The Holy Ivri Heritage Bible

1And Ya’akov having seen that there was grain for sale in Mitzrayim [Egypt], said to his sons, “Why are you indolent?” 2“Behold, I have heard that there is grain in Mitzrayim; go down there, and buy for us a little food, that we may live, and not die.” 3And the ten brothers of Yosef went down to buy grain out of Mitzrayim. 4But Ya’akov did not send Binyamin, the brother of Yosef, with his brothers; for he said, “Lest, haply, harm befall him.” 5And the sons of Yisra’el came to buy with those that came, for the famine was in the land of Kena’an. 6And Yosef was ruler of the land; he sold to all the people of the land. And the brothers of Yosef, having come, bowed down to him with their faces to the ground. 7And when Yosef saw his brothers, he recognized them, but estranged himself from them, and spoke harsh words to them; and said to them, “From where have you come?” And they said, “From the land of Kena’an, to buy food.” 8And Yosef knew his brothers, but they did not know him. 9And Yosef remembered the dreams which he had dreamed of them; and he said to them, “You are spies; you have come to see the nakedness of the land.” 10But they said, “No, my lord, we your servants have come to buy food. 11We are all sons of one man; we are peaceful; your servants are not spies.” 12And he said to them, “No, but you have come to see the nakedness of the land.” 13And they said, “We your servants are twelve brothers, the sons of one man in the land of Kena’an; behold, the youngest is with our father today, and one is not.” 14And Yosef said to them, “This is what I spoke to you, saying, You are spies. 15By the life of Pharaoh, you shall not depart unless your youngest brother comes here. 16Send one of you, and let him fetch your brother; and you shall be bound, that your words may be tested, whether there is truth in you; but if not, by the life of Pharaoh, surely you are spies.” 17And he put them in mishmar [prison/custody] for shalosh yamim [three days]. 18And Yosef said to them on the Yom HaShelishi [third day], “Do this and live, for I fear Elohim. 19If you are peaceful, let one of your brothers be detained in prison; but you go, carry grain for the famine of your households. 20And bring your youngest brother to me, and your words shall be verified, and you shall not die.” And they did so. 21And each said to his brother, “Truly we are ashemim [guilty/bearing blame] concerning our brother, when we saw the anguish of his soul, when he pleaded with us, and we did not listen; therefore this distress has come upon us.” 22And Reuven answered them, saying, “Did I not speak to you, saying, Do not harm the boy? But you did not listen; behold, his blood is required.” 23But they did not know that Yosef understood them, for there was an interpreter between them. 24And Yosef turned away from them and wept; and returned to them again, and spoke to them; and he took Shimon from them, and bound him before their eyes. 25And Yosef commanded to fill their vessels with grain, and to restore every man’s money into his sack, and to give them provision for the way; and it was done to them. 26And they loaded their donkeys with the grain, and departed. 27And one opened his sack to give his donkey fodder at the malon [lodging place/inn], and saw his bundle of money; behold, it was in the mouth of his sack. 28And he said to his brothers, “My money has been restored, and behold, it is in my sack.” And their hearts failed them, and they were afraid, saying one to another, “What is this that Elohim has done to us?” 29And they came to Ya’akov their father in the land of Kena’an, and told him all that had happened to them, saying, 30“The man, the lord of the land, spoke harshly to us, and put us in prison as spies of the land. 31And we said to him, We are peaceful men; we are not spies. 32We are twelve brothers, sons of our father; one is not, and the youngest is with our father today in the land of Kena’an. 33And the man, the lord of the land, said to us, By this shall I know that you are peaceful: leave one brother here with me, and take the grain for your households, and depart. 34And bring your youngest brother to me; then I shall know that you are not spies, but that you are peaceful men; and I will restore your brother to you, and you shall trade in the land.” 35And it came to pass, as they emptied their sacks, behold, every man’s bundle of money was in his sack; and they and their father saw the bundles of money, and they were afraid. 36And Ya’akov their father said to them, “You have bereaved me: Yosef is not, Shimon is not, and you will take Binyamin away; all these things are against me.” 37And Reuven spoke to his father, saying, “Slay my two sons, if I do not bring him to you; deliver him into my hand, and I will bring him back to you.” 38But he said, “My son shall not go down with you; for his brother is dead, and he alone is left. If harm befall him by the way in which you go, then you shall bring down my gray hairs with yagon [sorrow/grief] to She’ol.”