Genesis 42:29 - Printer Friendly

ESV: When they came to Jacob their father in the land of Canaan, they told him all that had happened to them, saying,

NIV: When they came to their father Jacob in the land of Canaan, they told him all that had happened to them. They said,

NASB: When they came to their father Jacob in the land of Canaan, they told him everything that had happened to them, saying,

CSB: When they reached their father Jacob in the land of Canaan, they told him all that had happened to them:

NLT: When the brothers came to their father, Jacob, in the land of Canaan, they told him everything that had happened to them.

KJV: And they came unto Jacob their father unto the land of Canaan, and told him all that befell unto them; saying,

NKJV: Then they went to Jacob their father in the land of Canaan and told him all that had happened to them, saying:

This is a moment Joseph's brothers (Genesis 42:1–5) would have been dreading. They are returning home to their father, Jacob, without one of his sons—again (Genesis 37:28, 31–33). The governor of Egypt has kept Simeon (Genesis 42:19) and sent the other nine back (Genesis 42:20) to return with their youngest brother Benjamin. This news will be doubly painful for their father. One son is in prison in Egypt and the ruler there is demanding the last remaining son of his beloved Rachel.

What the brothers do not know is that the Egyptian governor is the brother, Joseph, himself (Genesis 42:7–8). They've already concluded their suffering is punishment for what they did to their younger brother (Genesis 42:21–22). Now, giving bad news to their aging father, they are acutely reminded of the day they returned to Jacob without Joseph. Their father had mourned for Joseph with great desperation for a long time (Genesis 37:35).

Genesis 42:29–38 explains the results of Jacob's sons first trip to Egypt to buy food during a famine. There, the governor allowed them to leave only after keeping leaving Simeon as security, and demanding they return with Benjamin, the youngest, to prove their honesty. They also discovered—to their horror—that the money they paid the governor for grain was still in their bags. They do not know the governor is their own brother, Joseph (Genesis 37:28). However, Jacob refuses to risk losing yet another son and forbids the men to take Benjamin to Egypt.

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.

Accessed 9/8/2024 12:59:12 AM