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¹ Whan Iacob sawe that there was moch corne in Egipte, he sayde vnto his sonnes: Why gape ye?² Beholde, I heare that there is moch corne in Egipte, go downe & bye vs corne, yt we maie lyue, & not dye.³ So Iosephs ten brethre wente downe to bye corne in Egipte.⁴ As for Ben Iamyn Iosephs brother, Iacob wolde not let him go wt his brethre, for he sayde: Some mysfortune might happen vnto him.⁵ So ye childre of Israel came to bye corne, amonge other yt came wt them: for there was derth also in ye lande of Canaan.⁶ But Ioseph was gouernoure in the lande, and solde corne vnto all the people in the lande. Now wha his brethre came to him, they fell downe to the grounde before him vpon their faces.

⁷ And he sawe them, & knewe the, and helde him self straunge towarde them, and talked roughly with them, and saide vnto them: Whence come ye? They sayde: Out of the lande of Canaan to bye vytayle.⁸ Neuertheles though he knewe them, yet knewe they not him.⁹ And Ioseph thought vpon ye dreames that he had dreamed of them, and sayde vnto them: Ye are spyes, and are come to se where the lande is open.¹⁰ They answered him: No my lorde, thy seruauntes are come to bye vytayle:¹¹ we are all one mans sonnes, we are vnfayned, and thy seruauntes were neuer spyes.¹² He sayde vnto the: No, but ye are come to se where the lande is open.¹³ They answered him: We thy seruauntes are twolue brethren, the sonnes of one man in the lade of Canaan, and the yongest is with oure father: as for one, he is awaye.¹⁴ Ioseph sayde vnto them: This is it that I sayde vnto you: spyes are ye.¹⁵ Here by wyll I proue you: By the life of Pharao ye shall not get hence, excepte youre yongest brother come hither.¹⁶ Sende awaye one of you to fetch youre brother, but ye shalbe in preson. Thus wyll I trye out yor wordes, whether ye go aboute wt trueth or not: for els, by the life of Pharao ye are spyes.¹⁷ And he put the together in warde thre dayes longe.¹⁸ Vpon the thirde daye he sayde vnto the: Yf ye wil lyue, the do thus, for I feare God:¹⁹ Yf ye be vnfayned, let one of youre brethren lye bounde in youre preson: but go ye youre waye, and cary home the necessary foode,²⁰ & brynge me youre yongest brother, so wyll I beleue youre wordes, that ye shall not dye. And so they dyd.

²¹ And they sayde one to another: This haue we deserued against oure brother, in that we sawe the anguysh of his soule, whan he besought vs, and we wolde not heare him: therfore cometh now this trouble vpon vs.²² Ruben answered them, and saide: Tolde not I you ye same, whan I sayde: O synne not agaynst ye lad, but ye wolde not heare. Now is his bloude requyred.²³ But they knew not that Ioseph vnderstode it, for he spake vnto the by an interpreter.²⁴ And he turned him from them, and wepte. Now whan he had turned him to them agayne, and talked wt them, he toke Symon from amonge them & bounde him before their eyes,²⁵ and commaunded to fyll their sackes wt corne, and to put euery mans money in his sack, and to geue euery one his expenses by the waye. And so was it done vnto them.²⁶ And they laded their corne vpon their Asses, and departed thence.²⁷ ut whan one opened his sacke to geue his Asse prouender in the Inne, he spyed his money in his sack mouth,²⁸ and sayde vnto his brethren: My money is restored me agayne: lo, it is in my sack. Then their hertes fayled them, and they were afrayed amonge them selues, and sayde: Wherfore hath God done this vnto vs?

²⁹ Now whan they came home to Iacob their father in the lade of Canaan, they tolde him all that had happened vnto them, & sayde:³⁰ The man that is lorde of the londe, spake roughly to vs, and toke vs for spyes of the countre.³¹ And whan we answered: we are vnfayned, & were neuer spyes,³² but are twolue brethren the sonnes of oure father: one is awaye, and the yongest is yet this daye wt oure father in the lande of Canaan,³³ He sayde: Hereby wyl I marke, that ye are vnfayned: Leaue one of youre brethren with me, & take foode necessary for youre houses, & go youre waye,³⁴ and brynge youre yongest brother vnto me: so shal I knowe that ye are no spyes, but vnfayned: the shal I delyuer you youre brother also, and ye maye occupie in the lande.³⁵ And whan they opened their sackes, euery man founde his boundell of money in his sacke. And wha they and their father sawe, that it was the bundels of their money, they were afrayed.³⁶ Then sayde Iacob their father: Ye haue robbed me of my children. Ioseph is awaye, Simeon is awaye, and ye will take Ben Iamin awaye: It goeth all ouer me.³⁷ Ruben answered his father & sayde: Yf I brynge him not to the againe, then slaye my two sonnes: delyuer him but in to my hande, I wyl brynge him agayne vnto the.³⁸ He sayde: my sonne shal not go downe with you: for his brother is deed, and he is left alone. Yf eny mysfortune shulde happen vnto him by the waye yt ye go, ye shulde bringe my graye hayre with sorowe downe vnto the graue.