Genesis 44 - Introduction
(J.) Joseph and his Brethren 1 17. The divining cup. 18 34. Judah's intercession.... [ Continue Reading ]
(J.) Joseph and his Brethren 1 17. The divining cup. 18 34. Judah's intercession.... [ Continue Reading ]
The Divining Cup 1. _with food, as much as they can carry_ The "food" means corn; and by special favour the corn is not given them by price, but on a more generous scale; as much as they could carry. _every man's money_ This detail is not again referred to. It is over-shadowed by the incident of t... [ Continue Reading ]
_the silver cup_ i.e. a well-known, or favourite, goblet. The word for "cup," the same as in Exodus 25:31; Jeremiah 35:5 (where it is rendered "bowl"), seems to denote a vessel shaped like the calyx of a flower. LXX renders κόνδυ; Lat. _scyphum_. Observe that Joseph does not reveal his intention to... [ Continue Reading ]
_the city_ The name of the city is most unfortunately not given. Memphis would be suitable: cf. Genesis 45:10. The moment of the men's arrest is well timed. Everything had gone off well. They had got their corn; they had been acquitted of any complicity in the return of the money; they had been hosp... [ Continue Reading ]
_whereby he indeed divineth_ "Divineth," Heb. _naḥash_: see Genesis 30:27; Deuteronomy 18:10, "useth divination"; 1 Kings 20:33 marg. The word shews that the silver cup was a sacred one, by means of which Joseph sought and obtained oracles. Some have inferred that he must have been admitted into the... [ Continue Reading ]
_God forbid_ Lit. "far be it" = μὴ γένοιτο. The Heb. has no appeal to the Deity; cf. Joshua 22:29. They are convinced of their innocence, and indignantly repel the insinuation that they have rewarded the "lord's" hospitality so basely,... [ Continue Reading ]
_With whomsoever_ Joseph's brethren propose the harshest possible penalty, death for the thief, and slavery for all the company. Cf. Jacob's proposal in Genesis 31:32.... [ Continue Reading ]
_my bondman_ Joseph's steward, while accepting the terms, mitigates their severity. He proposes that the offender, if apprehended, shall alone be punished, not with death, but with slavery. Joseph's brethren readily accept the terms.... [ Continue Reading ]
_searched_ There is no mention of the money in the sacks" mouths (Genesis 44:1). The interest centres on the cup. That the search is made in order of age is a dramatic touch adding to the excitement of the scene described, and probably carried out by the directions of Joseph himself, as if it might... [ Continue Reading ]
_rent their clothes_ See Genesis 37:29.... [ Continue Reading ]
_he was yet there_ Joseph had not yet left his official dwelling. _fell before him_ The third and last fulfilment of the dreams (Genesis 37:7; Genesis 37:9-10). See Genesis 44:16.... [ Continue Reading ]
_such a man as I_ The Grand Vizier, second only to Pharaoh (see Genesis 44:18), married into the family of the Priest of On, and one "in whom the spirit of God is" (Genesis 41:38).... [ Continue Reading ]
_God hath found out_ Judah confesses the wrong-doing of himself and his brothers (Genesis 42:21). So mysterious a misfortune could only be explained as a Divine recompense for secret guilt. Cf. Numbers 32:23, "be sure your sin will find you out." "God," _Elohim_, is spoken of in address to a foreig... [ Continue Reading ]
_God forbid_ As Genesis 44:7. Joseph deprecates Judah's proposal, and insists on the milder sentence already proposed by his steward. Benjamin should be kept as a slave.... [ Continue Reading ]
_Then Judah_ The prominence of Judah has been noticeable in Genesis 43:3; Genesis 43:8 and in Genesis 44:14_; Genesis 44:16_of this chapter. Benjamin, though present, is silent; Reuben takes no part. _Oh my lord_ See Genesis 43:20. _thou art even as Pharaoh_ Judah's opening words are those of grac... [ Continue Reading ]
Judah's Intercession This is one of the most beautiful and pathetic passages in Hebrew narrative. Judah's speech falls into two unequal divisions: (1) Genesis 44:18 a simple recapitulation of the story, (2) Genesis 44:31 his self-sacrificing offer of himself as a substitute for Benjamin. The points... [ Continue Reading ]
_My lord asked_ Cf. Genesis 43:7.... [ Continue Reading ]
_a child of his old age_ Cf. Genesis 37:3, where the words are applied to Joseph. _his brother is dead_ See Genesis 44:28; Genesis 42:38 (J). According to the J narrative, his brothers thought him dead. In Genesis 42:13 (E) Joseph's fate is referred to in vaguer terms, "one is not." This allusion t... [ Continue Reading ]
_that I may … upon him_ The phrase probably means something more than merely seeing Benjamin. It may indicate favourable protection, as in Psalms 33:18; Psalms 34:15.... [ Continue Reading ]
_And we said_, &c. The substance of this verse expresses more than Genesis 42:20 (E). The expostulation here mentioned is not there recorded.... [ Continue Reading ]
_and I have not seen him since_ The unconscious pathos in the words which Judah uses must have struck Joseph to the heart.... [ Continue Reading ]
_mischief befall him_ Cf. Genesis 42:4; Genesis 42:38. _with sorrow_ Heb. _evil_. "Evil" in the sense of "trouble," as in Psalms 107:26, or "calamity," as in Proverbs 24:16, a different word from "sorrow" in Genesis 42:38. _the grave_ Heb. _Sheol_. See ch. Genesis 37:35; Genesis 42:38.... [ Continue Reading ]
_his life … the lad's life_ Better, as R.V. marg., _his soul is knit with the lad's soul_. See 1 Samuel 18:1, "the soul of Jonathan was knit with the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul." It is the affections, not the lives, of two loving persons which are intertwined.... [ Continue Reading ]
with us] These words, which are not in the Heb., are added in the Sam., LXX, and Pesh. versions as essential to the meaning. _with sorrow_ i.e. "with grief," as in Genesis 42:38; not "with evil," as in Genesis 44:29.... [ Continue Reading ]
_surety_ Cf. Genesis 43:9.... [ Continue Reading ]
_instead of the lad_ This offer on the part of Judah to remain in Egypt in the bond-service of Joseph, as substitute for Benjamin (LXX ἀντὶ τοῦ παιδίου), forms the noble climax of the generous appeal to Joseph's feelings. The unconscious irony of the situation is heightened by the fact that Judah is... [ Continue Reading ]