43:1 那地的饑荒甚大。
43:2 他們從埃及帶來的糧食吃盡了，他們的父親就對他們說：「你們再去給我糴些糧來。」
43:3 猶大對他說：「那人諄諄地告誡我們說：『你們的兄弟若不與你們同來，你們就不得見我的面。』
43:4 你若打發我們的兄弟與我們同去，我們就下去給你糴糧；
43:5 你若不打發他去，我們就不下去，因為那人對我們說：『你們的兄弟若不與你們同來，你們就不得見我的面。』」
43:6 以色列說：「你們為甚麼這樣害我，告訴那人你們還有兄弟呢？」
43:7 他們回答說：「那人詳細問到我們和我們的親屬，說：『你們的父親還在嗎？你們還有兄弟嗎？』我們就按著他所問的告訴他，焉能知道他要說『必須把你們的兄弟帶下來』呢？」
43:8 猶大又對他父親以色列說：「你打發童子與我同去，我們就起身下去，好叫我們和你，並我們的婦人孩子，都得存活，不至於死。
43:9 我為他作保；你可以從我手中追討，我若不帶他回來交在你面前，我情願永遠擔罪。
43:10 我們若沒有耽擱，如今第二次都回來了。」
43:11 他們的父親以色列說：「若必須如此，你們就當這樣行：可以將這地土產中最好的乳香、蜂蜜、香料、沒藥、榧子、杏仁都取一點，收在器具裡，帶下去送給那人作禮物，
43:12 又要手裡加倍地帶銀子，並將歸還在你們口袋內的銀子仍帶在手裡；那或者是錯了。
43:13 也帶著你們的兄弟，起身去見那人。
43:14 但願全能的上帝使你們在那人面前蒙憐憫，釋放你們的那弟兄和便雅憫回來。我若喪了兒子，就喪了吧！」
43:15 於是，他們拿著那禮物，又手裡加倍地帶銀子，並且帶著便雅憫，起身下到埃及，站在約瑟面前。
43:16 約瑟見便雅憫和他們同來，就對家宰說：「將這些人領到屋裡。要宰殺牲畜，預備筵席，因為晌午這些人同我吃飯。」
43:17 家宰就遵著約瑟的命去行，領他們進約瑟的屋裡。
43:18 他們因為被領到約瑟的屋裡，就害怕，說：「領我們到這裡來，必是因為頭次歸還在我們口袋裡的銀子，找我們的錯縫，下手害我們，強取我們為奴僕，搶奪我們的驢。」
43:19 他們就挨近約瑟的家宰，在屋門口和他說話，
43:20 說：「我主啊，我們頭次下來實在是要糴糧。
43:21 後來到了住宿的地方，我們打開口袋，不料，各人的銀子，分量足數，仍在各人的口袋內，現在我們手裡又帶回來了。
43:22 另外又帶下銀子來糴糧。不知道先前誰把銀子放在我們的口袋裡。」
43:23 家宰說：「你們可以放心，不要害怕，是你們的上帝和你們父親的上帝賜給你們財寶在你們的口袋裡；你們的銀子，我早已收了。」他就把西緬帶出來，交給他們。
43:24 家宰就領他們進約瑟的屋裡，給他們水洗腳，又給他們草料餵驢。
43:25 他們就預備那禮物，等候約瑟晌午來，因為他們聽見要在那裡吃飯。
43:26 約瑟來到家裡，他們就把手中的禮物拿進屋去給他，又俯伏在地，向他下拜。
43:27 約瑟問他們好，又問：「你們的父親─就是你們所說的那老人家平安嗎？他還在嗎？」
43:28 他們回答說：「你僕人─我們的父親平安；他還在。」於是他們低頭下拜。
43:29 約瑟舉目看見他同母的兄弟便雅憫，就說：「你們向我所說那頂小的兄弟就是這位嗎？」又說：「小兒啊，願上帝賜恩給你！」
43:30 約瑟愛弟之情發動，就急忙尋找可哭之地，進入自己的屋裡，哭了一場。
43:31 他洗了臉出來，勉強隱忍，吩咐人擺飯。
43:32 他們就為約瑟單擺了一席，為那些人又擺了一席，也為和約瑟同吃飯的埃及人另擺了一席，因為埃及人不可和希伯來人一同吃飯；那原是埃及人所厭惡的。
43:33 約瑟使眾弟兄在他面前排列坐席，都按著長幼的次序，眾弟兄就彼此詫異。
43:34 約瑟把他面前的食物分出來，送給他們；但便雅憫所得的比別人多五倍。他們就飲酒，和約瑟一同宴樂。
3 But Judah said to him, “The man warned us solemnly, ‘You will not see my face again unless your brother is with you.’ 4 If you will send our brother along with us, we will go down and buy food for you. 5 But if you will not send him, we will not go down, because the man said to us, ‘You will not see my face again unless your brother is with you.’”
6 Israel asked, “Why did you bring this trouble on me by telling the man you had another brother?”
7 They replied, “The man questioned us closely about ourselves and our family. ‘Is your father still living?’ he asked us. ‘Do you have another brother?’ We simply answered his questions. How were we to know he would say, ‘Bring your brother down here’?”
8 Then Judah said to Israel his father, “Send the boy along with me and we will go at once, so that we and you and our children may live and not die. 9 I myself will guarantee his safety; you can hold me personally responsible for him. If I do not bring him back to you and set him here before you, I will bear the blame before you all my life. 10 As it is, if we had not delayed, we could have gone and returned twice.”
11 Then their father Israel said to them, “If it must be, then do this: Put some of the best products of the land in your bags and take them down to the man as a gift—a little balm and a little honey, some spices and myrrh, some pistachio nuts and almonds. 12 Take double the amount of silver with you, for you must return the silver that was put back into the mouths of your sacks. Perhaps it was a mistake. 13 Take your brother also and go back to the man at once. 14 And may God Almighty[a] grant you mercy before the man so that he will let your other brother and Benjamin come back with you. As for me, if I am bereaved, I am bereaved.”
15 So the men took the gifts and double the amount of silver, and Benjamin also. They hurried down to Egypt and presented themselves to Joseph. 16 When Joseph saw Benjamin with them, he said to the steward of his house, “Take these men to my house, slaughter an animal and prepare a meal; they are to eat with me at noon.”
17 The man did as Joseph told him and took the men to Joseph’s house. 18 Now the men were frightened when they were taken to his house. They thought, “We were brought here because of the silver that was put back into our sacks the first time. He wants to attack us and overpower us and seize us as slaves and take our donkeys.”
19 So they went up to Joseph’s steward and spoke to him at the entrance to the house. 20 “We beg your pardon, our lord,” they said, “we came down here the first time to buy food. 21 But at the place where we stopped for the night we opened our sacks and each of us found his silver—the exact weight—in the mouth of his sack. So we have brought it back with us. 22 We have also brought additional silver with us to buy food. We don’t know who put our silver in our sacks.”
23 “It’s all right,” he said. “Don’t be afraid. Your God, the God of your father, has given you treasure in your sacks; I received your silver.” Then he brought Simeon out to them.
24 The steward took the men into Joseph’s house, gave them water to wash their feet and provided fodder for their donkeys. 25 They prepared their gifts for Joseph’s arrival at noon, because they had heard that they were to eat there.
26 When Joseph came home, they presented to him the gifts they had brought into the house, and they bowed down before him to the ground. 27 He asked them how they were, and then he said, “How is your aged father you told me about? Is he still living?”
28 They replied, “Your servant our father is still alive and well.” And they bowed down, prostrating themselves before him.
29 As he looked about and saw his brother Benjamin, his own mother’s son, he asked, “Is this your youngest brother, the one you told me about?” And he said, “God be gracious to you, my son.” 30 Deeply moved at the sight of his brother, Joseph hurried out and looked for a place to weep. He went into his private room and wept there.
31 After he had washed his face, he came out and, controlling himself, said, “Serve the food.”
32 They served him by himself, the brothers by themselves, and the Egyptians who ate with him by themselves, because Egyptians could not eat with Hebrews, for that is detestable to Egyptians. 33 The men had been seated before him in the order of their ages, from the firstborn to the youngest; and they looked at each other in astonishment. 34 When portions were served to them from Joseph’s table, Benjamin’s portion was five times as much as anyone else’s. So they feasted and drank freely with him.
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約瑟的巧計成就了，為了糧食的需要，哥哥們非得將便雅憫帶去。
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