Meditate

43. The Second Journey to Egypt

The Brothers Come Again, Bringing Benjamin

43

Now the famine was severe in the land.²And when they had eaten up the grain that they had brought from Egypt, their father said to them, “Go again, buy us a little more food.”³But Judah said to him, “The man solemnly warned us, saying, ‘You shall not see my face unless your brother is with you.’⁴If you will send our brother with us, we will go down and buy you food;⁵but if you will not send him, we will not go down, for the man said to us, ‘You shall not see my face, unless your brother is with you.’ ”⁶Israel said, “Why did you treat me so badly as to tell the man that you had another brother?”⁷They replied, “The man questioned us carefully about ourselves and our kindred, saying, ‘Is your father still alive? Have you another brother?’ What we told him was in answer to these questions. Could we in any way know that he would say, ‘Bring your brother down’?”⁸Then Judah said to his father Israel, “Send the boy with me, and let us be on our way, so that we may live and not die—you and we and also our little ones.⁹I myself will be surety for him; you can hold me accountable for him. If I do not bring him back to you and set him before you, then let me bear the blame forever.¹⁰If we had not delayed, we would now have returned twice.”

¹¹ Then their father Israel said to them, “If it must be so, then do this: take some of the choice fruits of the land in your bags, and carry them down as a present to the man—a little balm and a little honey, gum, resin, pistachio nuts, and almonds.¹²Take double the money with you. Carry back with you the money that was returned in the top of your sacks; perhaps it was an oversight.¹³Take your brother also, and be on your way again to the man;¹⁴may God Almighty grant you mercy before the man, so that he may send back your other brother and Benjamin. As for me, if I am bereaved of my children, I am bereaved.”¹⁵So the men took the present, and they took double the money with them, as well as Benjamin. Then they went on their way down to Egypt, and stood before Joseph.

¹⁶ When Joseph saw Benjamin with them, he said to the steward of his house, “Bring the men into the house, and slaughter an animal and make ready, for the men are to dine with me at noon.”¹⁷The man did as Joseph said, and brought the men to Joseph’s house.¹⁸Now the men were afraid because they were brought to Joseph’s house, and they said, “It is because of the money, replaced in our sacks the first time, that we have been brought in, so that he may have an opportunity to fall upon us, to make slaves of us and take our donkeys.”¹⁹So they went up to the steward of Joseph’s house and spoke with him at the entrance to the house.²⁰They said, “Oh, my lord, we came down the first time to buy food;²¹and when we came to the lodging place we opened our sacks, and there was each one’s money in the top of his sack, our money in full weight. So we have brought it back with us.²²Moreover we have brought down with us additional money to buy food. We do not know who put our money in our sacks.”²³He replied, “Rest assured, do not be afraid; your God and the God of your father must have put treasure in your sacks for you; I received your money.” Then he brought Simeon out to them.²⁴When the steward had brought the men into Joseph’s house, and given them water, and they had washed their feet, and when he had given their donkeys fodder,²⁵they made the present ready for Joseph’s coming at noon, for they had heard that they would dine there.

²⁶ When Joseph came home, they brought him the present that they had carried into the house, and bowed to the ground before him.²⁷He inquired about their welfare, and said, “Is your father well, the old man of whom you spoke? Is he still alive?”²⁸They said, “Your servant our father is well; he is still alive.” And they bowed their heads and did obeisance.²⁹Then he looked up and saw his brother Benjamin, his mother’s son, and said, “Is this your youngest brother, of whom you spoke to me? God be gracious to you, my son!”³⁰With that, Joseph hurried out, because he was overcome with affection for his brother, and he was about to weep. So he went into a private room and wept there.³¹Then he washed his face and came out; and controlling himself he said, “Serve the meal.”³²They served him by himself, and them by themselves, and the Egyptians who ate with him by themselves, because the Egyptians could not eat with the Hebrews, for that is an abomination to the Egyptians.³³When they were seated before him, the firstborn according to his birthright and the youngest according to his youth, the men looked at one another in amazement.³⁴Portions were taken to them from Joseph’s table, but Benjamin’s portion was five times as much as any of theirs. So they drank and were merry with him.

9. God's Sovereign Choice

²⁷ And Isaiah cries out concerning Israel, “Though the number of the children of Israel were like the sand of the sea, only a remnant of them will be saved;²⁸for the Lord will execute his sentence on the earth quickly and decisively.”²⁹And as Isaiah predicted,

“If the Lord of hosts had not left survivors to us,

we would have fared like Sodom

and been made like Gomorrah.”

55. Psalm 55

Psalm 55

Complaint about a Friend’s Treachery

To the leader: with stringed instruments. A Maskil of David.

1

Give ear to my prayer, O God;

do not hide yourself from my supplication.

2

Attend to me, and answer me;

I am troubled in my complaint.

I am distraught³by the noise of the enemy,

because of the clamor of the wicked.

For they bring trouble upon me,

and in anger they cherish enmity against me.

4

My heart is in anguish within me,

the terrors of death have fallen upon me.

5

Fear and trembling come upon me,

and horror overwhelms me.

6

And I say, “O that I had wings like a dove!

I would fly away and be at rest;

7

truly, I would flee far away;

I would lodge in the wilderness;Selah

8

I would hurry to find a shelter for myself

from the raging wind and tempest.”

9

Confuse, O Lord, confound their speech;

for I see violence and strife in the city.

10

Day and night they go around it

on its walls,

and iniquity and trouble are within it;

11

ruin is in its midst;

oppression and fraud

do not depart from its marketplace.

12

It is not enemies who taunt me—

I could bear that;

it is not adversaries who deal insolently with me—

I could hide from them.

13

But it is you, my equal,

my companion, my familiar friend,

14

with whom I kept pleasant company;

we walked in the house of God with the throng.

15

Let death come upon them;

let them go down alive to Sheol;

for evil is in their homes and in their hearts.

16

But I call upon God,

and the Lord will save me.

17

Evening and morning and at noon

I utter my complaint and moan,

and he will hear my voice.

18

He will redeem me unharmed

from the battle that I wage,

for many are arrayed against me.

19

God, who is enthroned from of old,Selah

will hear, and will humble them—

because they do not change,

and do not fear God.

20

My companion laid hands on a friend

and violated a covenant with me

21

with speech smoother than butter,

but with a heart set on war;

with words that were softer than oil,

but in fact were drawn swords.

22

Cast your burden on the Lord,

and he will sustain you;

he will never permit

the righteous to be moved.

23

But you, O God, will cast them down

into the lowest pit;

the bloodthirsty and treacherous

shall not live out half their days.

But I will trust in you.