1 Now Jacob saw that there was grain in Egypt, and Jacob said to his sons, "Why do you look at one another?" 2 He said, "Behold, I have heard that there is grain in Egypt. Go down there, and buy for us from there, so that we may live, and not die." 3 Joseph’s ten brothers went down to buy grain from Egypt. 4 But Jacob didn’t send Benjamin, Joseph’s brother, with his brothers; for he said, "Lest perhaps harm happen to him." 5 The sons of Israel came to buy among those who came, for the famine was in the land of Canaan. 6 Joseph was the governor over the land. It was he who sold to all the people of the land. Joseph’s brothers came, and bowed themselves down to him with their faces to the earth. 7 Joseph saw his brothers, and he recognized them, but acted like a stranger to them, and spoke roughly with them. He said to them, "Where did you come from?"
They said, "From the land of Canaan, to buy food."
8 Joseph recognized his brothers, but they didn’t recognize him. 9 Joseph remembered the dreams which he dreamed about them, and said to them, "You are spies! You have come to see the nakedness of the land."
10 They said to him, "No, my lord, but your servants have come to buy food. 11 We are all one man’s sons; we are honest men. Your servants are not spies."
12 He said to them, "No, but you have come to see the nakedness of the land!"
13 They said, "We, your servants, are twelve brothers, the sons of one man in the land of Canaan; and behold, the youngest is today with our father, and one is no more."
14 Joseph said to them, "It is like I told you, saying, ‘You are spies!’ 15 By this you shall be tested. By the life of Pharaoh, you shall not go out from here, unless your youngest brother comes here. 16 Send one of you, and let him get your brother, and you shall be bound, that your words may be tested, whether there is truth in you, or else by the life of Pharaoh surely you are spies." 17 He put them all together into custody for three days.
18 Joseph said to them the third day, "Do this, and live, for I fear God. 19 If you are honest men, then let one of your brothers be bound in your prison; but you go, carry grain for the famine of your houses. 20 Bring your youngest brother to me; so will your words be verified, and you won’t die."
They did so. 21 They said to one another, "We are certainly guilty concerning our brother, in that we saw the distress of his soul, when he begged us, and we wouldn’t listen. Therefore this distress has come upon us." 22 Reuben answered them, saying, "Didn’t I tell you, saying, ‘Don’t sin against the child,’ and you wouldn’t listen? Therefore also, behold, his blood is required." 23 They didn’t know that Joseph understood them; for there was an interpreter between them. 24 He turned himself away from them, and wept. Then he returned to them, and spoke to them, and took Simeon from among them, and bound him before their eyes. 25 Then Joseph gave a command to fill their bags with grain, and to restore each man’s money into his sack, and to give them food for the way. So it was done to them.
26 They loaded their donkeys with their grain, and departed from there. 27 As one of them opened his sack to give his donkey food in the lodging place, he saw his money. Behold, it was in the mouth of his sack. 28 He said to his brothers, "My money is restored! Behold, it is in my sack!" Their hearts failed them, and they turned trembling to one another, saying, "What is this that God has done to us?" 29 They came to Jacob their father, to the land of Canaan, and told him all that had happened to them, saying, 30 "The man, the lord of the land, spoke roughly with us, and took us for spies of the country. 31 We said to him, ‘We are honest men. We are no spies. 32 We are twelve brothers, sons of our father; one is no more, and the youngest is today with our father in the land of Canaan.’ 33 The man, the lord of the land, said to us, ‘By this I will know that you are honest men: leave one of your brothers with me, and take grain for the famine of your houses, and go your way. 34 Bring your youngest brother to me. Then I will know that you are not spies, but that you are honest men. So I will deliver your brother to you, and you shall trade in the land.’"
35 As they emptied their sacks, behold, each man’s bundle of money was in his sack. When they and their father saw their bundles of money, they were afraid. 36 Jacob, their father, said to them, "You have bereaved me of my children! Joseph is no more, Simeon is no more, and you want to take Benjamin away. All these things are against me."
37 Reuben spoke to his father, saying, "Kill my two sons, if I don’t bring him to you. Entrust him to my care, and I will bring him to you again."
38 He said, "My son shall not go down with you; for his brother is dead, and he only is left. If harm happens to him along the way in which you go, then you will bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to Sheol."
1 Toe Jakob merk dat daar koring in Egipte was, het Jakob aan sy seuns gesê: Wat kyk julle so na mekaar?
2 En hy sê: Kyk, ek het gehoor dat daar koring in Egipte is; trek daarheen af, en koop vir ons daar koring, dat ons kan lewe en nie sterwe nie.
3 Daarop het tien van Josef se broers afgetrek om koring uit Egipte te koop.
4 Maar Benjamin, die broer van Josef, het Jakob nie saam met sy broers gestuur nie; want hy het gedink: Altemit kan 'n ongeluk hom oorkom.
5 So het die seuns van Israel dan gekom om koring te koop onder diegene wat daar aangekom het; want daar was hongersnood in die land Kana„n.
6 En Josef was die maghebber oor die land, hy wat aan al die mense van die land koring verkoop het; daarom het die broers van Josef gekom en hulle voor hom met die aangesig na die aarde gebuig.
7 Sodra Josef sy broers sien, het hy hulle herken maar hom vreemd teenoor hulle gehou en hulle hard aangespreek en vir hulle gesê: Waar kom julle vandaan? En hulle antwoord: Uit die land Kanaän om voedsel te koop.
8 En Josef het sy broers herken, maar hulle het hom nie herken nie.
9 Toe dink Josef aan die drome wat hy aangaande hulle gedroom het; en hy sê vir hulle: Julle is spioene, julle het gekom om te kyk waar die land oop is.
10 Maar hulle het hom geantwoord: Nee, my heer, maar u dienaars het gekom om voedsel te koop.
11 Ons is almal seuns van een man, ons is eerlike mense; u dienaars is geen spioene nie.
12 Toe sê hy vir hulle: Nee, maar julle het gekom om te kyk waar die land oop is.
13 En hulle antwoord: U dienaars is twaalf in getal, ons is broers, seuns van een man in die land Kana„n; en kyk, die jongste is nou by ons vader, maar die een is daar nie meer nie.
14 Toe sê Josef vir hulle: Dit is wat ek julle gesê het: Julle is spioene!
15 Hieraan sal julle getoets word: so waar as Farao leef, julle sal hiervandaan nie trek tensy dat julle jongste broer hierheen kom nie.
16 Stuur een van julle, dat hy julle broer gaan haal, maar julle moet in die gevangenis bly. So sal dan julle woorde getoets word, of die waarheid by julle is of nie. So waar as Farao leef, julle is spioene!
17 Daarop het hy hulle saam drie dae lank in bewaring laat hou.
18 En op die derde dag sê Josef vir hulle: Doen dit, dan sal julle lewe; ek vrees God!
19 As julle eerlike mense is, laat een van julle broers gevange bly in die huis waar julle in bewaring is; maar gaan julle, bring die koring vir die honger van julle huisgesinne weg,
20 en bring julle jongste broer na my toe -- dan sal julle woorde waar gemaak word, en julle sal nie sterwe nie. En hulle het so gedoen.
21 Toe sê hulle vir mekaar: Voorwaar, ons boet nou vanweë ons broer, omdat ons die benoudheid van sy siel gesien het toe hy ons gesmeek het en ons nie geluister het nie -- daarom kom hierdie benoudheid oor ons.
22 Daarop antwoord Ruben hulle: Het ek nie vir julle gesê nie: Besondig julle nie aan die seun nie? Maar julle het nie geluister nie. Kyk, so word dan ook sy bloed geëis.
23 En hulle het nie geweet dat Josef dit verstaan nie, want daar was 'n tolk tussen hulle.
24 Toe draai hy hom van hulle af weg en ween. Daarna het hy na hulle teruggegaan en met hulle gespreek; en hy het S¡meon onder hulle uitgeneem en hom voor hulle oë gebind.
25 Daarop gee Josef bevel om hulle sakke vol koring te maak en elkeen se geld weer in sy sak te sit en om aan hulle padkos vir die reis saam te gee. En so is aan hulle gedoen.
26 En hulle het die koring op hulle esels gelaai en daar weggetrek.
27 En toe die een sy sak oopmaak om sy esel in die herberg voer te gee, sien hy sy geld; en kyk, dit was somaar bo in sy sak!
28 En hy sê vir sy broers: My geld is teruggegee; hier lê dit dan ook in my sak! Toe het hulle hart hul begewe, en hulle draai verskrik na mekaar toe en sê: Wat het God ons nou aangedoen?
29 En hulle het by hul vader Jakob in die land Kana„n gekom en hom alles vertel wat hulle wedervaar het en gesê:
30 Die man, die heer van die land, het ons hard aangespreek en ons vir spioene van die land gehou.
31 Maar ons het aan hom gesê: Ons is eerlike mense, ons is geen spioene nie.
32 Ons is twaalf broers, seuns van ons vader; die een is daar nie meer nie, en die jongste is nou by ons vader in die land Kana„n.
33 Daarop het die man, die heer van die land, aan ons gesê: Hieraan sal ek weet dat julle eerlike mense is -- laat een van julle broers by my bly; en neem vir die honger van julle huisgesinne en trek weg,
34 en bring julle jongste broer na my toe; dan sal ek weet dat julle geen spioene is nie. As julle eerlike mense is, sal ek julle broer aan julle teruggee, en julle mag in die land rondtrek.
35 En toe hulle hul sakke leegmaak, was elkeen se bondeltjie geld daar in sy sak! En toe hulle hul bondeltjies geld sien, hulle en hul vader, was hulle bevrees.
36 Daarop sê Jakob, hulle vader, vir hulle: Julle beroof my van kinders. Josef is weg! En S¡meon is weg! En Benjamin wil julle wegneem! Alles is teen my!
37 Toe spreek Ruben sy vader aan en sê: U kan my twee seuns doodmaak as ek hom nie na u terugbring nie. Vertrou hom aan my toe, en ,k sal hom na u terugbring.
38 Maar hy sê: My seun sal nie saam met julle aftrek nie, want sy broer is dood, en hy het alleen oorgebly; en as 'n ongeluk hom oorkom op die pad wat julle sal gaan, dan sal julle my grys hare met kommer in die doderyk laat afdaal.