ey was in his sack; and when they and their father saw their
purses and the money, they were afraid and they turned trembling to one
another with the question, "What is this that God has done to us?" Jacob
their father said to them, "You have robbed me of my children: Joseph is
no longer living and Simeon is no longer here, and now you would take
Benjamin also! All this trouble has come to me!" But Reuben said to his
father, "You may put my two sons to death, if I do not bring him to you.
Put him in my charge and I will bring him back to you." Then Jacob said,
"My son shall not go down with you, for his brother is dead and he only
is left. If harm should come to him on the way by which you go, then you
will bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to the grave."

The famine was severe in the land; and when Joseph's brothers had eaten
up the grain which they had brought from Egypt, their father said to
them, "Go again, buy us a little food." But Judah said to him, "The man
plainly said to us: 'You shall not see me again unless your brother is
with you.' If you will send our brother with us, we will go down and buy
you food, but if you will not send him, we will not go down; for the man
said to us, 'You shall not see me unless your brother is with you.'"
Jacob said, "Why did you bring trouble upon me by telling the man you
had another brother?" They replied, "The man asked all about us and our
family, saying, 'Is your father still alive? Have you another brother?'
So we answered his questions as he asked them. How were we to know that
he would say, 'Bring your brother down'?"

Then Judah said to Jacob, his father, "Send the lad with me, and we will
go at once, that both we and you and our little ones may live and not
die. I will be responsible for him; from me you may demand him. If I do
not bring him to you and set him before you, let me bear the blame
forever; for if we had not waited so long, surely we would by this time
have come back the second time." So their father said to them, "If it
must be so, then do this: take some of the fruits of the land in your
jars and carry a present to the man, a little balsam, a little syrup,
spices, ladanum, pistachio nuts, and almonds. Take twice as much money
with you, carrying back the money that was put in your sacks. Perhaps it
was a mistake. Take also your brother and go again to the man. May God
Almighty grant that the man may be merciful to you and free Benjamin and
your other br