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18 On the third day Joseph said to them, “[L For] I ·am a God-fearing man [fear God]. Do this and I will let you live: 19 If you are honest men, let one of your brothers stay here in ·prison [the guardhouse] while the rest of you go and carry grain ·back to feed your hungry families [L for your families because of the famine]. 20 Then bring your ·youngest [smallest] brother back here to me. If you do this, ·I will know you are telling the truth [L your words will be confirmed], and you will not die.”
The brothers agreed to this. 21 They said to each other, “[L Alas,] We are ·being punished [or guilty] for what we did to our brother. We saw ·his trouble [the distress of his soul], and he ·begged us to save him [pleaded with us], but we ·refused to [L did not] listen. That is why we are in this ·trouble [distress] now.”
22 Then Reuben said to them, “·I told [L Did I not tell…?] you not to ·harm [wrong; sin against] the ·boy [child], but you ·refused to [L did not] listen to me. So now ·we are being punished for what we did to him [L there is a reckoning for his blood].”
23 When Joseph talked to his brothers, he used an ·interpreter [or intermediary], so they did not know that Joseph understood what they were saying. 24 Then Joseph left them and cried. After a short time he went back and spoke to them. He took Simeon and ·tied [bound] him ·up while the other brothers watched [L before their eyes]. 25 Joseph ·told his servants [L gave the command/order] to fill his brothers’ bags with grain and to put ·the money the brothers had paid for the grain [L their silver] back in their bags. ·The servants [L They] were also to give them ·what they would need [provisions] for their trip back home. And ·the servants [L they] did this.
26 So the brothers ·put [lifted] the grain on their donkeys and left. 27 When ·they stopped for the night [at the lodging place], one of the brothers opened his sack to get ·food [fodder] for his donkey. Then he saw his ·money [silver] in the top of the sack. 28 He said to the other brothers, “·The money I paid for the grain [L My money/silver] has been put back. Here it is in [L the mouth of] my sack!”
The brothers ·were very frightened [L lost heart and trembled]. They said to each other, “What has God done to us?”
The Brothers Return to Jacob
29 The brothers went to their father Jacob in the land of Canaan and told him everything that had happened. 30 They said, “The master of that land spoke ·unkindly [harshly] to us. He accused us of spying on his country, 31 but we told him that we were honest men, not spies. 32 We told him that we ·were ten of twelve [L are twelve] brothers—sons of one father. We said that one of our brothers was ·gone [L no more] and that our ·youngest [smallest] brother was with our father in Canaan.
33 “Then the master of the land said to us, ‘Here is a way I can know you are honest men: Leave one of your brothers with me, and take grain to feed ·your hungry [L because of the famine for your] families, and go. 34 And bring your ·youngest [smallest] brother to me so I will know you are not spies but honest men. Then I will give you back your brother whom you leave with me, and you can ·move about freely [or trade] in our land.’ ”
35 As the brothers emptied their sacks, each of them ·found his money [saw his bundle of money/silver] in his sack. When they and their father saw it, they were afraid.
36 Their father Jacob said to them, “You are ·robbing [bereaving] me of all my children. Joseph is ·gone [L no more], Simeon is ·gone [L no more], and now you want to take Benjamin away, too. Everything is against me.”
37 Then Reuben said to his father, “You may put my two sons to death if I don’t bring Benjamin back to you. ·Trust him to my care [L Put him in my hands], and I will bring him back to you.”
38 But Jacob said, “·I will not allow Benjamin to go [L My son will not go down] with you. His brother is dead, and he ·is the only son left from my wife Rachel [L alone is left]. I am afraid something ·terrible [disastrous; tragic] might happen to him during the trip to Egypt. Then ·I would be sad until the day I die [L you would bring my gray hair down to Sheol in anguish].”
The Brothers Go Back to Egypt
43 ·Still no food grew in the land of Canaan [L The famine was heavy/severe in the land]. 2 When ·Jacob’s family [L they] had eaten all the grain they had brought from Egypt, Jacob said to them, “Go to Egypt again and buy a little more ·grain [L food] for us to eat.”
3 But Judah said to Jacob, “The ·governor of that country [man] strongly warned us, ‘·If you don’t bring your brother back with you, you will not be allowed to see me [L You may not see my face unless your brother is with you].’ 4 If you will send ·Benjamin [L our brother] with us, we will go down and buy food for you. 5 But if you ·refuse to send Benjamin [L are not sending], we will not go. The ·governor of that country [L man] ·warned [L said to] us that ·we would not see him if we didn’t bring Benjamin with us [L you will not see my face unless your brother is with you].”
6 Israel [C another name for Jacob; 32:28] said, “Why did you tell the man you had another brother? You have ·caused me a lot of trouble [wronged/harmed me].”
7 The brothers answered, “He questioned us ·carefully [or specifically] about ourselves and our family. He asked us, ‘Is your father still alive? Do you have another brother?’ We just answered his questions. How could we know he would ask us to bring our other brother to him?”
8 Then Judah said to his father ·Jacob [L Israel; 32:28], “Send ·Benjamin [L the lad/child] with me, and we will ·go at once [L rise up and go] so that we, you, and our ·children [little ones] may live and not die. 9 I will ·guarantee you that he will be safe [L be a guarantee for him], and I will be personally ·responsible [accountable] for him. If I don’t bring him back to you, ·you can blame me [L I will be condemned before you] all my life. 10 If we had not ·wasted all this time [been delayed], we could have already ·made two trips [returned twice].”
11 Then their father ·Jacob [L Israel; 32:28] said to them, “If it has to be that way, then do this: Take some of the best ·foods [products] in our land in your packs. Give them to the man as a gift: some balm, some honey, ·spices [or gum], ·myrrh [or resin], pistachio nuts, and almonds. 12 Take twice as much ·money [silver] ·with you this time [L in your hands], and take back the ·money [silver] that was returned to you in [L the mouth of] your sacks last time. Maybe it was a ·mistake [L error; oversight]. 13 And take ·Benjamin [L your brother] with you. Now ·leave and go [L rise up and return] to the man. 14 I pray that God Almighty will cause the ·governor [L man] to be ·merciful to [compassionate toward] you and that he will allow ·Simeon [L your other brother] and Benjamin to come back with you. If I am ·robbed of my children [bereaved], then I am ·robbed of them [bereaved]!”
15 So the ·brothers [L men] took the ·gifts [or tribute]. They also took twice ·as much money as they had taken the first time [L the money/silver in their hand], and they took Benjamin. They ·hurried [L rose up and went] down to Egypt and stood before Joseph.
16 When Joseph saw Benjamin with them, he said to the ·servant in charge of [L one over] his house, “Bring those men into my house. ·Kill [Slaughter] an animal and prepare a meal. Those men will eat with me today at noon.” 17 The ·servant [L man] did as Joseph told him and brought the men to Joseph’s house.
18 The ·brothers [L men] were afraid when they were brought to Joseph’s house and thought, “We were brought here because of the money that was ·put [returned; replaced] in our sacks on the first trip. He wants to ·attack [L fall on] us, make us slaves, and take our donkeys.” 19 So the brothers went to the ·servant in charge of [L one over] Joseph’s house and spoke to him at the ·door [entrance] of the house. 20 They said, “·Master [Lord], we came here ·once before [the first time] to buy food. 21 While we were going home, ·we stopped for the night and [L at the lodging place] when we opened our sacks each of us found all his ·money [silver in its weight] in his sack [42:26–28]. We brought that ·money [silver] ·with us to give it [L in our hands] back to you. 22 And we have brought ·more [additional] money to pay for the food we want to buy this time. We don’t know who put that money in our sacks.”
23 But the servant answered, “·It’s all right [L Peace be with you]. Don’t be afraid. Your God, the God of your father, must have put the ·money [silver; L treasure] in your sacks. I got the ·money [silver] you paid me for the grain last time.” Then the servant brought Simeon out to them.
24 The ·servant [L man] ·led [brought] the men into Joseph’s house and gave them water, and they washed their feet. Then he gave their donkeys ·food to eat [fodder]. 25 The men prepared their ·gift [tribute] to give to Joseph when he arrived at noon, because they had heard they were going to eat with him there.
26 When Joseph came home, the brothers gave him the ·gift [tribute] ·they had brought [L in their hand] into the house and bowed down to the ground in front of him. 27 Joseph asked them how they were doing. He said, “How is your aged father you told me about? Is he still alive?”
28 The brothers answered, “Your servant, our father, is well. He is still alive.” And they bowed low ·before Joseph to show him respect [L and did obeisance].
29 When ·Joseph [L he lifted his eyes and] saw his brother Benjamin, ·who had the same mother as he [L the son of his mother], Joseph asked, “Is this your ·youngest [smallest] brother you told me about?” Then he said to Benjamin, “God be ·good [gracious] to you, my son!” 30 Then Joseph hurried off because he ·had to hold back the tears [L was overwhelmed with affection] when he saw his brother Benjamin. So Joseph went into his room and cried there. 31 Then he washed his face and came out. He controlled himself and said, “Serve the meal.”
32 So they served Joseph ·at one table [L by himself], his brothers ·at another table [L by themselves], and the Egyptians who ate with him ·at another table [L by themselves]. ·This was because Egyptians did not like Hebrews and never ate with them [L For the Egyptians could not eat with Hebrews, for it was an abomination to the Egyptians]. 33 Joseph’s brothers were seated in front of him ·in order of their ages [L the firstborn according to his birthright], ·from oldest to youngest [L the youngest according to his youth]. They looked at each other because they were so amazed. 34 ·Food [Portions] from Joseph’s table was taken to them, but Benjamin was given five times more food than the others. Joseph’s brothers ate and ·drank freely [celebrated with drinking] with him.
A Story of a Fishing Net
47 “Also, the kingdom of heaven is like a ·net [dragnet; C a net dragged between two boats, or between a boat and the shore] that was put into the ·lake [sea] and caught many different kinds of fish. 48 When it was full, the fishermen pulled the net to the shore. They sat down and put all the good fish in baskets and threw away the ·bad [worthless] fish. 49 It will be this way at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the evil people from the ·good [righteous] people. 50 The angels will throw the evil people into the blazing furnace [Dan. 3:11, 19–30], where ·people will cry and grind their teeth with pain [L there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth; v. 42].”
51 Jesus asked his ·followers [disciples], “Do you understand all these things?”
They answered, “Yes.”
52 Then Jesus said to them, “So every ·teacher of the law [scribe] who has ·been taught about [become a disciple of] the kingdom of heaven is like the ·owner [head] of a house. He brings out both new things and old things ·he has saved [L from his treasure/storeroom; C knowledge of the Old Testament provides insight into Jesus’ “new” message of the kingdom of God].”
Jesus Goes to His Hometown(A)
53 When Jesus finished teaching [see 7:28] with these ·stories [parables], he left there. 54 He went to his hometown [C Nazareth; 2:23; Luke 2:39] and taught the people in their synagogue, and they were ·amazed [astonished]. They said, “Where did this man get this wisdom and this power to do miracles? 55 ·He is just [Isn’t this…?] the son of ·a [L the] carpenter. ·His mother is Mary [L Isn’t his mother called Mary…?], and his brothers are James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas. 56 And all his sisters are here with us. Where then does this man get all these things?” 57 So the people were ·upset with [offended by] Jesus.
But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is ·honored everywhere [not dishonored] except in his hometown and in his own ·home [family; household].”
58 So he did not do many miracles there because ·they had no faith [of their unbelief].
How John the Baptist Was Killed(B)
14 At that time Herod, the ·ruler of Galilee [L tetrarch; see Luke 3:1], heard the reports about Jesus. 2 So he said to his servants, “·Jesus [L This] is John the Baptist, who has risen from the dead. That is why ·he can work these miracles [L miraculous powers are at work in him].”
3 ·Sometime before this, [L For] Herod had arrested John, ·tied him up [chained/bound him], and put him into prison. Herod did this because of Herodias, who had been the wife of Philip, Herod’s brother. 4 [L For] John had been telling Herod, “It is not lawful for you to ·be married to Herodias [have her].” 5 Herod wanted to kill John, but he was afraid of the ·people [crowd], because they ·believed John was [regarded John as] a prophet.
6 On Herod’s birthday, the daughter of Herodias danced for Herod and his guests, and she [greatly] pleased him. 7 So he ·promised [announced] with ·an oath [a vow] to give her anything she ·wanted [asked]. 8 ·Herodias told her daughter what to ask for, so [At her mother’s urging/prompting] she said to Herod, “Give me the head of John the Baptist here on a platter.” 9 Although King Herod was very ·sad [sorry; grieved; distressed], he had made a ·promise [vow; oath], and his dinner guests had heard him. So Herod ·ordered [commanded] that what she asked for be done. 10 He sent soldiers to the prison to cut off John’s head. 11 And they brought it on a platter and gave it to the girl, and she took it to her mother. 12 John’s ·followers [disciples] came and got his ·body [corpse] and buried it. Then they went and ·told [reported it to] Jesus.
16 The Lord reached down from ·above [heaven; on high] and ·took [rescued] me;
he ·pulled me from the deep water [drew me out of mighty waters].
17 He ·saved [rescued; T delivered] me from my powerful enemies,
from those who hated me, because they were too strong for me.
18 They ·attacked [confronted] me ·at my time of trouble [L in the day of my distress/calamity/disaster],
but the Lord ·supported me [was my stay].
19 He took me to a ·safe [spacious; open; L broad] place.
Because he delights in me, he ·saved [rescued; T delivered] me.
20 The Lord ·spared [rewarded] me ·because I did what was right [L according to my righteousness].
Because ·I have not done evil [of my innocence; L of the cleanness of my hands], he has ·rewarded [restored] me.
21 I have ·followed [obeyed; kept; L guarded] the ways of the Lord;
I have not done evil by turning away from my God.
22 I ·remember [follow; L have before me] all his ·laws [regulations]
and have not ·broken [abandoned; L turned aside from] his ·rules [statutes; ordinances; requirements].
23 I am ·innocent [blameless] before him;
I have kept myself from ·doing evil [sin; guilt; iniquity].
24 The Lord ·rewarded [repaid] me ·because I did what was right [L according to my righteousness],
·because I did what the Lord said was right [L according to my cleanness/purity in his sight].
25 Lord, you ·are [show yourself] ·loyal [faithful; kind] to those who are ·loyal [faithful; kind],
and you are good to those who are good.
26 You ·are [show yourself] ·pure [sincere] to those who are ·pure [sincere],
but you ·are [show yourself] ·against [hostile/shrewd/cunning/perverse to] those who are ·bad [perverse; devious; crooked].
27 You ·save [rescue; T deliver] the ·humble [afflicted],
but you ·bring down [watch and humiliate] ·those who are proud [the haughty].
28 Lord, you give light to my lamp.
My God ·brightens the darkness around me [lights up/illuminates my darkness].
29 With your help I can ·attack [crush] an army.
With God’s help I can ·jump over [scale] a wall.
30 The ·ways [way; path] of God are ·without fault [blameless; perfect].
The Lord’s ·words [promises] are ·pure [tested; flawless; proven true].
He is a shield to those who ·trust [seek protection/take refuge in] him.
31 Who is God? Only the Lord.
Who is the Rock? Only our God.
32 God ·is my protection [is my strong fortress; or girds me with strength].
He makes my way ·free from fault [perfect; secure; a wide path].
33 He makes ·me [L my feet] like a deer that does not stumble [C sure-footed];
he ·helps me stand [sets me] on the ·steep mountains [heights].
34 He trains my hands for battle
so my arms can bend a bronze bow.
35 You ·protect me with your saving shield [L have given me the shield of your salvation/victory].
You support me with your right hand.
·You have stooped to make [Your help makes] me great.
36 You ·give me a better way to live [broaden my path; L widen my steps beneath me],
so ·I live as you want me to [my feet do not slip; L my ankles do not weaken].
7 ·Wisdom is the most important thing; so get wisdom [L The beginning of wisdom is: Get/Acquire wisdom].
·If it costs everything you have [L Above all your acquisitions], ·get [acquire] understanding.
8 ·Treasure wisdom [Highly esteem her], and ·it [or she] will ·make you great [exalt you];
·hold on to it [or embrace her], and ·it [or she] will bring you honor.
9 ·It will be like flowers in your hair [L She will place on your head a graceful garland;]
·and like a beautiful crown on your head [she will bestow on you a crown of glory].”
10 My ·child [L son], listen and ·accept what I say [L take in my speech].
Then ·you will have a long life [L your years will be multiplied].
The Expanded Bible, Copyright © 2011 Thomas Nelson Inc. All rights reserved.