†. Gen 43:18c . . It must be, they thought; because of the silver,
replaced in our bags the first time, that we have been brought
inside-- as a pretext to attack us and seize us as slaves, with our
pack animals.
That's actually a pretty good mob trick; it's in movies like Godfather, and in
TV programs like The Sopranos all the time. The mark is thrown off guard
with courtesy, forgiveness, kindness, sympathy, generosity, and friendship;
until the moment of truth when the guns, knives, garrotes, anchor chains,
and/or bags of concrete come out. The men are justifiably worried; and so
rather than wait and be confronted about the silver, they come forward to
cop a plea.
†. Gen 43:19-22 . . So they went up to Joseph's house steward and
spoke to him at the entrance of the house. If you please, my lord,
they said; we came down once before to procure food. But when we
arrived at the night encampment and opened our bags, there was
each one's money in the mouth of his bag, our money in full. So we
have brought it back with us. And we have brought down with us
other money to procure food. We do not know who put the money in
our bags.
No true thief of course would go to all the trouble of actually bringing the
silver back; sort of like people who are given too much change from a
purchase and keep it; saying nothing.
†. Gen 43:23a . . He replied: All is well with you; do not be afraid.
Your god, the god of your father, must have put treasure in your
bags for you. I got your payment.
In the steward's thinking; which god is the god of your father? If he had
used the name Yhvh it would be easier to answer that question. But in light
of the times and the circumstances, it isn't unreasonable to assume that the
steward had no idea who their own personal god was, nor did he care; since
gods were plentiful in Egypt and the brothers would probably be like
everybody else and simply worship the one they inherited and grew up with
at home: whichever that might be.
†. Gen 43:23b-25 . . And he brought out Simeon to them. Then the
man brought the men into Joseph's house; he gave them water to
bathe their feet, and he provided feed for their burros. They laid out
their gifts to await Joseph's arrival at noon, for they had heard that
they were to dine there.
In the brothers' minds; all the leniency and courtesy being extended to them
was little more than a pretext designed to accomplish just one purpose: to
give them a false sense of security so they wouldn't suspect the real purpose
for being brought to Joseph's home; which they truly believed was to
confiscate their goods and their livestock, and to harness themselves in
slavery.
†. Gen 43:26-28 . .When Joseph came home, they presented to him
the gifts that they had brought with them into the house, bowing
low before him to the ground. He greeted them, and he said: How is
your aged father of whom you spoke? Is he still in good health? They
replied: It is well with your servant our father; he is still in good
health. And they bowed and made obeisance.
The Hebrew word for "obeisance" is shachah (shaw-khaw') which means to
prostrate oneself in homage. That very same word is translated "worship" in
other places. (e.g. Gen 22:5, Gen 24:26, Ex 34:14)
†. Gen 43:29a . . As he looked about and saw his brother Benjamin,
his own mother's son, he asked: Is this your youngest brother, the
one you told me about?
No doubt Joseph could tell by the looks on everybody's faces that it was
indeed Benjamin so he didn't have to wait for an answer before responding.
†. Gen 43:29b . . May God be gracious to you, my son.
To be "gracious" is the Hebrew word chanan (khaw-nan') which means to
stoop or bend in kindness to an inferior; viz: fraternize with someone below
you; viz: waive the privileges of rank and descend to a less formal or less
dignified level-- a mandated Christian social skill.
†. Rom 12:16 . . Don't be conceited, and think so highly of yourself as to
avoid associating with people below you.
Somebody might be curious why Joseph called Benjamin "son" instead of
brother. The Hebrew word for son (ben) is ambiguous and has a pretty wide
application. It can mean not only a direct descendant, but also a grandson;
or the result of an action like city building or township founding. It can also
mean a subject, like citizens in a kingdom. It was no doubt in the "subject"
aspect that Joseph applied it to his kid brother-- not as kin, but as below
himself in rank because in Egypt, nobody was higher than Joseph except his
own boss Pharaoh; which made Pharaoh a father to everyone under his
jurisdiction; including Joseph. And besides, Joseph is not quite ready to
reveal his true identity; so he has to maintain an air of aristocracy in order
to keep them guessing.
†. Gen 43:30 . .Then Joseph made a hasty exit because he was
overcome with emotion for his brother and wanted to sob. Going
into his private room, he wept there.
Only people who have found long-lost relatives can understand the wave of
emotion that swept Joseph at this moment. It's a strange human
experience. When my own full brother found me after losing track of each
other for almost 26 years, I broke down and had to call in sick to work the
next day. It was overwhelming; and I don't even like the man. My brother
and I were never friends. In point of fact, our reunion took place over the
phone and via US Mail: we never did actually meet up face to face. I
informed him, in no uncertain terms, that if he ever came to my home I
would call the Sheriff. Anon, I took steps to insure he never wrote me, nor
called me, ever again. If my brother should die before me, I don't want to
be told about it; and won't go to his funeral.
Somebody might ask: Why don't you forgive your brother and let bygones
be bygones. No; they don't understand. My brother is toxic. He's on a third
marriage and has left behind him a wake of broken-hearted, psychologically
damaged wives and children. Everyone is secondary to his business
ambitions. Nobody is on a plane with those ambitions-- nobody. He's
extremely competitive, and always has to be the center of attention at the
expense of everyone else's self respect. My brother is cursed with a natural
talent for making people in his presence feel bad about themselves.
No, it's not as simple as bygones-- it's as simple as self defense. I am not
going to let my brother close enough to abuse me all over again, and I am
certainly not going to let him near any of my own family. It's just not going
to happen unless he goes through some very miraculous changes first.
Haven't you noticed how cautious Joseph has been with his own brothers?
That's the lesson of this section; don't miss it. Joseph has been carefully
gauging his elder brothers' reactions through all this to make very, very sure
he can trust them enough to let them back into his life. If the reunion goes
south, and means never seeing his dad or kid brother again, then that's
what Joseph will do even though it will break his heart to remain
permanently estranged.
Cont.
/
replaced in our bags the first time, that we have been brought
inside-- as a pretext to attack us and seize us as slaves, with our
pack animals.
That's actually a pretty good mob trick; it's in movies like Godfather, and in
TV programs like The Sopranos all the time. The mark is thrown off guard
with courtesy, forgiveness, kindness, sympathy, generosity, and friendship;
until the moment of truth when the guns, knives, garrotes, anchor chains,
and/or bags of concrete come out. The men are justifiably worried; and so
rather than wait and be confronted about the silver, they come forward to
cop a plea.
†. Gen 43:19-22 . . So they went up to Joseph's house steward and
spoke to him at the entrance of the house. If you please, my lord,
they said; we came down once before to procure food. But when we
arrived at the night encampment and opened our bags, there was
each one's money in the mouth of his bag, our money in full. So we
have brought it back with us. And we have brought down with us
other money to procure food. We do not know who put the money in
our bags.
No true thief of course would go to all the trouble of actually bringing the
silver back; sort of like people who are given too much change from a
purchase and keep it; saying nothing.
†. Gen 43:23a . . He replied: All is well with you; do not be afraid.
Your god, the god of your father, must have put treasure in your
bags for you. I got your payment.
In the steward's thinking; which god is the god of your father? If he had
used the name Yhvh it would be easier to answer that question. But in light
of the times and the circumstances, it isn't unreasonable to assume that the
steward had no idea who their own personal god was, nor did he care; since
gods were plentiful in Egypt and the brothers would probably be like
everybody else and simply worship the one they inherited and grew up with
at home: whichever that might be.
†. Gen 43:23b-25 . . And he brought out Simeon to them. Then the
man brought the men into Joseph's house; he gave them water to
bathe their feet, and he provided feed for their burros. They laid out
their gifts to await Joseph's arrival at noon, for they had heard that
they were to dine there.
In the brothers' minds; all the leniency and courtesy being extended to them
was little more than a pretext designed to accomplish just one purpose: to
give them a false sense of security so they wouldn't suspect the real purpose
for being brought to Joseph's home; which they truly believed was to
confiscate their goods and their livestock, and to harness themselves in
slavery.
†. Gen 43:26-28 . .When Joseph came home, they presented to him
the gifts that they had brought with them into the house, bowing
low before him to the ground. He greeted them, and he said: How is
your aged father of whom you spoke? Is he still in good health? They
replied: It is well with your servant our father; he is still in good
health. And they bowed and made obeisance.
The Hebrew word for "obeisance" is shachah (shaw-khaw') which means to
prostrate oneself in homage. That very same word is translated "worship" in
other places. (e.g. Gen 22:5, Gen 24:26, Ex 34:14)
†. Gen 43:29a . . As he looked about and saw his brother Benjamin,
his own mother's son, he asked: Is this your youngest brother, the
one you told me about?
No doubt Joseph could tell by the looks on everybody's faces that it was
indeed Benjamin so he didn't have to wait for an answer before responding.
†. Gen 43:29b . . May God be gracious to you, my son.
To be "gracious" is the Hebrew word chanan (khaw-nan') which means to
stoop or bend in kindness to an inferior; viz: fraternize with someone below
you; viz: waive the privileges of rank and descend to a less formal or less
dignified level-- a mandated Christian social skill.
†. Rom 12:16 . . Don't be conceited, and think so highly of yourself as to
avoid associating with people below you.
Somebody might be curious why Joseph called Benjamin "son" instead of
brother. The Hebrew word for son (ben) is ambiguous and has a pretty wide
application. It can mean not only a direct descendant, but also a grandson;
or the result of an action like city building or township founding. It can also
mean a subject, like citizens in a kingdom. It was no doubt in the "subject"
aspect that Joseph applied it to his kid brother-- not as kin, but as below
himself in rank because in Egypt, nobody was higher than Joseph except his
own boss Pharaoh; which made Pharaoh a father to everyone under his
jurisdiction; including Joseph. And besides, Joseph is not quite ready to
reveal his true identity; so he has to maintain an air of aristocracy in order
to keep them guessing.
†. Gen 43:30 . .Then Joseph made a hasty exit because he was
overcome with emotion for his brother and wanted to sob. Going
into his private room, he wept there.
Only people who have found long-lost relatives can understand the wave of
emotion that swept Joseph at this moment. It's a strange human
experience. When my own full brother found me after losing track of each
other for almost 26 years, I broke down and had to call in sick to work the
next day. It was overwhelming; and I don't even like the man. My brother
and I were never friends. In point of fact, our reunion took place over the
phone and via US Mail: we never did actually meet up face to face. I
informed him, in no uncertain terms, that if he ever came to my home I
would call the Sheriff. Anon, I took steps to insure he never wrote me, nor
called me, ever again. If my brother should die before me, I don't want to
be told about it; and won't go to his funeral.
Somebody might ask: Why don't you forgive your brother and let bygones
be bygones. No; they don't understand. My brother is toxic. He's on a third
marriage and has left behind him a wake of broken-hearted, psychologically
damaged wives and children. Everyone is secondary to his business
ambitions. Nobody is on a plane with those ambitions-- nobody. He's
extremely competitive, and always has to be the center of attention at the
expense of everyone else's self respect. My brother is cursed with a natural
talent for making people in his presence feel bad about themselves.
No, it's not as simple as bygones-- it's as simple as self defense. I am not
going to let my brother close enough to abuse me all over again, and I am
certainly not going to let him near any of my own family. It's just not going
to happen unless he goes through some very miraculous changes first.
Haven't you noticed how cautious Joseph has been with his own brothers?
That's the lesson of this section; don't miss it. Joseph has been carefully
gauging his elder brothers' reactions through all this to make very, very sure
he can trust them enough to let them back into his life. If the reunion goes
south, and means never seeing his dad or kid brother again, then that's
what Joseph will do even though it will break his heart to remain
permanently estranged.
Cont.
/
