Familiarity with the Joseph story breeds not contempt but saturation. Let’s leave the biblical text alone for now, it sufficiently tells a straightforward story without unnecessary interpretive assistance, though the subsequent posts will feature as usual the three commentaries we’ve chosen as aid to readers. Below the maps are chapter 42 and 43 for straight reading.
About the only points left to ponder are the following:
- Deception would follow the life-journey of this 3rd patriarch throughout his life since he first resorted to deception himself in securing Esau’s birthright and blessing from Isaac;
- His own sons lie to him about Joseph;
- Joseph resorts to deception in dealing with his brothers though he does it not for revenge but to save his family;
- Did Joseph not love his father Jacob enough to send word that he was alive?
- After all it was his brothers who obviously hated him enough to cause him harm;
- Had he not thought, being a favored son, how his disappearance would break his father’s heart?
- Had he not wondered how long his father waited for him to come back from the errand Jacob had sent him which gave his siblings the opportunity to eliminate him?
- Wasn’t he curious what story his brothers concocted to convince Jacob he was gone permanently?
- At the very first opportunity when he could have (when he was out of prison and occupying a trusted position in Pharaoh’s court) why did Joseph not do so?
- The Pharaoh seemed grateful enough of him to trust him if he should ask to make a journey home and then return.
- Or, if he was still afraid of his brothers, he could have sent a message.
- Drought and its feared consequence (lack of food, famine) occurs repeatedly in the story of the formation of the chosen people;
- Egypt as the land of plenty is the choice destination of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob:
- Canaan is the future land of milk and honey, promised to the seed of Abraham;
- But the blessings upon the land appear to be withheld under the Canaanites who have yet to be eliminated from the land;
- And when the Israelites do occupy it 4 centuries later as prophesied, the land’s abundance or its opposite is conditional upon obedience and disobedience of God’s chosen people.
The geography involved in these patriarchal stories cover the area called “The Fertile Crescent.” When you look at the map, it does have the shape of the curved sickle shape of a waning quarter moon. Another description of this area is “cradle of civilization” because all these people we do read about in the biblical narratives occupy this geographical area. It is significant that after almost six millennia, the focus of the world today is still in the modern countries that occupy this part of the world. In fact, the “hot spots” of what they call the “Arab spring” are here and best of all, Israel is back in the Land.
Image from www.mrdowling.com
Image from www.pbase.com
GENESIS 42
42:1 Now when Yaakov saw that there were rations in Egypt, Yaakov said to his sons: Why do you keep looking at one another? 2 And he said: Here, I have heard that there are rations in Egypt, go down there and buy us rations from there, that we may live and not die. 3 So Yosef’s brothers went down, ten (of them), to buy some rationed grain from Egypt. 4 But Binyamin, Yosef’s brother, Yaakov would not send with his brothers, for he said: Lest harm befall him! 5 The sons of Yisrael came to buy rations among those that came, for the famine was in the land of Canaan. 6 Now Yosef was the governor over the land, it was he who supplied rations to all the people of the land. And Yosef’s brothers came and bowed low to him, brow to the ground. 7 When Yosef saw his brothers, he recognized them, but he pretended-no-recognition of them and spoke harshly with them. He said to them: From where do you come? They said: From the land of Canaan, to buy food-rations. 8 Now although Yosef recognized his brothers, for their part, they did not recognize him. 9 And Yosef was reminded of the dreams that he had dreamt of them. He said to them: You are spies! It is to see the nakedness of the land that you have come! 10 They said to him: No, my lord! Rather, your servants have come to buy food-rations. 11 We are all of us the sons of a single man, we are honest, your servants have never been spies! 12 But he said to them: No! For it is the nakedness of the land that you have come to see! 13 They said: Your servants are twelve, we are brothers, sons of a single man in the land of Canaan: the youngest is with our father now, and one is no more. 14 Yosef said to them: It is just as I spoke to you, saying: You are spies! 15 Hereby shall you be tested: As Pharaoh lives! You shall not depart from this (place) unless your youngest brother comes here! 16 Send one of you to fetch your brother, while (the rest of) you remain as prisoners. Thus will your words be tested, whether there is truth in you or not- as Pharaoh lives, indeed, you are spies! 17 He removed them into custody for three days. 18 Yosef said to them on the third day: Do this, and stay alive, for I hold God in awe: 19 if you are honest, let one of your brothers be held prisoner in the house of your custody, and as for you, go, bring back rations for the famine-supply of your households. 20 Then bring your youngest brother back to me, so that your words will be proven truthful, and you will not die. They (prepared to) do so. 21 But they said, each man to his brother: Truly, we are guilty: concerning our brother! -that we saw his heart’s distress when he implored us, and we did not listen. Therefore this distress has come upon us! 22 Re’uven answered them, saying: Did I not say to you, say: Do not sin against the child! But you would not listen, so for his blood-now, (satisfaction) is demanded! 23 Now they did not know that Yosef was listening, for a translator was between them. 24 But he turned away from them and wept. When he was able to return to them, he spoke to them and had Shim’on taken away from them, imprisoning him before their eyes. 25 Then Yosef commanded that they fill their vessels with grain and return their silver-pieces into each man’s sack, and give them victuals for the journey. They did so for them. 26 Then they loaded their rations onto their donkeys and went from there. 27 But as one opened his sack to give his donkey fodder at the night-camp, he saw his silver-there it was in the mouth of his pack! 28 He said to his brothers: My silver has been returned-yes, here in my pack!Their hearts gave way, and they trembled to one another, saying: What is this that God has done to us? 29 They came home to Yaakov their father, in the land of Canaan, and told him all that had befallen them, saying: 30 The man, the lord of the land, spoke harshly with us, he took us for those that spy on the land! 31 Now we said to him: We are honest, we have never been spies! 32 We are twelve, brothers all, sons of our father: one is no more, and the youngest is now with our father in the land of Canaan. 33 Then the man, the lord of the land, said to us: Hereby shall I know whether you are honest: Leave one of your brothers with me, and as for the famine-supply of your households, take it and go. 34 But bring your youngest brother back to me, so that I may know that you are not spies, that you are honest. (Then) I will give your brother back to you, and you may travel about the land. 35 But it was, when they emptied their sacks: there was each man’s silver pouch in his sack! They looked at their silver pouches, they and their father, and became frightened. 36 Yaakov their father said to them: It is I that you bereave! Yosef is no more, Shim’on is no more, now you would take Binyamin- upon me has all this come! 37 Re’uven said to his father, saying: My two sons you may put to death if I do not bring him back to you! Place him in my hands, and I myself will return him to you. 38 But he said: My son is not to go down with you! For his brother is dead, and he alone is left! Should harm befall him on the journey on which you are going, you will bring down my gray hair in grief to Sheol!
GENESIS 43
43:1 But the famine was heavy in the land. 2 And so it was, when they had finished eating the rations that they had brought from Egypt, that their father said to them: Return, buy us some food-rations. 3 But Yehuda said to him, saying: The man warned, yes, warned us, saying: You shall not see my face unless your brother is with you. 4 If you wish to send our brother with us, we will go down and buy you some food-rations. 5 But if you do not wish to send him, we will not go down, for the man said to us: You shall not see my face unless your brother is with you. 6 Yisrael said: Why did you deal so ill with me, by telling the man that you have another brother? 7 They said: The man asked, he asked about us and about our kindred, saying: Is your father still alive? Do you have another brother? So we told him, according to these words. Could we know, know that he would say: Bring your brother down? 8 Yehuda said to Yisrael his father: Send the lad with me, and we will arise and go, that we may live and not die, so we, so you, so our little-ones! 9 I will act as his pledge, at my hand you may seek him! If I do not bring him back to you and set him in your presence, I will be culpable-for-sin against you all the days (to come). 10 Indeed, had we not lingered, we would indeed have been back twice already! 11 Yisrael their father said to them: If it must be so, then, do this: Take some of the produce of the land in your vessels and bring them down to the man as a gift: a little balsam, a little honey, balm and ladanum, pistachio nuts and almonds. 12 And silver two times over take in your hand; and the silver that was returned in the mouth of your packs, return in your hand, perhaps it was an oversight. 13 And as for your brother, take him! Arise, return to the man, 14 and may God Shaddai give you mercy before the man, so that he releases your other brother to you, and Binyamin as well. And as for me-if I must be bereaved, I must be bereaved! 15 The men took this gift, silver two times over they took in their hand and Binyamin as well. They arose and went down to Egypt and stood in Yosef’s presence. 16 When Yosef saw Binyamin with them, he said to the steward of his house: Bring the men into the house, slaughter some slaughter-animals and prepare them, for it is with me that these men shall eat at noon. 17 The man did as Yosef had said, the man brought the men into Yosef’s house. 18 But the men were frightened that they had been brought into Yosef’s house, and said: It is because of the silver that was returned in our packs before that we have been brought here, for (them to) roll upon us, and fall upon us, and take us into servitude, along with our donkeys! 19 They came close to the man, to the steward of Yosef’s house, and spoke to him at the entrance to the house, 20 they said: Please, my lord! We came down, came down before to buy food-rations, 21 but it was, when we came to the night camp and opened our packs, there was each man’s silver in the mouth of his pack, our silver by its (exact) weight- but (here) we have returned it in our hand! 22 And other silver as well we have brought down in our hand, to buy food. We do not know who put back our silver in our packs! 23 He said: It is well with you, do not be afraid! Your God, the God of your father, placed a treasure in your packs for you-(for) your silver has come in to me. And he brought Shim’on out to them. 24 Then the man had the men come into Yosef’s house and gave them water so that they might wash their feet and gave them fodder for their donkeys. 25 They prepared the gift, until Yosef came back at noon, for they understood that they were to eat bread there. 26 When Yosef came into the house, they brought him the gift that was in their hand, into the house, and bowed down to him, to the ground. 27 He asked after their welfare and said: Is your old father well, of whom you spoke? Is he still alive? 28 They said: Your servant, our father, is well, he is still alive- and in homage they bowed low. 29 He lifted up his eyes and saw Binyamin his brother, his mother’s son, and he said: Is this your youngest brother, of whom you spoke to me? And he said: May God show you favor, my son! 30 And in haste-for his feelings were so kindled toward his brother that he had to weep- Yosef entered a chamber and wept there. 31 Then he washed his face and came out, he restrained himself, and said: Serve bread! 32 They served him by himself and them by themselves and the Egyptians who were eating with him by themselves, for Egyptians will not eat bread with Hebrews-for that is an abomination for Egyptians. 33 But they were seated in his presence: the firstborn according to his rank-as-firstborn and the youngest according to his rank-as-youngest. And the men stared at each other in astonishment over it. 34 He had courses taken to them from his presence, and Binyamin’s course was five times greater than all their courses. Then they drank and became drunk with him.
Reader Comments