Midrash su Genesi 43:14

And God Almighty give you mercy before the man (Gen. 43:14). May it please our master to teach us the number of times a man must pray each day. Thus did our masters teach us: A man must not pray more than three times each day, as instituted by the patriarchs of the world. Abraham established the morning prayer, as it is said: And Abraham got up early in the morning to the place where he had stood before the Lord (Gen. 19:27). The word stood refers only to prayer, as is said: Then stood up Phinehas, and prayed (Ps. 106:30). Isaac instituted the afternoon prayer, as it is said: And Isaac went out to meditate in the field (Gen. 24:63). The word meditation is used with reference to prayer, as it is said: A prayer of the afflicted when he fainteth, and poureth out his meditation for the Lord (Ps. 102:6). Jacob introduced the evening prayer, as it is said: And he lighted upon the place (Gen. 28:11). The word vayifgah (“lighted upon”) alludes to prayer, as is said: Therefore, pray not thou … neither make intercession (tifga) (Jer. 7:16). And it is written concerning Daniel: And he kneeled upon his knees three times a day, and prayed (Dan. 6:11). However, in this verse, the time of prayer is not specified. It was David who came and set the time for prayer, by saying; Evening, and morning, and at noonday, will I complain and moan, and He hath heard my voice (Ps. 55:18). Therefore a man may not pray more than three times a day.

It is essential that a man rise early to pray, for there is nothing more powerful than prayer. A proof of this is that though at first it was decreed that Moses was not to enter or even see the Holy Land, yet because he prayed for a long time, it is written concerning him: The Lord showed him all the Land (Deut. 34:1). Similarly, because Hezekiah prayed, the decree against him was abrogated.⁹Hezekiah averted a decree of death for his failure to marry and beget children by reciting prayers (see II Kings 20:1–7, Isa. 38:1–8). And Jacob also prayed for his sons when he sent them to Egypt, as it is said:; And God Almighty give you mercy (Gen. 43:14).

And God almighty give you mercy before the man (Gen. 43:14). Scripture states elsewhere in allusion to this verse: For this let everyone that is godly pray unto Thee in a time when Thou mayest be found (Ps. 32:6). R. Abba maintained: In a time when Thou mayest be found refers to old age. It is essential that a man pray for an old age in which his eyes may see, his mouth may eat, and his feet may walk. Normally, when a man becomes old, his faculties leave him. For example, it is written about Isaac: And it came to pass, that when Isaac was old, and his eyes were dim, so that he could not see (Gen. 27:1). And concerning Jacob, Scripture states: Now the eyes of Israel were dim for age, so that he could not see (Gen. 48:10). As to a mouth that could not eat, we find that Barzillai said to David: Can thy servant taste what I eat or what I drink? Can I hear anymore the voice of singing men and singing women? Therefore, then, should thy servant be a burden unto my lord the king? (II Sam. 19:35).

(Gen. 43:14:) AND³⁵Sections 11, 12, and 13 are missing from Buber’s Oxford MS and are added by Buber from Codex Vaticanus Ebr. 34. MAY GOD ALMIGHTY GRANT YOU MERCY. Let our master instruct us: How many Tefillot³⁶The Tefillah, also called the Eighteen Benedictions or the ‘Amidah, forms the central intercession of the Jewish liturgy. is one obligated to pray in a day?³⁷Tanh., Gen. 10:9. Thus have our masters taught: One does not pray more than the three Tefillot which the ancestors of the world instituted.³⁸Ber. 26b (bar.); yBer. 4:1 (7a); cf. Ber. 4:1; Abraham instituted the morning Tefillah, as stated (in Gen. 19:27): NOW ABRAHAM WENT EARLY IN THE MORNING UNTO THE PLACE WHERE HE HAD STOOD ('MD) BEFORE THE LORD. Isaac instituted the Tefillah of the minhah (the Tefillah in the afternoon), as stated (in Gen. 24:63): NOW ISAAC WENT OUT TO BOW DOWN (rt.: SWH) IN THE FIELD TOWARD EVENING. Jacob instituted the evening Tefillah, as stated (in Gen. 28:11): WHEN HE CAME (rt.: PG')³⁹The parallel text in the traditional Tanhuma (Gen. 10:9) explains that ‘MD, SWH, and PG‘ all denote prayer and finds the evidence in Ps. 106:30, Ps. 102:1, and Jer. 7:16 respectively. TO A CERTAIN PLACE.⁴⁰See Acts 10:9. Now it is also written about Daniel (in Dan. 6:11): AND THREE TIMES A DAY [HE KNELT ON HIS KNEES]. But < the text > did not explain at what hour. David came and explained (in Ps. 55:18 [17]): EVENING, MORNING, AND NOON < I COMPLAIN AND MOAN; AND HE HEARS MY VOICE >. Therefore, one is not authorized to pray more than three Tefillot in a day.⁴¹TBer. 3:8; Ber. 31a; see yBer. 4:1 (7a). But R. Johanan said: And would that one might go on praying all day long!⁴²Cf. Deut. R. 2:1 and M. Sam. 2, which argue against reciting the three services at one time. Antoninus asked Our Holy Rabbi: Is it permitted to pray at every hour? He said to him: It is forbidden. He said to him: Why? He said to him: Lest you treat the Most High with frivolity. He did not accept < this answer > from him. What did he do? He went to him early in the morning. He said to him: Greetings, Lord.⁴³Gk.: Kyrie chaire. An hour later he came in to him. He said to him: {'MNH RTWQ} [Imperator]!⁴⁴The Latin word originally designated a general, but in imperial times imperator became the title of Roman emperors. Buber has taken this reading from the traditional Tanhuma because he can make no sense of his manuscript, which reads: ’MNH RTWQ. An hour later he < again > said to him: Shalom to you, O King. He said to him: Why are you being disrespectful to the monarchy? He said to him: Let your ears hear what you are putting forth from your mouth. If you, who are flesh and blood, say this in the case of someone who asks after you every hour, how much the more so in the case of one who is disrespectful to the Supreme King of Kings, the Holy One. Thus one should not bother him all the time.

R. Jose ben Halafta says: There are times for the Tefillah, as stated (in Ps. 69:14 [13]): BUT AS FOR ME, LET MY TEFILLAH COME TO YOU LORD AT AN ACCEPTABLE TIME.⁴⁵yMak. 2:7 (31d); Lam. R. 3:43 (9); M. Pss. 65:4; PRK 24 (or 25):2. When is an acceptable time? When the community prays. One must therefore arise early for the Tefillah since you have nothing greater than the Tefillah. So look at Moses. It was decreed against him that he not enter the land and that < he was > not to see it. But, because he was frequent in prayer (tefillah), (according Deut. 34:1): THE LORD SHOWED HIM THE WHOLE LAND…. And thus did Hezekiah pray and annul the decree < of death against himself > (in I Kings 20:1-11). So also Jacob, when he sent his sons to Egypt, prayed over them (in Gen. 43:14): AND MAY GOD ALMIGHTY GRANT YOU MERCY.

[(Gen. 43:14:) AND MAY GOD ALMIGHTY (ShDY) GRANT YOU MERCY.] What was the reason for Jacob to bless them with < the formula > GOD ShDY?⁴⁶Tanh., Gen. 10:10; below, 10:16. To teach you that a lot of afflictions had come upon him. While he was in his mother's womb, Esau had contended with him, as stated (in Gen. 25:22): BUT THE CHILDREN STRUGGLED TOGETHER WITHIN HER.⁴⁷Cf. PRK 3:1. And so it says (in Amos 1:11): BECAUSE HE PURSUED HIS BROTHER WITH THE SWORD AND DESTROYED HIS WOMB. "His womb" is < what is > written.⁴⁸DESTROYED HIS WOMB would normally be read as a metaphor and translated by an expression such as “cast off all pity.” Because of Esau he fled to Laban. See how many troubles there were! (Gen. 31:40:) THUS I WAS: BY DAY SCORCHING HEAT CONSUMED ME…. < Look at > how, when he left, < Laban > pursued after him to kill him, [as stated (in Gen. 31:23)]: AND PURSUED AFTER HIM FOR A JOURNEY OF {THREE} [SEVEN] DAYS. He escaped from him; Esau came with the intention of killing him. On account of him he lost all that gift⁴⁹Gk.: doron. (according to Gen. 32:15 [14]): TWO HUNDRED SHE-GOATS…. He went away from Esau; the trouble about Dinah came (in Gen. 34). Then after that, the trouble with Rachel < dying > (in Gen. 35:19). Then, after these troubles, he was intending to rest a bit, until there came the trouble about Joseph (in Gen. 37); and after that, the trouble with his father, Isaac, who died (in Gen. 35:29) ten years after the sale of Joseph. So the Scripture has cried out (in Job 3:26): I WAS NOT TRANQUIL, NOT QUIET, HAD NO REST; AND TROUBLE CAME. After that there came upon him the trouble with Simeon (in Gen. 42:24); and after that, the trouble with Benjamin (in Gen. 42:36; 43:3-15). He therefore prayed (in Genesis 43:14) AND MAY GOD ShDY. Now he says: The one who said: Enough (DY), to the heavens and to the earth should say: Enough (DY), to my afflictions. For, when the Holy One created the heavens and the earth, they continued expanding until the Holy One said to them: Enough (DY).⁵⁰See above, 1:11; 3:25. below, 10:16. It is therefore written (in Gen. 43:14): GOD WHO IS ENOUGH (ShDY).

[Another interpretation] (of Gen. 43:14): AND MAY GOD ALMIGHTY GRANT YOU MERCY. Let our master instruct us: Where have they ordained that one says a blessing over the food? Where it is stated (in Deut. 8:10): THEN YOU SHALL EAT, BE FULL, AND BLESS. So much for after < the meal >. Where < is it ordained for > before the meal? R. Hiyya taught in the name of R. Aqiva:⁵⁸Ber. 35a. (according to Lev. 19:24:) < ALL ITS FRUIT SHALL BE > SET ASIDE FOR PRAISES TO THE LORD. < These words > teach that one needs a blessing before < a meal > and after it (since PRAISES is plural). The Holy One said: Just as I need to bring down rain, cause winds to blow, and bring down dews; so you need to bless me and be strictly observant in praying to me.⁵⁹Tanh., Gen. 10:10. Do not see yourself in the time of prosperity despising prayer.⁶⁰The parallel in Tanh. reads: “Do not be scornful in the time of prosperity so as not to pray.” Then, when trouble arrives, you would stand up and pray! No, my child, do not do this; but, before trouble comes, you should pray ahead of time, as stated (in Job 36:19): WILL YOUR CRY FOR HELP BE MAKE READY WHEN THERE IS NO TROUBLE, AND ALL YOUR POWERFUL FORCES?⁶¹Biblical translations generally emend the text. The present translation is required by the context of the midrash. So also in Sanh. 44b. You know that in the case of our father Jacob, when Benjamin was with him and he did not know what was going to happen to him, he began to pray ahead of time. It is so stated (in Gen. 43:14): AND MAY GOD ALMIGHTY GRANT YOU MERCY BEFORE THE MAN THAT HE MAY RELEASE TO YOU YOUR OTHER BROTHER AND BENJAMIN. And so the proverb says (in Ecclesiasticus 38:1): HONOR THE PHYSICIAN BEFORE YOU HAVE NEED OF HIM.⁶²The proverb is cited in Aramaic and probably circulated separately. The parallel account in the traditional Tanhuma, however, cites R. Eleazar (ben Pedat) as attributing the Aramaic saying to Ben Sira’s book, where it appears in 38:1. yTa‘an. 3:6 (66d) also gives the saying in Aramaic but simply attributes it to R. Laezar (= Eleazar ben Pedat). Exod. R. 21:7 and PR 25:2 attribute the saying to Eleazar (ben Pedat) but cite it in Hebrew. What is the meaning of (Job 36:19): ALONG WITH ALL YOUR POWERFUL FORCES? That < those who pray ahead of time > in this way have made POWERFUL FORCES.

[(Gen. 43:14:) AND MAY GOD ALMIGHTY GRANT YOU MERCY.] This text is related (to Ps. 32:6): THEREFORE LET EVERY SAINT PRAY UNTO YOU IN ANTICIPATION OF THE TIME OF DISCOVERY…. Zavday ben Levi, R. Jose ben Petros, and R. Joshua ben Levi < differed >.⁶³They differed over what verses they cited when they were dying. See yAZ 3:1 (42c). For variations in the verses cited, see Gen. R. 62:2; 92:2; Exod. R. 52:3; M. Pss. 5:11; cf. also Lev. R. 7:2; PRK 24:5. One cited (from Ps. 31:20 [19]): HOW ABUNDANT IS THE GOOD WHICH YOU HAVE LAID UP FOR THOSE WHO FEAR YOU; one cited (from Ps. 5:12 [11]): BUT LET ALL WHO TAKE REFUGE IN YOU REJOICE, LET THEM EVER SING FOR JOY, AND YOU SHALL SHELTER THEM; and one cited (from Ps. 32:6): THEREFORE LET EVERY SAINT PRAY UNTO YOU [IN ANTICIPATION OF THE TIME OF DISCOVERY]. What is the meaning of IN ANTICIPATION OF THE TIME OF DISCOVERY (MTs')? In anticipation of the time of the exhaustion (rt.: MTsH) of the day (i.e., in anticipation of the sunset of one's life, at death).

[Another interpretation: IN ANTICIPATION OF THE TIME OF DISCOVERY.] < It means > that someone had to be hoping for something until he knew his end. Who was this? This was Jacob. Although he said (in Gen. 37:33 // 44:28): HE HAS BEEN TORN TO BITS, he was waiting for the Holy One. In the end he informed him that Joseph was alive. And not only that, but he < himself > brought him the good news that he was alive. (Gen. 43:14, cont.:) AND MAY GOD ALMIGHTY GRANT YOU MERCY.⁶⁸Cf. Codex Vaticanus Ebr. 34: “And not only that, but his mouth proclaimed the good news that he was alive. Where is it shown? Where it says (in Gen. 43:14, cont.): AND MAY GOD ALMIGHTY GRANT YOU MERCY BEFORE THE MAN THAT HE MAY RELEASE TO YOU YOUR BROTHER, i.e.. Simeon. THE OTHER ONE, i e., Joseph. AND BENJAMIN, i.e., Benjamin.”

[(Gen. 43:14:) AND MAY GOD ALMIGHTY GRANT YOU MERCY.] This text is related (to Ps. 94:12): BLESSED IS THE MAN WHOM YOU CHASTISE, O LORD. How is the man blessed? R. Joshua said: If chastisements come upon you, you shall < still > be able to labor in the Torah. These are chastisements of love. But, if you are not able to labor in the Torah, they are chastisements of punishment.⁶⁹Gen. R. 92:1; see Ber. 5a. (Ibid.:) BLESSED IS THE MAN WHOM YOU CHASTISE, O LORD; HIM YOU INSTRUCT FROM YOUR TORAH. R. Bisna said: There is no one in the world who does not come into the hands of chastisements. Here is a person who feels pain in his eyes < and > cannot sleep. < Or he feels pain > in his teeth and cannot sleep. Instead he is awake the whole night. But someone < else > is awake the whole night to labor in the Torah. The one is awake, and the other is awake. Ergo: Blessed is a person when his chastisements are in the Torah.

Another interpretation (of Gen. 43:14): AND MAY GOD ALMIGHTY (ShDY).⁷⁰Tanh., Gen. 10:10; above, 10:12. R. Alexandri said: Blessed is the man upon whom chastisements come.⁷¹Gen. R. 92:1. Then the Holy One says to them: Enough (DY) for you, because (Sh) there is an end to them. Who was this man? This was Jacob when he said to his children: GOD ShDY. May God say to my chastisements: Enough (DY) for you. Ergo: GOD ALMIGHTY (ShDY).

Another interpretation (of Gen. 43:14): AND MAY GOD ALMIGHTY (ShDY). R. Aha said: These heavens were created from a curtain material, and the earth was created from snow.⁷²See above, 1:11; 3:27; 10:12. Thus it is stated (in Is. 40:22): WHO HAS STRETCHED OUT THE HEAVENS LIKE A CURTAIN. And the earth < comes > from snow, as stated (in Job 37:6): FOR TO THE SNOW HE SAYS: BECOME EARTH. When the Holy One told them to be created, they continued to expand. R. Aha said: If the Holy One had not told them: Enough (DY), they would have continued to expand until they were raised along with the dead. Jacob said: The one who said to the heavens and earth: Enough (DY) for you, should say to my afflictions: Enough (DY) for you. (Gen. 43:14:) GOD WHO IS ENOUGH (ShDY).

Another interpretation (of Gen. 43:14): AND MAY GOD ALMIGHTY. What is the meaning of this word (ALMIGHTY)? That GOD ALMIGHTY is strong (qasheh);⁷³The Hebrew word also means “hard,” “severe,” “cruel,” and “incomprehensible.” and, if you do his will, behold, he becomes fulfilled for you. Why? Because he is strong (qasheh) in his mercy. Therefore (ibid.): < AND MAY GOD ALMIGHTY > GRANT YOU MERCY.

What did Joseph do? He commanded them to bring to him the names of the people which were written down on each and every day. They came in on the first day and brought him the names of those who had entered < the country >, and so they informed him on each and every day. When Joseph's brothers came down, they all did not enter through one gate.⁷⁶Gk.: pyle. The gatekeeper said to < one of the brothers >: What is your name? He told him: Reuben ben Jacob ben Isaac. So it was also with Simeon, and so with all of them. They brought < the names > that had been written down to Joseph. When he read them, he knew that his brothers were there. He sent for his son, Manasseh. He said: See where they are going. Manasseh went and saw them going about in the marketplace. They went from this marketplace to that marketplace, from this alley to that alley. < Then Joseph > sent after them, and they came to him. When he saw them, he certainly recognized them, BUT (according to Gen. 42:7) HE BECAME A STRANGER UNTO THEM. What is the meaning of BUT HE BECAME A STRANGER UNTO THEM. R. Johanan said: He became a foreigner to them. (Ibid., cont.): AND HE SAID UNTO THEM: WHERE DO YOU COME FROM? He said to them (in vs. 9): YOU ARE SPIES. They said to him (in vs. 10, 13): NO, MY LORD, BUT YOUR SERVANTS HAVE COME TO BUY FOOD < … >. WE, YOUR SERVANTS ARE TWELVE BROTHERS. R. Johanan < drew on an Aramaic metaphor and > said: < The matter > is comparable to a raven who brought fire into its nest {i.e., a raven who brought fire into its nest}.⁷⁷The scribe who copied Buber’s MS felt that this Hebrew rendering was necessary because the midrash renders the metaphor in Aramaic. Gen. R. 91:7 explains that the Holy Spirit lit up within them and made them blurt out that they were brothers. He said to them: Are you brothers? They told him: Yes. Then why did you not all enter by one gate? Because our father ordered us < not to do > so because of the < evil > eye. He said to them (in vs. 16): BY PHARAOH'S LIFE YOU ARE SURELY SPIES. When < Joseph > swore falsely, he swore by Pharaoh's head.⁷⁸Gen. R. 91:7. To what is the matter comparable? To a woman who stole a lamb from the flock and fled. When the shepherd ran after her, she went home and covered it with a garment. The shepherd said to her: Have you seen a lamb? She said to him: May I eat of the flesh of this one lying on the bed, if I know anything < about it > ! So < it was with > Joseph. When he wanted to swear falsely, he swore by Pharaoh's life. (Gen. 42:10:) THEY SAID UNTO HIM: NO, MY LORD, BUT YOUR SERVANTS HAVE COME TO BUY FOOD. He said to them: You know that you are spies. Why have you gone and made the rounds of the whole country? They said to him: We had a brother, but we sold him as a slave. And from the hour that we sold him our father has sat around mourning over him. So we have come down < here > with money in our hands, saying: Wherever we find him, we will redeem him. He said to them: Can a person who sells something go back on it? They said to him: For this reason we came down with double < the money > on hand to redeem him. He said to them: What if < his owner > does not want to sell him? They said to him: Even though we are burned < alive > on his account, we will not move until we have redeemed him. He said to them (in Gen. 42:14): IT IS AS I SAID UNTO YOU: YOU ARE SPIES. What did he do (according to vs. 24)? THEN HE TOOK SIMEON FROM THEM < AND BOUND HIM BEFORE THEIR EYES >. He (Joseph) said < to himself >: He bound me and cast me into the pit; I also am binding him. What did they do? They loaded up, went to their father, AND (according to vs. 29) RELATED TO HIM ALL THAT HAD HAPPENED TO THEM. He said to them (in Gen. 43:2): GO AND BUY US A LITTLE FOOD. Judah said to him (in vs. 3): THE MAN SOLEMNLY WARNED US, SAYING: YOU SHALL NOT SEE MY FACE < UNLESS YOUR BROTHER IS WITH YOU >. He said to them: I will not send Benjamin even though I am killed. They said to him: It is better for you to lose one life and not seventy. What did he do? He gave them Benjamin and began to pray for them (in Gen. 43:14): AND MAY GOD ALMIGHTY GRANT YOU MERCY BEFORE THE MAN, seeing that (according to Gen. 42:30): THE MAN < THE LORD OF THE LAND > SPOKE < …HARSHLY >. He therefore said (in Gen. 43:14): BEFORE THE MAN.⁷⁹I.e., Jacob prayed that the same man who had previously spoken harshly now would grant them mercy.

Another interpretation (of Gen. 43:14): AND MAY GOD ALMIGHTY. < These words > speak about Israel and about their captivity. (Ibid., cont.:) GRANT YOU MERCY. (Ps. 106:46:) AND HE DID GRANT THEM MERCY BEFORE ALL THEIR CAPTORS.

(Gen. 43:14, cont.:) THAT HE MAY RELEASE (ShLH) TO YOU. (Mal. 3:23 [4:5]:) BEHOLD, I AM SENDING (ShLH) YOU < THE PROPHET ELIJAH BEFORE THE COMING OF THE GREAT AND AWESOME DAY OF THE LORD >.

(Gen. 43:14, cont.:) YOUR BROTHERS.⁸⁰The plural, which is possible in an unpointed text, is necessary here in order to fit the interpretation. < These are the brothers > who are beyond the Sambatyon River.⁸¹A legendary river where the ten tribes were exiled. So Gen. R. 73:6; PR 31:10; Numb. R. 16:25; below, Numb. 4 (suppl.):6; cf. ySanh. 10:6 or 5 (29c). According to Gen. R. 11:5, the river would cease to flow on the Sabbath. Similarly PR 23:8. See also Sanh. 65b. Pliny the Elder, HN 31:18 (24), knows of the legend but places the stream in Judaea. Cf. Josephus, BJ 7:96-99, who locates the river, which he calls Sabbatikon, in Lebanon and says that the Sabbath was the only day on which it did flow.

Verily, we have heard of thee that thou art wise and exceedingly reasonable, and couldst thou ‎not see on their faces that they cannot be spies? We have also heard that thou hast ‎interpreted Pharaoh’s dream acquainting him with this famine long before its coming and thy ‎words have proven to be correct, and how couldst thou not know in thy wisdom whether my ‎sons be spies or not? And now, oh my lord and king, behold I have sent before thee my son ‎Benjamin, according as thou hast spoken unto my sons, and I beseech thee to keep thine eye ‎on him until he be returned unto me in peace with his brethren. And knowest thou not, or ‎hast thou not heard what our God hath done unto Pharaoh when he took our mother Sarah? ‎and what God hath done unto Abimelech king of the Philistines concerning her, and also what ‎our father Abraham hath done unto the five kings of Elam, all of whom he hath smitten with a ‎small number of his men, and also what my two sons Simeon and Levi have done unto the ‎eight cities of the Amorites, which they have destroyed on account of their sister Dinah! And ‎now what will they not do in behalf of Benjamin, their brother, in whom they have found ‎comfort for the loss of his brother Joseph, if they see that the hand of any people was raised ‎against him on his account? Knowest thou not, oh king of Egypt, that the power of our God is ‎with us, and that our Lord heareth our prayer at all times, and that he forsaketh us not through ‎all the days? and when my sons informed me of thy actions I have not as yet called upon the ‎Lord against thee, or else thou shouldst have perished with thy men before my son Benjamin ‎could come before thee. But I have considered that my son Simeon was in thy house and thou ‎mightst, perhaps, do well with him, therefore I have not done unto thee this thing. And now ‎behold, my son Benjamin cometh unto thee with my other sons, take thou heed of him and ‎keep thine eyes upon him and God will keep his eyes upon thee and on all thy government. ‎And now, behold, I have disclosed unto thee all that was within, my heart, and behold my sons ‎are coming unto thee with their brother. I pray thee and the face of the whole earth in their ‎behalf, and send them away with their brothers in peace. And Jacob gave this letter unto his ‎sons to deliver by the hands of Judah unto the king of Egypt. - - And the sons of Jacob arose, ‎and they took Benjamin, and all the presents, and they went away, and they came into the ‎land of Egypt and they stood before Joseph. And Joseph saw his brother Benjamin with them, ‎and Joseph bade them peace, and these men came in the house of Joseph. And Joseph ‎commanded the steward to prepare a great meal for his brothers to eat. And he did so unto ‎them. And it was at noontime, and Joseph sent unto the men to come before him with ‎Benjamin.‎