan.

5. And the sons of Israel came to buy [corn] among those that came: for the famine was in the land of Canaan.

6. It was Joseph, as the man in authority over the country, who allocated the rations to the entire population. So Joseph's brothers went and bowed down before him, their faces touching the ground.

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. As soon as Joseph saw his brothers he recognised them. But he did not make himself known to them, and he spoke harshly to them. 'Where have you come from?' he asked. 'From Canaan to get food,' they replied.

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. Now when Joseph recognised his brothers, but they did not recognise him,

8. And Joseph knew his brethren, but they knew not him.

9. Joseph remembered the dreams he had had about them, and said to them, 'You are spies. You have come to discover the country's weak points.'

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. 'No, my lord,' they said, 'your servants have come to get food.

10. And they said unto him, Nay, my lord, but to buy food are thy servants come.

11. We are all sons of the same man. We are honest men, your servants are not spies.'

11. We [are] all one man's sons; we [are] true [men], thy servants are no spies.

12. 'Oh no,' he replied, 'you have come to discover the country's weak points.'

12. And he said unto them, Nay, but to see the nakedness of the land ye are come.

13. 'Your servants were twelve brothers,' they said, 'sons of the same man in Canaan, but the youngest is at present with our father, and the other one is no more.'

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. To which Joseph retorted, 'It is as I said, you are spies.

14. And Joseph said unto them, That [is it] that I spake unto you, saying, Ye [are] spies:

15. This is the test you are to undergo: as sure as Pharaoh lives you shall not leave unless your youngest brother comes here.

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 your number to fetch your brother; you others will remain under arrest, so that your statements can be tested to see whether or not you are honest. If not, then as sure as Pharaoh lives you are spies.'

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. Whereupon, he put them all into custody for three days.

17. And he put them all together into ward three days.

18. On the third day Joseph said to them, 'Do this and you will live, for I am a man who fears God.

18. And Joseph said unto them the third day, This do, and live; [for] I fear God:

19. If you are honest men, let one of your brothers be detained where you are imprisoned; the rest of you, go and take supplies home for your starving families.

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 you must bring your youngest brother back to me; in this way, what you have said will be verified, and you will not have to die!' And this is what they did.

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 to one another, 'Clearly, we are being punished for what we did to our brother. We saw his deep misery when he pleaded with us, but we would not listen, and now this misery has come home to us.'

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. Reuben retorted to them, 'Did I not tell you not to wrong the boy? But you would not listen. Now comes the accounting.'

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. They did not know that Joseph understood, because there was an interpreter between them.

23. And they knew not that Joseph understood [them]; for he spake unto them by an interpreter.

24. He turned away from them and wept. When he was able to speak to them again, he chose Simeon out of their number and had him bound while they looked on.

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. Joseph gave the order to fill their panniers with grain, to put back each man's money in his sack, and to give them provisions for the journey. This was done for them.

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. Then they loaded their supplies on their donkeys and went away.

26. And they laded their asses with the corn, and departed thence.

27. But when they camped for the night, one of them opened his sack to give his donkey some fodder and saw his money -- there it was in the mouth of his sack.

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. He said to his brothers, 'My money has been put back; here it is, in my sack!' Their hearts sank, and they looked at one another in panic, saying, 'What is this that God has done to us?'

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. Returning to their father Jacob in Canaan, they gave him a full report of what had happened to them,

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 lord of the country spoke harshly to us, accusing us of spying on the country.

30. The man, [who is] the lord of the land, spake roughly to us, and took us for spies of the country.

31. We told him, "We are honest men, we are not spies.

31. And we said unto him, We [are] true [men]; we are no spies:

32. We were twelve brothers, sons of the same father. One of us is no more, and the youngest is at present with our father in Canaan."

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. But the man who is lord of the country said to us, "This is how I shall know whether you are honest: leave one of your brothers with me. Take supplies for your starving families and be gone,

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. but bring me back your youngest brother and then I shall know that you are not spies but honest men. Then I shall give your brother back to you and you will be free to move about the country." '

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. As they emptied their sacks, each discovered his bag of money in his sack. On seeing their bags of money they were afraid, and so was their father.

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. Then their father Jacob said to them, 'You are robbing me of my children; Joseph is no more; Simeon is no more; and now you want to take Benjamin. I bear the brunt of all this!'

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. Then Reuben said to his father, 'You may put my two sons to death if I do not bring him back to you. Put him in my care and I will bring him back to you.'

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. But he replied, 'My son is not going down with you, for now his brother is dead he is the only one left. If any harm came to him on the journey you are undertaking, you would send my white head down to Sheol with grief!'

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.