Genesis 42:1-2: “When Jacob learned that there was grain in Egypt, he said to his sons, ‘Why do you just keep looking at each other?’ He continued, ‘I have heard that there is grain in Egypt. Go down there and buy some for us, so that we may live and not die.’”
Like an old relic of the past, Jacob was the only one left of his generation. His wife Leah had passed as well as Bilhah and Zilpah, his concubines. All of his sons had children. Fifty grandchildren and four greatgrandchildren were born to him in Canaan.
The drought weighed heavy on the land and his eleven sons had trouble finding pasture for their sheep and goats. To reduce the size of their herds they began trading their livestock for grain. But soon there was no grain to be had.
Then the news spread like wildfire that Egypt had grain for sale. And Jacob said: “Why are you standing here doing nothing? Go to Egypt and purchase food so that we are able to survive this famine.”
The following morning, ten of the eleven brothers prepared for their trip to Egypt since their father had insisted to leave Benjamin at home. “I can’t stand the thought of losing him too, as I have lost Joseph”, he said, and everybody winced at the mention of Joseph’s name. “Go with God”, were his parting words. Jacob stood with Benjamin and watched them go until his sons turned a corner and disappeared out of sight.
On their way to Egypt, the brothers discussed their strategy. “We need to go see the vizier of the country and hope that he is willing to sell to a foreigner,” Judah said. “I’m sure he will,” Simeon remarked. “People come from everywhere, not just Canaan.” Dan was wondering: “Where does all their grain come from?” – “God knows,” Gad replied.
“I have heard that one of their magicians predicted the future and told them about this drought beforehand,” said Naphtali, “that’s why they had stored as much grain as possible in the years prior to prepare for the worst.” – “That’s actually not a bad idea”, said Levi, “We should do this anyway. You never know what the next year brings.” – “Too late now!” said Issachar a bit sarcastically, “but a good thing to remember once the tides have turned.”
After nearly a month’s journey the ten brothers crossed the Nile River and were on their way to Memphis. There they stood in line with hundreds of other people. Some were dressed in Egyptian fashion, but most of the people they saw in the crowd were foreigners.
Finally Jacob’s sons reached the top of the line. The clean-shaven administrator was dressed in white linen and wore a gold chain around his neck. “I heard he is Pharaoh’s second-in-command – a powerful position. We better get into his good graces” whispered Reuben, “Anybody here speaks Egyptian?” – “I believe they have translators”, said Simeon, “But I can give it a try. I know a few words.”
Suddenly Simeon had a flashback. He saw himself standing in Heliopolis offering Dinah’s baby to a priest on duty. He knew so little Egyptian back then and he hadn’t added much vocabulary in the meantime. Humbly he approached the official who served the governor. Pointing to his brothers and himself he spoke in broken Egyptian while offering their silver for payment. The official nodded and said: “Speak freely; I know Hebrew and will translate for you.” Simeon smiled to his brothers and said: “We’re in luck! We have a translator.” Meanwhile the servant ushered them to the vizier who received them coolly and eyed them with suspicion. In harsh tone he said something to his servant and he translated dutifully: “Where are you from?” Now Reuben spoke up and said: “We come from the land of Canaan.”
With the help of the translator a question and answer session ensued, and the brothers felt increasingly uncomfortable, especially when they saw that their answers did not satisfy this powerful administrator. He finally voiced his suspicions and openly accused them of being spies. Judah tried to intervene and spoke up, saying: “With all due respect, sir, we are no spies. We don’t even know what that means. We are simple shepherds, twelve brothers from Canaan. Our youngest brother has stayed at home with our father. And one of our brothers has passed away.”
The last remark seemed to upset Pharaoh’s second-in-command. He said something harsh in Egyptian and the translator said: “He does not believe you. He says: Prove it. He will put you in jail and one of you will have to go back to your homeland and bring the youngest brother here. If my master sees this person, then he could be persuaded that you are not liars.” Pharaoh’s soldiers stepped forward and seized them. Before they knew it, they were all thrown into prison.
“Oh my God, what just happened?” Asher exclaimed. “Shshsh – we need to keep our voice down”, Reuben cautioned. There was a guard right outside their door. In shock the ten brothers huddled together in the corner of their dingy cell, unsure of what would happen next.
Three days later the prison door was opened and the administrator stood before them with his interpreter. “I’m a God-fearing man” the servant translated, “so here is what I propose: I let all of you return home, except one person has to stay behind, so I have a guarantee that you will come back. Note, that you must not show your face again, unless you bring along your youngest brother. The day you present him to me, your brother who is in custody will be set free.” – “You know where this is coming from”, Reuben said to his brothers, “Today we pay for our past sins. We didn’t listen to our brother Joseph when he pleaded with us in anguish. Now we must account for his blood.”
Of course Joseph understood every single word they were saying and for a moment he lost his composure. Quickly he left the room to hide his tears. When he was ready to face his brothers again he came back and took Simeon from them, bound his hands and put him behind bars. Then he ordered his servants to fill his brothers’ bags with grain and provisions. Last of all and unbeknownst to them, he added back their payment – a pouch of silver in each man’s sack.