The Sons of Jacob arrive in Egypt to Buy Corn - Joseph Recognizes his Brothers - Imprisonment of Simeon -

The Sons of Jacob come a second time, bringing Benjamin with them - Joseph tries his Brethren - He makes

himself known to them - Jacob and his family prepare to descend into Egypt

(GENESIS 42-45)

WE are now approaching a decisive period in the history of the house of Israel. Yet once again everything

seems to happen quite naturally, while in reality everything is supernatural. The same causes which led to a

diminution of rain in the Abyssinian mountains, and with it of the waters of the Nile, brought drought and

famine to Palestine. It is quite in character that, in such straits, the wild, lawless sons of Jacob should have

stood helplessly despondent, while the energies of their father were correspondingly roused. "Why do ye

look one upon another? . . . I have heard that there is corn in Egypt: get you down thither, and buy for us

from thence." The ten sons of Jacob now departed on this errand. But Benjamin, who had taken the place of

Joseph in his father's heart, was not sent with them, perhaps from real fear of "mischief" by the way,

possibly because his father did not quite trust the honest intentions of his sons. The next scene presents to

us the Hebrew strangers among a motley crowd of natives and foreigners, who had come for corn; while

Joseph, in all the state of the highest Egyptian official, superintends the sale. In true Eastern fashion the

sons of Jacob make lowest obeisance before "the governor over the land." Of course they could not have

recognized in him, who looked, dressed, and spoke as an Egyptian noble, the lad who, more than twenty

years before, had, in "the anguish of his soul," "besought" them not to sell him into slavery. The same

transformation had not taken place in them, and Joseph at once knew the well-remembered features of his

brethren. But what a change in their relative positions! As he saw them bending lowly before him, his former

dreams came vividly back to him. Surely, one even much less devout than Joseph would, in that moment,

have felt that a Divine Hand had guided the past for a Divine purpose. Personal resentment or pique could

not have entered into his mind at such a time. If, therefore, as some have thought, severity towards his

brethren partially determined his conduct, this must have been quite a subordinate motive. At any rate, it is

impossible to suppose that he cherished any longer feelings of anger, when shortly afterwards, on their

expression of deep penitence, "he turned himself about from them and wept." But we prefer regarding

Joseph's conduct as consistent throughout. The appearance of his brothers before him seemed to imply that

God had not meant to separate him from his family, nor yet that he should return to them, but that they

should come to him, and that he had been sent before to keep them alive. But for such a re -union of the

family it was manifestly needful, that their hearts and minds should have undergone an entire change from

that unscrupulous envy which had prompted them to sell him into slavery. This must be ascertained before

he made himself known to t hem. Moreover, its reality must be tested by the severest trial to which their

altered feelings could be subjected.

Thus viewing it, we can understand the whole conduct of Joseph. Of course, his first object would be to

separate the sons of Jacob from the crowd of other purchasers, so as to deal specially with them, without,

however, awakening their suspicions; his next to ascertain the state of matters at home. Then he would make

them taste undeserved sorrow by the exercise of an arbitrary power, against which they would be helpless -

even as Joseph had been in their hands. Thus they might see their past sin in their present sorrow. All these

objects were attained by one and the same means. Joseph charged them with being spies, who, on pretense

of buying corn, had come to find out the defenseless portions of the land. The accusation was not

unreasonable in the then state of Egypt, nor uncommon in Eastern countries. It was not only that this

afforded a pretext for dealing separately with them, but their answer to the charge would inform Joseph

about the circumstances of his family. For, naturally, they would not only protest their innocence, but show

the inherent improbability of such an imputation. Here no argument could be more telling than that they

were "all one man's sons," since no one would risk the lives of all his children in so dangerous a business.

But this was not enough for Joseph. By reiterating the charge, he led them to enter into further details, from

which he learned that both his father and Benjamin were alive. Still their reference to himself as one "who is