Genesis Chapter 44
There was a strong possibility that Joseph’s brothers did not care about their youngest brother Benjamin being a half-brother and highly favored by their father. They might feel about him as they did Joseph so long ago. They might wish to be rid of him too. Joseph had not forgotten how his brothers had voiced the darkness in their hearts when they had said they wanted to kill him but opted instead to sell him to some traders. Imagine how Joseph had begged for his life and then for his freedom but was ignored by his own brothers. Were they still those same callous men? Joseph was about to put his brothers to a test to see where their hearts were after all these years.
Let's Reflect
1. The brothers thought they were leaving to go back home to their father with purchased sacks of grain. What did Joseph have his steward put in their sacks?
2. This time Joseph had his steward catch up with them and accuse them of stealing. These brothers trusted each other enough to know that none of them had done such a thing. The steward was given a message from Joseph to speak to the brothers. I confess this message bothers me because Joseph told the steward to tell his brothers he used the cup for divination. He later implies that he would be able to tell the truth of the matter by using divination. The commentators I read felt that these were just words to scare the brothers with his power. The brothers believed this governor to be an Egyptian and Egyptians practiced divination. I thought about this for a good while. If Joseph had just let them be accused of something they knew they didn’t do they would have thought horrible things against the governor who keeps tricking them. They might have tried to attack the governor in their anger towards his trickery. He wanted them to think that he was powerful enough to be able to read their minds (their hearts) because he was testing them. He was testing them to see if they were still dark in their hearts. Notice how he had the steward open their bags to reveal who the culprit was. What order did the steward go proving the “power” of the governor? [This is just opinion, but I don’t think that Joseph really used divination. He could have, living in the culture he did, but it would have been totally out of character for him.]
3. What did the brothers do when the cup was found in Benjamin’s sack?
4. According to verse 14 what did the brothers do when they came back to the house of Joseph the governor?
5. Judah declared the guilt of all the brothers, thinking it best that they all take the blame. But Joseph declared that he wanted to punish only the guilty party who took his cup. In fact, he instructed them to do what?
6. Judah made a long plea for his brother Benjamin. What did he say would happen to their father if they did not return with Benjamin?
7. Notice in his plea to spare Benjamin from slavery or possibly even death, Judah reveals something about a missing brother from the family. What does he reveal about the missing brother? See verses 27 and 28.
8. If they did not return with Benjamin their father would die of grief and go down to his grave (sheol) with gray hair. Not only would his father have gray hair but also Judah would, why? See verse 32.
9. Instead of Benjamin staying in Egypt, what did Judah propose?
