An Exposition of the Old and New Testament (1828)/Genesis/Chapter 44
CHAP. XLIV.
Joseph having entertained his brethren, dismissed them; but here we have them brought back in a greater fright than any they had been in yet. Observe, I. What method he took, both to humble them further, and also to try their affection to his brother Benjamin, by which he would be able to judge of the sincerity of their repentance for what they had done against him, which he was desirous to be satisfied of, before he manifested his reconciliation to them. This he contrived to do by bringing Benjamin into distress, v. 1..17. II. The good success of the experiment; he found them all heartily concerned, and Judah particularly, both for the safety of Benjamin and for the comfort of their aged father, v. 18..34..
1.AND he commanded the steward of his house, saying, Fill the men's sacks with food, as much as they can carry, and put every man's money in his sack's mouth. 2. And put my cup, the silver cup, in the sack's mouth of the youngest, and his corn money. And he did according to the word that Joseph had spoken. 3. As soon as the morning was light, the men were sent away, they and their asses. 4. And when they were gone out of the city, and not yet far off, Joseph said unto his steward, Up, follow after the men; and when thou dost overtake them, say unto them. Wherefore have ye rewarded evil for good? 5. Is not this it in which my lord drinketh, and whereby indeed he divineth? Ye have done evil in so doing. 6. And he overtook them, and he spake unto them these same words. 7. And they said unto him, Wherefore saith my lord these words? God forbid that thy servants should do according to this thing: 8. Behold, the money which we found in our sacks' mouths we brought again unto thee out of the land of Canaan; how then should we steal out of thy lord's house silver or gold? 9. With whomsoever of thy servants it be found, both let him die, and we also will be my lord's bondmen. 10. And he said, Now also let it be according unto your words: he with whom it is found shall be my servant; and ye shall be blameless. 11. Then they speedily took down every man his sack to the ground, and opened every man his sack. 12. And he searched, and began at the eldest, and left at the youngest: and the cup was found in Benjamin's sack. 13. Then they rent their clothes, and laded every man his ass, and returned to the city. 14. And Judah and his brethren came to Joseph's house; for he was yet there: and they fell before him on the ground. 15. And Joseph said unto them, what deed is this that ye have done? Wot ye not that such a man as I can certainly divine? 16. And Judah said, What shall we say unto my lord? What shall we speak? Or how shall we clear ourselves? God hath found out the iniquity of thy servants: behold, we are my lord's servants, both we, and he also with whom the cup is found. 17. And he said, God forbid that I should do so: but the man in whose hand the cup is found, he shall be my servant; and as for you, get you up in peace unto your father.
Here,
I. Joseph heaps further kindnesses upon his brethren, fills their sacks, returns their money, and sends them away full of gladness. But,
II. He exercises them with further trials. Our God thus humbles those whom he loves, and loads with benefits. Joseph ordered his steward to put a fine silver cup which he had, (and which it is likely, was used at his table when they dined with him,) into Benjamin's sack's mouth, that it might seem as if he had stolen it from the table, and put it there himself, after his corn was delivered him. If Benjamin had stolen it, it had been the basest piece of dishonesty and ingratitude that could be; and if Joseph, by ordering it to be put there, had designed really to take advantage against him, it had been in him most horrid cruelty and oppression; but it proved in the issue, that there was no harm done, nor any designed on either side. Observe,
1. How the pretended criminals were pursued and arrested, on suspicion of having stolen a silver cup. The steward charged them with ingratitude, rewarding evil for good; with folly, in taking away a cup of daily use, and which therefore would soon be missed, and diligent search made for it; for so it may be read, (v. 5.) Is not this it in which my lord drinketh, (as having a particular fondness for it,) and for which he would search thoroughly? Or, "by which, leaving it carelessly at your table, he would make trial whether you were honest men or no?"
2. How they pleaded for themselves; they solemnly protested their innocence, and detestation of so base a thing; (v. 7.) urged it as an instance of their honesty, that they had brought their money back; (v. 8.) and offered to submit to the severest punishment, if they should be found guilty, v. 9, 10.
3. How the theft was fastened upon Benjamin; in his sack the cup was found, to whom Joseph had been particularly kind. Benjamin, no doubt, was ready to deny upon oath, the taking of the cup, and we may suppose him as little liable to suspicion as any of them; but it is in vain to confront such notorious evidence, the cup is found in his custody; they dare not arraign Joseph's justice, nor so much as suggest that perhaps he that had put their money in their sacks' mouths, had put the cup there; but they throw themselves upon Joseph's mercy. And,
4. Here is their humble submission, v. 16. (1.) They acknowledge the righteousness of God, God hath found out the iniquity of thy servants; perhaps referring to the injury they had formerly done to Joseph, for which they thought God was now reckoning with them. Note, Even in those afflictions wherein we apprehend ourselves wronged by men, yet we must own that God is righteous, and finds out our iniquity. (2.) They surrender themselves prisoners to Joseph, We are my lord's servants. Now Joseph's dreams were accomplished to the utmost; their bowing so often, and doing obeisance, might be looked upon as a compliment, and no more than what other strangers did: but the construction they themselves, in their pride, had put upon his dreams, was, Shalt thou have dominion over us? ch. 37. 8. And in that sense it is now at length fulfilled, they own themselves his vassals; since they did invidiously so understand it, so it shall be fulfilled in them.
5. Joseph with an air of justice, gives sentence, that Benjamin only should be kept in bondage, and the rest should be dismissed; for why should any suffer but the guilty? Perhaps Joseph intended hereby to try Benjamin's temper, whether he could bear such a hardship as this, with the calmness and composure of mind that became a wise and good man; in short, whether he was indeed his own brother, in spirit, as well as blood; for Joseph himself had been falsely accused, and had suffered hard things in consequence, and yet kept possession of his own soul: however, it is plain, he intended hereby to try the affection of his brethren to him, and to their father. If they had gone away contentedly, and left Benjamin in bonds, no doubt but Joseph would soon have released and promoted him, and sent notice to Jacob, and would have left the rest of his brethren justly to suffer for their hard-heartedness; but they proved to be better affected to Benjamin than he feared. Note, We cannot judge what men are, by what they have been formerly; nor what they will do, by what they have done: age and experience may make men wiser and better. They that had sold Joseph, yet would not now abandon Benjamin: the worst may mend in time.
18. Then Judah came near unto him, and said, Oh my lord, let thy servant, I pray thee, speak a word in my lord's ears, and let not thine anger burn against thy servant: for thou art even as Pharaoh. 19. My lord asked his servants, saying, Have ye a father, or a brother? 20. And we said unto my lord, We have a father, an old man, and a child of his old age, a little one; and his brother is dead, and he alone is left of his mother, and his father loveth him. 21. And thou saidst unto thy servants, Bring him down unto me, that I may set mine eyes upon him. 22. And we said unto my lord, The lad cannot leave his father; for if he should leave his father, his father would die. 23. And thou saidst unto thy servants, Except your youngest brother come down with you, ye shall see my face no more. 24. And it came to pass when we came up unto thy servant my father, we told him the words of my lord. 25. And our father said, Go again, and buy us a little food. 26. And we said, We cannot go down: if our youngest brother be with us, then will we go down: for we may not see the man's face, except our youngest brother be with us. 27. And thy servant my father said unto us, Ye know that my wife bare me two sons: 28. And the one went out from me, and I said, Surely he is torn in pieces; and I saw him not since: 29. And if ye take this also from me, and mischief befall him, ye shall bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to the grave. 30. Now therefore when I come to thy servant my father, and the lad be not with us; seeing that his life is bound up in the lad's life; 31. It shall come to pass, when he seeth that the lad is not with us, that he will die: and thy servants shall bring down the gray hairs of thy servant our father with sorrow to the grave. 32. For thy servant became surety for the lad unto my father, saying, If I bring him not unto thee, then I shall bear the blame to my father for ever. 33. Now therefore, I pray thee, let thy servant abide instead of the lad a bondman to my lord; and let the lad go up with his brethren. 34. For how shall I go up to my father, and the lad be not with me? Lest peradventure I see the evil that shall come on my father.
We have here a most ingenious and pathetic speech which Judah made to Joseph on Benjamin's behalf, to obtain his discharge from the sentence passed upon him: either Judah was a better friend to Benjamin than the rest were, and more solicitous to bring him off; or, he thought himself under greater obligations to endeavour it than the rest, because he had passed his word to his father for his safe return; or, the rest chose him for their spokesman, because he was a man of better sense, and better spirit, and had a greater command of language than any of them. His address, as it is here recorded, is so very natural, and so expressive of his present feelings, that we cannot but suppose Moses, who wrote it so long after, to have written it under the special direction of him that made man's mouth. A great deal of unaffected art, and unstudied unforced rhetoric, there is in this speech.
I. He addresses himself to Joseph with a great deal of respect and deference; calls him his lord, himself and his brethren his servants, begs his patient hearing, and ascribes sovereign authority to him, "Thou art even as Pharaoh; whose favour we desire, and whose wrath we dread, as we do Pharaoh's." Religion does not destroy good manners, and it is prudence to speak obligingly to those at whose mercy we lie: titles of honour to those that are entitled to them, are not flattering titles.
II. He represented Benjamin as one well worthy of his compassionate consideration: (v. 20.) he was a little one, compared with the rest of them; the youngest, not acquainted with the world, nor ever inured to hardship, having always been brought up tenderly with his father, it made the case more pitiable, that he alone was left of his mother, and his brother was dead, namely, Joseph; little did Judah think, what a tender point he touched on now. Judah knew that Joseph was sold, and therefore had reason enough to think that he was alive; however, he could not be sure that he was dead, but they had made their father believe he was dead; and now they had told that lie so long, that they had forgotten the truth, and began to believe the lie themselves.
III. He urged it very closely, that Joseph had himself constrained them to bring Benjamin with them, had expressed a desire to see him, (v. 21.) and had forbidden them his presence, unless they brought Benjamin with them, (v 23, 26.) all which intimated that he designed him some kindness, and must he be brought with so much difficulty to the preferment of a perpetual slavery? Was he not brought to Egypt, in obedience, purely in obedience, to the command of Joseph; and would he not show him some mercy? Some observe, that Jacob's sons, in reasoning with their father, had said, We will not go down, unless Benjamin go with us, (ch. 43. 5.) but that when Judah comes here to relate the story, he expresses it more decently, "We cannot go down, with any expectation to speed well." Indecent words spoken in haste to our superiors, should be recalled and amended.
IV. The great argument he insists upon, was, the insupportable grief it would be to his aged father, if Benjamin should be left behind in servitude; His father loveth him, v. 20. This they had pleaded against Joseph's insisting on his coming down, (v. 22.) "If he should leave his father, his father would die; much more if now he be left behind, never more to return to him." This the old man, of whom they spake, had pleaded against his going down, (v. 29.) If any mischief befall him, ye shall bring down my gray hairs, that crown of glory, with sorrow to the grave. This therefore Judah presses with a great deal of earnestness, "His life is bound up in the lad's life; (v. 30. ) when he sees that the lad is not with us, he will faint away, and die immediately, (v. 31.) or will abandon himself to such a degree of sorrow, as will, in a few days, make an end of him." And lastly, Judah pleads, that, for his part, he could not bear to see this, (v. 34. ) Let me not see the evil that shall come on my father. Note, It is the duty of children to be very tender of their parents' comfort, and to be afraid of every thing that may be an occasion of grief to them. Thus the love that descended first, must again ascend, and something must be done towards a recompense for their care.
V. Judah, in honour to the justice of Joseph's sentence, and to show his sincerity in this plea, offers himself to become a bondman instead of Benjamin, v. 33. Thus the law would be satisfied; Joseph would be no loser; (for we may suppose Judah a more able-bodied man than Benjamin, and fitter for service;) and Jacob would better bear the loss of him than of Benjamin. Now, so far was he from grieving at his father's particular fondness for Benjamin, that he is himself willing to be a bondman, to indulge it. Now, had Joseph been as Judah supposed him, an utter stranger to the family, yet even common humanity could not but be wrought upon by such powerful reasonings as these; for nothing could be said more moving, more tender; it was enough to melt a heart of stone: but to Joseph, who was nearer akin to Benjamin than Judah himself was, and who, at this time, felt a greater affection both for him and his aged father, than Judah did, nothing could be more pleasingly or more happily said. Neither Jacob nor Benjamin needed an intercessor with Joseph; for he himself loved them.
Upon the whole matter, let us take notice, 1. How prudently Judah suppressed all mention of the crime that was charged upon Benjamin. Had he said any thing by way of acknowledgment of it, he had reflected on Benjamin's honesty, and seemed too forward to suspect that; had he said any thing by way of denial of it, he had reflected on Joseph's justice, and the sentence he had passed: therefore he wholly waves that head, and appeals to Joseph's pity. Compare with this that of Job, in humbling himself before God, (Job 9. 15.) Though I were righteous, yet would I not answer, I would not argue, but petition, I would make supplication to my judge. 2. What good reason dying Jacob had to say, Judah, thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise, (ch. 49. 8.) for he excelled them all in boldness, wisdom, eloquence, and especially tenderness for their father and family. 3. Judah's faithful adherence to Benjamin, now in his distress, was recompensed long after by the constant adherence of the tribe of Benjamin to the tribe of Judah, when all the other ten tribes had deserted it. 4. How fitly does the apostle, when he is disocursing of the mediation of Christ, observe, that our Lord sprang out of Judah; (Heb. 7. 14.) for, like his father Judah, he not only made intercession for the trangressors, but he became a surety for them, as it follows there, (v. 22. ) testifying therein a very tender concern, both for his father and for his brethren.