Genesis 42:24 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Then he turned away from them and wept. And he returned to them and spoke to them. And he took Simeon from them and bound him before their eyes.

NIV: He turned away from them and began to weep, but then came back and spoke to them again. He had Simeon taken from them and bound before their eyes.

NASB: Then he turned away from them and wept. But when he returned to them and spoke to them, he took Simeon from them and bound him before their eyes.

CSB: He turned away from them and wept. When he turned back and spoke to them, he took Simeon from them and had him bound before their eyes.

NLT: Now he turned away from them and began to weep. When he regained his composure, he spoke to them again. Then he chose Simeon from among them and had him tied up right before their eyes.

KJV: 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.

NKJV: And he turned himself away from them and wept. Then he returned to them again, and talked with them. And he took Simeon from them and bound him before their eyes.

The ten brothers don't know the man hearing their discussion is Joseph—they only know him as Zaphenath-paneah (Genesis 41:41–45), a powerful vizier of the Egyptian Pharaoh. Joseph's brothers don't know he has understood their recent confession (Genesis 42:21–23). They feel guilty for what they did to him as a boy (Genesis 37:28), ignoring his distress and pleas for help while slave traders carried him away to Egypt. They admit they deserve the treatment they are now receiving (Genesis 42:7–17) because of what they did. Joseph has heard how Reuben stood up to his brothers and tried to stop them.

It's no wonder Joseph must turn away and weep. In hindsight, readers may be surprised to see how little Genesis revealed of Joseph's emotional responses before these encounters with his brothers. In this moment, however, there is no disguising his feelings. It must have been intensely meaningful, even healing, for Joseph to hear his brothers' remorse.

Still, he continues with his plan. He will force them to bring his youngest brother Benjamin to him, by holding one of them captive until they do so. He chooses Simeon and ties him up right in front of them. He apparently doesn't want them to imagine that Simeon will be comfortable while they are away.

Genesis 42:18–28 describes a powerful Egyptian governor sending nine of Jacob's sons home with purchased grain, while keeping Simeon as collateral. He commands the others to return only if they can prove their honesty by bringing along their youngest brother. The men tell each other they must be suffering for abusing another brother, Joseph (Genesis 37:28). They don't realize the governor is Joseph himself (Genesis 42:7) and that he understands their language. After leaving, the horrified brothers find the payment for the grain is still in their bags. They do not know Joseph secretly arranged to give it back to them.

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.