The Story of Joseph (7)

When the brothers were ready to go home to their father Jacob, Joseph made sure that their sacks were full of corn, and he also commanded that their money be placed into their sacks. Joseph told his brothers that if they came again, they would have to bring their youngest brother with them. They knew that their father would never agree to that. If they did not come back, Simeon would have to stay in jail. What could they do?

As the brothers traveled back to the land of Canaan, they stopped to feed their animals. When they opened their sacks, they found their money in the top of the sack. It was the money which they had used to pay for their corn. Seeing this money made them very afraid. “The man will think we are thieves as well as spies. What shall we do?” As soon as they arrived home, the brothers hurried into their father’s house and told him all that had taken place. “The man spoke very harshly to us, and he insisted that when we return, we must bring Benjamin with us.”

The brothers were very afraid now, and Jacob was also worried. Jacob told them that they could not take Benjamin with them the next time. “Joseph is gone, and Simeon is gone, and if you take Benjamin away, I cannot let that happen. All these things are against me.”

Reuben said to his father, “You may take my two sons if I do not bring Benjamin back to you.”

Still Jacob replied, “No, if you take him, then it will be the end of my life.”

When Jacob and his sons had eaten up all the food, Jacob said to his sons that they should go back to Egypt to buy more food. “We cannot go unless Benjamin goes with us,” said Judah.

“Why did you even tell the man that you had a little brother?” asked Jacob. “You should never have told him that.”

“The man asked all about our family,” the brothers said. “How could we know that he would tell us that we must bring Benjamin with us?”

Then Judah said to Jacob, “Send Benjamin with me, and I will be surety for him. Should anything happen to him, I will take the blame.”

Finally, Jacob agreed to let Benjamin go with them. He knew that if they did not get food soon, they would die from hunger. Jacob prepared presents for Joseph. The brothers also took the money which had been returned to them as well as additional money to pay for the food which they needed to buy. They hoped in this way to keep the governor from being angry with them. We can be sure that Jacob offered up many prayers to God for the safety of his children.

When the brothers appeared before Joseph again, they were very afraid. Would he think they were thieves; would he put them all in prison?

How surprised they were when they were taken to Joseph’s house and a large, fine meal was prepared for them. Simeon was released from prison and was able to join them. The brothers did not know what to think. They spoke to Joseph’s steward and told him about the money in their sacks. He told them not to worry. He said, “Your God, and the God of your father, hath given you your treasure in your sacks.”

When Joseph saw his brother Benjamin, he became very emotional and went into another room where he cried because he did not want anyone to see his tears. After Joseph composed himself, he came out and had all the brothers sit at one table while he sat at another table with the Egyptians. The brothers were very surprised because they were seated according to age, from the oldest to the youngest. How did this man know who was the oldest and who was the youngest?

They noted that the governor must really have loved Benjamin because he gave him much more than the others. Were the older brothers jealous of Benjamin? We do not read that in the Bible. It seems as if the Lord had softened the brothers’ hearts. They no longer showed the hatred which they had shown toward Joseph in former years.

Deze tekst is geautomatiseerd gemaakt en kan nog fouten bevatten. Digibron werkt voortdurend aan correctie. Klik voor het origineel door naar de pdf. Voor opmerkingen, vragen, informatie: contact.

Op Digibron -en alle daarin opgenomen content- is het databankrecht van toepassing. Gebruiksvoorwaarden. Data protection law applies to Digibron and the content of this database. Terms of use.

Printen