Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Genesis 42:27
And as one of them opened his sack to give his ass provender in the inn, he espied his money; for, behold, it [was] in his sack’s mouth.
27 38. The Return to Canaan
27. one of them ] Anticipating Gen 42:35. Lit. “the one,” i.e. the others followed. This verse and Gen 42:28 are from J, according to which the money is found in the sacks at their first lodging place; see Gen 43:21. According to E, the money is found in their sacks, when they reach their home (see Gen 42:35). A word for “sack,” ’amthath, a very unusual one, occurs twice in Gen 42:27 (end), 28, and thirteen times in chs. 43, 44 (J), but not in Gen 42:35 or elsewhere in the O.T.
the lodging place ] i.e. “the shelter,” or wayside quarters, where they could rest during the night. Cf. Exo 4:24; Jer 9:2. There is, perhaps, scarcely sufficient warrant for us to assume that this was a khan, or road-side inn. Such places hardly existed. A rough shelter, a meagre encampment of black tents, with a scanty protection of a few sticks, brushwood, and blankets, behind which the men and asses would rest, is perhaps all that is meant.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Verse 27. One of them opened his sack] From Ge 42:35 we learn that each of the ten brethren on emptying his sack when he returned found his money in it; can we suppose that this was not discovered by them all before? It seems not; and the reason was probably this: the money was put in the mouth of the sack of one only, in the sacks of the others it was placed at or near to the bottom; hence only one discovered it on the road, the rest found it when they came to empty their sacks at their father’s house.
In the inn] bammalon, from lan, to lodge, stay, remain, c. The place at which they stopped to bait or rest themselves and their asses. Our word inn gives us a false idea here there were no such places of entertainment at that time in the desert over which they had to pass, nor are there any to the present day. Travellers generally endeavour to reach a well, where they fill their girbahs, or leathern bottles, with fresh water, and having clogged their camels, asses, &c., permit them to crop any little verdure there may be in the place, keeping watch over them by turns. This is all we are to understand by the malon or inn in the text, for even caravanseries were not then in use, which are generally no more than four walls perfectly exposed, the place being open at the top.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
And after him the rest by his example and information did so, as is affirmed Gen 43:21, and it is not denied here.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
27. inna mere station forbaiting beasts of burden.
he espied his moneyThediscovery threw them into greater perplexity than ever. If they hadbeen congratulating themselves on escaping from the ruthlessgovernor, they perceived that now he would have a handle againstthem; and it is observable that they looked upon this as a judgmentof heaven. Thus one leading design of Joseph was gained in theirconsciences being roused to a sense of guilt.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
And as one of them opened his sack,…. According to the Targum of Jonathan and Jarchi, this was Levi; but Aben Ezra thinks it is more likely to be Reuben the firstborn, who was one, that is, the first of them:
to give his ass provender in the inn; at which they lay very probably the first night of their journey; a good man regards the life of his beast, and takes care of that as well as of himself, and generally in the first place:
he espied his money; the money which he paid for his corn:
for, behold, it [was] in his sack’s mouth; just as he opened it.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
27. And as one of them opened his sack. With what intention Joseph had commanded the price paid for the corn to be secretly deposited in the sacks of his brethren, may easily be conjectured; for he feared lest his father being already impoverished, would not be able again to buy provisions. The brethren, having found their money, knew not where to seek the cause; except that, being terrified, they perceived that the hand of God was against them. That they were greatly astonished appears from their not voluntarily returning to Joseph, in order to prove their own innocence: for the remedy of the evil was at hand, if they had not been utterly blinded. Wherefore we must ask God to supply us, in doubtful and troubled affairs, not only with fortitude, but also with prudence. We see also how little can be effected even by a great multitude, unless the Lord preside among them. The sons of Jacob ought mutually to have exhorted each other, and to have consulted together what was necessary to be done: but there is an end to all deliberation; no solace nor remedy is suggested. Even while each sees the rest agitated, they mutually increase each other’s trepidation. Therefore, the society and countenance of men will profit us nothing, unless the Lord strengthen us from heaven.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(27) In the inn.Heb., lodging-place, literally, place to pass the night. It is quite possible that on a route frequented by numerous caravans there were places where a certain amount of protection for the beasts of burden and their attendants had been provided, either by the rulers, or by benevolent people. But Josephs brethren would find there at most only walls and water. The one who opened his sack is said by tradition to have been Levi. At the end of the verse this sack is called by another name, signifying a travelling-bag, or wallet for forage. The translation of these three different words, vessel, wallet, and sack, indifferently by the last of them, has led to the absurd view, common among commentators, that Josephs brethren went down into Egypt, each with one ass and one sack. Hence their astonishment that such an insignificant knot of men should be brought before the governor of Egypt. But the word used in Gen. 42:25 signifies everything into which corn could be put; and the word at the end of this verse is the travelling-bag, which each of the patriarchs carried behind him on his riding ass. Their men would go on foot at the side of the beasts of burden laden with the corn.
It is said here that one only found his money at the lodging-place, and that the rest did not find their money until they emptied their sacks on reaching home. the sacks mentioned here (in Gen. 42:35) were the same as the travelling-bags, for they are expressly so called in Gen. 43:21-23. In Gen. 43:21, however, they tell Josephs steward that they all found their money in the mouth of their sacks on opening them at the lodging-place. This was not strictly accurate, but it would have been wearisome and useless to enter into such details. Two things it was necessary to show: the first, that all had found their money; the second, that they had gone too far on their journey homewards to be able to return and give the money back. Probably what is said in Gen. 43:21 was literally true only of one, and he found his money because it had been put in last, and was therefore at the mouth of the wallet. In all the other sacks it had been put in first, under the corn, and so they did not find it until they had emptied their sacks.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
27. The inn , a lodging place; some sheltered and suitable place for encampment over night . Possibly some sort of caravansary was, even in that early time, provided along the great highways of travel for the convenience of caravans like this.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
‘And as one of them opened his sack to give his ass provender in the lodging place he saw his silver and behold, it was in the mouth of his sack.’
It is stressed that at this stage only one of them finds the silver. It is probable that they would all feed their asses from the one opened sack and they would not dream for one moment that this would be true for them all. It had every sign of being a plant so that they could be accused of theft. There were probably also a number of servants who also bore sacks on their asses, and they would have no silver in them. Jacob had a large household to feed with many retainers.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Gen 42:27 And as one of them opened his sack to give his ass provender in the inn, he espied his money; for, behold, it [was] in his sack’s mouth.
Ver. 27. To give his ass provender in the inn. ] Their inns then were not so well furnished as ours are; but they were forced to carry their provender, which was a trouble.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
the inn: Gen 43:21, Gen 44:11, Exo 4:24, Luk 2:7, Luk 10:34
inn: Malon, from loon, to stay, abide, lodge, denotes any place to stay and lodge in, particularly a place where travellers usually stop to lodge, which is generally near a well, where they fill their girbehs, or leathern bottles, with fresh water, and having unladen and clogged their camels, asses, etc., permit them to crop any little verdure there may be in the place, keeping watch over them by turns. Our word inn here gives us a false idea, there were no such places of entertainment in the desert which Joseph’s brethren had to pass; nor are there any at the present day. The only accommodation such a place affords is either a well, or a khan, or caravanserai, which is generally no more than four bare walls, perfectly exposed, the place being open at the top, and furnishing a wretched lodging, and even these, it is probable, were not in use at this early period.
Reciprocal: Gen 29:32 – his name Gen 42:35 – every man’s Gen 43:20 – we came indeed down Gen 44:8 – the money Hag 2:17 – with blasting