Genesis 42:17 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And he put them all together in custody for three days.

NIV: And he put them all in custody for three days.

NASB: So he put them all together in prison for three days.

CSB: So Joseph imprisoned them together for three days.

NLT: So Joseph put them all in prison for three days.

KJV: And he put them all together into ward three days.

NKJV: So he put them all together in prison three days.

The recent turn of events probably bewildered Joseph's brothers. After coming to buy food (Genesis 42:1–5), they have been accused by the governor of being spies (Genesis 42:6–14). What they don't realize is that the governor is their long-lost brother, Joseph, whom these ten men sold into slavery twenty years earlier (Genesis 37:28). His interrogating, accusing questions would have been frightening and unexpected.

Even the resolution proposed by the Egyptian governor seems strange. Why would he think that bringing their youngest brother to him would prove they are not spies (Genesis 42:15–16)? Modern readers might be confused by Joseph's actions, as well. He knows who they are. He remembers all they have done to him. We might wonder if he is deciding whether to take revenge on them. The only thing which seems clear here is that Joseph desperately wants to see his younger brother Benjamin; this was the only brother who had no part in selling him into slavery.

Later verses show that Joseph's intentions, though coupled with righteous anger (Genesis 42:7), are good (Genesis 42:23–24; 43:30; 45:1–5). His end goal is rescuing the family from starvation (Genesis 47:11–12). Everything he does here is a form of testing and preparation for those results.

Prior to letting one brother leave, while the rest remain in custody, Joseph locks them all up together for three days. Apparently, he needs time to decide exactly how to proceed.

Genesis 42:1–17 contains the unlikeliest of reunions: that between Joseph and his ten oldest brothers (Genesis 37:28). They have been sent by Jacob to Egypt to buy grain during a terrible famine (Genesis 41:53–54). They don't recognize their brother, now an Egyptian ruler. Joseph knows them but keeps the secret; he responds harshly to avoid breaking the illusion. He then puts them in prison for three days, saying they might be spies. All the while, he has a plan in mind.

Genesis 42 describes the moment Joseph sees his brothers for the first time since they sold him into slavery over 20 years earlier. They have come to Egypt to buy grain, and they do not recognize him. He keeps his secret, speaking roughly to them and hinting they may be spies. He allows them to leave only if they promise to return with their youngest brother Benjamin. He keeps Simeon as collateral but sends them off with full sacks of grain for their family. He also secretly returns their money, something they are terrified to discover on the way home. Back in Canaan, Jacob responds to this terrible news with bitterness and vindictive blame.

Twenty years prior to the events of this chapter, Joseph's brothers sold him into slavery (Genesis 37:28). Miraculously, Joseph is now the governor of the nation of Egypt (Genesis 41:44). His brothers, who know nothing of Joseph's fate, have come to buy food during a terrible famine (Genesis 41:56–57). Joseph, probably and justifiably angry at his brothers, keeps his identity a secret, at first. Over the next several chapters, he will test, challenge, and chasten them. Yet there is no revenge involved; everything Joseph does furthers a long-term goal of rescuing the family from starvation.

The book of Genesis establishes fundamental truths about God. Among these are His role as the Creator, His holiness, His hatred of sin, His love for mankind, and His willingness to provide for our redemption. We learn not only where mankind has come from, but why the world is in its present form. The book also presents the establishment of Israel, God's chosen people. Many of the principles given in other parts of Scripture depend on the basic ideas presented here in the book of Genesis. Within the framework of the Bible, Genesis explains the bare-bones history of the universe leading up to the captivity of Israel in Egypt, setting the stage for the book of Exodus.