Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Genesis 44:14

And Judah and his brethren came to Joseph’s house; for he [was] yet there: and they fell before him on the ground.

14. he was yet there ] Joseph had not yet left his official dwelling.

fell before him ] The third and last fulfilment of the dreams (Gen 37:7; Gen 37:9-10). See Gen 44:16.

Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

And Judah and his brethren came to Joseph’s house,…. Judah is particularly mentioned because he was the principal spokesman, and was chiefly concerned for the safety of Benjamin, being his surety:

for he [was] yet there; Joseph was yet at his own house, was not as yet gone to the granaries, to look after the affairs of the corn, and the sale and distribution of it, but was waiting for the return of his brethren, which he expected quickly:

and they fell before him on the ground; not only in a way of reverence, again fulfilling his dream, but as persons in the utmost distress and affliction, throwing themselves at his feet for mercy.

Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible

Result of the Test. – Gen 44:14-17. With Judah leading the way, they came into the house to Joseph, and fell down before him begging for mercy. Joseph spoke to them harshly: “ What kind of deed is this that ye have done? Did ye not know that such a man as I (a man initiated into the most secret things) would certainly divine this? ” augurari . Judah made no attempt at a defence. “ What shall we say to my lord? how speak, how clear ourselves? God ( Ha-Elohim, the personal God) has found out the wickedness of thy servants (i.e., He is now punishing the crime committed against our brother, cf. Gen 42:21). Behold, we are my lord’s slaves, both we, and he in whose hand the cup was found.” But Joseph would punish mildly and justly. The guilty one alone should be his slave; the others might go in peace, i.e., uninjured, to their father.

Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament

Verses 14-17

Judah acted as spokesman for the brothers as they appeared before Joseph He readily admitted their complicity and attributed it to the judgment of Elohim. He offered himself and the others as slaves in retribution for the theft of the cup.

Judah’s offer showed the brothers’ willingness to identify with their younger brother who was accused of the crime. Still, Joseph must reinforce this with another test. He offered complete amnesty to the ten brothers; the finger of guilt pointed not to them, but to Benjamin. They were all free to return in peace to their homes: Benjamin would remain in Egypt as Joseph’s personal slave.

Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary

14. Fell before him Another fulfilling of Joseph’s dream . See on Gen 43:26.

Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

‘And Judah and his brothers came to Joseph’s house, and he was still there. And they fell on the ground before him. And Joseph said, “What is this deed that you have done? Do you not realise that such a man as I can indeed divine?”

As in a nightmare the brothers return to the house where they had spent the previous day in such jollity and relief. And hopelessly they abase themselves before him. Any fight has gone out of them.

Judah is mentioned individually because he is the one who has taken responsibility for Benjamin and will be the key player in what follows. But Reuben has fallen into the background and it would seem that for whatever reason Judah is now seen as the leader (compare Gen 43:3; Gen 46:28).

Joseph professes to be scandalised, and declares that they must recognise that he is a man who sees through things. He is no ordinary man, he can see what others cannot see. He can ‘divine’. It is possible that he has a small doubt about whether the brothers might be beginning to get suspicious about all the ‘coincidences’ and is trying to counter it by explaining how he has been able to act with such accuracy, but he need not have worried. They are far too overwhelmed to even think in those terms.

Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett

Judah’s Heroic Behavior

v. 14. And Judah and his brethren came to Joseph’s house; for he was yet there, having waited for their return. Judah is now the leader among the brothers, a position which was later confirmed to him. And they fell before him on the ground, in speechless terror and abject surrender. This showed the spirit which now lived in them, as well as the fact that they had not permitted Benjamin to return alone and that they willingly placed themselves under the direction of Judah.

v. 15. And Joseph said unto them, in apparent indignation, What deed is this that ye have done? Wot ye not that such a man as I can certainly divine? He intimated that a man in his position and of his wisdom was able to discover the most carefully hidden things. Cf v. 5.

v. 16. And Judah said, What shall we say unto my lord? What shall we speak? Or how shall we clear ourselves? He felt that the circumstantial evidence against them was so strong as to oblige the ruler to decide against them. God hath found out the iniquity of thy servants; he and his brothers recognized in this strange shaping of events the judgment of God upon their former guilt, and their repentance was certainly genuine. Behold, we are my lord’s servants, both we and he also with whom the cup is found. Thus Judah includes all the brothers with himself as champions of Benjamin, whom they would not permit to enter slavery alone. Judah exhibited a wonderful self-denial, magnanimity, and generosity, even while he was struggling with despair.

v. 17. And he said, God forbid that I should do so; far be it from me to act upon this suggestion; but the man in whose hand the cup is found, he shall be my servant; and as for you, get you up in peace unto your father. This is the climax of the test which Joseph had proposed, for now the brothers could show whether they would take this opportunity to get rid of the second son of Rachel, as they had gotten rid of the first: Benjamin would remain in Egypt as Joseph’s slave, while the others would go scot-free.

v. 18. Then Judah came near unto him and said, stepping forward in his great agitation, O my lord, let thy servant, I pray thee, speak a word in my lord’s ears, and let not thine anger burn against thy servant; for thou art even as Pharaoh. His request was made in the greatest humility, in the full consciousness of his own unworthiness.

v. 19. My lord asked his servants, saying, Have ye a father, or a brother?

v. 20. And we said unto my lord, we have a father, an old man, and a child of his old age, a little one; and his brother is dead, and he alone is left of his mother, and his father loveth him. With unconscious, artless skill the love of Jacob for the one remaining son of his old age from his beloved Rachel is here pictured,

v. 21. And thou saidst unto thy servants, Bring him down unto me that I may set mine eyes upon him. The pleading here is less formal, and more fervent.

v. 22. And we said unto my lord, The lad cannot leave his father; for if he should leave his father, his father would die. From this we may conclude that the refusal of the brothers to bring Benjamin had caused their first imprisonment. It was the prospect of a favorable reception on the part of Joseph that had made the brothers consent.

v. 23. And thou saidst unto thy servants, Except your youngest brother come down with you, ye shall see my face no more, which was equivalent to telling them that they could purchase no more grain, unless they complied with this condition.

v. 24. And it came to pass, when we came up unto thy servant, my father, we told him the words of my lord.

v. 25. And our father said, Go again, and buy us a little food.

v. 26. And we said, We cannot go down; if our youngest brother be with us, then will we go down; for we may not see the man’s face, except our youngest brother be with us.

v. 27. And thy servant, my father, said unto us, Ye know that my wife, Rachel, whom only he really considered such in the full name of the word, bare me two sons;

v. 28. and the one went out from me, he was taken from Jacob in a violent manner, and I said, Surely, he is torn in pieces, that was the only conclusion he could reach from the evidence presented; and I saw him not since;

v. 29. and if ye take this also from me, and mischief, some harm or danger, befall him, ye shall bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to the grave. It was a masterly presentation of the love and devotion which now characterized the relationship in the family of Jacob. With these words Judah reached the conclusion of his plea, in a remarkably eloquent outburst.

v. 30. Now, therefore, when I come to thy servant, my father, and the lad be not with us; seeing that his life is bound up in the lad’s life, his soul was literally tied to the soul of Benjamin;

v. 31. it shall come to pass, when he seeth that the lad is not with us, that he will die; and thy servants shall bring down the gray hairs of thy servant, our father, with sorrow to the grave, to the realm of the dead.

v. 32. For thy servant became surety for the lad unto my father, saying, if I bring him not unto thee, then I shall bear the blame to my father forever.

v. 33. Now, therefore, I pray thee, let thy servant abide instead of the lad a bondman to my lord; and let the lad go up with his brethren. This entreaty was a wonderful exhibition of love, both for the aged father and for Benjamin, since it involved becoming a slave in Egypt without hope of redemption.

v. 34. For how shall I go up to my father, and the lad be not with me? Lest peradventure I see the evil that shall come on (find or strike) my father. This lofty and impressive, vivid and passionate prayer, culminating in the last touching appeal with its self-sacrificing offer, is one of the sublimest passages in the entire Old Testament, reminding us, incidentally, of the infinitely greater sacrifice which the Champion out of the tribe of Judah, who became surety for His brethren according to the flesh, made by giving His life for theirs.

Fuente: The Popular Commentary on the Bible by Kretzmann

Gen 44:14. Judah and his brethren Judah, though not the eldest, is mentioned first, as being the principal actor in this scene, and as having particularly engaged with Jacob for Benjamin. It must have been peculiarly affecting to Joseph to have seen his brethren thus prostrate before him, covered with shame, and throwing themselves upon his mercy. Judah speaks with a pathetic energy, Gen 44:16 what shall we say unto my lord? what shall we speak? or how shall we clear ourselves? nothing can be more natural, eloquent, or expressive of perturbation of mind, than these broken sentences.

Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke

Gen 37:7-10

He whose name was Zaphnath-paaneah could not but know. Joseph did indeed know well their guilt concerning himself, and therefore the question was pointed: what deed is this for which GOD hath visited you?

Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)

Gen 44:14 And Judah and his brethren came to Joseph’s house; for he [was] yet there: and they fell before him on the ground.

Ver. 14. They fell before him on the ground. ] Humble submission, they knew, if anything, would make their peace, and procure their pardon –

“Sic ventos vincit, dumse submittit arundo.”

It is no hoisting up sail in a storm, no standing before a lion, &c. William the Conqueror often pardoned rebels, and received them into favour; as he held submission satisfactory for the greatest offences, and sought not to defeat them, but their enterprises. a

a Dan., Hist., fol. 51.

Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Gen 44:14-17

14When Judah and his brothers came to Joseph’s house, he was still there, and they fell to the ground before him. 15Joseph said to them, “What is this deed that you have done? Do you not know that such a man as I can indeed practice divination?” 16So Judah said, “What can we say to my lord? What can we speak? And how can we justify ourselves? God has found out the iniquity of your servants; behold, we are my lord’s slaves, both we and the one in whose possession the cup has been found.” 17But he said, “Far be it from me to do this. The man in whose possession the cup has been found, he shall be my slave; but as for you, go up in peace to your father.”

Gen 44:15 This is a false statement. It is made to inject tension into the situation. Joseph did not divine their theft; he engineered it!

Gen 44:16 Judah is the group’s spokesman. He asked Joseph several rhetorical questions.

1. What can we say to my lord?

2. What can we speak?

3. How can we justify (BDB 842, KB 1003, Hithpael IMPERFECT) ourselves?

4. Gen 44:18 is also a question

5. Gen 44:19 is also a question

6. Gen 44:34 is also a question

“God has found out the iniquity of your servants” Here again the theological aspects of the betrayal and selling of Joseph seems to have caused these guilt (BDB 730, cf. Gen 4:13; Gen 15:16; Gen 19:15) feelings to have remained in his brothers all these years (cf. Gen 42:21-22; Gen 42:28). However, the brothers seem to have truly changed for they are united in Benjamin’s defense and Judah even uses a substitutionary option (cf. Gen 44:18-34, esp. Gen 44:32-33). This prayer is on the same level as the intercessory prayers of Abraham, Moses, and Paul.

SPECIAL TOPIC: INTERCESSORY PRAYER

Gen 44:17 “Far be it from me to do this” This is an idiomatic expression of not doing something that would violate a religious obligation or fairness (cf. Gen 18:25; Jos 22:29; Jos 24:16; 1Sa 2:30; 1Sa 20:2; 1Sa 20:9; 1Sa 22:15; 2Sa 20:20; 2Sa 23:17).

“go up in peace to your father” This command (BDB 748, KB 828, Qal IMPERATIVE) is obviously given to intensify the situation. The brothers could not return home without Benjamin because they were afraid Jacob would die (cf. Gen 44:30-31). There seems to be no hope of peace!

Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley

he was yet: Gen 43:16, Gen 43:25

fell: Gen 37:7-9, Gen 50:18, Phi 2:10, Phi 2:11

Reciprocal: Gen 18:2 – bowed Gen 37:9 – the sun Gen 42:6 – bowed 1Co 14:25 – falling

Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

Judah acted as spokesman because he had promised Jacob that he would take responsibility for Benjamin’s safety (Gen 44:16; cf. Gen 43:8-9). Judah regarded this turn of events as divine condemnation for the brothers’ treatment of Joseph and Jacob years earlier. [Note: See D. Daube, Studies in Biblical Law, pp. 248-55; and Sternberg, p. 306.] Really it was divine discipline that God designed to produce repentance. Judah did not try to get rid of the privileged son this time. Instead he volunteered to share his fate at great personal sacrifice.

Joseph allowed Judah and the other brothers to depart and return home without Benjamin (Gen 44:17). However Judah’s refusal to do so demonstrated the sincerity of the brothers’ repentance.

Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)