Genesis 42 Brenton's English Septuagint

About Brenton

Individual translator
OT: Septuagint (Greek)
Septuagint Old Testament (no New Testament)
Formal (word for word)
1844
Public domain

Audio: World English Bible (WEB), read by Winfred W. Henson · About the recordings

Notes on this text (2)

Square brackets mark words Brenton supplied for English sense.
Old Testament only (no New Testament). First printed 1844; the 1851 edition added the deuterocanonical books.

Brenton Brenton's English Septuagint

WEB World English Bible (Classic, with Deuterocanon)

1 And Jacob having seen that there was a sale [of corn] in Egypt, said to his sons, Why are ye indolent?

1 Now Jacob saw that there was grain in Egypt, and Jacob said to his sons, “Why do you look at one another?”

2 Behold, I have heard that there is corn in Egypt; go down thither, and buy for us a little food, that we may live, and not die.

2 He said, “Behold, I have heard that there is grain in Egypt. Go down there, and buy for us from there, so that we may live, and not die.”

3 And the ten brethren of Joseph went down to buy corn out of Egypt.

3 Joseph’s ten brothers went down to buy grain from Egypt.

4 But [Jacob] sent not Benjamin, the brother of Joseph, with his brethren; for he said, Lest, haply, disease befal him.

4 But Jacob didn’t send Benjamin, Joseph’s brother, with his brothers; for he said, “Lest perhaps harm happen to him.”

5 And the sons of Israel came to buy with those that came, for the famine was in the land of Chanaan.

5 The sons of Israel came to buy among those who came, for the famine was in the land of Canaan.

6 And Joseph was ruler of the land; he sold to all the people of the land. And the brethren of Joseph, having come, did reverence to him, [bowing] with the face to the ground.

6 Joseph was the governor over the land. It was he who sold to all the people of the land. Joseph’s brothers came, and bowed themselves down to him with their faces to the earth.

7 And when Joseph saw his brethren, he knew them, and estranged himself from them, and spoke hard words to them; and said to them, Whence are ye come? And they said, Out of the land of Chanaan, to buy food.

7 Joseph saw his brothers, and he recognized them, but acted like a stranger to them, and spoke roughly with them. He said to them, “Where did you come from?” They said, “From the land of Canaan, to buy food.”

8 And Joseph knew his brethren, but they knew not him.

8 Joseph recognized his brothers, but they didn’t recognize him.

9 And Joseph remembered his dream, which he saw; and he said to them, Ye are spies; to observe the marks of the land are ye come.

9 Joseph remembered the dreams which he dreamed about them, and said to them, “You are spies! You have come to see the nakedness of the land.”

10 But they said, Nay, Sir, we thy servants are come to buy food;

10 They said to him, “No, my lord, but your servants have come to buy food.

11 we are all sons of one man; we are peaceable, thy servants are not spies.

11 We are all one man’s sons; we are honest men. Your servants are not spies.”

12 And he said to them, Nay, but ye are come to observe the marks of the land.

12 He said to them, “No, but you have come to see the nakedness of the land!”

13 And they said, We thy servants are twelve brethren, in the land of Chanaan; and, behold, the youngest is with our father to-day, but the other one is not.

13 They said, “We, your servants, are twelve brothers, the sons of one man in the land of Canaan; and behold, the youngest is today with our father, and one is no more.”

14 And Joseph said to them, This is it that I spoke to you, saying, ye are spies;

14 Joseph said to them, “It is like I told you, saying, ‘You are spies!’

15 herein shall ye be manifested; by the health of Pharao, ye shall not depart hence, unless your younger brother come hither.

15 By this you shall be tested. By the life of Pharaoh, you shall not go out from here, unless your youngest brother comes here.

16 Send one of you, and take your brother; and go ye to prison, till your words be clear, whether ye speak the truth or not; but, if not, by the health of Pharao, verily ye are spies.

16 Send one of you, and let him get your brother, and you shall be bound, that your words may be tested, whether there is truth in you, or else by the life of Pharaoh surely you are spies.”

17 And he put them in prison three days.

17 He put them all together into custody for three days.

18 And he said to them on the third day, This do, and ye shall live, for I fear God.

18 Joseph said to them the third day, “Do this, and live, for I fear God.

19 If ye be peaceable, let one of your brethren be detained in prison; but go ye, and carry back the corn ye have purchased.

19 If you are honest men, then let one of your brothers be bound in your prison; but you go, carry grain for the famine of your houses.

20 And bring your younger brother to me, and your words shall be believed; but, if not, ye shall die. And they did so.

20 Bring your youngest brother to me; so will your words be verified, and you won’t die.” They did so.

21 And each said to his brother, Yes, indeed, for we are in fault concerning our brother, when we disregarded the anguish of his soul, when he besought us, and we hearkened not to him; and therefore has this affliction come upon us.

21 They said to one another, “We are certainly guilty concerning our brother, in that we saw the distress of his soul, when he begged us, and we wouldn’t listen. Therefore this distress has come upon us.”

22 And Ruben answered them, saying, Did I not speak to you, saying, Hurt not the boy, and ye heard me not? and, behold, his blood is required.

22 Reuben answered them, saying, “Didn’t I tell you, saying, ‘Don’t sin against the child,’ and you wouldn’t listen? Therefore also, behold, his blood is required.”

23 But they knew not that Joseph understood them; for there was an interpreter between them.

23 They didn’t know that Joseph understood them; for there was an interpreter between them.

24 And Joseph turned away from them, and wept; and again he came to them, and spoke to them; and he took Symeon from them, and bound him before their eyes.

24 He turned himself away from them, and wept. Then he returned to them, and spoke to them, and took Simeon from among them, and bound him before their eyes.

25 And Joseph gave orders to fill their vessels with corn, and to return their money to each into his sack, and to give them provision for the way; and it was so done to them.

25 Then Joseph gave a command to fill their bags with grain, and to restore each man’s money into his sack, and to give them food for the way. So it was done to them.

26 And having put the corn on the asses, they departed thence.

26 They loaded their donkeys with their grain, and departed from there.

27 And one having opened his sack to give his asses fodder, at the place where they rested, saw also his bundle of money, for it was on the mouth of his sack.

27 As one of them opened his sack to give his donkey food in the lodging place, he saw his money. Behold, it was in the mouth of his sack.

28 And he said to his brethren, My money has been restored to me, and behold this is in my sack. And their heart was wonder-struck, and they were troubled, saying one to another, What is this that God has done to us?

28 He said to his brothers, “My money is restored! Behold, it is in my sack!” Their hearts failed them, and they turned trembling to one another, saying, “What is this that God has done to us?”

29 And they came to their father, Jacob, into the land of Chanaan, and reported to him all that had happened to them, saying,

29 They came to Jacob their father, to the land of Canaan, and told him all that had happened to them, saying,

30 The man, the lord of the land, spoke harsh words to us, and put us in prison as spies of the land.

30 “The man, the lord of the land, spoke roughly with us, and took us for spies of the country.

31 And we said to him, We are men of peace, we are not spies.

31 We said to him, ‘We are honest men. We are no spies.

32 We are twelve brethren, sons of our father; one is not, and the youngest is with his father to-day in the land of Chanaan.

32 We are twelve brothers, sons of our father; one is no more, and the youngest is today with our father in the land of Canaan.’

33 And the man, the lord of the land, said to us, Herein shall I know that ye are peaceable; leave one brother here with me, and having taken the corn ye have purchased for your family, depart.

33 The man, the lord of the land, said to us, ‘By this I will know that you are honest men: leave one of your brothers with me, and take grain for the famine of your houses, and go your way.

34 And bring to me your younger brother; then I shall know that ye are not spies, but that ye are men of peace: and I will restore you your brother, and ye shall trade in the land.

34 Bring your youngest brother to me. Then I will know that you are not spies, but that you are honest men. So I will deliver your brother to you, and you shall trade in the land.’”

35 And it came to pass as they were emptying their sacks, there was each man's bundle of money in his sack; and they and their father saw their bundles of money, and they were afraid.

35 As they emptied their sacks, behold, each man’s bundle of money was in his sack. When they and their father saw their bundles of money, they were afraid.

36 And their father Jacob said to them, Ye have bereaved me. Joseph is not, Symeon is not, and will ye take Benjamin? all these things have come upon me.

36 Jacob, their father, said to them, “You have bereaved me of my children! Joseph is no more, Simeon is no more, and you want to take Benjamin away. All these things are against me.”

37 And Ruben spoke to his father, saying, Slay my two sons, if I bring him not to thee; give him into my hand, and I will bring him back to thee.

37 Reuben spoke to his father, saying, “Kill my two sons, if I don’t bring him to you. Entrust him to my care, and I will bring him to you again.”

38 But he said, My son shall not go down with you, because his brother is dead, and he only has been left; and [suppose] it shall come to pass that he is afflicted by the way by which ye go, then ye shall bring down my old age with sorrow to Hades.

38 He said, “My son shall not go down with you; for his brother is dead, and he only is left. If harm happens to him along the way in which you go, then you will bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to Sheol.”

People & places in this chapter

From this site's family tree and Bible maps, only where those guides cite this chapter.

People

Joseph
Ruler in Egypt
Betrayed and enslaved, he rose to rule Egypt and saved his family from famine.
Cited in the guide: Genesis 37; 39–50
See in the family tree

Cross references (34)

Related passages for each verse, from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge as collected and ranked by readers at OpenBible.info.

Cross references: OpenBible.info (CC BY), drawn mainly from the public-domain Treasury of Scripture Knowledge. · Sources & licences

What the Fathers said

Passages from the Church Fathers that expound or quote this chapter, verbatim from the public-domain Schaff edition (19th-century English translations).

How these were chosen

“Commentary” is the opening of a homily or exposition on this chapter (John Chrysostom’s homilies, Augustine’s tractates, sermons and expositions of the Psalms). “Quotes” are sentences where the edition’s own footnotes identify a quotation of a verse here, kept only when the wording matches the verse. Only works whose authorship is not in doubt are used. Psalms follow the Hebrew/English numbering (Augustine numbers them as the Septuagint does: his Psalm 50 is Psalm 51 here).

Quotes verse 42:3 Irenaeus of Lyons, Against Heresies (Book I, Chapters XVIII–XIX)
… brethren who detained her for ten days; Jeroboam also, who received the ten sceptres (tribes), and the ten courts of the tabernacle, and the columns of ten cubits [high], and the ten sons of Jacob who were at first sent into Egypt to buy corn, and the ten apostles to whom the Lord appeared after His resurrection,--Thomas being absent,--represented, according …
Read in context · Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 1 (1885)

Old Testament

People & places in this chapter

People

What the Fathers said