Genesis 42:14 - Printer Friendly

ESV: But Joseph said to them, “It is as I said to you. You are spies.

NIV: Joseph said to them, 'It is just as I told you: You are spies!

NASB: Yet Joseph said to them, 'It is as I said to you, you are spies;

CSB: Then Joseph said to them, "I have spoken: 'You are spies! '

NLT: But Joseph insisted, 'As I said, you are spies!

KJV: And Joseph said unto them, That is it that I spake unto you, saying, Ye are spies:

NKJV: But Joseph said to them, “It is as I spoke to you, saying, ‘You are spies!’

Joseph's brothers have denied his accusations that they are spies sent to identify Egypt's weaknesses (Genesis 42:1–12). They don't realize who Joseph is; they only know him as Zaphenath-paneah, governor of the entire nation of Egypt (Genesis 41:45). They don't recognize the brother they sold as a slave twenty years before (Genesis 37:28). Joseph recognizes them, however, and seems to be interrogating them. His purpose is not for revenge—later passages make it clear he has good intentions for his family (Genesis 42:23–24; 43:30; 45:1–5), with the goal of rescuing them from the famine (Genesis 47:11–12).

In hopes of showing that they are just ordinary men, they have told Joseph some of their story: They are all brothers. Their youngest brother is back home with their father. Another brother is "no more," which refers to their lie about what happened to Joseph himself (Genesis 37:31–34). Joseph repeats the accusation of spying a third time. In other situations, this would have put the brothers at serious risk of death. In this case, since Joseph holds immense power (Genesis 41:41), he controls what happens to these men.

In the following verse, he will describe a way to test if they are telling the truth (Genesis 42:15). This, also, is part of his plan to be fully reunited with his family.

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.