1 “And he commanded the steward of his house, saying, Fill the men’s sacks with food, as much as they can carry, and put 2 every man’s money in his sack’s mouth. And put my cup, the silver cup, in the sack’s mouth of the youngest, and his corn money. And he did according to the word that Joseph had spoken. 3 As soon as the morning was light, the men were sent 4 away, they and their asses. And when they were gone out of the city, and were not yet far off, Joseph said unto his steward, Up, follow after the men; and when thou dost overtake them, say unto them, Wherefore have ye rewarded evil for good? 5 Is not this it in which my lord drinketh, and whereby he indeed divineth? 6 ye have done evil in so doing. And he overtook them, and he spake unto them these words. 7 And they said unto him, Wherefore speaketh my lord such words as these? God forbid that thy servants should do such a thing. 8 Behold, the money, which we found in our sacks’ mouths, we brought again unto thee out of the land of Canaan; how then should we steal out of thy lord’s house silver or gold? 9 With whomsoever of thy servants it be found, let him die, and we also will be my lord’s bondmen. 10 And he said, Now also let it be according unto your words: he with whom it is found shall be my bondman; and ye shall be blameless. 11 Then they hasted, and took down every man his sack to the ground, and opened every man his sack. 12 And he searched, and began at the eldest, and left at the youngest; and the cup was found in Benjamin’s sack. 13 Then they rent their clothes, and laded every man his ass, and returned to the city. 14 And Judah and his brethren came to Joseph’s house; and he was yet there; and they fell before him on the ground. 15 And Joseph said unto them, What deed is this that ye have done? know ye not that such a man as I can indeed divine? 16 And Judah said, What shall we say unto my lord? what shall we speak? or how shall we clear ourselves? God hath found out the iniquity of thy servants; behold, we are my lord’s bondmen, both we, and he in whose hand the cup is found. 17 And he said, God forbid that I should do so; the man in whose hand the cup is found, he shall be my bondman; but as for you, get you up in peace unto your father.
18 “Then Judah came near unto him, and said, O my lord, let thy servant, I pray thee, speak a word in my lord’s ears, and let not thine anger burn against thy servant; for thou art even as Pharaoh. 19 My lord asked his servants, saying, Have ye a father, or a brother? 20 And we said unto my lord, We have a father, an old man, and a child of his old age, a little one; and his brother is dead, and he alone is left of his mother, and his father loveth him. 21 And thou saidst unto thy servants, Bring him down unto me, that I may set mine eyes upon him. 22 And we said unto my lord, The lad cannot leave his father: for if he should leave his father, his father would die. 23 And thou saidst unto thy servants, Except your youngest brother come down with you, ye shall see my face no more. 24 And it came to pass when we came up unto thy servant my father, we told him the words of my lord. 25 And our father said, Go again, buy us a little food. 26 And we said, We cannot go down: if our youngest brother be with us, then will we go down: for we may not see the man’s face, except our youngest brother be with us. 27 And thy servant my father said unto us, Ye know that my wife bare me two sons; 28 and the one went out from me, and I said, Surely he is torn in pieces; and I have not seen him since: and if ye take this one also from me, and mischief befall him, ye shall bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to the grave. 30 Now therefore when I come to thy servant my father, and the lad be not with us; seeing that his life is bound up in the lad’s life; 31 it shall come to pass, when he seeth that the lad is not with us, that he will die: and thy servants shall bring down the gray hairs of thy servant our father with sorrow to the grave. 32 For thy servant became surety for the lad unto my father, saying, If I bring him not unto thee, then shall1133 I bear the blame to my father for ever. Now therefore, let thy servant, I pray thee, abide instead of the lad a bondman to my lord; and let the lad go up with his brethren. 34 For how shall I go up to my father, and the lad be not with me? lest I see the evil that shall come on my father.
1 “Then Joseph could not refrain himself before all them that stood by him; and he cried, Cause every man to go out from me. And there stood no man with him, while Joseph made himself known unto his brethren. And he wept aloud; and the Egyptians heard, and the house of Pharaoh heard. 2 And Joseph said unto his brethren, I am Joseph; doth my father yet live? And his brethren could not answer him; for they were troubled at his presence. 3 And Joseph said unto his brethren, Come near to me, I pray you. And they came near. And he said, I am Joseph your brother, whom ye sold into Egypt. 4 And now be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that ye sold me hither; for God did send me before you to preserve life. 5 For these two years hath the famine been in the land; and there are yet five years, in the which there shall be neither plowing nor harvest. 6 And God sent me before you to preserve you a remnant in the earth, and to save you alive by a great deliverance. 7 So now it was not you that sent me hither, but God; and he hath made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house, and ruler over all the land of Egypt. 8 Haste ye, and go up to my father, and say unto him, Thus saith thy son Joseph, God hath made me lord of all Egypt; come down unto me, tarry not: 9 and thou shalt dwell in the land of Goshen, and thou shalt be near unto me, thou, and thy children, and thy children’s children, and thy flocks, and thy herds, and all that thou hast; 10 and there will I nourish thee; for there are yet five years of famine; lest thou come to poverty, thou, and thy household, and all that thou hast. 11 And, behold, your eyes see, and the eyes of my brother Benjamin, that it is my mouth that speaketh unto you. 12 And ye shall tell my father of all my glory in Egypt, and of all that ye have seen; and ye shall haste and bring down my father hither. 13 And he fell upon his brother Benjamin’s neck, and wept; and Benjamin wept upon his neck. 14 And he kissed all his brethren, and wept upon them; and after that his brethren talked with him.
15 “And the fame thereof was heard in Pharaoh’s house, saying, Joseph’s brethren are come; and it pleased Pharaoh well, and his servants. 16 And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, Say unto thy brethren, This do ye; lade your beasts, and go, get you unto the land of Canaan; 17 and take your father and your households, and come unto me; and I will give you the good of the land of Egypt, and ye shall eat the fat of the land. 18 Now thou art commanded, this do ye; take you wagons out of the land of Egypt for your little ones, and for your wives, and bring your father, and come. 19 Also regard not your stuff; for the good of all the land of Egypt is yours. 20 And the sons of Israel did so; and Joseph gave them wagons, according to the commandment of Pharaoh, and gave them provision for the way. 21 To all of them he gave each man changes of raiment; but to Benjamin he gave three hundred pieces of silver, and five changes of raiment. 22 And to his father he sent after this manner: ten asses laden with the good things of Egypt, and ten she-asses laden with corn and bread and meat for his father by the way. 23 So he sent his brethren away, and they departed; and he said unto them, See that ye fall not out by the way. 24 And they went up out of Egypt, and came into the land of Canaan unto Jacob their father. 25 And they told him, saying, Joseph is yet alive, and he is ruler over all the land of Egypt. 26 And his heart fainted, for he believed them not. 27 And they told him all the words of Joseph, which he had said unto them: and when he saw the wagons which Joseph had sent to carry him, the spirit of Jacob their father revived: 28 And Israel said, It is enough; Joseph my son is yet alive: I will go and see him before I die.”
SUGGESTIVE QUESTIONS.
(1) What instruction did Joseph now give to his steward? Gen. 44:1, 2. (2) After his brethren were sent away, what accusing message was sent to them? Vs. 3-6. (3) How did they endeavor to show that they were true and honest men? Vs. 7-9. (4) In how far did the steward accept their final proposition? V. 10. (5) What did they immediately do? What were the results? Vs. 11-13. (6) In harmony with what has gone before, what did Joseph feign to know, and how? Vs. 14, 15. Note 1. (7) What did Judah say? and what was Joseph’s reply? Vs. 16, 17. (8) What eloquently touching speech did Judah now make? Vs. 18-34. (9) What effect did it have upon Joseph? Gen. 45:1, 2. (10) What did he first say to them? How did they feel about it? What request did he make? Vs. 3, 4. (11) By what remarkable statement did he now reveal his unbounded faith in the God of Jacob? Vs. 5-8. Note 2. (12) What message did he send to his father? Vs. 9-13. (13) How did he further show his love for his brethren? Vs. 14, 15. (14) What effect did this news concerning Joseph’s brethren have upon Pharaoh and his house? V. 16. See also v. 2. (15) What message did Pharaoh send through Joseph to his brethren? Vs. 17-20. (16) What did Joseph now do for them all? for the ten? for Benjamin? for Israel? With what final injunction did he send them away? Vs. 21-24. (17) When they came home and told Jacob this wonderful story, what effect did it have upon him? Vs. 25, 26. (18) What became of his unbelief and low spirits? When he saw the wagons, what did he say? Vs. 27, 28. (19) What humiliating confession now became necessary on the part of Joseph’s ten brethren? Note 3.
Suggestive Readings.—“Patriarchs and Prophets,” pages 229-232.
NOTE.—“This cup was supposed to possess power of detecting any poisonous substances placed therein. At that day cups of this kind were highly valued as a safeguard against murder by poisoning. . . . ‘What deed is this that ye have done?’ he said; ‘Wot ye not that such a man as I can certainly divine?’ Joseph designed to draw from them acknowledgment of their sin. He had never claimed the power of divination, but was willing to have them believe that he could read the secrets of their lives.”
ADDITIONAL STUDY.
(1) Make an outline of your own and recite this lesson from it. (2) Note the care with which Joseph’s steward obeyed his instructions. (3) Show from this and preceding chapters that God was held in high reverence with both Joseph and his brethren. (4) What do you learn in this lesson of Joseph’s influence? (a) Among his brethren? (b) Among the people of Egypt? (c) Among the nations of the world? (5) At what place did Jacob and his family live during the first two years of this universal famine? (6) Life consists, as with Jacob and his children, of a series of surprises, apparently good or ill. (7) What traits of character in Judah are revealed in this lesson? (8) Make a list of the points in which Joseph’s life represents that of Christ. (9) Joseph’s life is an illustration of the sublime and glorious truth that when Satan seems most successfully to have hidden the light that is burning in the soul loyal to its God, then the flame bursts forth, and the light is lifted up, to be seen both near and afar off, even if it becomes necessary for every nation of the earth to be stricken with famine.
