The BOOK of GENESIS       to 'find' a particular chapter    enter    Gen 32:    to get chap 32

Gen 36:1)  This is the family tree of Esau, who is also called Edom.  (2)  Esau married women of Canaan: Adah, daughter of Elon the Hittite; Oholibamah, daughter of Anah and the granddaughter of Zibeon the Hivite;  (3)  and Basemath, daughter of Ishmael and sister of Nebaioth.  (4)  Adah gave Esau Eliphaz; Basemath had Reuel;  (5)  Oholibamah had Jeush, Jalam, and Korah. These are the sons of Esau who were born to him in the land of Canaan.  (6)  Esau gathered up his wives, sons and daughters, and everybody in his household, along with all his livestock--all the animals and possessions he had gotten in Canaan--and moved a considerable distance away from his brother Jacob.  (7)  The brothers had too many possessions to live together in the same place; the land couldn't support their combined herds of livestock.  (8)  So Esau ended up settling in the hill country of Seir (Esau and Edom are the same).  (9)  So this is the family tree of Esau, ancestor of the people of Edom, in the hill country of Seir.  (10)  The names of Esau's sons: Eliphaz, son of Esau's wife Adah; Reuel, son of Esau's wife Basemath.  (11)  The sons of Eliphaz: Teman, Omar, Zepho, Gatam, and Kenaz.  (12)  (Eliphaz also had a concubine Timna, who had Amalek.) These are the grandsons of Esau's wife Adah.  (13)  And these are the sons of Reuel: Nahath, Zerah, Shammah, and Mizzah--grandsons of Esau's wife Basemath.  (14)  These are the sons of Esau's wife Oholibamah, daughter of Anah the son of Zibeon. She gave Esau his sons Jeush, Jalam, and Korah.  (15)  These are the chieftains in Esau's family tree. From the sons of Eliphaz, Esau's firstborn, came the chieftains Teman, Omar, Zepho, Kenaz,  (16)  Korah, Gatam, and Amalek--the chieftains of Eliphaz in the land of Edom; all of them sons of Adah.  (17)  From the sons of Esau's son Reuel, came the chieftains Nahath, Zerah, Shammah, and Mizzah. These are the chieftains of Reuel in the land of Edom; all these were sons of Esau's wife Basemath.  (18)  These are the sons of Esau's wife Oholibamah: the chieftains Jeush, Jalam, and Korah--chieftains born of Esau's wife Oholibamah, daughter of Anah.  (19)  These are the sons of Esau, that is, Edom, and these are their chieftains.  (20)  This is the family tree of Seir the Horite, who were native to that land: Lotan, Shobal, Zibeon, Anah,  (21)  Dishon, Ezer, and Dishan. These are the chieftains of the Horites, the sons of Seir in the land of Edom.  (22)  The sons of Lotan were Hori and Homam; Lotan's sister was Timna.  (23)  The sons of Shobal were Alvan, Manahath, Ebal, Shepho, and Onam.  (24)  The sons of Zibeon were Aiah and Anah--this is the same Anah who found the hot springs in the wilderness while herding his father Zibeon's donkeys.  (25)  The children of Anah were Dishon and his daughter Oholibamah.  (26)  The sons of Dishon were Hemdan, Eshban, Ithran, and Keran.  (27)  The sons of Ezer: Bilhan, Zaavan, and Akan.  (28)  The sons of Dishan: Uz and Aran.  (29)  And these were the Horite chieftains: Lotan, Shobal, Zibeon, Anah,  (30)  Dishon, Ezer, and Dishan--the Horite chieftains clan by clan in the land of Seir.  (31)  And these are the kings who ruled in Edom before there was a king in Israel:  (32)  Bela son of Beor was the king of Edom; the name of his city was Dinhabah.  (33)  When Bela died, Jobab son of Zerah from Bozrah became the next king.  (34)  When Jobab died, he was followed by Hushan from the land of the Temanites.  (35)  When Hushan died, he was followed by Hadad son of Bedad; he was the king who defeated the Midianites in Moab; the name of his city was Avith.  (36)  When Hadad died, Samlah of Masrekah became the next king.  (37)  When Samlah died, Shaul from Rehoboth-on-the-River became king.  (38)  When Shaul died, he was followed by Baal-Hanan son of Acbor.  (39)  When Baal-Hanan son of Acbor died, Hadad became king; the name of his city was Pau; his wife's name was Mehetabel daughter of Matred, daughter of Me-Zahab.  (40)  And these are the chieftains from the line of Esau, clan by clan, region by region: Timna, Alvah, Jetheth,  (41)  Oholibamah, Elah, Pinon,  (42)  Kenaz, Teman, Mibzar,  (43)  Magdiel, and Iram--the chieftains of Edom as they occupied their various regions. This accounts for the family tree of Esau, ancestor of all Edomites.  

Gen 37:1)  Meanwhile Jacob had settled down where his father had lived, the land of Canaan.  (2)  This is the story of Jacob. The story continues with Joseph, seventeen years old at the time, helping out his brothers in herding the flocks. These were his half brothers actually, the sons of his father's wives Bilhah and Zilpah. And Joseph brought his father bad reports on them.  (3)  Israel loved Joseph more than any of his other sons because he was the child of his old age. And he made him an elaborately embroidered coat.  (4)  When his brothers realized that their father loved him more than them, they grew to hate him--they wouldn't even speak to him.  (5)  Joseph had a dream. When he told it to his brothers, they hated him even more.  (6)  He said, "Listen to this dream I had.  (7)  We were all out in the field gathering bundles of wheat. All of a sudden my bundle stood straight up and your bundles circled around it and bowed down to mine."  (8)  His brothers said, "So! You're going to rule us? You're going to boss us around?" And they hated him more than ever because of his dreams and the way he talked.  (9)  He had another dream and told this one also to his brothers: "I dreamed another dream--the sun and moon and eleven stars bowed down to me!"  (10)  When he told it to his father and brothers, his father reprimanded him: "What's with all this dreaming? Am I and your mother and your brothers all supposed to bow down to you?"  (11)  Now his brothers were really jealous; but his father brooded over the whole business.  (12)  His brothers had gone off to Shechem where they were pasturing their father's flocks.  (13)  Israel said to Joseph, "Your brothers are with flocks in Shechem. Come, I want to send you to them." Joseph said, "I'm ready."  (14)  He said, "Go and see how your brothers and the flocks are doing and bring me back a report." He sent him off from the valley of Hebron to Shechem.  (15)  A man met him as he was wandering through the fields and asked him, "What are you looking for?"  (16)  "I'm trying to find my brothers. Do you have any idea where they are grazing their flocks?"  (17)  The man said, "They've left here, but I overheard them say, 'Let's go to Dothan.'" So Joseph took off, tracked his brothers down, and found them in Dothan.  (18)  They spotted him off in the distance. By the time he got to them they had cooked up a plot to kill him.  (19)  The brothers were saying, "Here comes that dreamer.  (20)  Let's kill him and throw him into one of these old cisterns; we can say that a vicious animal ate him up. We'll see what his dreams amount to."  (21)  Reuben heard the brothers talking and intervened to save him, "We're not going to kill him.  (22)  No murder. Go ahead and throw him in this cistern out here in the wild, but don't hurt him." Reuben planned to go back later and get him out and take him back to his father.  (23)  When Joseph reached his brothers, they ripped off the fancy coat he was wearing,  (24)  grabbed him, and threw him into a cistern. The cistern was dry; there wasn't any water in it.  (25)  Then they sat down to eat their supper. Looking up, they saw a caravan of Ishmaelites on their way from Gilead, their camels loaded with spices, ointments, and perfumes to sell in Egypt.  (26)  Judah said, "Brothers, what are we going to get out of killing our brother and concealing the evidence?  (27)  Let's sell him to the Ishmaelites, but let's not kill him--he is, after all, our brother, our own flesh and blood." His brothers agreed.  (28)  By that time the Midianite traders were passing by. His brothers pulled Joseph out of the cistern and sold him for twenty pieces of silver to the Ishmaelites who took Joseph with them down to Egypt.  (29)  Later Reuben came back and went to the cistern--no Joseph! He ripped his clothes in despair.  (30)  Beside himself, he went to his brothers. "The boy's gone! What am I going to do!"  (31)  They took Joseph's coat, butchered a goat, and dipped the coat in the blood.  (32)  They took the fancy coat back to their father and said, "We found this. Look it over--do you think this is your son's coat?"  (33)  He recognized it at once. "My son's coat--a wild animal has eaten him. Joseph torn limb from limb!"  (34)  Jacob tore his clothes in grief, dressed in rough burlap, and mourned his son a long, long time.  (35)  His sons and daughters tried to comfort him but he refused their comfort. "I'll go to the grave mourning my son." Oh, how his father wept for him.  (36)  In Egypt the Midianites sold Joseph to Potiphar, one of Pharaoh's officials, manager of his household affairs.  

Gen 38:1)  About that time, Judah separated from his brothers and hooked up with a man in Adullam named Hirah.  (2)  While there, Judah met the daughter of a Canaanite named Shua. He married her, they went to bed,  (3)  she became pregnant and had a son named Er.  (4)  She got pregnant again and had a son named Onan.  (5)  She had still another son; she named this one Shelah. They were living at Kezib when she had him.  (6)  Judah got a wife for Er, his firstborn. Her name was Tamar.  (7)  But Judah's firstborn, Er, grievously offended GOD and GOD took his life.  (8)  So Judah told Onan, "Go and sleep with your brother's widow; it's the duty of a brother-in-law to keep your brother's line alive."  (9)  But Onan knew that the child wouldn't be his, so whenever he slept with his brother's widow he spilled his semen on the ground so he wouldn't produce a child for his brother.  (10)  GOD was much offended by what he did and also took his life.  (11)  So Judah stepped in and told his daughter-in-law Tamar, "Live as a widow at home with your father until my son Shelah grows up." He was worried that Shelah would also end up dead, just like his brothers. So Tamar went to live with her father.  (12)  Time passed. Judah's wife, Shua's daughter, died. When the time of mourning was over, Judah with his friend Hirah of Adullam went to Timnah for the sheep shearing.  (13)  Tamar was told, "Your father-in-law has gone to Timnah to shear his sheep."  (14)  She took off her widow's clothes, put on a veil to disguise herself, and sat at the entrance to Enaim which is on the road to Timnah. She realized by now that even though Shelah was grown up, she wasn't going to be married to him.  (15)  Judah saw her and assumed she was a prostitute since she had veiled her face.  (16)  He left the road and went over to her. He said, "Let me sleep with you." He had no idea that she was his daughter-in-law. She said, "What will you pay me?"  (17)  "I'll send you," he said, "a kid goat from the flock." She said, "Not unless you give me a pledge until you send it."  (18)  "So what would you want in the way of a pledge?" She said, "Your personal seal-and-cord and the staff you carry." He handed them over to her and slept with her. And she got pregnant.  (19)  She then left and went home. She removed her veil and put her widow's clothes back on.  (20)  Judah sent the kid goat by his friend from Adullam to recover the pledge from the woman. But he couldn't find her.  (21)  He asked the men of that place, "Where's the prostitute that used to sit by the road here near Enaim?" They said, "There's never been a prostitute here."  (22)  He went back to Judah and said, "I couldn't find her. The men there said there never has been a prostitute there."  (23)  Judah said, "Let her have it then. If we keep looking, everyone will be poking fun at us. I kept my part of the bargain--I sent the kid goat but you couldn't find her."  (24)  Three months or so later, Judah was told, "Your daughter-in-law has been playing the whore--and now she's a pregnant whore." Judah yelled, "Get her out here. Burn her up!"  (25)  As they brought her out, she sent a message to her father-in-law, "I'm pregnant by the man who owns these things. Identify them, please. Who's the owner of the seal-and-cord and the staff?"  (26)  Judah saw they were his. He said, "She's in the right; I'm in the wrong--I wouldn't let her marry my son Shelah." He never slept with her again.  (27)  When her time came to give birth, it turned out that there were twins in her womb.  (28)  As she was giving birth, one put his hand out; the midwife tied a red thread on his hand, saying, "This one came first."  (29)  But then he pulled it back and his brother came out. She said, "Oh! A breakout!" So she named him Perez (Breakout).  (30)  Then his brother came out with the red thread on his hand. They named him Zerah (Bright).  

Gen 39:1)  After Joseph had been taken to Egypt by the Ishmaelites, Potiphar an Egyptian, one of Pharaoh's officials and the manager of his household, bought him from them.  (2)  As it turned out, GOD was with Joseph and things went very well with him. He ended up living in the home of his Egyptian master.  (3)  His master recognized that GOD was with him, saw that GOD was working for good in everything he did.  (4)  He became very fond of Joseph and made him his personal aide. He put him in charge of all his personal affairs, turning everything over to him.  (5)  From that moment on, GOD blessed the home of the Egyptian--all because of Joseph. The blessing of GOD spread over everything he owned, at home and in the fields,  (6)  and all Potiphar had to concern himself with was eating three meals a day. Joseph was a strikingly handsome man.  (7)  As time went on, his master's wife became infatuated with Joseph and one day said, "Sleep with me."  (8)  He wouldn't do it. He said to his master's wife, "Look, with me here, my master doesn't give a second thought to anything that goes on here--he's put me in charge of everything he owns.  (9)  He treats me as an equal. The only thing he hasn't turned over to me is you. You're his wife, after all! How could I violate his trust and sin against God?"  (10)  She pestered him day after day after day, but he stood his ground. He refused to go to bed with her.  (11)  On one of these days he came to the house to do his work and none of the household servants happened to be there.  (12)  She grabbed him by his cloak, saying, "Sleep with me!" He left his coat in her hand and ran out of the house.  (13)  When she realized that he had left his coat in her hand and run outside,  (14)  she called to her house servants: "Look--this Hebrew shows up and before you know it he's trying to seduce us. He tried to make love to me but I yelled as loud as I could.  (15)  With all my yelling and screaming, he left his coat beside me here and ran outside."  (16)  She kept his coat right there until his master came home.  (17)  She told him the same story. She said, "The Hebrew slave, the one you brought to us, came after me and tried to use me for his plaything.  (18)  When I yelled and screamed, he left his coat with me and ran outside."  (19)  When his master heard his wife's story, telling him, "These are the things your slave did to me," he was furious.  (20)  Joseph's master took him and threw him into the jail where the king's prisoners were locked up. But there in jail  (21)  GOD was still with Joseph: He reached out in kindness to him; he put him on good terms with the head jailer.  (22)  The head jailer put Joseph in charge of all the prisoners--he ended up managing the whole operation.  (23)  The head jailer gave Joseph free rein, never even checked on him, because GOD was with him; whatever he did GOD made sure it worked out for the best.  

Gen 40:1)  As time went on, it happened that the cupbearer and the baker of the king of Egypt crossed their master, the king of Egypt.  (2)  Pharaoh was furious with his two officials, the head cupbearer and the head baker,  (3)  and put them in custody under the captain of the guard; it was the same jail where Joseph was held.  (4)  The captain of the guard assigned Joseph to see to their needs. After they had been in custody for a while,  (5)  the king's cupbearer and baker, while being held in the jail, both had a dream on the same night, each dream having its own meaning.  (6)  When Joseph arrived in the morning, he noticed that they were feeling low.  (7)  So he asked them, the two officials of Pharaoh who had been thrown into jail with him, "What's wrong? Why the long faces?"  (8)  They said, "We dreamed dreams and there's no one to interpret them." Joseph said, "Don't interpretations come from God? Tell me the dreams."  (9)  First the head cupbearer told his dream to Joseph: "In my dream there was a vine in front of me  (10)  with three branches on it: It budded, blossomed, and the clusters ripened into grapes.  (11)  I was holding Pharaoh's cup; I took the grapes, squeezed them into Pharaoh's cup, and gave the cup to Pharaoh."  (12)  Joseph said, "Here's the meaning. The three branches are three days.  (13)  Within three days, Pharaoh will get you out of here and put you back to your old work--you'll be giving Pharaoh his cup just as you used to do when you were his cupbearer.  (14)  Only remember me when things are going well with you again--tell Pharaoh about me and get me out of this place.  (15)  I was kidnapped from the land of the Hebrews. And since I've been here, I've done nothing to deserve being put in this hole."  (16)  When the head baker saw how well Joseph's interpretation turned out, he spoke up: "My dream went like this: I saw three wicker baskets on my head;  (17)  the top basket had assorted pastries from the bakery and birds were picking at them from the basket on my head."  (18)  Joseph said, "This is the interpretation: The three baskets are three days;  (19)  within three days Pharaoh will take off your head, impale you on a post, and the birds will pick your bones clean."  (20)  And sure enough, on the third day it was Pharaoh's birthday and he threw a feast for all his servants. He set the head cupbearer and the head baker in places of honor in the presence of all the guests.  (21)  Then he restored the head cupbearer to his cupbearing post; he handed Pharaoh his cup just as before.  (22)  And then he impaled the head baker on a post, following Joseph's interpretations exactly.  (23)  But the head cupbearer never gave Joseph another thought; he forgot all about him.  

Gen 41:1)  Two years passed and Pharaoh had a dream: He was standing by the Nile River.  (2)  Seven cows came up out of the Nile, all shimmering with health, and grazed on the marsh grass.  (3)  Then seven other cows, all skin and bones, came up out of the river after them and stood by them on the bank of the Nile.  (4)  The skinny cows ate the seven healthy cows. Then Pharaoh woke up.  (5)  He went back to sleep and dreamed a second time: Seven ears of grain, full-bodied and lush, grew out of a single stalk.  (6)  Then seven more ears grew up, but these were thin and dried out by the east wind.  (7)  The thin ears swallowed up the full, healthy ears. Then Pharaoh woke up--another dream.  (8)  When morning came, he was upset. He sent for all the magicians and sages of Egypt. Pharaoh told them his dreams, but they couldn't interpret them to him.  (9)  The head cupbearer then spoke up and said to Pharaoh, "I just now remembered something--I'm sorry, I should have told you this long ago.  (10)  Once when Pharaoh got angry with his servants, he locked me and the head baker in the house of the captain of the guard.  (11)  We both had dreams on the same night, each dream with its own meaning.  (12)  It so happened that there was a young Hebrew slave there with us; he belonged to the captain of the guard. We told him our dreams and he interpreted them for us, each dream separately.  (13)  Things turned out just as he interpreted. I was returned to my position and the head baker was impaled."  (14)  Pharaoh at once sent for Joseph. They brought him on the run from the jail cell. He cut his hair, put on clean clothes, and came to Pharaoh.  (15)  "I dreamed a dream," Pharaoh told Joseph. "Nobody can interpret it. But I've heard that just by hearing a dream you can interpret it."  (16)  Joseph answered, "Not I, but God. God will set Pharaoh's mind at ease."  (17)  Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, "In my dream I was standing on the bank of the Nile.  (18)  Seven cows, shimmering with health, came up out of the river and grazed on the marsh grass.  (19)  On their heels seven more cows, all skin and bones, came up. I've never seen uglier cows anywhere in Egypt.  (20)  Then the seven skinny, ugly cows ate up the first seven healthy cows.  (21)  But you couldn't tell by looking--after eating them up they were just as skinny and ugly as before. Then I woke up.  (22)  "In my second dream I saw seven ears of grain, full-bodied and lush, growing out of a single stalk,  (23)  and right behind them, seven other ears, shriveled, thin, and dried out by the east wind.  (24)  And the thin ears swallowed up the full ears. I've told all this to the magicians but they can't figure it out."  (25)  Joseph said to Pharaoh, "Pharaoh's two dreams both mean the same thing. God is telling Pharaoh what he is going to do.  (26)  The seven healthy cows are seven years and the seven healthy ears of grain are seven years--they're the same dream.  (27)  The seven sick and ugly cows that followed them up are seven years and the seven scrawny ears of grain dried out by the east wind are the same--seven years of famine.  (28)  "The meaning is what I said earlier: God is letting Pharaoh in on what he is going to do.  (29)  Seven years of plenty are on their way throughout Egypt.  (30)  But on their heels will come seven years of famine, leaving no trace of the Egyptian plenty. As the country is emptied by famine,  (31)  there won't be even a scrap left of the previous plenty--the famine will be total.  (32)  The fact that Pharaoh dreamed the same dream twice emphasizes God's determination to do this and do it soon.  (33)  "So: Pharaoh needs to look for a wise and experienced man and put him in charge of the country.  (34)  Then Pharaoh needs to appoint managers throughout the country of Egypt to organize it during the years of plenty.  (35)  Their job will be to collect all the food produced in the good years ahead and stockpile the grain under Pharaoh's authority, storing it in the towns for food.  (36)  This grain will be held back to be used later during the seven years of famine that are coming on Egypt. This way the country won't be devastated by the famine."  (37)  This seemed like a good idea to Pharaoh and his officials.  (38)  Then Pharaoh said to his officials, "Isn't this the man we need? Are we going to find anyone else who has God's spirit in him like this?"  (39)  So Pharaoh said to Joseph, "You're the man for us. God has given you the inside story--no one is as qualified as you in experience and wisdom.  (40)  From now on, you're in charge of my affairs; all my people will report to you. Only as king will I be over you."  (41)  So Pharaoh commissioned Joseph: "I'm putting you in charge of the entire country of Egypt."  (42)  Then Pharaoh removed his signet ring from his finger and slipped it on Joseph's hand. He outfitted him in robes of the best linen and put a gold chain around his neck.  (43)  He put the second-in-command chariot at his disposal, and as he rode people shouted "Bravo!" Joseph was in charge of the entire country of Egypt.  (44)  Pharaoh told Joseph, "I am Pharaoh, but no one in Egypt will make a single move without your stamp of approval."  (45)  Then Pharaoh gave Joseph an Egyptian name, Zaphenath-Paneah (God Speaks and He Lives). He also gave him an Egyptian wife, Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera, the priest of On (Heliopolis). And Joseph took up his duties over the land of Egypt.  (46)  Joseph was thirty years old when he went to work for Pharaoh the king of Egypt. As soon as Joseph left Pharaoh's presence, he began his work in Egypt.  (47)  During the next seven years of plenty the land produced bumper crops.  (48)  Joseph gathered up the food of the seven good years in Egypt and stored the food in cities. In each city he stockpiled surplus from the surrounding fields.  (49)  Joseph collected so much grain--it was like the sand of the ocean!--that he finally quit keeping track.  (50)  Joseph had two sons born to him before the years of famine came. Asenath, daughter of Potiphera the priest of On, was their mother.  (51)  Joseph named the firstborn Manasseh (Forget), saying, "God made me forget all my hardships and my parental home."  (52)  He named his second son Ephraim (Double Prosperity), saying, "God has prospered me in the land of my sorrow."  (53)  Then Egypt's seven good years came to an end  (54)  and the seven years of famine arrived, just as Joseph had said. All countries experienced famine; Egypt was the only country that had bread.  (55)  When the famine spread throughout Egypt, the people called out in distress to Pharaoh, calling for bread. He told the Egyptians, "Go to Joseph. Do what he tells you."  (56)  As the famine got worse all over the country, Joseph opened the storehouses and sold emergency supplies to the Egyptians. The famine was very bad.  (57)  Soon the whole world was coming to buy supplies from Joseph. The famine was bad all over.  

Gen 42:1)  When Jacob learned that there was food in Egypt, he said to his sons, "Why do you sit around here and look at one another?  (2)  I've heard that there is food in Egypt. Go down there and buy some so that we can survive and not starve to death."  (3)  Ten of Joseph's brothers went down to Egypt to get food.  (4)  Jacob didn't send Joseph's brother Benjamin with them; he was afraid that something bad might happen to him.  (5)  So Israel's sons joined everyone else that was going to Egypt to buy food, for Canaan, too, was hit hard by the famine.  (6)  Joseph was running the country; he was the one who gave out rations to all the people. When Joseph's brothers arrived, they treated him with honor, bowing to him.  (7)  Joseph recognized them immediately, but treated them as strangers and spoke roughly to them. He said, "Where do you come from?" "From Canaan," they said. "We've come to buy food."  (8)  Joseph knew who they were, but they didn't know who he was.  (9)  Joseph, remembering the dreams he had dreamed of them, said, "You're spies. You've come to look for our weak spots."  (10)  "No, master," they said. "We've only come to buy food.  (11)  We're all the sons of the same man; we're honest men; we'd never think of spying."  (12)  He said, "No. You're spies. You've come to look for our weak spots."  (13)  They said, "There were twelve of us brothers--sons of the same father in the country of Canaan. The youngest is with our father, and one is no more."  (14)  But Joseph said, "It's just as I said, you're spies.  (15)  This is how I'll test you. As Pharaoh lives, you're not going to leave this place until your younger brother comes here.  (16)  Send one of you to get your brother while the rest of you stay here in jail. We'll see if you're telling the truth or not. As Pharaoh lives, I say you're spies."  (17)  Then he threw them into jail for three days.  (18)  On the third day, Joseph spoke to them. "Do this and you'll live. I'm a God-fearing man.  (19)  If you're as honest as you say you are, one of your brothers will stay here in jail while the rest of you take the food back to your hungry families.  (20)  But you have to bring your youngest brother back to me, confirming the truth of your speech--and not one of you will die." They agreed.  (21)  Then they started talking among themselves. "Now we're paying for what we did to our brother--we saw how terrified he was when he was begging us for mercy. We wouldn't listen to him and now we're the ones in trouble."  (22)  Reuben broke in. "Didn't I tell you, 'Don't hurt the boy'? But no, you wouldn't listen. And now we're paying for his murder."  (23)  Joseph had been using an interpreter, so they didn't know that Joseph was understanding every word.  (24)  Joseph turned away from them and cried. When he was able to speak again, he took Simeon and had him tied up, making a prisoner of him while they all watched.  (25)  Then Joseph ordered that their sacks be filled with grain, that their money be put back in each sack, and that they be given rations for the road. That was all done for them.  (26)  They loaded their food supplies on their donkeys and set off.  (27)  When they stopped for the night, one of them opened his sack to get food for his donkey; there at the mouth of his bag was his money  (28)  He called out to his brothers, "My money has been returned; it's right here in my bag!" They were puzzled--and frightened. "What's God doing to us?"  (29)  When they got back to their father Jacob, back in the land of Canaan, they told him everything that had happened, saying,  (30)  "The man who runs the country spoke to us roughly and accused us of being spies.  (31)  We told him, 'We are honest men and in no way spies.  (32)  There were twelve of us brothers, sons of one father; one is gone and the youngest is with our father in Canaan.'  (33)  "But the master of the country said, 'Leave one of your brothers with me, take food for your starving families, and go.  (34)  Bring your youngest brother back to me, proving that you're honest men and not spies. And then I'll give your brother back to you and you'll be free to come and go in this country.'"  (35)  As they were emptying their food sacks, each man came on his purse of money. On seeing their money, they and their father were upset.  (36)  Their father said to them, "You're taking everything I've got! Joseph's gone, Simeon's gone, and now you want to take Benjamin. If you have your way, I'll be left with nothing."  (37)  Reuben spoke up: "I'll put my two sons in your hands as hostages. If I don't bring Benjamin back, you can kill them. Trust me with Benjamin; I'll bring him back."  (38)  But Jacob refused. "My son will not go down with you. His brother is dead and he is all I have left. If something bad happens to him on the road, you'll put my gray, sorrowing head in the grave."