OUR HEBREW FATHERS
Joseph and His Brothers
IN THIS LECTURE: 1. From Slave to Ruler 2. Joseph s Brothers in Egypt 3. Joseph s Final Test
From Slave to Ruler
Pharaoh was impressed by Joseph's ability to explain dreams that no wise man in Egypt could interpret. In addition, he liked Joseph s plan to set aside a portion of the harvest during good years in preparation for the coming famine. Hence Pharaoh officially elevated Joseph to the highest rank and put him in charge of this venture. The Pharaoh granted Joseph real power, putting resources at his disposal to insure the safety and prosperity of Egypt.
א ת ה ת ה י ה ע ל ב ית י ו ע ל פ י ך י ש ק כ ל ע מ י ר ק ה כ ס א א ג ד ל מ מ ך You shall be in charge of my court, and by your command shall all my people be directed; only with respect to the throne shall I be superior to you. (Gen. 41:40) ו י אמ ר פ ר ע ה א ל י וס ף ר א ה נ ת ת י א ת ך ע ל כ ל א ר ץ מ צ ר י ם Pharaoh further said to Joseph: See, I put you in charge of all the land of Egypt. (Gen. 41:41)
א ת ה ת ה י ה ע ל ב ית י The phrase (atah tihyeh al beiti) literally means you will be over my house. The ע ל פ י ך י ש ק following phrase ami) (al pikha yishak kol כ ל ע מ י literally means something like: over your mouth [i.e., according to you] shall all my people kiss. Essentially, Pharaoh granted Joseph formal authority, allowing him to govern Egypt in every way while coming just short of being a Pharaoh himself. These phrases are reminiscent of Joseph s position of authority in Potiphar s house and in the prison (Gen. 39:4).
ו י ס ר פ ר ע ה א ת ט ב ע ת ו מ ע ל י ד ו ו י ת ן א ת ה ע ל י ד י וס ף ו י ל ב ש א ת ו ב ג ד י ש ש ו י ם ר ד ה ה ע ל צ ו אר ו And removing his signet ring from his hand, Pharaoh put it on Joseph s hand; and he had him dressed in robes of fine linen and put the gold chain about his neck. (Gen. 41:42) Pharaoh confirms his appointment by adorning the Hebrew slave with royal items. Joseph receives Pharaoh s signet ring, the golden collar, and fine linen garments.
"Judging from Egyptian frescos the golden chain ד ה ה ) (ר should be seen as an Egyptian golden collar instead. (Robert Alter, Genesis) As a sign of Joseph s new identity and post, Pharaoh also assigned him a new name: Zaphenath- Paneach ( פ ע נ ח.(צ פ נ ת While Egyptologists have not come to a consensus on its meaning, one fitting suggestion is that this is a Hebrew transliteration of the Egyptian phrase God speaks, he lives.
Pharaoh also gave Joseph a wife, Asenath נ ת ( Asnat )א ס daughter of Poti-phera the ב ת פ וט י פ ר ע ( On priest of Most likely this.(כ ה ן א ן Poti-phera was not the same person as Joseph s former master Potiphar. Asenath s name, translated from Egyptian, means the one belonging to Neith (a goddess). Yet a Jewish tradition of the Hellenistic era proposed that Asenath became a faithful convert to Joseph s one God.
Joseph s children were deemed true descendants of Jacob, following the Biblical patrilineal pattern (Jewish matrilineal heritage is a later rabbinic modification). Israel blessed them and even adopted them as his own sons, rather than regarding them as grandsons (Gen. 48). The later story of Moses shares many similarities with the life of Joseph. Moses grew up in Egypt and also married the daughter of a Gentile priest. Like Joseph, he experienced a period of initial rejection, followed by transformation into a great leader and redeemer of his people.
Joseph the Overseer, Lawrence Alma-Tadema, 1874. During the first seven years Asenath bore Joseph two sons. He called his first-born מ נ ש ה Manasseh (Menasheh), which stood for God has made me forget The.(כ י נ ש נ י א לה ים ( root נשך (nun shin kaf) relates to forgetting or releasing a debt. This son brought Joseph release from what he had missed in his former life.
Joseph the Overseer, Lawrence Alma-Tadema, 1874. His second son was called Ephraim signifying,א פ ר י ם God has made me fertile in the land of my affliction כ י ה פ ר נ י א לה ים ( (Gen..(ב א ר ץ ע נ י י 41:51-52) The fruitfulness of the Israelites in Egypt will prove to be a mixed blessing. Eventually they would become numerous and strong but be enslaved as a result (Exod. 1:7-8).
Joseph was roughly thirty years old when all of these things took place (Gen 41:46). His new service involved a lot of traveling. He was supervising all of Egypt in pursuit of a very important goal storing enough provisions to survive a regional famine. Joseph the Overseer, Lawrence Alma-Tadema, 1874.
Joseph s Brothers in Egypt
Seven fruitful harvest years came to an end, and it became evident that the dream had been true. Joseph was right, and Pharaoh had made a wise decision in appointing him to head the task of setting aside massive quantities of food. When the whole region began to experience famine, Egypt had grain. Joseph rationed out the previously collected grain to the citizens. People of other lands also entered at this time of severe famine.
From the entire Mediterranean region people came to Joseph for grain. The shortage also became unbearable for Joseph s own family in Canaan. Israel told his sons: Just go and get us what our family needs, so that we may live and not die! (Gen. 42:1-3). Many years earlier, the same brothers had led Joseph along a path of death, sending him to Egypt as a slave to die and not live. Now Joseph s father sends them to Egypt so that his entire family will live and not die.
The narrative states that Joseph was now a ruler in Egypt, and that his brothers came to pay him homage by bowing down before him. ו י וס ף הוא ה ש ל יט ע ל ה א ר ץ הוא ה מ ש ב יר ל כ ל ע ם ה א ר ץ ו י או א ח י י וס ף ו י ש ת ח וו ל ו א פ י ם א ר צ ה Now Joseph was the ruler of the land; it was he who dispensed rations to all the people of the land. And Joseph s brothers came and bowed low to him with their faces to the ground. (Gen. 42:6)
The English term bow down does not clearly communicate the idea of full prostration that was practiced in the ancient Near East and inferred here by the use of the Hebrew which basically,ו י ש ת ח וו ל ו means and they prostrated themselves to him. The text even emphasizes that their faces were on the ground. The narrative employs the same verb in the telling of Joseph s dream (Gen. 37:7-10). Joseph and his Brothers, Peter von Cornelius, 1816.
ו י ר א י וס ף א ת א ח יו ו י כ ר ם ו י ת נ כ ר א ל יה ם ו י ד ב ר א ת ם ק ש ות ו י אמ ר א ל ה ם מ א י ן ב את ם ו י אמ רו מ א ר ץ כ נ ע ן ל ש ב ר א כ ל When Joseph saw his brothers, he recognized them; but he acted like a stranger toward them and spoke harshly to them. He asked them: Where do you come from? And they said: From the land of Canaan to procure food. (Gen. 42:7) Joseph spoke to his brothers through an interpreter, though he understood the words they spoke to each other.
,(ו י כ ר ם) recognize The verb for and the verb for play the stranger י ת נ כ ר א ל יה ם) (ו are derived from the same root (the latter being a reflexive form of the root). Both uses pick up the thematically prominent repetition of the same root earlier in the story: Jacob was asked to recognize Joseph s blood-soaked tunic and Tamar invited Judah to recognize the tokens he had left with her as a security for payment for her sexual services. (Robert Alter, Genesis) Joseph and his Brothers, Peter von Cornelius, 1816.
This is just as guess but Joseph s anger and pain was probably transformed by God s presence. While his brothers did not recognize him, he recognized them even though 20 years had passed. Before taking any action, Joseph wanted to know what was in his brother s hearts if they had changed their hateful ways? Were they remorseful of the evil they committed? Owen Jones, Jacob and His Brethren, 1869.
ו י אמ ר א ל ה ם מ ר ג ל ים א ת ם ל ר א ות א ת ע ר ו ת ה א ר ץ ב את ם He said to them: You are spies, you have come to see the land in its nakedness. (Gen. 42:9) Joseph accuses his brothers of being spies who want to take advantage of Egypt in this time of weakness. Nakedness is something usually concealed or kept hidden. Owen Jones, Jacob and His Brethren, 1869.
Their justification was simple we can t be spies, for we are family, we are all brothers! They mentioned their youngest brother at home and one had perished. Spying is usually a very dangerous business, where one risks losing everything, and not a family venture. To test their story, Joseph imprisoned one of them and told the rest of the brothers to go back and bring their youngest brother to Egypt. Owen Jones, Jacob and His Brethren, 1869.
The brothers returned home and had to tell their father what had happened to them in Egypt and that Simeon was now in jail. Joseph and his Brothers, Peter von Cornelius, 1816. ו י אמ ר א ל ה ם י ע ק א יה ם א ת י ש כ ל ת ם י וס ף א ינ נו ו ש מ ע ון א ינ נו ו א ת ב נ י מ ן ת ק חו ע ל י ה יו כל נ ה Their father Jacob said to them: It is me that you bereave: Joseph is no more and Simeon is no more, and now you would take away Benjamin. These things happen to me! (Gen. 42:36)
Simeon was Leah s second son (Gen. 29:31-33) and Joseph chose him as a hostage for Benjamin, who was Rachel s second son. Israel s response is understandable. ו י אמ ר ל א י ר ד ב נ י ע מ כ ם כ י א ח יו מ ת ו הוא ל ד ו נ ש א ר Hugo Ballin, Jacob, Los Angeles, 1974 My son must not go down with you, for his brother is dead and he alone is left. (Gen. 42:38)
Israel referred to Benjamin as my son, while alluding to Joseph but not mentioning Simeon again. Can Jacob s other sons accept this clear favoritism toward Rachel s sons? The supply of grain from Egypt was almost gone. Israel wanted to send his sons to Egypt not to try and free Simeon, but rather to bring more food. But they could not return there without Benjamin. Jacob became angry with his sons for having revealed the existence of Benjamin, but Judah defended their actions and gave a personal guarantee of Benjamin s safety.
Judah reasoned with Israel and convinced his father that this was not only about Benjamin all their lives were on the line. ו י אמ ר י הוד ה א ל י ר א ל א יו ש ל ח ה ה נ ע ר א ת י ו נ קומ ה ו נ ל כ ה ו נ ח י ה ו ל א נ מות ג ם א נ ח נו ג ם א ת ה ג ם ט פ נו Then Judah said to his father Israel: Send the boy in my care, and let us be on our way, that we may live and not die you and we and our children. (Gen. 43:8)
Israel finally consented to send Benjamin to Egypt, a moment of great personal challenge. He decided to trust El Shaddai. The father invokes this old name for God and hopes for mercy. Everything is staked on that one name... In his boldness, he breaks the cycle of his own grief and loss. And at the same time, he breaks the sons spiral of betrayal and deception... He is able to care and grieve and therefore to hope. (Walter Brueggemann, Genesis) Walter Brueggemann, Professor of Old Testament at Columbia Theological Seminary
Joseph s Final Test
When the brothers arrived in Egypt and Joseph saw Benjamin, the steward was charged to bring everyone to Joseph s house for a private meal. Simeon was freed. At Joseph s house, in expectation of the meal, the brothers laid out the gifts they had brought for the ruler. When Joseph came, the brothers once again bowed to the ground before him. ו י ש א ל ל ה ם ל ש ל ום ו י אמ ר ה ש ל ום א יכ ם ה ק ן א ש ר א מ ר ת ם ה ע וד נו ח י He greeted them and said: How is your aged father of whom you spoke? Is he still in good health? (Gen. 43:27)
ו י אמ רו ש ל ום ל ע ד ך ל א ינו ע וד נו ח י ו י ק דו ו י ש ת חו They replied: It is well with your servant our father; he is still in good health. And they bowed and prostrated themselves. (Gen. 43:28) To them it may have seemed as if the Egyptian was just being cordial, but of course Joseph was quite concerned to find out if his father still lived. Next, he confirmed that the real Benjamin was standing before him.
Joseph addressed the youngest brother with kind words. We read in Gen. א לה ים י ח נ ך ב נ י 43:29b (Elohim yachnekha beni), meaning May God be gracious to you, my son. The moment was so emotional that Joseph was unable to hold back his tears, so he went to another room to cry. He regained control and then ordered his servants to serve the meal.
As an Egyptian and a person of high status, Joseph sat separately from his brothers during the meal. The brothers were seated at the table in accordance with their age, from the oldest to the youngest. ו י ש א מ א ת מ א ת פ נ יו א ל ה ם ו ת ר מ א ת ב נ י מ ן מ מ א ת כל ם ח מ ש י ד ות ו י ש תו ו י ש כ רו ע מ ו Portions were served them from his table; but Benjamin s portion was five times larger than that of anyone else. And they drank their fill with him. (Gen 43:34)
Benjamin received a food portion from Joseph s table that far exceeded the portions received by his older brothers. This astonished the sons of Jacob, because it clearly showed Joseph s favor toward the youngest brother. The promise had been kept, proving that they were not spies. The anger of the Egyptian had been averted. After dinner Joseph told the brothers to take as much grain as they could carry. But he instructed his servant once again to return all their money, and this time also to place Joseph s silver cup into Benjamin s sack as they departed.
Egyptian Lotus Chalice, ca. 1300 B.C.E. As soon as they left the city, Joseph ordered his steward to catch up to them and accuse them of stealing his master s silver cup. ל מ ה ש ל מ ת ם ר ע ה ת ח ת ט ו ה ה ל וא ז ה א ש ר י ש ת ה א ד נ י ב ו ו הוא נ ח ש י נ ח ש ב ו ה ר ע ת ם א ש ר ע ית ם Why did you repay good with evil? It is the very one from which my master drinks and which he uses for divination. It was a wicked thing for you to do! (Gen 44:4-5)
Egyptian Lotus Chalice, ca. 1300 B.C.E. The brothers defended themselves and even swore an oath according to which the one found with the cup would be put to death and the others become slaves if they had been lying and were guilty (Gen. 44:6-9). The punishment sounds extreme, but the theft of a sacred item (like this divination cup) could call for capital punishment. Their denials remind us of a similar scenario earlier with Laban, Jacob, and the stolen idols (Gen. 31:32).
Egyptian Lotus Chalice, ca. 1300 B.C.E. ח ל יל ה ל י מ ע ות ז את ה א י ש א ש ר נ מ צ א ה ג יע ב י ד ו הוא י ה י ה ל י ע ד ו א ת ם ע לו ל ש ל ום א ל א יכ ם Far be it from me to act thus! Only he in whose possession the cup was found shall be my slave: the rest of you go back in peace to your father. (Gen. 44:17) The steward insisted that only the guilty brother would become a slave; the rest would go free.
The steward first searched the older brothers sacks, then reached Benjamin s last. When the cup was found, they tore their clothes in deep grief and, reloading their donkeys, returned to the city without a word. Some interpreters feel that Joseph planned to make his brothers feel trapped in a cycle of bad circumstances beyond their control or explanation. One can imagine that he wanted them to feel the way he felt in the pit and when he was sold perplexed, betrayed, afraid, lost, alone and helpless. The Brothers Find the Silver Goblet, Alexander Ivanov, 1833.
However, Joseph s elaborate plan did not focus on this emotional set-up. The real goal was to test his brothers. How would they act? Had they changed? Would they allow Benjamin to be taken into slavery and possibly die? Would they be glad to abandon him, just as they got rid of Joseph? The moment of truth had come! Judah, who originally conceived of the plan to sell Joseph as a slave, spoke up on behalf of the brothers, addressing the Egyptian ruler. The Brothers Find the Silver Goblet, Alexander Ivanov, 1831-1833.
Joseph and His Brothers, Franz Anton Maulbertsch, ca. 1745. Judah retold the entire story from his point of view (Gen. 44:18-30). He told Joseph that Benjamin s father cannot live without his youngest son. The very issue of parental favoritism that had caused a negative attitude towards Joseph in the past was now accepted as a fact by a much older and more mature Judah. Judah cannot bring more suffering to old Jacob. He understands the parental pain of losing children (he lost two sons himself).
Judah begs the Egyptian ruler to allow him to change places with Benjamin. He will remain a slave in Egypt, letting Benjamin return to his father Jacob (Gen. 44:30-34). Joseph and His Brothers, Franz Anton Maulbertsch, ca. 1745. The brother who mistreated young Joseph and was happy to sell him into slavery now stands ready and willing to save Benjamin, even at the cost of his own freedom. Joseph waited for this moment. He hoped to see true love for their brother Benjamin, to see the truly repentant hearts.
Gustave Doré, Joseph Reveals Himself to His Brothers, 1866. Judah s plea for Benjamin s life penetrated the depths of Joseph s soul. It released a flood of emotions. His longing to show his love to Benjamin, his desire to reconcile with his brothers and be reunited with his family, and the thought of seeing his father again had overwhelmed him. Joseph could not contain his emotion, and he shouted for everyone to leave his chamber except his brothers.
Gustave Doré, Joseph Reveals Himself to His Brothers, 1866. Joseph s sobbing was so intense that the Egyptians heard it, and this news was reported to Pharaoh himself (Gen. 45:1-2). א נ י י וס ף ה ע וד א י ח י ו ל א י כ לו א ח יו ל ע נ ות א ת ו כ י נ ה לו מ פ נ יו I am Joseph. Is my father still alive? But his brothers could not answer him, so dumfounded were they on account of him. (Gen. 45:3)
Joseph s words shock us; they are full of grace, love, wisdom and understanding that this was all God s plan. א נ י י וס ף א ח יכ ם א ש ר מ כ ר ת ם א ת י מ צ ר י מ ה ו ע ת ה א ל ת ע צ ו ו א ל י ח ר ב ע ינ יכ ם כ י מ כ ר ת ם א ת י ה נ ה כ י ל מ ח י ה ש ל ח נ י א לה ים ל פ נ יכ ם I am your brother Joseph, he whom you sold into Egypt. Now, do not be distressed or reproach yourselves because you sold me here; it was to save life that God sent me ahead of you. (Gen. 45:4-5)
The pain young Joseph endured was to bring deliverance to his family. Though his brothers meant to harm him, God intended to save and preserve the family through Joseph s suffering. He knew that God was with him the entire time. ו ע ת ה ל א א ת ם ש ל ח ת ם א ת י ה נ ה כ י ה א לה ים So it was not you who sent me here, but God. (Gen. 45:8)
Joseph told his brothers to return to Canaan and tell his father that he was still alive and by God s provision lord of all Egypt. They are to come back to Egypt and join him with all of their families. Two years of famine were over, but five more were still to come. The family would be safe in Egypt. Joseph does not order his brothers to confess all that had transpired 20 years before. He merely instructed them to tell old Israel the good news that Joseph was waiting for him in Egypt. Léon Pierre Urbain Bourgeois, Joseph Reveals Himself to His Brothers, 1863.
This story reads like a drama with a very moving and happy ending. Joseph shows his worth as a descendant of Abraham, bringing a blessing to the whole world. The account our Hebrew Fathers does not end here. It continues. These stories are meant to be read and enjoyed and not just once. Their examples are meant to speak to distant generations. These are the stories of Abraham, Isaac and of course Jacob a truly remarkable man who struggled with God and became Israel, a living nation.