Genesis 44:20

New Century Version

And we answered you, ‘We have an old father. And we have a younger brother, who was born when our father was old. This youngest son's brother is dead, so he is the only one of his mother's children left alive, and our father loves him very much.'

Parallel Translations

Hebrew Names Version
We said to 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 loves him.'

King James Version
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.

Lexham English Bible
And we said to my lord, ‘We have an aged father, and a younger brother, the child of his old age, and his brother died, and he alone remains from his mother, and his father loves him.'

New English Translation
We said to my lord, ‘We have an aged father, and there is a young boy who was born when our father was old. The boy's brother is dead. He is the only one of his mother's sons left, and his father loves him.'

Amplified Bible
"We said to my lord, 'We have an old father and a young [brother, Benjamin, the] child of his old age. Now his brother [Joseph] is dead, and he alone is left of [the two sons born of] his mother, and his father loves him.'

New American Standard Bible
"And we said to my lord, 'We have an old father and a little boy born in our father's old age. Now his brother is dead, so he alone is left of his mother, and his father loves him.'

Geneva Bible (1587)
And we answered my Lorde, We haue a father that is olde, and a young childe, which he begate in his age: and his brother is dead, and he alone is left of his mother, and his father loueth him.

Legacy Standard Bible
And we said to my lord, ‘We have an old father and a little child of his old age. Now his brother is dead, so he alone is left of his mother, and his father loves him.'

Contemporary English Version
So we told you, "Our father is a very old man. In fact, he was already old when Benjamin was born. Benjamin's brother is dead. Now Benjamin is the only one of the two brothers who is still alive, and our father loves him very much."

Complete Jewish Bible
We answered my lord, ‘We have a father who is an old man, and a child of his old age, a little one whose brother is dead; so that of his mother's children he alone is left; and his father loves him.'

Darby Translation
And we said to my lord, We have an aged father, and a child born to him in his old age, [yet] young; and his brother is dead, and he alone is left of his mother; and his father loves him.

Easy-to-Read Version
And we answered you, ‘We have a father—he is an old man. And we have a younger brother. Our father loves him because he was born while our father was old. This youngest son's brother is dead, so he is the only son who is left from that mother. Our father loves him very much.'

English Standard Version
And we said to my lord, ‘We have a father, an old man, and a young brother, the child of his old age. His brother is dead, and he alone is left of his mother's children, and his father loves him.'

George Lamsa Translation
And we said to my lord, We have a father, an old man, and he has a young son, the child of his old age; and his brother is dead, and he alone is left of his mother, and his father loves him.

Good News Translation
We answered, ‘We have a father who is old and a younger brother, born to him in his old age. The boy's brother is dead, and he is the only one of his mother's children still alive; his father loves him very much.'

Christian Standard Bible®
and we answered my lord, ‘We have an elderly father and a younger brother, the child of his old age. The boy’s brother is dead. He is the only one of his mother’s sons left, and his father loves him.’

Literal Translation
And we said to my lord, An aged father is to us, and a young child of his old age; and his brother is dead; and he alone is left of his mother; and his father loves him.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Then answered we: We haue a father, which is olde, and a yonge lad begotten in his age, and his brother is deed, & he is left alone of his mother, and his father loueth him.

American Standard Version
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.

Bible in Basic English
And we said to my lord, We have an old father and a young child, whom he had when he was old; his brother is dead and he is the only son of his mother, and is very dear to his father.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
And we aunswered my lorde: we haue a father that is olde, and a young lad, which he begat in his age: and the brother of the sayd lad is dead, and he is all that is left of his mother, and his father loueth him.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
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.

King James Version (1611)
And we said vnto my lord, Wee haue a father, an olde man, and a childe of his old age, a little one: and his brother is dead, and he alone is left of his mother, and his father loueth him.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And we said to my lord, We have a father, an old man, and he has a son of his old age, a young one, and his brother is dead, and he alone has been left behind to his mother, and his father loves him.

English Revised Version
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.

Berean Standard Bible
And we answered, 'We have an elderly father and a younger brother, the child of his old age. The boy's brother is dead. He is the only one of his mother's sons left, and his father loves him.'

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And we answeriden to thee, my lord, An eld fadir is to vs, and a litil child that was borun in his eelde, whos brother of the same wombe is deed, and his modir hath hym aloone; forsothe his fadir loueth hym tendirli.

Young's Literal Translation
and we say unto my lord, We have a father, an aged one, and a child of old age, a little one; and his brother died, and he is left alone of his mother, and his father hath loved him.

Update Bible Version
And we said to 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 loves him.

Webster's Bible Translation
And we said to 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.

World English Bible
We said to 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 loves him.'

New King James Version
And we said to my lord, "We have a father, an old man, and a child of his old age, who is young; his brother is dead, and he alone is left of his mother's children, and his father loves him.'

New Living Translation
And we responded, ‘Yes, my lord, we have a father who is an old man, and his youngest son is a child of his old age. His full brother is dead, and he alone is left of his mother's children, and his father loves him very much.'

New Life Bible
We said to my lord, ‘We have an old father and a young brother who was born to him when he was old. Now his brother is dead. So he is all that is left of his mother, and his father loves him.'

New Revised Standard
And we said to my lord, ‘We have a father, an old man, and a young brother, the child of his old age. His brother is dead; he alone is left of his mother's children, and his father loves him.'

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
So we said unto my lord, We have an aged father, and the child of his old age a youth, - his brother, being dead, he alone, is left of his mother and, his father, loveth him.

Douay-Rheims Bible
And we answered thee, my lord: We have a father an old man, and a young boy, that was born in his old age; whose brother by the mother is dead; and he alone is left of his mother, and his father loveth him tenderly.

Revised Standard Version
And we said to my lord, 'We have a father, an old man, and a young brother, the child of his old age; and his brother is dead, and he alone is left of his mother's children; and his father loves him.'

New American Standard Bible (1995)
"We said to my lord, 'We have an old father and a little child of his old age. Now his brother is dead, so he alone is left of his mother, and his father loves him.'

Contextual Overview

¹⁸ Then Judah went to Joseph and said, "Master, please let me speak plainly to you, and please don't be angry with me. I know that you are as powerful as the king of Egypt himself. ¹⁹ When we were here before, you asked us, ‘Do you have a father or a brother?' ²⁰ And we answered you, ‘We have an old father. And we have a younger brother, who was born when our father was old. This youngest son's brother is dead, so he is the only one of his mother's children left alive, and our father loves him very much.' ²¹ Then you said to us, ‘Bring that brother to me. I want to see him.' ²² And we said to you, ‘That young boy cannot leave his father, because if he leaves him, his father would die.' ²³ But you said to us, ‘If you don't bring your youngest brother, you will not be allowed to see me again.' ²⁴ So we went back to our father and told him what you had said. ²⁵ "Later, our father said, ‘Go again and buy us a little more food.' ²⁶ We said to our father, ‘We cannot go without our youngest brother. Without our youngest brother, we will not be allowed to see the governor.' ²⁷ Then my father said to us, ‘You know that my wife Rachel gave me two sons.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

we said: Every word in this verse is simplicity and pathos itself. No man of the least sensibility can read it without great emotion. Indeed the whole speech is exquisitely beautiful, and perhaps the most complete pattern of genuine natural eloquence extant in any language. When we read this generous speech, we forgive Judah all the past, and cannot refuse to say, "Thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise." Genesis 49:8

a child: Genesis 35:18, Genesis 37:3, Genesis 37:19, Genesis 43:7, Genesis 43:8, Genesis 46:21

and his brother: Genesis 37:33-35, Genesis 42:36, Genesis 42:38

he alone: Genesis 44:27-29, Luke 7:12

Reciprocal: Genesis 29:30 - he loved Genesis 37:32 - thy son's Genesis 42:4 - Lest Genesis 42:13 - one is not Genesis 42:15 - except Numbers 1:36 - General 1 Kings 18:7 - my lord Elijah Mark 12:6 - his Luke 8:42 - one Luke 9:38 - for

Cross-References

Genesis 35:18
Rachel gave birth to the son, but she herself died. As she lay dying, she named the boy Son of My Suffering, but Jacob called him Benjamin.

Genesis 37:3
Since Joseph was born when his father Israel was old, Israel loved him more than his other sons. He made Joseph a special robe with long sleeves.

Genesis 37:19
They said to each other, "Here comes that dreamer.

Genesis 42:13
And they said, "We are ten of twelve brothers, sons of the same father, and we live in the land of Canaan. Our youngest brother is there with our father right now, and our other brother is gone."

Genesis 42:36
Their father Jacob said to them, "You are robbing me of all my children. Joseph is gone, Simeon is gone, and now you want to take Benjamin away, too. Everything is against me."

Genesis 42:38
But Jacob said, "I will not allow Benjamin to go with you. His brother is dead, and he is the only son left from my wife Rachel. I am afraid something terrible might happen to him during the trip to Egypt. Then I would be sad until the day I die."

Genesis 44:7
But the brothers said to the servant, "Why do you say these things? We would not do anything like that!

Genesis 44:8
We brought back to you from the land of Canaan the money we found in our sacks. So surely we would not steal silver or gold from your master's house.

Genesis 44:27
Then my father said to us, ‘You know that my wife Rachel gave me two sons.

Genesis 44:30
Now what will happen if we go home to our father without our youngest brother? He is so important in our father's life that

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And we said unto my lord, we have a father,.... Yet living in the land of Canaan:

an old man; being one hundred and thirty years of age, Genesis 47:9;

and a child of his old age; who was born when he was near an hundred years of age: and

a little one; not in stature, but in age, being the youngest son, and much younger than they: so they represented him, on that account, and because he was tenderly brought up with his father, and not inured to business and hardship, and so unfit to travel:

and his brother is dead; meaning Joseph: so they thought him to be, having not heard of him for twenty two years or more, and they had so often said he was dead, or suggested as much, that they at length believed he was:

and he alone is left of his mother; the only child left of his mother Rachel:

and his father loveth him; being his youngest son, and the only child of his beloved Rachel, and therefore most dear unto him.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

- The Ten Brothers Were Tested

Joseph has had the satisfaction of seeing his brother Benjamin safe and well. He has heard his brothers acknowledging their guilt concerning himself. He resolves to put their attachment to Benjamin, and the genuineness of their change of disposition, to a test that will at the same time expose Benjamin to no hazard.

Genesis 44:1-5

And my cup. - Besides returning each man’s money as before, a silver cup of Joseph’s is put in Benjamin’s bag, after which, when daylight comes, they are dismissed. They are scarcely out of the town when Joseph’s steward is ordered to overtake them, and charge them with stealing the cup. “And whereby indeed he divineth.” Divining by cups, we learn from this, was a common custom in Egypt (Herodotus ii. 83). It is here mentioned to enhance the value of the cup. Whether Joseph really practised any sort of divination cannot be determined from this passage.

Genesis 44:6-12

The cup is found in Benjamin’s bag. “Spake unto them these words.” The words of Joseph, supplying of course the mention of the cup which is expressed in the text only by the pronoun this. “We brought back to thee.” Silver that we might have retained, and to which you made no claim when we tendered it, we brought back. How or why should we therefore, steal silver? “Now also according to your words let it be.” He adopts their terms with a mitigation. He with whom the cup is found shall become a slave for life, and the rest be acquitted. The steward searches from the oldest to the youngest. The cup is found where it was put.

Genesis 44:13-17

“They rent their garments;” the natural token of a sorrow that knows no remedy. “And Judah went.” He had pledged himself for the safety of Benjamin to his father. And he was yet there; awaiting no doubt the result which he anticipated. “They fell before him on the earth.” It is no longer a bending of the head or bowing of the body, but the posture of deepest humiliation. How deeply that early dream penetrated into the stern reality! “Wot ye not that such a man as I doth certainly divine?” Joseph keeps up the show of resentment for a little longer, and brings out from Judah the most pathetic plea of its kind that ever was uttered. “The God,” the great and only God, “hath found out the iniquity of thy servants;” in our dark and treacherous dealing with our brother. “Behold, we are servants to my lord.” He resigns himself and all to perpetual bondage, as the doom of a just God upon their still-remembered crime. “He shall be my servant; and ye, go up in peace to your father.” Now is the test applied with the nicest adjustment. Now is the moment of agony and suspense to Joseph. Will my brothers prove true? says he within himself. Will Judah prove adequate to the occasion? say we. His pleading with his father augured well.

Verse 18-34

“And Judah came near unto him.” He is going to surrender himself as a slave for life, that Benjamin may go home with his brothers, who are permitted to depart. “Let thy servant now speak a word in the ears of my lord.” There is nothing here but respectful calmness of demeanor. “And let not thine anger burn against thy servant.” He intuitively feels that the grand vizier is a man of like feelings with himself. He will surmount the distinction of rank, and stand with him on the ground of a common humanity. “For so art thou as Pharaoh.” Thou hast power to grant or withhold my request. This forms, the exordium of the speech. Then follows the plea. This consists in a simple statement of the facts, which Judah expects to have its native effect upon a rightly-constituted heart. We will not touch this statement, except to explain two or three expressions. A young lad - a comparative youth. “Let me set mine eyes upon him” - regard him with favor and kindness. “He shall leave his father and he shall die.” If he were to leave his father, his father would die. Such is the natural interpretation of these words, as the paternal affection is generally stronger than the filial. “And now let thy servant now abide instead of the lad a servant to my lord.” Such is the humble and earnest petition of Judah. He calmly and firmly sacrifices home, family, and birthright, rather than see an aged father die of a broken heart.