| New Living Translation | Berean Study Bible |
| 1When Jacob heard that grain was available in Egypt, he said to his sons, “Why are you standing around looking at one another? | 1When Jacob learned that there was grain in Egypt, he said to his sons, “Why are you staring at one another?” |
| 2I have heard there is grain in Egypt. Go down there, and buy enough grain to keep us alive. Otherwise we’ll die.” | 2“Look,” he added, “I have heard that there is grain in Egypt. Go down there and buy some for us, so that we may live and not die.” |
| 3So Joseph’s ten older brothers went down to Egypt to buy grain. | 3So ten of Joseph’s brothers went down to buy grain from Egypt. |
| 4But Jacob wouldn’t let Joseph’s younger brother, Benjamin, go with them, for fear some harm might come to him. | 4But Jacob did not send Joseph’s brother Benjamin with his brothers, for he said, “I am afraid that harm might befall him.” |
| 5So Jacob’s sons arrived in Egypt along with others to buy food, for the famine was in Canaan as well. | 5So the sons of Israel were among those who came to buy grain, since the famine had also spread to the land of Canaan. |
| 6Since Joseph was governor of all Egypt and in charge of selling grain to all the people, it was to him that his brothers came. When they arrived, they bowed before him with their faces to the ground. | 6Now Joseph was the ruler of the land; he was the one who sold grain to all its people. So when his brothers arrived, they bowed down before him with their faces to the ground. |
| 7Joseph recognized his brothers instantly, but he pretended to be a stranger and spoke harshly to them. “Where are you from?” he demanded. “From the land of Canaan,” they replied. “We have come to buy food.” | 7And when Joseph saw his brothers, he recognized them, but he treated them as strangers and spoke harshly to them. “Where have you come from?” he asked. “From the land of Canaan,” they replied. “We are here to buy food.” |
| 8Although Joseph recognized his brothers, they didn’t recognize him. | 8Although Joseph recognized his brothers, they did not recognize him. |
| 9And he remembered the dreams he’d had about them many years before. He said to them, “You are spies! You have come to see how vulnerable our land has become.” | 9Joseph remembered his dreams about them and said, “You are spies! You have come to see if our land is vulnerable.” |
| 10“No, my lord!” they exclaimed. “Your servants have simply come to buy food. | 10“Not so, my lord,” they replied. “Your servants have come to buy food. |
| 11We are all brothers—members of the same family. We are honest men, sir! We are not spies!” | 11We are all sons of one man. Your servants are honest men, not spies.” |
| 12“Yes, you are!” Joseph insisted. “You have come to see how vulnerable our land has become.” | 12“No,” he told them. “You have come to see if our land is vulnerable.” |
| 13“Sir,” they said, “there are actually twelve of us. We, your servants, are all brothers, sons of a man living in the land of Canaan. Our youngest brother is back there with our father right now, and one of our brothers is no longer with us.” | 13But they answered, “Your servants are twelve brothers, the sons of one man in the land of Canaan. The youngest is now with our father, and one is no more.” |
| 14But Joseph insisted, “As I said, you are spies! | 14Then Joseph declared, “Just as I said, you are spies! |
| 15This is how I will test your story. I swear by the life of Pharaoh that you will never leave Egypt unless your youngest brother comes here! | 15And this is how you will be tested: As surely as Pharaoh lives, you shall not leave this place unless your youngest brother comes here. |
| 16One of you must go and get your brother. I’ll keep the rest of you here in prison. Then we’ll find out whether or not your story is true. By the life of Pharaoh, if it turns out that you don’t have a younger brother, then I’ll know you are spies.” | 16Send one of your number to get your brother; the rest of you will be confined so that the truth of your words may be tested. If they are untrue, then as surely as Pharaoh lives, you are spies!” |
| 17So Joseph put them all in prison for three days. | 17So Joseph imprisoned them for three days, |
| 18On the third day Joseph said to them, “I am a God-fearing man. If you do as I say, you will live. | 18and on the third day he said to them, “I fear God. So do this and you will live: |
| 19If you really are honest men, choose one of your brothers to remain in prison. The rest of you may go home with grain for your starving families. | 19If you are honest, leave one of your brothers in custody while the rest of you go and take back grain to relieve the hunger of your households. |
| 20But you must bring your youngest brother back to me. This will prove that you are telling the truth, and you will not die.” To this they agreed. | 20Then bring your youngest brother to me so that your words can be verified, that you may not die.” And to this they consented. |
| 21Speaking among themselves, they said, “Clearly we are being punished because of what we did to Joseph long ago. We saw his anguish when he pleaded for his life, but we wouldn’t listen. That’s why we’re in this trouble.” | 21Then they said to one another, “Surely we are being punished because of our brother. We saw his anguish when he pleaded with us, but we would not listen. That is why this distress has come upon us.” |
| 22“Didn’t I tell you not to sin against the boy?” Reuben asked. “But you wouldn’t listen. And now we have to answer for his blood!” | 22And Reuben responded, “Didn’t I tell you not to sin against the boy? But you would not listen. Now we must account for his blood!” |
| 23Of course, they didn’t know that Joseph understood them, for he had been speaking to them through an interpreter. | 23They did not realize that Joseph understood them, since there was an interpreter between them. |
| 24Now he turned away from them and began to weep. When he regained his composure, he spoke to them again. Then he chose Simeon from among them and had him tied up right before their eyes. | 24And he turned away from them and wept. When he turned back and spoke to them, he took Simeon from them and had him bound before their eyes. |
| 25Joseph then ordered his servants to fill the men’s sacks with grain, but he also gave secret instructions to return each brother’s payment at the top of his sack. He also gave them supplies for their journey home. | 25Then Joseph gave orders to fill their bags with grain, to return each man’s silver to his sack, and to give them provisions for their journey. This order was carried out, |
| 26So the brothers loaded their donkeys with the grain and headed for home. | 26and they loaded the grain on their donkeys and departed. |
| 27But when they stopped for the night and one of them opened his sack to get grain for his donkey, he found his money in the top of his sack. | 27At the place where they lodged for the night, one of them opened his sack to get feed for his donkey, and he saw his silver in the mouth of the sack. |
| 28“Look!” he exclaimed to his brothers. “My money has been returned; it’s here in my sack!” Then their hearts sank. Trembling, they said to each other, “What has God done to us?” | 28“My silver has been returned!” he said to his brothers. “It is here in my sack.” Their hearts sank, and trembling, they turned to one another and said, “What is this that God has done to us?” |
| 29When the brothers came to their father, Jacob, in the land of Canaan, they told him everything that had happened to them. | 29When they reached their father Jacob in the land of Canaan, they described to him all that had happened to them: |
| 30“The man who is governor of the land spoke very harshly to us,” they told him. “He accused us of being spies scouting the land. | 30“The man who is lord of the land spoke harshly to us and accused us of spying on the country. |
| 31But we said, ‘We are honest men, not spies. | 31But we told him, ‘We are honest men, not spies. |
| 32We are twelve brothers, sons of one father. One brother is no longer with us, and the youngest is at home with our father in the land of Canaan.’ | 32We are twelve brothers, sons of one father. One is no more, and the youngest is now with our father in the land of Canaan.’ |
| 33“Then the man who is governor of the land told us, ‘This is how I will find out if you are honest men. Leave one of your brothers here with me, and take grain for your starving families and go on home. | 33Then the man who is lord of the land said to us, ‘This is how I will know whether you are honest: Leave one brother with me, take food to relieve the hunger of your households, and go. |
| 34But you must bring your youngest brother back to me. Then I will know you are honest men and not spies. Then I will give you back your brother, and you may trade freely in the land.’” | 34But bring your youngest brother back to me so I will know that you are not spies but honest men. Then I will give your brother back to you, and you can trade in the land.’ ” |
| 35As they emptied out their sacks, there in each man’s sack was the bag of money he had paid for the grain! The brothers and their father were terrified when they saw the bags of money. | 35As they began emptying their sacks, there in each man’s sack was his bag of silver! And when they and their father saw the bags of silver, they were dismayed. |
| 36Jacob exclaimed, “You are robbing me of my children! Joseph is gone! Simeon is gone! And now you want to take Benjamin, too. Everything is going against me!” | 36Their father Jacob said to them, “You have deprived me of my sons. Joseph is gone and Simeon is no more. Now you want to take Benjamin. Everything is going against me!” |
| 37Then Reuben said to his father, “You may kill my two sons if I don’t bring Benjamin back to you. I’ll be responsible for him, and I promise to bring him back.” | 37Then Reuben said to his father, “You may kill my two sons if I fail to bring him back to you. Put him in my care, and I will return him.” |
| 38But Jacob replied, “My son will not go down with you. His brother Joseph is dead, and he is all I have left. If anything should happen to him on your journey, you would send this grieving, white-haired man to his grave. ” | 38But Jacob replied, “My son will not go down there with you, for his brother is dead, and he alone is left. If any harm comes to him on your journey, you will bring my gray hair down to Sheol in sorrow.” |
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