1Da Jakob hørte, at det var muligt at købe korn i Egypten, sagde han til sine sønner: „Hvad venter I på?2Det siges, at der kan købes korn i Egypten. Se at komme af sted og køb noget, inden vi sulter ihjel.”3Så tog Josefs ti ældre brødre af sted for at købe korn i Egypten,4men Jakob ville ikke lade Josefs yngre bror, Benjamin, rejse med af frygt for, at der skulle ske ham noget undervejs.5Således kom Jakobs sønner til Egypten sammen med mange andre, for hungersnøden havde ramt hele Kana’ans land.6Siden Josef var guvernør i landet og havde ansvar for kornsalget, var det ham, brødrene opsøgte. De bøjede sig for Josef med ansigtet mod jorden.7Øjeblikkelig genkendte Josef sine brødre, men han lod som ingenting, og de genkendte ikke ham. „Hvor kommer I fra?” spurgte han barsk. „Fra Kana’ans land,” svarede de. „Vi er kommet for at købe korn.”8-9Da Josef nu stod ansigt til ansigt med sine brødre, huskede han de drømme, han havde haft for mange år siden. „I er spioner, der er kommet for at se, hvor landets forsvar er svagest,” sagde han skarpt.10„Nej, nej, herre,” bedyrede de. „Vi er bare kommet for at købe korn!11Vi er brødre, og vi er ærlige folk. Vi er aldeles ikke spioner.”12„Jo, I er!” blev Josef ved. „I er kun ude på at finde hullerne i vores forsvar.”13„Herre,” forsikrede de, „vi er 12 brødre, og vores far bor i Kana’ans land. De ti af os står her foran Dem. Vores yngste bror er hjemme hos sin far, og en af vores brødre lever ikke mere.”14Men Josef holdt på sit. „Som jeg allerede har sagt, er jeg sikker på, at I er spioner.15Men det skal jeg nok få opklaret. Så sandt Farao lever, får I ikke lov at forlade Egypten, før jeres yngste bror står her lyslevende foran mig.16En af jer kan tage hjem og hente ham, men resten af jer beholder jeg som gidsler i fængslet. Så vil det vise sig, om I har talt sandt eller ej. Hvis det viser sig, at I slet ikke har nogen yngre bror, ved jeg, at I er spioner.”17Så lod han dem alle sætte i fængsel i tre dage.18På tredjedagen sagde Josef til dem: „Jeg er en gudfrygtig mand. Hvis I vil beholde livet, så gør, hvad jeg siger.19Jeg vil nøjes med at beholde én af jer her i fængslet. Resten af jer kan tage hjem med korn til jeres familier.20Men I skal hente jeres yngre bror, så jeg har bevis for, at I har talt sandt. Så ved jeg, at I ikke er spioner, som fortjener døden.” Det forslag gik brødrene ind på.21Mens de nu diskuterede sagen indbyrdes, sagde en af brødrene: „Det her kan vi takke os selv for! Det er straffen for det, vi i sin tid gjorde imod Josef. Vi så hans fortvivlelse og angst, mens han bønfaldt os, men vi ville ikke høre efter.”22„Sagde jeg ikke dengang, at I ikke måtte gøre ham fortræd?” indvendte Ruben. „Men I ville jo ikke høre på mig. Nu skal vi dø, fordi vi var skyld i hans død.”23Brødrene havde ingen anelse om, at Josef forstod alt, hvad de sagde, for han havde talt med dem ved hjælp af tolk.24Nu forlod han dem et øjeblik, fordi han blev så bevæget, at han var begyndt at græde. Da han senere kom tilbage, udpegede han Simeon til gidsel og lod ham binde for øjnene af dem.25Josef befalede nu sine tjenere at fylde mændenes sække med korn og i al hemmelighed at lægge hver enkelt mands betaling tilbage øverst i sækken. Han sørgede også for, at brødrene fik rejseproviant.26Så læssede de kornsækkene på æslerne og begyndte hjemturen.27Da de standsede for at overnatte, og en af brødrene åbnede sin sæk for at tage foder til æslerne, så han, at pengene lå oven i sækken!28„Se!” råbte han til brødrene. „Mine penge ligger oven i sækken!” De blev rædselsslagne. „Hvad har Gud dog gjort imod os?” spurgte de hinanden.29Da de kom tilbage til deres far i Kana’ans land fortalte de ham hele historien.30„Manden, som administrerer landet, talte hårde ord til os,” forklarede de. „Han anså os for at være spioner og smed os i fængsel.31Men vi sagde til ham: ‚Vi er ærlige folk og ikke spioner.32I alt var vi 12 brødre med samme far, men en bror lever ikke mere, og den yngste er hjemme hos sin far i Kana’ans land.’33Manden svarede os: ‚Jeg skal nok finde ud af, om I taler sandt: En af jer skal blive her hos mig, mens I andre tager jeres korn og rejser hjem til jeres familier.34Hent så jeres yngste bror og kom tilbage til mig, så jeg kan afgøre, om I er spioner eller ærlige folk. Hvis I kan bevise, at I taler sandt, skal I få jeres bror tilbage, og I skal få lov til at komme og købe så meget korn, I vil.’ ”35Brødrene tømte nu deres sække. Men da de så, at oven i hver sæk lå posen med pengene, de havde betalt for kornet, blev både de og deres far grebet af rædsel.36„I har berøvet mig mine børn!” klagede Jakob. „Josef er død! Simeon er væk! Og nu vil I også tage Benjamin fra mig! Jeg kan ikke klare mere modgang!”37Men Ruben svarede: „Du må dræbe begge mine sønner, hvis Benjamin ikke kommer hjem igen. Jeg påtager mig det fulde ansvar for ham.”38„Nej,” indvendte Jakob, „min yngste søn får ikke lov til at rejse med jer. Hans bror Josef er allerede død, og Benjamin er den eneste, der er tilbage efter sin mor. Sker der noget med ham, dør jeg af sorg.”
1When Jacob learned that there was grain for sale in Egypt, he said to his sons, “Why do you look at one another?” (Ap G 7,12)2And he said, “Behold, I have heard that there is grain for sale in Egypt. Go down and buy grain for us there, that we may live and not die.” (1.Mos 43,8)3So ten of Joseph’s brothers went down to buy grain in Egypt.4But Jacob did not send Benjamin, Joseph’s brother, with his brothers, for he feared that harm might happen to him. (1.Mos 35,18; 1.Mos 42,38)5Thus the sons of Israel came to buy among the others who came, for the famine was in the land of Canaan.6Now Joseph was governor over the land. He was the one who sold to all the people of the land. And Joseph’s brothers came and bowed themselves before him with their faces to the ground. (1.Mos 37,7; 1.Mos 37,9; 1.Mos 41,41)7Joseph saw his brothers and recognized them, but he treated them like strangers and spoke roughly to them. “Where do you come from?” he said. They said, “From the land of Canaan, to buy food.” (1.Mos 42,30)8And Joseph recognized his brothers, but they did not recognize him.9And Joseph remembered the dreams that he had dreamed of them. And he said to them, “You are spies; you have come to see the nakedness of the land.” (1.Mos 37,5; 1.Mos 37,9; 1.Mos 42,7; 1.Mos 42,30)10They said to him, “No, my lord, your servants have come to buy food.11We are all sons of one man. We are honest men. Your servants have never been spies.”12He said to them, “No, it is the nakedness of the land that you have come to see.”13And they said, “We, your servants, are twelve brothers, the sons of one man in the land of Canaan, and behold, the youngest is this day with our father, and one is no more.” (1.Mos 37,30; 1.Mos 42,32)14But Joseph said to them, “It is as I said to you. You are spies.15By this you shall be tested: by the life of Pharaoh, you shall not go from this place unless your youngest brother comes here.16Send one of you, and let him bring your brother, while you remain confined, that your words may be tested, whether there is truth in you. Or else, by the life of Pharaoh, surely you are spies.”17And he put them all together in custody for three days.18On the third day Joseph said to them, “Do this and you will live, for I fear God: (3.Mos 25,43; Neh 5,15)19if you are honest men, let one of your brothers remain confined where you are in custody, and let the rest go and carry grain for the famine of your households, (1.Mos 42,33)20and bring your youngest brother to me. So your words will be verified, and you shall not die.” And they did so. (1.Mos 42,34; 1.Mos 43,5; 1.Mos 44,23)21Then they said to one another, “In truth we are guilty concerning our brother, in that we saw the distress of his soul, when he begged us and we did not listen. That is why this distress has come upon us.” (1.Mos 37,23; Job 36,8)22And Reuben answered them, “Did I not tell you not to sin against the boy? But you did not listen. So now there comes a reckoning for his blood.” (1.Mos 9,5; 1.Mos 37,21; 1.Kong 2,32; 2.Krøn 24,22; Salm 9,12; Luk 11,50)23They did not know that Joseph understood them, for there was an interpreter between them.24Then he turned away from them and wept. And he returned to them and spoke to them. And he took Simeon from them and bound him before their eyes. (1.Mos 43,30)25And Joseph gave orders to fill their bags with grain, and to replace every man’s money in his sack, and to give them provisions for the journey. This was done for them. (1.Mos 44,1)26Then they loaded their donkeys with their grain and departed.27And as one of them opened his sack to give his donkey fodder at the lodging place, he saw his money in the mouth of his sack. (1.Mos 42,35; 1.Mos 43,21; 2.Mos 4,24; Jer 9,2)28He said to his brothers, “My money has been put back; here it is in the mouth of my sack!” At this their hearts failed them, and they turned trembling to one another, saying, “What is this that God has done to us?”29When they came to Jacob their father in the land of Canaan, they told him all that had happened to them, saying,30“The man, the lord of the land, spoke roughly to us and took us to be spies of the land. (1.Mos 42,7; 1.Mos 42,9)31But we said to him, ‘We are honest men; we have never been spies.32We are twelve brothers, sons of our father. One is no more, and the youngest is this day with our father in the land of Canaan.’ (1.Mos 42,13)33Then the man, the lord of the land, said to us, ‘By this I shall know that you are honest men: leave one of your brothers with me, and take grain for the famine of your households, and go your way. (1.Mos 42,15; 1.Mos 42,19)34Bring your youngest brother to me. Then I shall know that you are not spies but honest men, and I will deliver your brother to you, and you shall trade in the land.’” (1.Mos 34,10; 1.Mos 34,21)35As they emptied their sacks, behold, every man’s bundle of money was in his sack. And when they and their father saw their bundles of money, they were afraid. (1.Mos 42,27; 1.Mos 43,21)36And Jacob their father said to them, “You have bereaved me of my children: Joseph is no more, and Simeon is no more, and now you would take Benjamin. All this has come against me.” (1.Mos 43,14)37Then Reuben said to his father, “Kill my two sons if I do not bring him back to you. Put him in my hands, and I will bring him back to you.” (1.Mos 46,9)38But he said, “My son shall not go down with you, for his brother is dead, and he is the only one left. If harm should happen to him on the journey that you are to make, you would bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to Sheol.” (1.Mos 37,33; 1.Mos 37,35; 1.Mos 42,4; 1.Mos 42,13; 1.Mos 42,32; 1.Mos 42,36; 1.Mos 44,28; 1.Mos 44,29; 1.Mos 44,31)