Genesis 42:7 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Joseph saw his brothers and recognized them, but he treated them like strangers and spoke roughly to them. "Where do you come from?" he said. They said, "From the land of Canaan, to buy food."

NIV: As soon as Joseph saw his brothers, he recognized them, but he pretended to be a stranger and spoke harshly to them. "Where do you come from?" he asked. "From the land of Canaan," they replied, "to buy food."

NASB: When Joseph saw his brothers, he recognized them, but he disguised himself to them and spoke to them harshly. He said to them, 'Where have you come from?' And they said, 'From the land of Canaan, to buy food.'

CSB: When Joseph saw his brothers, he recognized them, but he treated them like strangers and spoke harshly to them. "Where do you come from?" he asked. "From the land of Canaan to buy food," they replied.

NLT: Joseph recognized his brothers instantly, but he pretended to be a stranger and spoke harshly to them. 'Where are you from?' he demanded. 'From the land of Canaan,' they replied. 'We have come to buy food.'

KJV: And Joseph saw his brethren, and he knew them, but made himself strange unto them, and spake roughly unto them; and he said unto them, Whence come ye? And they said, From the land of Canaan to buy food.

NKJV: Joseph saw his brothers and recognized them, but he acted as a stranger to them and spoke roughly to them. Then he said to them, “Where do you come from?” And they said, “From the land of Canaan to buy food.”

When Joseph was just seventeen years old (Genesis 37:2), his jealous older brothers sold him into slavery (Genesis 37:28). Thirteen years later, Joseph ascended to second-in-command over the entire nation of Egypt (Genesis 41:41–46). A further seven years of prosperity followed (Genesis 41:53–54), and then a famine. Joseph is now nearing forty years of age. He wears the clothes of an Egyptian officer (Genesis 41:14, 42) and uses an Egyptian name (Genesis 41:45). As the world struggles under the famine, only Egypt has food thanks to Joseph's work (Genesis 41:55–57).

One can only imagine how shocked Joseph must have been to see his own brothers appear to ask to buy grain (Genesis 42:1–6). Adding to the drama, the men are bowing to him—exactly as Joseph predicted they would so many years ago (Genesis 37:5–11). The following verses will show that Joseph does not harbor a grudge; at the same time, he is reasonably suspicious of how his brothers might react to his survival. And, it is entirely reasonable for Joseph to feel a surge of anger, as he once again faces the family members who horribly betrayed him.

For all these reasons, Joseph speaks to them as if he neither knows nor trusts them. This is partly to disguise his own emotions (Genesis 42:23–24). It also gives him opportunity to test their intentions. They answer truthfully, revealing to him they still dwell in Canaan (Genesis 37:1). They have come to buy food, along with so many others facing starvation due to the famine.

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.