Joseph Meets His Brothers - NKJ

Joseph Did Not Plan to Meet up with His Brothers. He Had His Life in Egypt and God Had Definitely Been Leading. He was Useful and Had Purpose in Life. Going Back to Canaan Did Not Seem to Be One of His Goals. Maybe His Brothers Were Just the Same as When They Had Sold Him as a Slave to Passing Traders Who Sold Him in Egypt.

1. When Joseph's Brothers Went to Buy Grain They Had No Idea Who Would Sell it to Them.

Genesis 42:1 When Jacob saw that there was grain in _________, Jacob said to his sons, Why do you look at one ____________?

Genesis 42:3-4 So Josephs ten brothers went down to buy grain in Egypt. [4] But Jacob did not send Josephs brother ______________ with his brothers, for he said, Lest some ______________ befall him.

Genesis 42:6-7 Now Joseph was ______________ over the land; and it was he who sold to all the people of the land. And Josephs brothers came and bowed down before him with their faces to the earth. [7] Joseph saw his brothers and __________________ them, but he acted as a ______________ to them and spoke ____________ to them. Then he said to them, Where do you come from? And they said, From the land of Canaan to buy food.

1. Why did Joseph speak harshly to his brothers? _____________________

2. Why did only ten brothers come to buy grain? _____________________

3. Did his brothers have any idea that he was their brother? ___________

2. Joseph Wanted to Learn More about Them Before They Knew Who He was.

Genesis 42:8-11 So Joseph recognized his brothers, but they did not recognize him. [9] Then Joseph __________________ the dreams which he had ____________ about them, and said to them, You are spies! You have come to see the ________________ of the land! [10] And they said to him, No, my lord, but your servants have come to buy food. [11] We are all one mans sons; we are __________ men; your servants are not spies.

Genesis 42:12-17 But he said to them, No, but you have come to see the ________________ of the land. [13] And they said, Your ______________ are twelve brothers, the sons of one man in the land of Canaan; and in fact, the youngest is with our father today, and one is no more. [14] But __________ said to them, It is as I spoke to you, __________, You are spies! [15] In this __________ you shall be tested: By the life of Pharaoh, you shall not leave this place __________ your youngest brother comes here. [16] Send one of you, and let him bring your brother; and you shall be kept in prison, that your words may be tested to see ____________ there is any truth in you; or else, by the life of Pharaoh, __________ you are spies! [17] So he put them all ______________ in prison three days.

Genesis 42:18-20 Then Joseph said to them the third day, Do this and live, for I fear God: [19] If you are honest men, let one of your brothers be ______________ to your prison house; but you, go and carry grain for the famine of your __________. [20] And bring your ______________ brother to me; so your words will be ______________, and you shall not die. And they did so.

Genesis 42:21-24 Then they said to one another, We are truly guilty __________________ our brother, for we saw the anguish of his soul when he pleaded with us, and we would not hear; therefore this ______________ has come upon us. [22] And Reuben ______________ them, saying, Did I not speak to you, saying, Do not sin against the boy; and you would not listen? Therefore behold, his blood is now ______________ of us. [23] But they did not know that Joseph __________________ them, for he spoke to them through an ___________________. [24] And he turned himself away from them and wept. Then he ______________ to them again, and talked with them. And he took Simeon from them and bound him before their eyes.

1. Did the brother's discover it was their brother Joseph asking them questions? ___________

2. Why did Joseph insist that they bring Benjamin down to Egypt? _______________

3. The Twelve Brothers Were Not Happy to Tell Their Father, Jacob, What Had Happened.

Genesis 42:25-28 Then Joseph gave a command to fill their sacks with grain, to restore every mans money to his sack, and to give them __________________ for the ____________. Thus he did for them. [26] So they loaded their donkeys with the grain and ______________ from there. [27] But as one of them opened his sack to give his donkey feed at the __________________, he saw his money; and there it was, in the mouth of his sack. [28] So he said to his ______________, My money has been ______________, and there it is, in my sack! Then their hearts failed them and they were afraid, saying to one ____________, What is this that God has done to us?

Genesis 42:29-34 Then they went to Jacob their father in the land of Canaan and told him all that had ______________ to them, __________: [30] The man who is lord of the land spoke ____________ to us, and took us for spies of the country. [31] But we said to him, We are honest men; we are not spies. [32] We are __________ brothers, sons of our father; one is no more, and the youngest is with our father this day in the land of Canaan. [33] Then the man, the lord of the country, said to us, By this I will know that you are honest men: Leave one of your brothers here with me, take food for the __________ of your __________________, and be gone. [34] And bring your youngest brother to me; so I _________ know that you are not spies, but that you are honest men. I will _________ your brother to you, and you may _________ in the land.

Genesis 42:35-36 Then it ______________ as they emptied their sacks, that _____________________ each mans bundle of money was in his sack; and when they and their father saw the bundles of money, they were afraid. [36] And Jacob their father said to them, You have ______________ me: Joseph is no more, Simeon is no more, and you want to take ______________. All these things are against me.

Genesis 42:38 But he said, My son shall not go down with you, for his ____________ is dead, and he is left alone. If any ______________ should befall him along the way in which you go, then you would bring down my gray hair with __________ to the grave.

1. How many sons did Jacob have? _________

2. How many sons were at home with him now? ___________

3. Who was now missing from the original number of sons? __________________ and __________________

4. Joseph Instructs His Steward to Take the Men to His House. They Do Not Know Why He Would Do This.

Genesis 43:1-5 Now the famine was __________ in the land. [2] And it came to pass, when they had eaten up the grain which they had ____________ from Egypt, that their __________ said to them, Go back, buy us a __________ food. [3] But Judah spoke to him, saying, The man ______________ __________ us, saying, You shall not see my face unless your brother is with you. [4] If you send our brother with us, we will go down and buy you food. [5] But if you will not send him, we will not go down; for the man said to us, You shall not see my face unless your brother is with you.

Genesis 43:6-10 And Israel said, Why did you deal so __________________ with me as to tell the man ____________ you had still another brother? [7] But they said, The man asked us ________________ about ourselves and our family, saying, Is your father still alive? Have you another brother? And we told him according to these words. Could we ______________ have known that he would say, Bring your brother down? [8] Then Judah said to Israel his father, Send the lad with me, and we will arise and go, that we may live and not die, both we and you and also our little ones. [9] I myself will be surety for him; from my hand you shall ____________ him. If I do not bring him back to you and set him before you, then let me bear the blame forever. [10] For if we had not ______________, __________ by now we would have ______________ this __________ time.

Genesis 43:11-15 And their father Israel said to them, If it must be so, then do this: Take some of the best fruits of the land in your ____________ and carry down a present for the man—a little balm and a little honey, __________ and myrrh, ________________ nuts and almonds. [12] Take double money in your hand, and take back in your hand the money that was ______________ in the mouth of your sacks; ____________ it was an ________________. [13] Take your brother also, and arise, go back to the man. [14] And may God Almighty give you mercy before the man, that he may ____________ your other brother and Benjamin. If I am bereaved, I am bereaved! [15] So the men took that present and Benjamin, and they took double money in their hand, and arose and went down to Egypt; and they stood before __________.

Genesis 43:16-17 When Joseph saw ______________ with them, he said to the steward of his house, Take these men to my home, and ________________ an animal and make ready; for these men will dine with me at noon. [17] Then the man did as Joseph ordered, and the man brought the men into ____________ house.

5. Joseph's Brothers Tried to Explain to the Steward That They Had Found the Money in Their Sacks and Brought it Back with Them.

Genesis 43:18-22 Now the men were afraid because they were brought into Josephs house; and they said, It is because of the money, which was ______________ in our sacks the first time, that we are brought in, so that he may make a case ____________ us and seize us, to take us as __________ with our donkeys. [19] When they drew near to the ____________ of Josephs house, they __________ with him at the door of the house, [20] and said, O sir, we indeed came down the first time to buy food; [21] but it ______________, when we came to the __________________, that we __________ our sacks, and there, each mans money was in the mouth of his sack, our money in full weight; so we have brought it back in our hand. [22] And we have brought down other money in our _________ to buy food. We do not know who put our money in our sacks.

Genesis 43:23-25 But he said, Peace be with you, do not be afraid. Your God and the God of your father has given you ______________ in your sacks; I had your money. Then he brought Simeon out to them. [24] So the man brought the men into Josephs house and gave them water, and they __________ their feet; and he gave their ____________ feed. [25] Then they made the ____________ ready for Josephs __________ at noon, for they heard that they would eat bread there.

Genesis 43:26-30 And when Joseph came home, they brought him the present which was in their hand into the house, and bowed down before him to the earth. [27] Then he asked them about their well-being, and said, Is your father well, the old man of whom you spoke? Is he still alive? [28] And they ______________, Your servant our father is in good health; he is still alive. And they bowed their heads down and __________________ __________________. [29] Then he lifted his eyes and saw his brother ______________, his mothers son, and said, Is this your younger brother of whom you spoke to me? And he said, God be ______________ to you, my son. [30] Now his heart ____________ for his brother; so Joseph made haste and sought ________________ to weep. And he went into his ____________ and wept there.

Genesis 43:31-34 Then he washed his face and came out; and he __________________ himself, and said, Serve the bread. [32] So they set him a place by himself, and them by themselves, and the Egyptians who ate with him by themselves; ____________ the Egyptians could not eat food with the Hebrews, for that is an abomination to the Egyptians. [33] And they sat before him, the ________________ according to his __________________ and the ______________ according to his youth; and the men looked in astonishment at one ____________. [34] Then he took servings to them from before him, but ________________ serving was five times as much as any of theirs. So they drank and were merry with him.

1. Why did Joseph give Benjamin more food than he gave the other brothers? _____________________

2. Do the brothers know they are dealing with Joseph? _____________

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