| NET Bible | International Standard Version |
| 1He instructed the servant who was over his household, "Fill the sacks of the men with as much food as they can carry and put each man's money in the mouth of his sack. | 1Later, Joseph commanded his palace manager, "Fill the men's sacks to full capacity with food and replace each man's money at the top of the sack. |
| 2Then put my cup--the silver cup--in the mouth of the youngest one's sack, along with the money for his grain." He did as Joseph instructed. | 2Then place my cup—the silver one—in the top of the sack belonging to the youngest one, along with the money he brought to buy grain." So the manager did precisely what Joseph told him to do. |
| 3When morning came, the men and their donkeys were sent off. | 3Early the next morning, the men were sent on their way, along with their donkeys. |
| 4They had not gone very far from the city when Joseph said to the servant who was over his household, "Pursue the men at once! When you overtake them, say to them, 'Why have you repaid good with evil? | 4They had not traveled far from the city when Joseph ordered his palace manager, "Get up, follow those men, and when you've caught up with them, ask them, 'Why did you repay evil for good? |
| 5Doesn't my master drink from this cup and use it for divination? You have done wrong!'" | 5Don't you have the cup that my master uses to drink from and also uses to practice divination? You're wrong to have done this.'" |
| 6When the man overtook them, he spoke these words to them. | 6So he went after them and made that accusation. |
| 7They answered him, "Why does my lord say such things? Far be it from your servants to do such a thing! | 7"Your Excellency," they replied, "Why do you speak like this? Far be it from your servants to act like this. |
| 8Look, the money that we found in the mouths of our sacks we brought back to you from the land of Canaan. Why then would we steal silver or gold from your master's house? | 8Look, we brought back to you from the land of Canaan the money that we found at the top of our sacks. How, then, could we have stolen silver or gold from your master's palace? |
| 9If one of us has it, he will die, and the rest of us will become my lord's slaves!" | 9Go ahead and execute whichever one of your servants is discovered to have it, and we'll remain as your master's slaves." |
| 10He replied, "You have suggested your own punishment! The one who has it will become my slave, but the rest of you will go free." | 10"Agreed," he responded. "Just as you've said, the one who is found to have it in his possession will become my slave, and the rest of you will be innocent." |
| 11So each man quickly lowered his sack to the ground and opened it. | 11So they quickly dismounted, unloaded their sacks onto the ground, and each one of them opened his own sack. |
| 12Then the man searched. He began with the oldest and finished with the youngest. The cup was found in Benjamin's sack! | 12The palace manager searched for the cup, beginning with the oldest brother's sack and ending with the youngest brother's sack, and there it was!—in Benjamin's sack. |
| 13They all tore their clothes! Then each man loaded his donkey, and they returned to the city. | 13At this, they all tore their clothes, reloaded their donkeys, and returned to the city. |
| 14So Judah and his brothers came back to Joseph's house. He was still there, and they threw themselves to the ground before him. | 14Joseph was waiting for them back at his palace when his brothers returned. They fell to the ground in front of him, |
| 15Joseph said to them, "What did you think you were doing? Don't you know that a man like me can find out things like this by divination?" | 15and Joseph asked them, "Why did you do this? Don't you know that I'm an expert at divination?" |
| 16Judah replied, "What can we say to my lord? What can we speak? How can we clear ourselves? God has exposed the sin of your servants! We are now my lord's slaves, we and the one in whose possession the cup was found." | 16"What can we say, Your Excellency?" Judah replied. "How can we explain this or justify ourselves? God has discovered the sin of your servants, and now we've become slaves to you, Your Excellency, both we and the one in whose possession the cup has been discovered." |
| 17But Joseph said, "Far be it from me to do this! The man in whose hand the cup was found will become my slave, but the rest of you may go back to your father in peace." | 17"Far be it from me to do this," Joseph responded. "The man in whose possession the cup was discovered will be my slave, but the rest of you may leave in peace to be with your father." |
| 18Then Judah approached him and said, "My lord, please allow your servant to speak a word with you. Please do not get angry with your servant, for you are just like Pharaoh. | 18But Judah approached him and begged him, "Your Excellency, please allow your servant to speak to you privately. Please don't be angry with your servant, since you are equal to Pharaoh. |
| 19My lord asked his servants, 'Do you have a father or a brother?' | 19Your Excellency asked his servants, 'Do you have a father or brother?' |
| 20We said to my lord, 'We have an aged father, and there is a young boy who was born when our father was old. The boy's brother is dead. He is the only one of his mother's sons left, and his father loves him.' | 20and we answered Your Excellency, 'We have an aged father and a younger child who was born when he was old. His brother is now dead, so he's the only surviving son of his mother. His father loves him.' |
| 21"Then you told your servants, 'Bring him down to me so I can see him.' | 21"But then you ordered your servants, 'Bring him here to me so I can see him for myself.' |
| 22We said to my lord, 'The boy cannot leave his father. If he leaves his father, his father will die.' | 22So we told Your Excellency, 'The young man cannot leave his father, because if he were to do so, his father would die.' |
| 23But you said to your servants, 'If your youngest brother does not come down with you, you will not see my face again.' | 23But then you told your servants, 'Unless your youngest brother comes back with you, you won't see my face again.' |
| 24When we returned to your servant my father, we told him the words of my lord. | 24Later on, after we had gone back to your servant, my father, we told him what Your Excellency had said. |
| 25"Then our father said, 'Go back and buy us a little food.' | 25"'Go back,' our father ordered, 'and buy us a little food.' |
| 26But we replied, 'We cannot go down there. If our youngest brother is with us, then we will go, for we won't be permitted to see the man's face if our youngest brother is not with us.' | 26"But we told him, 'We can't go back there. If our youngest brother accompanies us, we'll go back, but we cannot see the man's face again unless our youngest brother accompanies us.' |
| 27"Then your servant my father said to us, 'You know that my wife gave me two sons. | 27"Then your servant, our father, told us, 'You know my wife bore me two sons. |
| 28The first disappeared and I said, "He has surely been torn to pieces." I have not seen him since. | 28One of them left me, so I concluded "I'm certain that he has been torn to pieces," and I haven't seen him since then. |
| 29If you take this one from me too and an accident happens to him, then you will bring down my gray hair in tragedy to the grave.' | 29If you take this one from me, too, and then something harmful happens to him, then it will be death for me and my sad, gray hair!' |
| 30"So now, when I return to your servant my father, and the boy is not with us--his very life is bound up in his son's life. | 30"So when I go back to your servant, my father, and the young man isn't with us, since he's constantly living life focused on his son, |
| 31When he sees the boy is not with us, he will die, and your servants will bring down the gray hair of your servant our father in sorrow to the grave. | 31when he notices that the young man hasn't come back with us, he'll die, and your servants really will have brought death to your servant, our father, along with his sad, gray hair! |
| 32Indeed, your servant pledged security for the boy with my father, saying, 'If I do not bring him back to you, then I will bear the blame before my father all my life.' | 32Also, your servant pledged his own life as a guarantee of the young man's safety. I told my father, 'If I don't bring him back to you, you can blame me forever.' |
| 33"So now, please let your servant remain as my lord's slave instead of the boy. As for the boy, let him go back with his brothers. | 33Therefore, please allow your servant to remain as a slave to Your Excellency, instead of the young man, and let the young man go back home with his brothers. |
| 34For how can I go back to my father if the boy is not with me? I couldn't bear to see my father's pain." | 34After all, how can I go back to my father if the young man doesn't accompany me? I'm afraid of what might happen to my father." |
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