Genesis 42
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Genesis 42: Joseph’s Brethren
Genesis 42: Joseph’s Brethren
Because the famine is widespread throughout the Mediterranean world, starving people from impoverished countries must travel to Egypt to buy food. This sets the stage for Joseph’s reunion with his family.
Now when Jacob saw that there was corn in Egypt, Jacob said unto his sons, Why do ye look one upon another?
So word has spread and Jacob is made aware that Egypt has a surplus of food that is available for purchase. The word “corn” in this verse is the Hebrew word “sheber” and can mean grain or food in general. Jacob’s question to his sons shows their inaction.
And he said, Behold, I have heard that there is corn in Egypt: get you down thither, and buy for us from thence; that we may live, and not die.
Jacob pushes his sons to take action, using the phrase “that we may live and not die” to show the urgency of the request.
And Joseph’s ten brethren went down to buy corn in Egypt.
Due to the famine Egypt more than likely there was a limit on how much food one person could purchase, requiring all 10 brothers to make the trip to be able to secure enough for the whole family.
But Benjamin, Joseph’s brother, Jacob sent not with his brethren; for he said, Lest peradventure mischief befall him.
Remember that Joseph and Benjamin are the sons of Rachel, Jacob’s favorite wife who is deceased. Having already lost Rachel and under the impression he has lost Joseph, Jacob is heart set on protecting Benjamin. The last time one of Rachel’s son left camp with his brother, he didn’t return.
And the sons of Israel came to buy corn among those that came: for the famine was in the land of Canaan.
The same rains that would flow into the Nile in Egypt would have been the same storm systems that would move into Canaan. A drought and famine in Egypt is certainly reflected in Canaan as well. The 10 brothers join up with a caravan of people headed to Egypt to secure supplies.
And Joseph was the governor over the land, and he it was that sold to all the people of the land: and Joseph’s brethren came, and bowed down themselves before him with their faces to the earth.
The word “governor” in the verse is Hebrew “shallit” which means ruler; showing Joseph exercising the power bestowed on him by Pharaoh in the last chapter. So Joseph is directing all sales in the entire country. When his brothers bow down to him it fulfills Joseph’s prophetic dreams in chapter 37, and by their own actions they brought about the very thing they had tried to prevent. Think about how this is such an example of Satan and his followers trying to stop Christ and at the same time, their defeat being His very mission:
The sons also of them that afflicted thee shall come bending unto thee; And all they that despised thee shall bow themselves down at the soles of thy feet; And they shall call thee, The city of the Lord, The Zion of the Holy One of Israel.
Behold, I will make them of the synagogue of Satan, which say they are Jews, and are not, but do lie; behold, I will make them to come and worship before thy feet, and to know that I have loved thee.
God’s plan always come to pass, no matter the struggle against it.
And Joseph saw his brethren, and he knew them, but made himself strange unto them, and spake roughly unto them; and he said unto them, Whence come ye? And they said, From the land of Canaan to buy food.
It’s been over 20 years since they had sold Joseph into slavery. He is dressed in official Egyptian robes and speaks through an interpreter. It’s not hard to believe they wouldn’t recognize him, but 10 Israelite brothers coming from Canaan, wearing their normal clothing would probably be easier for Joseph to piece together. Joseph doesn’t “speak roughly” for any ill intent. It’s for two purposes. To act with authority so he can gain information about his father and his well being, and secondly to make his brother remember their actions at the pit in Dothan, to convict them of their sin, and to compel them to confess.
And Joseph knew his brethren, but they knew not him.
And Joseph remembered the dreams which he dreamed of them, and said unto them, Ye are spies; to see the nakedness of the land ye are come.
Joseph calls his brothers spies to help conceal his identity, and it was commonplace to mistrust foreigners; something that we still see.
And they said unto him, Nay, my lord, but to buy food are thy servants come.
We are all one man’s sons; we are true men, thy servants are no spies.
And he said unto them, Nay, but to see the nakedness of the land ye are come.
And they said, Thy servants are twelve brethren, the sons of one man in the land of Canaan; and, behold, the youngest is this day with our father, and one is not.
So the first piece of the plan falls into place. The brothers state that they are 12, but only 10 stand before Joseph. They will have to explain this difference, so they tell Joseph that the youngest didn’t make the journey, and one brother is deceased.
And Joseph said unto them, That is it that I spake unto you, saying, Ye are spies:
Hereby ye shall be proved: By the life of Pharaoh ye shall not go forth hence, except your youngest brother come hither.
So remember that Joseph is acting as an Egyptian here, and to Egyptians the Pharaoh was the most powerful authority in the land; though of as a god incarnate. Swearing on the life of Pharaoh underlines the seriousness of the proposal.
Send one of you, and let him fetch your brother, and ye shall be kept in prison, that your words may be proved, whether there be any truth in you: or else by the life of Pharaoh surely ye are spies.
So a simple test, all but one of you stay here in prison while the other goes to bring back the 11th brother.
And he put them all together into ward three days.
So let’s note that the word used here for “ward” is the Hebrew “mishmar” which means bondage or captivity, so we don’t know exactly where they were kept; it could have been in the prison, it could have been in a home. What we do know, is that they were not free to leave and would have been watched by a guard.
And Joseph said unto them the third day, This do, and live; for I fear God:
Joseph’s statement about fearing God is not a pronouncement of his faith, this would have blown his cover. Instead this is phrase is more showing his commitment to release the brother he keeps captive when the others return with Benjamin, and to help keep his brothers at ease and comfortable.
If ye be true men, let one of your brethren be bound in the house of your prison: go ye, carry corn for the famine of your houses:
Think about what Joseph says here. “If ye be true men”. The brothers have really been honest people up to this point right? God is leading Joseph’s words, planting the seed of guilt in their minds, since they know that they haven’t been truthful about what happened to Joseph; helping to pave the way for them to come to repentance, just as he paves the way for us to come to the cross seeking forgiveness.
But bring your youngest brother unto me; so shall your words be verified, and ye shall not die. And they did so.
And they said one to another, We are verily guilty concerning our brother, in that we saw the anguish of his soul, when he besought us, and we would not hear; therefore is this distress come upon us.
Remember this is 20 years later. And we see that the knowledge of selling their brother into slavery is still front and center in their mind. Their guilt telling them that everything that goes wrong HAS to be recompence for that sin. The guilt and secrecy being an anchor that is dragging them down.
And Reuben answered them, saying, Spake I not unto you, saying, Do not sin against the child; and ye would not hear? therefore, behold, also his blood is required.
Reuben is saying that payment for Joseph’s blood is required. Remember Genesis 9:6 “Whoso sheddeth man’s blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God made he man.”
And they knew not that Joseph understood them; for he spake unto them by an interpreter.
So we see Joseph’s plan working. The brothers are having to finally face their guilty consciences over selling Joseph and lying to Jacob. They don’t realize that Joseph can understand everything they are saying. Reuben’s statement “also his blood is required” , seems to indicate that he wasn’t wanting to go along with the plan to harm Joseph and may believe that Joseph is dead. Remember Reuben tried to stop this back in chapter 37.
And Reuben heard it, and he delivered him out of their hands; and said, Let us not kill him.
And Reuben said unto them, Shed no blood, but cast him into this pit that is in the wilderness, and lay no hand upon him; that he might rid him out of their hands, to deliver him to his father again.
And Reuben returned unto the pit; and, behold, Joseph was not in the pit; and he rent his clothes.
And he returned unto his brethren, and said, The child is not; and I, whither shall I go?
So we see that Reuben was more than likely deceived just like his father, Jacob.
And he turned himself about from them, and wept; and returned to them again, and communed with them, and took from them Simeon, and bound him before their eyes.
Simeon had probably been the chief instigator—the most violent actor in the outrage upon Joseph; and if so, his selection to be the imprisoned would have significance. Don’t forget that Simeon is the second oldest brother, a son of Leah, and was one of the two that led the slaughter of the men at Shechem.
Then Joseph commanded to fill their sacks with corn, and to restore every man’s money into his sack, and to give them provision for the way: and thus did he unto them.
Joseph would have had the power to give them the food without payment, or may have paid for their share himself; being in a very powerful position by this time. Either way this isn’t Joseph acting in a deceitful manner or taking advantage of his position; and more than likely this is simply showing his kind and forgiving heart and his love for his family, even after everything they have put him through. Sound familiar? Does this not sound like Joseph giving his brothers unearned loved and favor, just like Christ gives us unwarranted mercy and grace?
And they laded their asses with the corn, and departed thence.
And as one of them opened his sack to give his ass provender in the inn, he espied his money; for, behold, it was in his sack’s mouth.
“Inn” in this verse means a temporary encampment, somewhere to stop for the night and feed the animals; not an actual inn.
And he said unto his brethren, My money is restored; and, lo, it is even in my sack: and their heart failed them, and they were afraid, saying one to another, What is this that God hath done unto us?
Think about what this verse says about the brothers. They ask “What is this that God hath done unto us?” not “what has that Egyptian done to us?”. Their guilt is coloring everything they see and they are sure this is another sign that God is coming to collect payment for their sin.
And they came unto Jacob their father unto the land of Canaan, and told him all that befell unto them; saying,
The man, who is the lord of the land, spake roughly to us, and took us for spies of the country.
And we said unto him, We are true men; we are no spies:
We be twelve brethren, sons of our father; one is not, and the youngest is this day with our father in the land of Canaan.
And the man, the lord of the country, said unto us, Hereby shall I know that ye are true men; leave one of your brethren here with me, and take food for the famine of your households, and be gone:
And bring your youngest brother unto me: then shall I know that ye are no spies, but that ye are true men: so will I deliver you your brother, and ye shall traffick in the land.
And it came to pass as they emptied their sacks, that, behold, every man’s bundle of money was in his sack: and when both they and their father saw the bundles of money, they were afraid.
Notice that it says that both they and their father saw the money and were afraid. But they already knew it was there. They have concealed their knowledge so Jacob wouldn’t blame them for the money being returned. Another misstep and deception.
And Jacob their father said unto them, Me have ye bereaved of my children: Joseph is not, and Simeon is not, and ye will take Benjamin away: all these things are against me.
The phrase “is not” is meant to say that someone has died, showing that Jacob believes he will never again see Simeon. He places the blame for the loss on the other brothers without knowing the truth.
And Reuben spake unto his father, saying, Slay my two sons, if I bring him not to thee: deliver him into my hand, and I will bring him to thee again.
How interesting is this that Reuben offers his sons as a gesture, but God offered his only begotten son for REAL. Not just a gesture, but delivered to certain death to pay the price for our sins.
And he said, My son shall not go down with you; for his brother is dead, and he is left alone: if mischief befall him by the way in the which ye go, then shall ye bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to the grave.
So we see Reuben is concerned with getting Simeon back, while Jacob is worried about protecting Benjamin. Grave here is “sheol” the place of the dead, not a literal grave. What Jacob can’t see is how every step of the way has been part of God’s plan. The good, the bad, and the ugly.
And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
All things work for God’s plan. Everything is according to his design. And I want us to think about this. If Joseph’s brothers weren’t jealous of him, they never would have sold him as a slave. If they never sold him as a slave, Joseph never ends up in Egypt. If he never goes to Egypt, he never ends up being sold to Potiphar. If he’s never a servant in the house of Potiphar, then he (Joseph) never gets accused of rape by Potiphar’s wife. If Potiphar’s wife never falsely accuses Joseph, then he never ends up in prison.
If he’s never in prison, he never meets the chief butler and baker of the Pharaoh. If Joseph never meets them, then he never interprets their dreams. If he doesn’t interpret their dreams, he doesn’t get introduced to Pharaoh so that he can interpret Pharaoh’s dream.
If he never interprets Pharaoh’s dream, he’s never made second in command over all of Egypt. If Joseph isn’t made to rule over Egypt, Egypt would never have been prepared for the famine. If Joseph never prepares Egypt for the famine, his family in Canaan would have died. If Joseph’s family in Canaan died in the famine, then Jesus would never have been born, being that these are his ancestors. And If Jesus never came, WE ARE ALL DEAD IN OUR SINS and WE ARE ALL WITHOUT HOPE. Aren’t you happy that God works even through our mistakes and missteps? Remember Romans 8:28.
Studying this chapter I realized it’s easy to put ourselves in the shoes of Joseph. To think that the lesson we can learn here is to be willing to forgive. But I know that, at least in my own life, more often than not I’ve filled to role of his brother. The ones that have sinned and are in need of forgiveness. This chapter teaches us that sin always carries weight—it can’t just be hidden. Joseph’s brothers’ past actions caught up with them, and they were forced to confront the wrong they had done. In the same way, our sins will come to light, whether through circumstances, conviction, or the Holy Spirit’s guidance.
But while guilt leads to despair, confession leads to freedom. The story leads us to the cross, it points us forward to Christ, who invites us to bring our sins to Him so we can be forgiven.
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Just as Joseph’s brothers would later find forgiveness and restoration, we too can find grace and reconciliation through Jesus Christ. Genesis 42 is a reminder that we cannot escape the consequences of sin, but we can be set free from its guilt when we confess and turn to Christ, who offers mercy greater than our failures.
Genesis 42
Genesis 42
