Genesis 43
1The famine was severe in the land. 2When they had finished eating the grain they had brought from Egypt, their father said to them, “Go back and buy us a little food.” 3Judah said to him, “The man solemnly warned us, ‘You will not see my face unless your brother is with you.’ 4If you will send our brother with us, we will go down and buy you food. 5But if you will not send him, we will not go down, because the man told us, ‘You will not see my face unless your brother is with you.’” 6Israel said, “Why did you do me this harm, telling the man that you had another brother?” 7They said, “The man questioned us closely about ourselves and our kindred: ‘Is your father still alive? Do you have a brother?’ We answered him according to these questions. Could we possibly have known he would say, ‘Bring your brother down’?” 8Judah said to his father Israel, “Send the boy with me. Let us get up and go, so that we may live and not die—we, you, and our little children. 9I myself will guarantee him. You may require him from my hand. If I do not bring him to you and set him before you, I will bear the blame before you all my days. 10If we had not delayed, by now we could have returned twice.”
11Their father Israel said to them, “If it must be so, then do this: take some of the land's best produce in your bags, and carry a gift down to the man—a little balm and a little honey, aromatic gum, resin, pistachios, and almonds. 12Take twice the silver in your hands, and take back in your hands the silver returned in the mouths of your bags. Perhaps it was a mistake. 13Take your brother too, get up, and return to the man. 14May El Shaddai give you compassion before the man, so that he will release your other brother and Benjamin to you. And as for me, if I am bereaved, I am bereaved.” 15The men took this gift, twice the silver in their hands, and Benjamin. They rose and went down to Egypt and stood before Joseph.
16Joseph saw Benjamin with them and said to the man over his household, “Bring the men into the house. Slaughter an animal and prepare it, because the men will eat with me at noon.” 17The man did as Joseph said and brought the men into Joseph's house. 18The men were afraid because they were brought into Joseph's house. They said, “We are being brought in because of the silver that was returned in our bags the first time, so that he can find a pretext against us, fall upon us, and take us as slaves, along with our donkeys.” 19They approached the man over Joseph's household and spoke to him at the entrance of the house. 20They said, “Please, my lord, we did come down the first time to buy food. 21When we came to the overnight lodging and opened our bags, each man's silver was in the mouth of his bag, our silver in its full weight. We have brought it back in our hands. 22We have also brought other silver down in our hands to buy food. We do not know who put our silver in our bags.” 23He said, “Peace to you. Do not be afraid. Your God, the God of your father, has given you treasure in your bags. Your silver came to me.” He brought Simeon out to them. 24The man brought the men into Joseph's house. He gave them water, and they washed their feet. He gave fodder to their donkeys. 25They prepared the gift for Joseph's arrival at noon, because they had heard they would eat bread there.
26Joseph came home, and they brought him the gift they had with them into the house, and bowed to the ground before him. 27He asked about their well-being and said, “Is your aged father well, the one you told me about? Is he still alive?” 28They said, “Your servant our father is well; he is still alive.” They bowed their heads and bowed down. 29He lifted his eyes and saw his brother Benjamin, his mother's son. He said, “Is this your youngest brother, whom you told me about?” He said, “May God be gracious to you, my son.” 30Joseph hurried away, because compassion for his brother burned within him. He sought a place to weep, went into the inner room, and wept there. 31He washed his face and came out. He controlled himself and said, “Serve the bread.” 32They served him separately, them separately, and the Egyptians who ate with him separately, because the Egyptians could not eat bread with the Hebrews; that was abhorrent to the Egyptians. 33They sat before him, the firstborn according to his birthright and the youngest according to his youth. The men looked at one another in amazement. 34Portions were taken to them from before Joseph, but Benjamin's portion was five times as large as any of theirs. They drank and became drunk with him.