Gen 44:18-47:27 | NASB2020 | STEP | Then Judah approached him and said , “ Oh my lord , may your servant please speak a word in my lord’s ears , and do not be angry with your servant ; for you are equal to Pharaoh .

Genesis 44:18-34

18 Then Judah approached him and said, “Oh my lord, may your servant please speak a word in my lord’s ears, and ^{▼▼Lit let not your anger burn against
,} ^bdo not be angry with your servant; for ^cyou are equal to Pharaoh. 19 ^dMy lord asked his servants, saying, ‘Have you a father or a brother?’ 20 And we said to my lord, ‘We have an old father and ^ea little boy born in our father’s old age. Now ^fhis brother is dead, so he alone is left of his mother, and his father loves him.’ 21 Then you said to your servants, ‘ ^gBring him down to me so that I may set my eyes on him.’ 22 But we said to my lord, ‘The boy cannot leave his father, for if he should leave his father, ^{▼▼Lit he would}his father would die.’ 23 You said to your servants, however, ‘ ⁱUnless your youngest brother comes down with you, you will not see my face again.’ 24 So it came about when we went up to your servant my father, we told him the words of my lord. 25 And ^jour father said, ‘Go back, buy us a little food.’ 26 But we said, ‘We cannot go down. If our youngest brother is with us, then we will go down; for we cannot see the man’s face unless our youngest brother is with us.’ 27 Then your servant my father said to us, ‘You know that ^kmy wife bore me two sons; 28 and the one left me, and ^lI said, “Surely he is torn to pieces,” and I have not seen him since. 29 If you also take this one from ^{▼▼Lit my face}me, and harm happens to him, you will ⁿbring my gray hair down to Sheol in ^{▼▼Lit evil}sorrow.’ 30 So now, when I come to your servant, my father, and the boy is not with us--since ^{▼▼Lit his soul is bound with his soul
,} ^qour father’s life is so attached to the boy’s life-- 31 when he sees that the boy is not with us, he will die. So your servants will ^rbring the gray hair of your servant, our father, down to Sheol in sorrow. 32 For your servant ^saccepted responsibility for the boy from my father, saying, ‘If I do not bring him back to you, then ^{▼▼Lit I will be culpable for all the days before my father}my father can let me take the blame forever.’ 33 So now, please let your servant remain as a slave to my lord instead of the boy, and let the boy go up with his brothers. 34 For how shall I go up to my father if the boy is not with me? I fear that I may see the evil that would ^{▼▼Lit find}overtake my father.”

Genesis 45

Joseph Deals Kindly with His Brothers

1 Then Joseph could not control himself in front of everyone standing before him, and he shouted, “Have everyone leave me!” So there ^{▼▼Lit stood}was no one with him ^wwhen Joseph made himself known to his brothers. 2 Then ^xhe ^{▼▼Lit gave forth his voice in weeping}wept so loudly that the Egyptians heard it, and the household of Pharaoh heard about it. 3 And Joseph said to his brothers, “ ^zI am Joseph! ^aaIs my father still alive?” But his brothers could not answer him, for ^abthey were terrified in his presence.

4 Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Please come ^{▼▼Lit near}closer to me.” And they came ^{▼▼Lit near}closer. And he said, “I am your brother Joseph, whom you ^aesold to Egypt. 5 Now do not be grieved or angry ^{▼▼Lit in your eyes}with yourselves because ^agyou sold me here, for ^ahGod sent me ahead of you ^{▼▼Lit for preservation of life}to save lives. 6 For the famine has been in the land ^ajthese two years, and there are still five years in which there will be neither plowing nor harvesting. 7 So ^akGod sent me ahead of you to ensure for you a remnant on the earth, and to ^{▼▼As in MT; another reading (cf. LXX) keep alive for you a great remnant}keep you alive by a great deliverance. 8 Now, therefore, it was not you who sent me here, but God; and He has made me a ^amfather to Pharaoh and lord of all his household, and ruler over all the land of Egypt. 9 Hurry and go up to my father, and ^ansay to him, ‘This is what your son Joseph says: “God has made me lord of all Egypt; come down to me, do not delay. 10 For you shall live in the land of ^aoGoshen, and you shall be near me, you and your children and your ^{▼▼Lit children’s children}grandchildren, and your flocks and your herds and all that you have. 11 There I will also ^aqprovide for you, for there are still five years of famine to come, and you and your household and all that you have would be impoverished.”’ 12 Behold, your eyes see, and the eyes of my brother Benjamin see, that it is my mouth which is speaking to you. 13 Now you must tell my father of all my splendor in Egypt, and all that you have seen; and you must hurry and ^arbring my father down here.” 14 Then he fell on his brother Benjamin’s neck and ^aswept, and Benjamin wept on his neck. 15 And he kissed all his brothers and wept on them, and afterward his brothers talked with him.

16 Now when ^atthe ^{▼▼Lit voice}news was heard in Pharaoh’s house ^{▼▼Lit saying, “Joseph’s brothers have come”}that Joseph’s brothers had come, it ^{▼▼Lit was good in the eyes of}pleased Pharaoh and his servants. 17 Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Say to your brothers, ‘Do this: load your livestock and ^{▼▼Lit come, go}go to the land of Canaan, 18 and take your father and your households and come to me; and ^ayI will give you the ^{▼▼Lit good}best of the land of Egypt, and you will eat the fat of the land.’ 19 Now you are ordered, ‘Do this: ^{▼▼Lit take for yourselves}take ^bbwagons from the land of Egypt for your little ones and for your wives, and bring your father and come. 20 And do not ^{▼▼Lit let your eye look with regret upon your vessels}concern yourselves with your property, for the ^{▼▼Lit good}best of all the land of Egypt is yours.’”

21 Then the sons of Israel did so; and Joseph gave them ^bewagons according to the ^{▼▼Lit mouth}command of Pharaoh, and gave them provisions for the journey. 22 To ^{▼▼Lit all of them he gave each man}each of them he gave ^bhchanges of garments, but to Benjamin he gave three hundred pieces of silver and ^bifive changes of garments. 23 And to his father he sent ^{▼▼Lit like this}the following: ten male donkeys loaded with the ^{▼▼Lit good}best things of Egypt, ten female donkeys loaded with grain, bread, and sustenance for his father ^{▼▼Lit for}on the journey.

24 So he sent his brothers away, and ^{▼▼Lit they departed; and he said}as they departed, he said to them, “Do not ^{▼▼Lit be agitated}quarrel on the journey.” 25 Then they went up from Egypt, and came to the land of Canaan, to their father Jacob. 26 And they told him, saying, “Joseph is still alive, and indeed he is ruler over all the land of Egypt.” But ^{▼▼Lit his heart grew numb}he was stunned, for ^bphe did not believe them. 27 When they told him all the words of Joseph that he had spoken to them, and when he saw the ^bqwagons that Joseph had sent to carry him, then the spirit of their father Jacob revived. 28 Then Israel said, “It is enough; my son Joseph is still alive. I will go and see him before I die.”

Genesis 46

Jacob Moves to Egypt

1 So Israel set out with all that he had, and came to ^brBeersheba, and offered sacrifices to the ^bsGod of his father Isaac. 2 And ^btGod spoke to Israel ^{▼▼Lit in the visions}in visions of the night and said, “ ^bvJacob, Jacob.” And he said, “Here I am.” 3 Then He said, “ ^bwI am God, the God of your father; do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for I will ^bxmake you into a great nation there. 4 ^byI will go down with you to Egypt, and ^bzI will also assuredly bring you up again; and ^caJoseph will ^{▼▼Lit put his hand on}close your eyes.”

5 Then Jacob left Beersheba, and the sons of Israel carried their father Jacob and their little ones and their wives in the ^ccwagons which Pharaoh had sent to carry him. 6 They also took their livestock and their possessions, which they had acquired in the land of Canaan, and ^cdcame to Egypt, Jacob and all his ^{▼▼Lit seed}descendants with him: 7 his sons and his grandsons with him, his daughters and his granddaughters, and all his ^{▼▼Lit seed}descendants he brought with him to Egypt.

Those Who Came to Egypt

8 Now these are the ^cgnames of the sons of Israel who went to Egypt, Jacob and his sons: Reuben, Jacob’s firstborn. 9 And the sons of Reuben: Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi. 10 And the ^chsons of Simeon: ^{▼▼In Num 26:12 and 1 Chr 4:24, Nemuel}Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad, ^{▼▼In 1 Chr 4:24, Jarib}Jachin, ^{▼▼In Num 26:13 and 1 Chr 4:24, Zerah}Zohar, and Shaul the son of a Canaanite woman. 11 And the sons of Levi: ^{▼▼In 1 Chr 6:16, Gershom}Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. 12 And the sons of Judah: Er, Onan, Shelah, Perez, and Zerah (but Er and Onan died in the land of Canaan). And the ^cmsons of Perez were Hezron and Hamul. 13 And the sons of Issachar: Tola, ^{▼▼In Num 26:23, Puvah; in 1 Chr 7:1, Puah}Puvvah, ^{▼▼In Num 26:24 and 1 Chr 7:1, Jashub}Iob, and Shimron. 14 And the sons of Zebulun: Sered, Elon, and Jahleel. 15 These are the sons of Leah, whom she bore to Jacob in Paddan-aram, with his daughter Dinah; ^{▼▼Lit all the souls of}all his sons and his daughters numbered thirty-three. 16 And the ^cqsons of Gad: ^{▼▼In Num 26:15, Zephon}Ziphion, Haggi, Shuni, ^{▼▼In Num 26:16, Ozni}Ezbon, Eri, ^{▼▼In Num 26:17, Arod}Arodi, and Areli. 17 And the ^cusons of Asher: Imnah, Ishvah, Ishvi, Beriah, and their sister Serah. And the ^cvsons of Beriah: Heber and Malchiel. 18 These are the sons of Zilpah, whom Laban gave to his daughter Leah; and she bore to Jacob these sixteen persons. 19 The sons of Jacob’s wife Rachel: Joseph and Benjamin. 20 ^cwNow to Joseph in the land of Egypt were born Manasseh and Ephraim, whom Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera, priest of On, bore to him. 21 And the ^cxsons of Benjamin: Bela, Becher, Ashbel, Gera, Naaman, ^{▼▼In Num 26:38, Ahiram}Ehi, Rosh, ^{▼▼In Num 26:39, Shephupham; in 1 Chr 7:12, Shuppim}Muppim, ^{▼▼In Num 26:39, Hupham}Huppim, and Ard. 22 These are the sons of Rachel, who were born to Jacob; there were fourteen persons in all. 23 And the sons of Dan: ^{▼▼In Num 26:42, Shuham}Hushim. 24 And the sons of Naphtali: ^{▼▼In 1 Chr 7:13, Jahziel}Jahzeel, Guni, Jezer, and ^{▼▼In 1 Chr 7:13, Shallum}Shillem. 25 These are the ^desons of Bilhah, whom ^dfLaban gave to his daughter Rachel, and she bore these to Jacob; there were seven persons in all. 26 ^dgAll the people belonging to Jacob, who came to Egypt, ^{▼▼Lit who came out of his loins}his direct descendants, not including the wives of Jacob’s sons, were sixty-six persons in all, 27 and the sons of Joseph, who were born to him in Egypt, were ^{▼▼Lit two souls}two; ^djall the people of the house of Jacob, who came to Egypt, were seventy.

28 Now Jacob sent Judah ahead of him to Joseph, to ^{▼▼Lit instruct before him}guide him to ^dlGoshen; and they came into the land of Goshen. 29 And Joseph ^{▼▼Lit harnessed}prepared his chariot and went up to Goshen to meet his father Israel; as soon as he appeared to him, Joseph threw himself on his neck and ^dnwept on his neck a long time. 30 Then Israel said to Joseph, “Now let me die, since I have seen your face, that you are still alive.” 31 But Joseph said to his brothers and to his father’s household, “ ^doI will go up and tell Pharaoh, and will say to him, ‘My brothers and my father’s household, who were in the land of Canaan, have come to me; 32 and the men are shepherds, for they have been ^{▼▼Lit men}keepers of livestock; and they have brought their flocks and their herds and all that they have.’ 33 When Pharaoh calls for you and says, ‘ ^dqWhat is your occupation?’ 34 you shall say, ‘Your servants have been ^{▼▼Lit men
,} ^dskeepers of livestock since our youth even until now, both we and our fathers,’ so that you may live in the land of ^dtGoshen; for every shepherd is an ^duabomination to the Egyptians.”

Genesis 47:1-27

Jacob’s Family Settles in Goshen

1 Then ^dvJoseph went in and told Pharaoh, and said, “My father and my brothers and their flocks and their herds and all that they have, have come out of the land of Canaan; and behold, they are in the land of ^dwGoshen.” 2 And he took five men from among his brothers and ^dxpresented them to Pharaoh. 3 Then Pharaoh said to his brothers, “ ^dyWhat is your occupation?” So they said to Pharaoh, “Your servants are ^dzshepherds, both we and our fathers.” 4 They also said to Pharaoh, “ ^eaWe have come to reside in the land, for there is no pasture for your servants’ flocks, for ^ebthe famine is severe in the land of Canaan. Now, therefore, please let your servants ^eclive in the land of Goshen.” 5 Then Pharaoh said to ^{▼▼Lit Joseph, saying}Joseph, “Your father and your brothers have come to you. 6 The land of Egypt is ^{▼▼Lit before you}at your disposal; settle your father and your brothers in ^efthe best of the land, let them live in the land of Goshen; and if you know any ^egcapable men among them, then ^{▼▼Lit appoint them rulers}put them in charge of my livestock.”

7 Then Joseph brought his father Jacob and ^{▼▼Lit set him before}presented him to Pharaoh; and Jacob ^ejblessed Pharaoh. 8 And Pharaoh said to Jacob, “How many ^{▼▼Lit are the days of the years of your life}years have you lived?” 9 So Jacob said to Pharaoh, “The ^{▼▼Lit days of the years
,} ^emyears of my living abroad are ^{▼▼Lit 130 years}130; few and ^{▼▼Lit evil}unpleasant have been the ^{▼▼Lit days of the years}years of my life, nor have they ^{▼▼Lit reached}attained ^erthe ^{▼▼Lit days of the years}years ^{▼▼Lit of the life of my fathers}that my fathers lived during the days of their living abroad.” 10 So Jacob ^eublessed Pharaoh, and went out from ^{▼▼Lit Pharaoh’s}his presence. 11 Now Joseph settled his father and his brothers and gave them property in the land of Egypt, in ^ewthe best of the land, in the land of ^exRameses, as Pharaoh had ordered. 12 Joseph also ^eyprovided his father and his brothers and all his father’s household with ^{▼▼Or bread}food, according to the ^{▼▼Lit mouth}number of their little ones.

13 Now there was no ^{▼▼Or bread}food in all the land, because the famine was very severe, so that ^fcthe land of Egypt and the land of Canaan languished because of the famine. 14 And ^fdJoseph collected all the money that was found in the land of Egypt and in the land of Canaan in payment for the grain which they bought, and Joseph brought the money into Pharaoh’s house. 15 When the money was all spent in the land of Egypt and in the land of Canaan, all the Egyptians came to Joseph saying, “Give us ^{▼▼Or bread}food, for ^ffwhy should we die in your presence? For our money is ^{▼▼Lit at an end}gone.” 16 Then Joseph said, “Give up your livestock, and I will give you food for your livestock, since your money is ^{▼▼Lit at an end}gone.” 17 So they brought their livestock to Joseph, and Joseph gave them ^{▼▼Or bread}food in exchange for the horses and the ^{▼▼Lit livestock of the flocks and livestock of the herds}flocks and the herds and the donkeys; and he ^{▼▼Lit led them as a shepherd}fed them with ^{▼▼Or bread}food in exchange for all their livestock ^{▼▼Lit in that year}that year. 18 But when that year ended, they came to him the ^{▼▼Lit second}next year and said to him, “We will not hide from my lord the fact that our money is all spent, and the ^{▼▼Lit livestock of the cattle}livestock are my lord’s. There is nothing left ^{▼▼Lit in the presence of}for my lord except our bodies and our lands. 19 Why should we die before your eyes, both we and our land? Buy us and our land for ^{▼▼Or bread}food, and we and our land will be slaves to Pharaoh. So give us seed, so that we may live and not die, and that the land may not be desolate.”

Result of the Famine

20 So Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh, for ^{▼▼Lit Egypt, every man}every Egyptian sold his field, because the famine was severe upon them. So the land became Pharaoh’s. 21 As for the people, he relocated them to the cities from one end of Egypt’s border to the other. 22 Only the land of the priests he did not buy, because the priests had an allotment from Pharaoh, and they ^{▼▼Lit ate their allotment}lived off the allotment which Pharaoh gave them. Therefore, they did not sell their land. 23 Then Joseph said to the people, “Behold, today I have purchased you and your land for Pharaoh; now, here is seed for you, and you may sow the land. 24 ^{▼▼Lit It shall come about...that you shall}At the harvest you shall give a ^fufifth to Pharaoh, and ^{▼▼Lit four parts}four-fifths shall be your own for seed of the field and for your food, and for those of your households and as food for your little ones.” 25 So they said, “You have saved our lives! Let us find favor in the sight of my lord, and we will be Pharaoh’s slaves.” 26 Joseph made it a statute concerning the land of Egypt, valid to this day, that Pharaoh was to have the fifth; ^fwonly the land of the priests ^{▼▼Lit alone did}did not become Pharaoh’s.

27 Now Israel lived in the land of Egypt, in ^{▼▼Lit the land of Goshen}Goshen, and they ^fzacquired property in it and ^gawere fruitful and became very numerous.