GOD’S ANCIENT PEOPLE GENESIS _ALUN OWEN_ CHAPTER 42 JACOB SENDS HIS SONS TO EGYPT V1 Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt. So he said to his sons, ‘You look at each other and you do nothing! V2 I have heard that there is grain in Egypt. Go there and buy grain for us. Then we shall live and... [ Continue Reading ]
When Jacob mentioned Egypt, his sons were unwilling to go there. Perhaps the word ‘Egypt’ reminded them of Joseph and therefore they felt guilty. But they went when Jacob told them to go.... [ Continue Reading ]
Benjamin was Joseph’s brother. Their father was Jacob and their mother was Rachel. The 10 other brothers might be called Joseph’s ‘half-brothers’. Their father was Jacob but they had different mothers. But all 12 were often called ‘brothers’. (For a list of the brothers, see Genesis 35:23-26 and the... [ Continue Reading ]
‘Joseph was the one who sold grain.’ Joseph certainly did not sell all the grain himself. His servants did that. But perhaps Joseph sold grain to those who came from far away. Or perhaps he saw his brothers and so he decided to deal with them himself.... [ Continue Reading ]
It was God who had brought Joseph to Egypt. Joseph knew that. And God had changed Joseph’s character since he came to Egypt. Because of this, Joseph did not blame his brothers and he was ready to forgive them. But he did not tell them yet that he forgave them. He waited until he knew more about them... [ Continue Reading ]
There were many reasons why the brothers did not recognise Joseph. These are some of the reasons. • They believed that Joseph was dead. • Joseph had shaved his beard off. • Joseph spoke in the Egyptian language and an interpreter translated. • Joseph wore Egyptian clothes. • Joseph had an Egypt... [ Continue Reading ]
Spies are people who come from a foreign country. They come in order to gather information. Spies may discover how an army could attack the country successfully. Joseph knew that his brothers were not spies. But he probably wanted to test them. Perhaps he wanted to know whether there had been a chan... [ Continue Reading ]
The youngest brother, who was with their father, was Benjamin. And when they said, ‘one brother is dead’, they meant Joseph. And Joseph knew that they meant him. The brothers had persuaded their father Jacob that Joseph was dead. (See Genesis 37:31 and comment.) But, when they did that, they were ly... [ Continue Reading ]
For ‘spies’, see comment on verse 9.... [ Continue Reading ]
‘So I will test your words.’ It would not test whether they were spies. But Joseph did not really want to test them. He wanted to see his brother Benjamin.... [ Continue Reading ]
‘For 3 days’ does not mean 3 whole days. The *Hebrews counted the first day and the last day. So the 3 days were: • The end of the day when Joseph spoke to his brothers • One whole day • The early morning of the next day That makes about 2 nights and a day. V18 On the third day, Joseph spoke to... [ Continue Reading ]
Joseph had changed his plans since he last spoke to his brothers. Then, he said that only one should return to *Canaan. (See verse 16.) But he decided that 9 should return. There were several reasons for this. • One brother could not carry enough grain to *Canaan. • Jacob would be more likely to s... [ Continue Reading ]
The brothers were losing one member. That reminded them that they had sent Joseph away many years before. They thought that God was punishing them for what they had done. Reuben called Joseph ‘the boy’. Joseph’s age had been 17 years at that time. But Joseph was the youngest except for Benjamin, wh... [ Continue Reading ]
‘He bound Simeon.’ Joseph told his servants to tie Simeon with strong strings. Probably he untied him when the brothers had gone. Joseph had said that Simeon would be ‘in prison’. (See verse 19.) He would probably live in Joseph’s house. He would not be free to go wherever he wanted to go. But he w... [ Continue Reading ]
The ‘bags’ contained the grain that the brothers had bought. The ‘sacks’ contained their clothes and their other possessions. The food for their *donkeys was in their sacks. The food for their *donkeys was not part of the grain that they had bought. To give honour to one’s father was very important... [ Continue Reading ]
The brothers did not understand what was happening. Therefore they were afraid. They did not understand why the ruler of the country himself spoke with them. They expected to buy grain from a less important person. They did not understand why Joseph spoke severely to them. They did not understand wh... [ Continue Reading ]
For the meaning of ‘spies’, see the comment on verse 9. V35 The brothers emptied their sacks. Then they saw that every man’s bundle of money was in his sack. They and their father saw their bundles of money. They were all very worried. V36 And Jacob their father said to them, ‘You have taken my chi... [ Continue Reading ]
God promised to Jacob’s grandfather Abraham that his *descendants would be as many as the stars. (See Genesis 15:5.) God repeated this promise to Jacob’s father Isaac. (See Genesis 26:3-4.) And God promised to Jacob, ‘Your family shall become a nation and a group of peoples.’ (See Genesis 35:11.) Bu... [ Continue Reading ]
‘I will bring him back to you.’ This promise meant nothing. Reuben did not have the power to keep Benjamin safe.... [ Continue Reading ]
‘His brother is dead.’ Joseph was Benjamin’s only real brother. The other 10 men were half-brothers. ‘Only he remains.’ Benjamin was the only one whose mother was Rachel. (See the comment on verse 4.) CANAAN ~ the country where the Canaanites lived. (See Canaanites.) It is approximately the same lan... [ Continue Reading ]