Genesis 44:7-30
New American Standard Bible
Chapter 44
7And they said to him, 'Why does my lord say such words as these? Far be it from your servants to do such a thing! 8Behold, the money which we found in the opening of our sacks we have brought back to you from the land of Canaan. How then could we steal silver or gold from your lord’s house? 9With whomever of your servants it is found, he shall die, and we also shall be my lord’s slaves.' 10So he said, 'Now let it indeed be according to your words; he with whom it is found shall be my slave, but the rest of you shall be considered innocent.' 11Then they hurried, each man lowered his sack to the ground, and each man opened his sack. 12And he searched, beginning with the oldest and ending with the youngest; and the cup was found in Benjamin’s sack. 13Then they tore their clothes in grief, and when each man had loaded his donkey, they returned to the city.
14When Judah and his brothers came to Joseph’s house, he was still there, and they fell down to the ground before him.
15Joseph said to them, 'What is this thing that you have done? Do you not know that a man who is like me can indeed practice divination?'
16So Judah said, 'What can we say to my lord? What words can we speak? And how can we justify ourselves? God has found out the guilt of your servants; behold, we are my lord’s slaves, both we and the one in whose possession the cup has been found.'
17But he said, 'Far be it from me to do this. The man in whose possession the cup has been found, he shall be my slave; but as for you, go up in peace to your father.'
18Then Judah approached him and said, 'Oh my lord, may your servant please speak a word in my lord’s ears, and do not be angry with your servant; for you are equal to Pharaoh.
19My lord asked his servants, saying, ‘Have you a father or a brother?’
20And we said to my lord, ‘We have an old father and a little boy born in our father’s old age. Now his brother is dead, so he alone is left of his mother, and his father loves him.’
21Then you said to your servants, ‘Bring him down to me so that I may set my eyes on him.’
22But we said to my lord, ‘The boy cannot leave his father, for if he should leave his father, his father would die.’
23You said to your servants, however, ‘Unless your youngest brother comes down with you, you will not see my face again.’
24So it came about when we went up to your servant my father, we told him the words of my lord.
25And our father said, ‘Go back, buy us a little food.’
26But we said, ‘We cannot go down. If our youngest brother is with us, then we will go down; for we cannot see the man’s face unless our youngest brother is with us.’
27Then your servant my father said to us, ‘You know that my wife bore me two sons;
28and the one left me, and I said, 'Surely he is torn to pieces,' and I have not seen him since.
29If you also take this one from me, and harm happens to him, you will bring my gray hair down to Sheol in sorrow.’
30So now, when I come to your servant, my father, and the boy is not with us—since our father’s life is so attached to the boy’s life—
King James Version
Chapter 44
7And they said unto him, Wherefore saith my lord these words? God forbid that thy servants should do according to this thing: 8Behold, the money, which we found in our sacks' mouths, we brought again unto thee out of the land of Canaan: how then should we steal out of thy lord's house silver or gold? 9With whomsoever of thy servants it be found, both let him die, and we also will be my lord's bondmen.
10And he said, Now also let it be according unto your words: he with whom it is found shall be my servant; and ye shall be blameless.
11Then they speedily took down every man his sack to the ground, and opened every man his sack.
12And he searched, and began at the eldest, and left at the youngest: and the cup was found in Benjamin's sack.
13Then they rent their clothes, and laded every man his ass, and returned to the city.
14And Judah and his brethren came to Joseph's house; for he was yet there: and they fell before him on the ground.
15And Joseph said unto them, What deed is this that ye have done? wot ye not that such a man as I can certainly divine?
18Then Judah came near unto him, and said, Oh my lord, let thy servant, I pray thee, speak a word in my lord's ears, and let not thine anger burn against thy servant: for thou art even as Pharaoh.
19My lord asked his servants, saying, Have ye a father, or a brother?
20And we said unto my lord, We have a father, an old man, and a child of his old age, a little one; and his brother is dead, and he alone is left of his mother, and his father loveth him.
21And thou saidst unto thy servants, Bring him down unto me, that I may set mine eyes upon him.
22And we said unto my lord, The lad cannot leave his father: for if he should leave his father, his father would die.
23And thou saidst unto thy servants, Except your youngest brother come down with you, ye shall see my face no more.
24And it came to pass when we came up unto thy servant my father, we told him the words of my lord.
25And our father said, Go again, and buy us a little food.
26And we said, We cannot go down: if our youngest brother be with us, then will we go down: for we may not see the man's face, except our youngest brother be with us.
Christian Standard Bible
Chapter 44
7They said to him, "Why does my lord say these things? Your servants could not possibly do such a thing. 8We even brought back to you from the land of Canaan the silver we found at the top of our bags. How could we steal silver or gold from your master’s house? 9If it is found with one of us, your servants, he must die, and the rest of us will become my lord’s slaves."
11So each one quickly lowered his sack to the ground and opened it.
12The steward searched, beginning with the oldest and ending with the youngest, and the cup was found in Benjamin’s sack.
13Then they tore their clothes, and each one loaded his donkey and returned to the city.
14When Judah and his brothers reached Joseph’s house, he was still there. They fell to the ground before him.
15"What is this you have done?" Joseph said to them. "Didn’t you know that a man like me could uncover the truth by divination?"
18But Judah approached him and said, "My lord, please let your servant speak personally to my lord. Do not be angry with your servant, for you are like Pharaoh.
19My lord asked his servants, ‘Do you have a father or a brother?’
20and we answered my lord, ‘We have an elderly father and a younger brother, the child of his old age. The boy’s brother is dead. He is the only one of his mother’s sons left, and his father loves him.’
21Then you said to your servants, ‘Bring him to me so that I can see him.’
22But we said to my lord, ‘The boy cannot leave his father. If he were to leave, his father would die.’
23Then you said to your servants, ‘If your younger brother does not come down with you, you will not see me again.’
24"This is what happened when we went back to your servant my father: We reported to him the words of my lord.
25But our father said, ‘Go again, and buy us a little food.’
26We told him, ‘We cannot go down unless our younger brother goes with us. If our younger brother isn’t with us, we cannot see the man.’
27Your servant my father said to us, ‘You know that my wife bore me two sons.
28One is gone from me—I said he must have been torn to pieces—and I have never seen him again.
29If you also take this one from me and anything happens to him, you will bring my gray hairs down to Sheol in sorrow.’
New Living Translation
Chapter 44
7What are you talking about?' the brothers responded. 'We are your servants and would never do such a thing! 8Didn’t we return the money we found in our sacks? We brought it back all the way from the land of Canaan. Why would we steal silver or gold from your master’s house? 9If you find his cup with any one of us, let that man die. And all the rest of us, my lord, will be your slaves.'
11They all quickly took their sacks from the backs of their donkeys and opened them.
12The palace manager searched the brothers’ sacks, from the oldest to the youngest. And the cup was found in Benjamin’s sack!
13When the brothers saw this, they tore their clothing in despair. Then they loaded their donkeys again and returned to the city.
14Joseph was still in his palace when Judah and his brothers arrived, and they fell to the ground before him.
15What have you done?' Joseph demanded. 'Don’t you know that a man like me can predict the future?'
19My lord, previously you asked us, your servants, ‘Do you have a father or a brother?’
20And we responded, ‘Yes, my lord, we have a father who is an old man, and his youngest son is a child of his old age. His full brother is dead, and he alone is left of his mother’s children, and his father loves him very much.’
21And you said to us, ‘Bring him here so I can see him with my own eyes.’
22But we said to you, ‘My lord, the boy cannot leave his father, for his father would die.’
23But you told us, ‘Unless your youngest brother comes with you, you will never see my face again.’
24So we returned to your servant, our father, and told him what you had said.
25Later, when he said, ‘Go back again and buy us more food,’
26we replied, ‘We can’t go unless you let our youngest brother go with us. We’ll never get to see the man’s face unless our youngest brother is with us.’
27Then my father said to us, ‘As you know, my wife had two sons,
28and one of them went away and never returned. Doubtless he was torn to pieces by some wild animal. I have never seen him since.
29Now if you take his brother away from me, and any harm comes to him, you will send this grieving, white-haired man to his grave. ’
English Standard Version
Chapter 44
7They said to him, "Why does my lord speak such words as these? Far be it from your servants to do such a thing! 8Behold, the money that we found in the mouths of our sacks we brought back to you from the land of Canaan. How then could we steal silver or gold from your lord 's house? 9Whichever of your servants is found with it shall die, and we also will be my lord 's servants." 10He said, "Let it be as you say: he who is found with it shall be my servant, and the rest of you shall be innocent." 11Then each man quickly lowered his sack to the ground, and each man opened his sack. 12And he searched, beginning with the eldest and ending with the youngest. And the cup was found in Benjamin 's sack. 13Then they tore their clothes, and every man loaded his donkey, and they returned to the city.
14When Judah and his brothers came to Joseph 's house, he was still there. They fell before him to the ground.
15Joseph said to them, "What deed is this that you have done? Do you not know that a man like me can indeed practice divination?"
16And Judah said, "What shall we say to my lord? What shall we speak? Or how can we clear ourselves? God has found out the guilt of your servants; behold, we are my lord 's servants, both we and he also in whose hand the cup has been found."
17But he said, "Far be it from me that I should do so! Only the man in whose hand the cup was found shall be my servant. But as for you, go up in peace to your father."
18Then Judah went up to him and said, "Oh, my lord, please let your servant speak a word in my lord 's ears, and let not your anger burn against your servant, for you are like Pharaoh himself.
19My lord asked his servants, saying, ‘Have you a father, or a brother?’
20And we said to my lord, ‘We have a father, an old man, and a young brother, the child of his old age. His brother is dead, and he alone is left of his mother 's children, and his father loves him.’
21Then you said to your servants, ‘Bring him down to me, that I may set my eyes on him.’
22We said to my lord, ‘The boy cannot leave his father, for if he should leave his father, his father would die.’
23Then you said to your servants, ‘Unless your youngest brother comes down with you, you shall not see my face again.’
24"When we went back to your servant my father, we told him the words of my lord.
25And when our father said, ‘Go again, buy us a little food,’
26we said, ‘We cannot go down. If our youngest brother goes with us, then we will go down. For we cannot see the man 's face unless our youngest brother is with us.’
27Then your servant my father said to us, ‘You know that my wife bore me two sons.
28One left me, and I said, "Surely he has been torn to pieces," and I have never seen him since.
29If you take this one also from me, and harm happens to him, you will bring down my gray hairs in evil to Sheol.’
New International Version
Chapter 44
7But they said to him, "Why does my lord say such things? Far be it from your servants to do anything like that! 8We even brought back to you from the land of Canaan the silver we found inside the mouths of our sacks. So why would we steal silver or gold from your master’s house? 9If any of your servants is found to have it, he will die; and the rest of us will become my lord’s slaves."
11Each of them quickly lowered his sack to the ground and opened it.
12Then the steward proceeded to search, beginning with the oldest and ending with the youngest. And the cup was found in Benjamin’s sack.
13At this, they tore their clothes. Then they all loaded their donkeys and returned to the city.
14Joseph was still in the house when Judah and his brothers came in, and they threw themselves to the ground before him.
15Joseph said to them, "What is this you have done? Don’t you know that a man like me can find things out by divination?"
18Then Judah went up to him and said: "Pardon your servant, my lord, let me speak a word to my lord. Do not be angry with your servant, though you are equal to Pharaoh himself.
19My lord asked his servants, ‘Do you have a father or a brother?’
20And we answered, ‘We have an aged father, and there is a young son born to him in his old age. His brother is dead, and he is the only one of his mother’s sons left, and his father loves him.’
21"Then you said to your servants, ‘Bring him down to me so I can see him for myself.’
22And we said to my lord, ‘The boy cannot leave his father; if he leaves him, his father will die.’
23But you told your servants, ‘Unless your youngest brother comes down with you, you will not see my face again.’
24When we went back to your servant my father, we told him what my lord had said.
25"Then our father said, ‘Go back and buy a little more food.’
26But we said, ‘We cannot go down. Only if our youngest brother is with us will we go. We cannot see the man’s face unless our youngest brother is with us.’
27"Your servant my father said to us, ‘You know that my wife bore me two sons.
28One of them went away from me, and I said, "He has surely been torn to pieces." And I have not seen him since.
29If you take this one from me too and harm comes to him, you will bring my gray head down to the grave in misery.’
New King James Version
Chapter 44
7And they said to him, “Why does my lord say these words? Far be it from us that your servants should do such a thing. 8Look, we brought back to you from the land of Canaan the money which we found in the mouth of our sacks. How then could we steal silver or gold from your lord’s house? 9With whomever of your servants it is found, let him die, and we also will be my lord’s slaves.”
10And he said, “Now also let it be according to your words; he with whom it is found shall be my slave, and you shall be blameless.”
11Then each man speedily let down his sack to the ground, and each opened his sack.
12So he searched. He began with the oldest and left off with the youngest; and the cup was found in Benjamin’s sack.
13Then they tore their clothes, and each man loaded his donkey and returned to the city.
14So Judah and his brothers came to Joseph’s house, and he was still there; and they fell before him on the ground.
15And Joseph said to them, “What deed is this you have done? Did you not know that such a man as I can certainly practice divination?”
18Then Judah came near to him and said: “O my lord, please let your servant speak a word in my lord’s hearing, and do not let your anger burn against your servant; for you are even like Pharaoh.
19My lord asked his servants, saying, ‘Have you a father or a brother?’
20And we said to my lord, ‘We have a father, an old man, and a child of his old age, who is young; his brother is dead, and he alone is left of his mother’s children, and his father loves him.’
21Then you said to your servants, ‘Bring him down to me, that I may set my eyes on him.’
22And we said to my lord, ‘The lad cannot leave his father, for if he should leave his father, his father would die.’
23But you said to your servants, ‘Unless your youngest brother comes down with you, you shall see my face no more.’
24“So it was, when we went up to your servant my father, that we told him the words of my lord.
25And our father said, ‘Go back and buy us a little food.’
26But we said, ‘We cannot go down; if our youngest brother is with us, then we will go down; for we may not see the man’s face unless our youngest brother is with us.’
27Then your servant my father said to us, ‘You know that my wife bore me two sons;
28and the one went out from me, and I said, “Surely he is torn to pieces”; and I have not seen him since.
29But if you take this one also from me, and calamity befalls him, you shall bring down my gray hair with sorrow to the grave.’
