seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
Genesis 44:18 Then Judah went up to him and said: “Pardon your servant, my lord, let me speak a word to my lord. Do not be angry with your servant, though you are equal to Pharaoh himself. 19 My lord asked his servants, ‘Do you have a father or a brother?’ 20 And we answered, ‘We have an aged father, and there is a young son born to him in his old age. His brother is dead, and he is the only one of his mother’s sons left, and his father loves him.’
21 “Then you said to your servants, ‘Bring him down to me so I can see him for myself.’ 22 And we said to my lord, ‘The boy cannot leave his father; if he leaves him, his father will die.’ 23 But you told your servants, ‘Unless your youngest brother comes down with you, you will not see my face again.’ 24 When we went back to your servant my father, we told him what my lord had said.
25 “Then our father said, ‘Go back and buy a little more food.’ 26 But we said, ‘We cannot go down. Only if our youngest brother is with us will we go. We cannot see the man’s face unless our youngest brother is with us.’
27 “Your servant my father said to us, ‘You know that my wife bore me two sons. 28 One of them went away from me, and I said, “He has surely been torn to pieces.” And I have not seen him since. 29 If you take this one from me too and harm comes to him, you will bring my gray head down to the grave in misery.’
30 “So now, if the boy is not with us when I go back to your servant my father, and if my father, whose life is closely bound up with the boy’s life, 31 sees that the boy isn’t there, he will die. Your servants will bring the gray head of our father down to the grave in sorrow. 32 Your servant guaranteed the boy’s safety to my father. I said, ‘If I do not bring him back to you, I will bear the blame before you, my father, all my life!’
33 “Now then, please let your servant remain here as my lord’s slave in place of the boy, and let the boy return with his brothers. 34 How can I go back to my father if the boy is not with me? No! Do not let me see the misery that would come on my father.”
21 “Then you said to your servants, ‘Bring him down to me so I can see him for myself.’ 22 And we said to my lord, ‘The boy cannot leave his father; if he leaves him, his father will die.’ 23 But you told your servants, ‘Unless your youngest brother comes down with you, you will not see my face again.’ 24 When we went back to your servant my father, we told him what my lord had said.
25 “Then our father said, ‘Go back and buy a little more food.’ 26 But we said, ‘We cannot go down. Only if our youngest brother is with us will we go. We cannot see the man’s face unless our youngest brother is with us.’
27 “Your servant my father said to us, ‘You know that my wife bore me two sons. 28 One of them went away from me, and I said, “He has surely been torn to pieces.” And I have not seen him since. 29 If you take this one from me too and harm comes to him, you will bring my gray head down to the grave in misery.’
30 “So now, if the boy is not with us when I go back to your servant my father, and if my father, whose life is closely bound up with the boy’s life, 31 sees that the boy isn’t there, he will die. Your servants will bring the gray head of our father down to the grave in sorrow. 32 Your servant guaranteed the boy’s safety to my father. I said, ‘If I do not bring him back to you, I will bear the blame before you, my father, all my life!’
33 “Now then, please let your servant remain here as my lord’s slave in place of the boy, and let the boy return with his brothers. 34 How can I go back to my father if the boy is not with me? No! Do not let me see the misery that would come on my father.”
I started with bible-commentaries.com this morning.
Joseph rejects the suggestion that all of them would become his slaves. He is only after Benjamin. Will his brothers sell Benjamin into slavery, as they sold him? That is what he has to know before he can reveal his identity to his brothers.
It has been said that Judah's speech is one of the most beautiful examples in the whole Bible of ex temporary eloquence. We do not know how his words have come down to us through history. Moses, who wrote them down for us, was not present at the occasion. It is doubtful that Judah himself wrote down later what he said at the spur of the moment. The most likely person, who was the most deeply affected by it, was Joseph. He probably dictated the words later to one of the scribes and thus preserved them for posterity.
The brothers were prostrated on the ground before Joseph. At this point Judah must have gotten up and stood before Joseph's seat. Judah starts out by covering the ground that was covered during the first meeting the brothers had with Joseph. There is no reason to believe that Judah adds things that were not said during the first conversation. Chapter 42:13 probably gives an abbreviated version of a longer dialogue. We do not read there that Joseph asked questions regarding the family; only that the brothers offer the information to prove that they are not a random group of spies, but one single family. But it is very likely that Joseph tried to hear as much about his father and his own brother as he could and that he asked several questions regarding them.
Joseph learns, what he had not heard before, that Jacob had been pouring out the same affection upon Benjamin as he had upon Joseph before. The difference between Jacob's relation to Benjamin and to Joseph was that Benjamin was not allowed to leave his father. He hears about the struggle Jacob must have gone through in letting Benjamin go. He realizes how severe the hunger in Canaan must be for his father to be forced into this decision. He also learns for the first time how the brothers had accounted for Joseph's disappearance. He knows that their brothers never cleared their consciences of their guilt. All this is passed on to Joseph slowly, word for word, through an interpreter.
Judah paints in vivid colors what will happen to Jacob if Benjamin does not return. The most important part of Judah's speech is found in vs.32-34. Where he says: "Your servant guaranteed the boy's safety to my father. I said, 'If I do not bring him back to you, I will bear the blame before you, my father, all my life!' Now then, please let your servant remain here as my lord's slave in place of the boy, and let the boy return with his brothers. How can I go back to my father if the boy is not with me? No! Do not let me see the misery that would come upon my father." Joseph understands clearly that, if Judah offers his life in the place of his brother Benjamin, a profound change has taken place in his heart. It was probably true that Judah did not have the same sadistic disposition as his brothers Simeon and Levi. There are indications that his conscience was more bothered by what they had done to Joseph than the other brothers.' The fact that he moved away from the group and lived by himself for a while, as we read in chapter 38, was probably prompted by his feeling of guilt. But it had been Judah who had suggested to sell Joseph to the Midianite merchants. Now he stands before Joseph, willing to give his life for his brother Benjamin. We do not need much imagination to feel the atmosphere of deep emotion that was created by Judah's words.
It has been said that Judah's speech is one of the most beautiful examples in the whole Bible of ex temporary eloquence. We do not know how his words have come down to us through history. Moses, who wrote them down for us, was not present at the occasion. It is doubtful that Judah himself wrote down later what he said at the spur of the moment. The most likely person, who was the most deeply affected by it, was Joseph. He probably dictated the words later to one of the scribes and thus preserved them for posterity.
The brothers were prostrated on the ground before Joseph. At this point Judah must have gotten up and stood before Joseph's seat. Judah starts out by covering the ground that was covered during the first meeting the brothers had with Joseph. There is no reason to believe that Judah adds things that were not said during the first conversation. Chapter 42:13 probably gives an abbreviated version of a longer dialogue. We do not read there that Joseph asked questions regarding the family; only that the brothers offer the information to prove that they are not a random group of spies, but one single family. But it is very likely that Joseph tried to hear as much about his father and his own brother as he could and that he asked several questions regarding them.
Joseph learns, what he had not heard before, that Jacob had been pouring out the same affection upon Benjamin as he had upon Joseph before. The difference between Jacob's relation to Benjamin and to Joseph was that Benjamin was not allowed to leave his father. He hears about the struggle Jacob must have gone through in letting Benjamin go. He realizes how severe the hunger in Canaan must be for his father to be forced into this decision. He also learns for the first time how the brothers had accounted for Joseph's disappearance. He knows that their brothers never cleared their consciences of their guilt. All this is passed on to Joseph slowly, word for word, through an interpreter.
Judah paints in vivid colors what will happen to Jacob if Benjamin does not return. The most important part of Judah's speech is found in vs.32-34. Where he says: "Your servant guaranteed the boy's safety to my father. I said, 'If I do not bring him back to you, I will bear the blame before you, my father, all my life!' Now then, please let your servant remain here as my lord's slave in place of the boy, and let the boy return with his brothers. How can I go back to my father if the boy is not with me? No! Do not let me see the misery that would come upon my father." Joseph understands clearly that, if Judah offers his life in the place of his brother Benjamin, a profound change has taken place in his heart. It was probably true that Judah did not have the same sadistic disposition as his brothers Simeon and Levi. There are indications that his conscience was more bothered by what they had done to Joseph than the other brothers.' The fact that he moved away from the group and lived by himself for a while, as we read in chapter 38, was probably prompted by his feeling of guilt. But it had been Judah who had suggested to sell Joseph to the Midianite merchants. Now he stands before Joseph, willing to give his life for his brother Benjamin. We do not need much imagination to feel the atmosphere of deep emotion that was created by Judah's words.
The blueletterbible.org adds this.
With these carefully chosen words, Judah does not say that Benjamin's borother is dead - only that Jacob said, "Surely he is torn to pieces" and that Judah had not seen him since.
20 years before, Joseph's brothers showed a callous disregard of their father when reporting Joseph's "death" (Genesis 37:31-33). Judah shows they were now greatly concerned for the feelings and welfare of their father. This is more evidence of a change of heart.
20 years before, Joseph's brothers showed a callous disregard of their father when reporting Joseph's "death" (Genesis 37:31-33). Judah shows they were now greatly concerned for the feelings and welfare of their father. This is more evidence of a change of heart.
Can you just see Simeon saying "yeah, that"?
