Preface:

There are many chapter commentaries on the book of Genesis. This will be the most extensive examination of Genesis 44, where you will be able to examine in depth every word of the original text. Every attempt has been made to make this both a complete and self-contained study. Therefore, all references, vocabulary, and related concepts should be found within this extensive study. Easy access links to more in-depth studies of some vocabulary words, concepts and doctrines are also provided.

Outline of Chapter 44:

Introduction

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Addendum

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines:

         Preface               Quotations

         Introduction         The Prequel of Genesis 44

         Introduction         The Principals of Genesis 44

         Introduction         The Places of Genesis 44

         Introduction         The Patriarchal Timeline for Genesis 44

         Introduction         A Synopsis of Genesis 44

         Introduction 

         Introduction         The New American Bible Summarizes Genesis 44

         Introduction         Dr. Bob Utley’s Translation Table/Subtitles and Paragraphs

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         v.       2              Why Joseph Places the Silver and the Cup in the Sacks of His Brothers

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         Summary            A Set of Summary Doctrines and Commentary

         Summary 

         Addendum 

         Addendum          Why Genesis 44 is in the Word of God

         Addendum          What We Learn from Genesis 44

         Addendum          Josephus’ History of this Time Period

         Addendum          Edersheim Summarizes Genesis 44

         Addendum          B. H. Carroll Summarizes Genesis 44

         Addendum          A Complete Translation of Genesis 44

         Addendum          Word Cloud from a Reasonably Literal Paraphrase of Genesis 44

         Addendum          Word Cloud from Exegesis of Genesis 44

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An Introduction to Genesis 44

I ntroduction: There is a portion of Genesis which should not have been separated into chapters—Genesis 42–44. Joseph’s brothers had, several chapters back, sold Joseph into slavery. At this time, they had no idea where Joseph was (they probably suspected that he was in Egypt); and no idea if he was still alive or not.

During the most recent years, Joseph had correctly prophesied, based upon dreams that Pharaoh had, 7 good years followed by 7 years of famine. His outstanding character along with his ability to properly interpret dreams, allowed Joseph to eventually rise to the second highest position in Egypt, and in charge of first gathering grain during the years of plenty; and then distributing the grain during the years of famine. Apparently, people from all over that region knew about Egypt’s granaries. So Jacob recognized that they were going to starve during the first year of the famine, so he sent his sons to Egypt to buy grain. He would not let Benjamin, his youngest son, go with them, because he had lost Joseph (Jacob believed that Joseph had been killed by a wild animal, and his sons, who knew better, allowed him to think that).

It is 20 years later, after Joseph was taken to Egypt, and his brothers are sent to Egypt to buy grain—everyone but Benjamin. When they arrive, Joseph knows who they are, but they do not know him. He was the last person they expected to see—particularly as the prime minister of Egypt. So they arrive, propose to buy grain, and Joseph gives them a little bit of a hard time, questions them carefully, and tells them to return with their youngest brother, Benjamin (who is Joseph’s full brother). By the time they get home, they find out that they have the silver in their bags.

When the brothers propose to Jacob, their father, to return with their brother Benjamin, he tells them, “No way.” So, a year or so passes; their grain begins to run out, and it becomes clear that they must return to Egypt to buy more grain. Even though Jacob strongly objects, he realizes that they will starve by doing nothing, and sending all of his sons, including Benjamin, may result in them being able to buy grain without incident.

In Gen. 43, they travel to Egypt, and, even when there seem to be some moments where things might go wrong, at the end of Gen. 43, all of the brothers are eating together in Joseph’s house, none of them yet realizing who Joseph really is.

At the end of Gen. 43, the brothers are eating a wonderful meal at Joseph’s home (not knowing who he is); and Gen. 44 is the next day, as they get their grain and start to leave.

In Gen. 44, the brothers will leave Egypt, but, there will be some problems which occur—primarily manufactured by Joseph. In Gen. 44, Joseph presents his brothers with the ultimate test. He sends them away, and with their sacks filled to the brim with grain. However, not only does Joseph require their silver be added to their sacks, but that his wonderful drinking cup is placed in Benjamin’s sack. Once they had gotten some distance from Joseph’s compound, Joseph sent troops to stop and inquire of the brothers and to search out their stuff. Finding the silver was one thing; but when Joseph’s favorite cup was discovered in Benjamin’s bag, that was the last straw. Or, at least, this is what it would have seemed like to Joseph’s brothers. They realized that they might return to their father, Jacob, without their youngest brother. At that point, something quite remarkable happens.

The Patriarchal Timeline for Genesis 44

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Here is how others have translated this verse:

Ancient texts:                       Note: I compare the Hebrew text to English translations of the Latin, Syriac (= Aramaic) and Greek texts, using the Douay-Rheims translation; George Lamsa’s translation, and Sir Lancelot Charles Lee Brenton’s translation as revised and edited by Paul W. Esposito, respectively. I often update these texts with non-substantive changes (e.g., you for thou, etc.). I often use the text of the Complete Apostles’ Bible instead of Brenton’s translation, because it updates the English text.

The Septuagint was the earliest known translation of a book (circa 200 b.c.). Since this translation was made before the textual criticism had been developed into a science and because different books appear to be translated by different men, the Greek translation can sometimes be very uneven.

When there are serious disparities between my translation and Brenton’s (or the text of the Complete Apostles’ Bible), I look at the Greek text of the Septuagint (the LXX) to see if a substantive difference actually exists (and I reflect these changes in the English rendering of the Greek text). I use the Greek LXX with Strong’s numbers and morphology available for e-sword. The only problem with this resource (which is a problem for similar resources) is, there is no way to further explore Greek verbs which are not found in the New Testament. Although I usually quote the Complete Apostles’ Bible here, I have begun to make changes in the translation when their translation conflicts with the Greek and note what those changes are.

The Masoretic text is the Hebrew text with all of the vowels (vowel points) inserted (the original Hebrew text lacked vowels). We take the Masoretic text to be the text closest to the original. However, differences between the Masoretic text and the Greek, Latin and Syriac are worth noting and, once in a great while, represent a more accurate text possessed by those other ancient translators.

In general, the Latin text is an outstanding translation from the Hebrew text into Latin and very trustworthy (I say this as a non-Catholic). Unfortunately, I do not read Latin—apart from some very obvious words—so I am dependent upon the English translation of the Latin (principally, the Douay-Rheims translation).

Underlined words indicate differences in the text.

Bracketed portions of the Dead Sea Scrolls are words, letters and phrases lost in the scroll due to various types of damage. Underlined words or phrases are those in the Dead Sea Scrolls but not in the Masoretic text.

I will only list the translation from the Dead Sea Scrolls if it exists and if it is different from the Masoretic text.

The Targum of Onkelos is actually the Pentateuchal Targumim, which are The Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan Ben Uzziel. On the Pentateuch With The Fragments of the Jerusalem Targum From the Chaldee by J. W. Etheridge, M.A. From http://www.becomingjewish.org/texts/targum/onkelos_genesis.html and first published in 1862.

Ancient texts:

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        And so he commands whom [is] over his house, to say, “Fill sacks of the men with food as which he is able [to] carry and place silver of a man in a mouth of his sack. And my cup, a cup of silver, you will place in a mouth of a sack of the youngest, and silver of his grain.” And so he does, as a word of Joseph which he spoke.

Dead Sea Scrolls                   It does not appear that anything of Gen. 44 is found in the Dead Sea Scrolls.

Targum (Onkelos)                  And Joseph commanded the steward of his house, saying, Fill the men's bags with corn as much as they can carry, and put each man's money in the mouth of his baggage. And put my cup, the silver cup, in the mouth of the youngest one's baggage, and his purchase money. And he did according to Joseph's word which he spake. Translation for Onkelos and Pseudo-Jonathan by J. W. Etheridge, M.A. (1862).

Targum (Pseudo-Jonathan)   And he commanded Menasheh whom he bad appointed intendant of his house, saying, Fill the men's sacks with corn, as much as they can carry, and put each man's money in the mouth of his bag. And put my cup, the silver cup, in the mouth of the sack of the youngest, and his purchase money. And he did according to the word which Joseph had spoken.

Targum Pseudo Jonathan      .

Latin Vulgate                          And Joseph gave orders to his steward; Fill their sacks with corn, as full as they can hold, and enclose in each man's sack the money he has paid. And when it comes to the youngest, enclose in his sack not only the money he paid for his corn, but my silver cup as well. His command was obeyed; and now morning came, and they were given leave to depart, with their asses. A portion of v. 3 is included for context.

Peshitta (Syriac)                    AND he commanded the steward of his house, saying, Fill the mens sacks with wheat, as much as they can carry, and put every mans money in his sacks mouth. And take my cup, the silver cup, and put it in the sacks mouth of the youngest, with his money for the wheat. And the servant did according to the word that Joseph had spoken.

Septuagint (Greek)                The missing cup. Gn.44.1-17

And Joseph charged the steward of his house, saying, Fill the men's sacks with food, as much as they can carry, and put the money of each in the mouth of his sack. And put my silver cup into the sack of the youngest, and the price of his corn. And it was done according to the word of Joseph, as he said. This is the New Brenton translation from http://www.katapi.org.uk/

NETS (Greek)                        .

Brenton’s Septuagint             .

Significant differences: 

Limited Vocabulary Translations:

Bible in Basic English             Then he gave orders to the servant who was over his house, saying, Put as much food into the men's bags as will go into them, and put every man's money in the mouth of his bag; And put my cup, my silver cup, in the youngest one's bag, with his money. So he did as Joseph said.

Easy English                          Joseph tests his brothers

Then Joseph gave orders to the *steward of his house. Joseph told him, ‘Fill the men’s sacks with as much food as they can carry. And put each man’s money back at the top of his sack.’ Joseph had a special cup that someone had made from silver. Joseph then told the *steward, ‘Put the cup at the top of the youngest brother’s sack. And put his money there too.’ The *steward did as Joseph ordered.

Easy-to-Read Version–2006  Joseph Sets a Trap

Then Joseph gave a command to his servant. He said, “Fill the men’s sacks with as much grain as they can carry. Then put each man’s money into his sack with the grain. Put the youngest brother’s money in his sack too. But also put my special silver cup in his sack.” So the servant obeyed Joseph.

Easy-to-Read Version–2008  .

International Children’s B.     Joseph Sets a Trap

Then Joseph gave a command to the servant in charge of his house. Joseph said, “Fill the men’s sacks with as much grain as they can carry. And put each man’s money into his sack with the grain. Put my silver cup in the sack of the youngest brother. Also put his money for the grain in that sack.” The servant did what Joseph told him.

God’s Word™                         .

Good News Bible (TEV)         The Missing Cup

Joseph commanded the servant in charge of his house, “Fill the men's sacks with as much food as they can carry, and put each man's money in the top of his sack. Put my silver cup in the top of the youngest brother's sack, together with the money for his grain.” He did as he was told.

The Message                         Joseph ordered his house steward: “Fill the men’s bags with food—all they can carry—and replace each one’s money at the top of the bag. Then put my chalice, my silver chalice, in the top of the bag of the youngest, along with the money for his food.” He did as Joseph ordered.

Names of God Bible               Joseph’s Plan to Trap His Brothers

Joseph commanded the man in charge of his house, “Fill the men’s sacks with as much food as they can carry. Put each man’s money in his sack. Then put my silver cup in the youngest brother’s sack along with the money for his grain.” He did what Joseph told him.

NIRV                                      A Silver Cup in a Sack

Joseph told the manager of his house what to do. “Fill the men’s sacks with as much food as they can carry,” he said. “Put each man’s money in his sack. Then put my silver cup in the youngest one’s sack. Put it there along with the money he paid for his grain.” So the manager did what Joseph told him to do.

New Simplified Bible              Later, Joseph told the servant in charge of his house: »Fill the men’s grain sacks with as much as they can hold and put their money in the sacks.

»Also put my silver cup in the sack of the youngest brother.« The servant did as he was told.

Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

Common English Bible           Joseph tests his brothers

Joseph gave commands to his household manager: “Fill the men’s sacks with as much food as they’ll hold, and put each man’s silver at the top of his sack. Put my cup, the silver cup, on top of the youngest brother’s sack, together with the silver for his grain.” So he did just as Joseph told him to do.

Contemporary English V.       Later, Joseph told the servant in charge of his house, "Fill the men's grain sacks with as much as they can hold and put their money in the sacks. Also put my silver cup in the sack of the youngest brother." The servant did as he was told.

The Living Bible                     When his brothers were ready to leave, Joseph ordered his household manager to fill each of their sacks with as much grain as they could carry—and to put into the mouth of each man’s sack the money he had paid! He was also told to put Joseph’s own silver cup at the top of Benjamin’s sack, along with the grain money. So the household manager did as he was told.

New Berkeley Version           .

New Century Version             Joseph Sets a Trap

Then Joseph gave a command to the servant in charge of his house. He said, “Fill the men’s sacks with as much grain as they can carry, and put each man’s money into his sack with the grain. Put my silver cup in the sack of the youngest brother, along with his money for the grain.” The servant did what Joseph told him.

New Life Version                    Then Joseph told the man who took care of his house, "Fill the men's bags with as much food as they can carry. And put each man's money in his bag. Put my silver cup in the bag of the youngest, with his money for the grain." And he did what Joseph had told him to do.

New Living Translation           Joseph’s Silver Cup

When his brothers were ready to leave, Joseph gave these instructions to his palace manager: “Fill each of their sacks with as much grain as they can carry, and put each man’s money back into his sack. Then put my personal silver cup at the top of the youngest brother’s sack, along with the money for his grain.” So the manager did as Joseph instructed him.

Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

American English Bible          Thereafter, JoSeph gave instructions to his house manager, saying, 'Fill the men's sacks with as much food as they can carry, and put the money of each one in the top of his sack. Also, put my silver cup in the sack that belongs to the youngest, along with the price of his grain.' And he did exactly as JoSeph said.

Beck’s American Translation .

International Standard V        The Brothers Leave for Canaan

Later, Joseph [Lit. he] commanded his palace manager, “Fill the men’s sacks to full capacity with food and replace each man’s money at the top of the sack. Then place my cup—the silver one—in the top of the sack belonging to the youngest one, along with the money he brought to buy [The Heb. lacks he brought to buy] grain.” So the manager [Lit. So he] did precisely what Joseph told him to do.

New Advent (Knox) Bible       And Joseph gave orders to his steward; Fill their sacks with corn, as full as they can hold, and enclose in each man’s sack the money he has paid. And when it comes to the youngest, enclose in his sack not only the money he paid for his corn, but my silver cup as well. His command was obeyed;...

Today’s NIV                          A Silver Cup in a Sack

Now Joseph gave these instructions to the steward of his house: “Fill the men’s sacks with as much food as they can carry, and put each man’s silver in the mouth of his sack. Then put my cup, the silver one, in the mouth of the youngest one’s sack, along with the silver for his grain.” And he did as Joseph said.

Translation for Translators      Joseph tricked his brothers by having his cup put in Benjamin's sack

When his brothers were ready to return home, Joseph said to the man who was in charge of things in his house, “Fill the sacks of those men with as much grain as they can carry on their donkeys. And put in the top of each man's sack the silver that he paid for the grain. Then put my silver cup in the top of the youngest brother's sack, along with the silver that he paid for the grain.” So the servant did what Joseph told him to do.

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

Awful Scroll Bible                   He laid charge to he of his house, to the intent: Be filling the men's sacks with food, that which they were able to carry, and be placing each one's silver in the mouth of their sacks. Be putting my cup, the silver cup, in the sack's mouth of the youngest, and his silver for that broken apart. He was to effect to the concerns Joseph is to have declared.

Conservapedia                       He (Joseph) gave these instructions to his household steward: "Fill the men's bags with as much food as they can carry, and place each man's silver into the mouth of his sack. And put my beaker, my silver beaker, into the mouth of the sack belonging to the youngest one, together with the silver he brought to buy food with." And the steward followed Joseph's instructions to the letter.

Ferrar-Fenton Bible                Joseph Discovers Himself to His Brothers

Afterwards he commanded his steward, saying; "Fill the loads of these men with food as much as they are able to carry, and put the money of each on the top of the carts ; and my cup, the cup of silver, place at the top of the load of the youngest, with the money for his corn." So they did as Joseph ordered.

God’s Truth (Tyndale)           And he commanded the ruler of his house saying: fill the mens sacks with food, as much as they can carry, and put every mans money in his bag mouth, and put my silver cup in the sacks mouth of the youngest and his corn money also. And he did as Joseph had said.

HCSB                                     Joseph’s Final Test

Then Joseph commanded his steward: “Fill the men’s bags with as much food as they can carry, and put each one’s money at the top of his bag. Put my cup, the silver one, at the top of the youngest one’s bag, along with his grain money.” So he did as Joseph told him.

Jubilee Bible 2000                  .

H. C. Leupold                         And he gave commandment to the man who was over his household, saying: Fill the sacks of the men with as much food as they will be able to carry away, and place each man’s money in the mouth of his sack. And place my cup, the silver cup, in the mouth of the sack of the youngest as well as the money for his grain. And he did according to the orders that Joseph gave.

Lexham English Bible            Joseph Tests His Brothers

Then he commanded [the one] who [was] over his household, saying, "Fill the sacks of the men [with] food as much as they are able to carry, and put each one's money in the mouth of his sack. And my cup--the cup of silver--you shall put into the mouth of the sack of the youngest, and the money for his grain. And he did according to the word of Joseph that he had commanded.

NIV, ©2011                             A Silver Cup in a Sack

Now Joseph gave these instructions to the steward of his house: “Fill the men’s sacks with as much food as they can carry, and put each man’s silver in the mouth of his sack. Then put my cup, the silver one, in the mouth of the youngest one’s sack, along with the silver for his grain.” And he did as Joseph said.

NIV – UK                                .

Tree of Life Version                Joseph Tests His Brothers

Then he commanded the one over his household saying, “Fill the men’s sacks with as much food as they are able to carry and put money in the opening of each man’s sack. Put my cup, the silver cup, in the opening of the sack of the youngest along with his grain money.” So he did as Joseph told him.

Catholic Bibles (those having the imprimatur):

Christian Community (1988)  Joseph’s cup in Benjamin’s sack

Now Joseph gave this order to his steward, “Fill the men’s sacks with as much food as they can carry and put back each man’s silver in the mouth of his sack, and put my cup, the silver cup with the money for the grain in the sack of the youngest.” The steward did as Joseph had directed.

The Heritage Bible                 And he commanded the one over his house, saying, Fill the men’s sacks with food, as much as they are able to carry, and put every man’s silver in his sack’s mouth. And put my cup, the silver cup, in the sack’s mouth of the youngest, and his silver for grain. And he did according to the word which Joseph spoke.

New American Bible (2002)   Then Joseph gave his head steward these instructions: "Fill the men's bags with as much food as they can carry, and put each man's money in the mouth of his bag. In the mouth of the youngest one's bag put also my silver goblet, together with the money for his rations." The steward carried out Joseph's instructions. [1-2] Replacement of the money in the men's bags is probably a redactional addition here, taken from the Yahwist account of the first visit. It is only the goblet in Benjamin's bag, not any replaced money, that plays a part in the rest of the chapter.

New American Bible (2011)   Final Test.

Then Joseph commanded his steward: “Fill the men’s bags with as much food as they can carry, and put each man’s money in the mouth of his bag. In the mouth of the youngest one’s bag put also my silver goblet, together with the money for his grain.” The steward did as Joseph said.

New Jerusalem Bible             Then Joseph instructed his chamberlain as follows: 'Fill these men's sacks with as much food as they can carry, and put each man's money in the mouth of his sack. And put my cup, the silver one, in the mouth of the youngest one's sack as well as the money for his rations.' He did as Joseph had instructed.

New RSV                               .

Revised English Bible            Joseph gave the steward these instructions: “Fill the men's packs with food, as much as they can carry, and put each man's silver at the top of his pack. And put my goblet, the silver one, at the top of the youngest brother's pack along with the silver for the grain.” He did as Joseph had told him.

Jewish/Hebrew Names Bibles:

Complete Jewish Bible           Then he ordered the manager of his household, “Fill the men’s packs with food, as much as they can carry, and put each man’s money just inside his pack. And put my goblet, the silver one, just inside the pack of the youngest, along with his grain money.” He did what Yosef told him to do.

exeGeses companion Bible   THE BROTHERS OF YOSEPH DEPART

And he misvahs the steward of his house, saying,

Fill the sacks of the men with food

- as much as they can bear;

and put the silver of every man

in the mouth of his sack.

And put my bowl - the silver bowl,

in the mouth of the sack of the youngest

with his kernel silver.

And he works according to the word Yoseph words:

Hebraic Roots Bible               And he commanded the one over his house, saying, Fill the sacks of the men with food, as much as they are able to carry; and put the silver of each one in the mouth of his sack. And put my cup, the cup of silver, in the mouth of the sack of the youngest, and the silver for his grain. And he did according to Joseph's word, that which he spoke.

Israeli Authorized Version      .

JPS (Tanakh—1985)               Then he instructed his house steward as follows, “Fill the men’s bags with food, as much as they can carry, and put each one’s money in the mouth of his bag. 2Put my silver goblet in the mouth of the bag of the youngest one, together with his money for the rations.” And he did as Joseph told him.

Kaplan Translation                 Joseph's Vindication

Joseph gave his overseer special instructions. 'Fill the men's packs with as much food as they can carry,' he said. 'Place each man's money at the top of his pack.

And my chalice - the silver chalice - place it on top of the youngest one's pack - along with the money for his food.' [The overseer] did exactly as Joseph instructed him. The Kaplan Translation, particularly in Exodus through Deuteronomy, takes note of historic rabbinic opinions.

Orthodox Jewish Bible           And he commanded the ish over Bais Yosef, saying, Fill the sacks of the anashim with ochel, as much as they can carry, and put kesef ish in the mouth of his sack.

And put my cup, gevi’a hakesef (cup of silver), in the mouth of the sack of the katon, and his kesef for shever (grain). And he did according to the davar Yosef had spoken.

The Scriptures 1998              And he commanded the one over his house, saying, “Fill the men’s sacks with food, as they are able to bear, and put each man’s silver in the mouth of his sack.

“And put my cup, the silver cup, in the mouth of the sack of the youngest, and the silver for his grain.” And he did according to the word of Yosĕph which he spoke.

Expanded/Embellished Bibles:

The Amplified Bible                The Brothers Are Brought Back

And he commanded the steward of his house, saying, “Fill the men’s sacks with food, as much as they can carry, and put every man’s [grain] money in the mouth of the sack. Put my [personal] cup, the silver cup, in the mouth of the sack of the youngest, with his grain money.” And the steward did as Joseph had told him.

The Expanded Bible              Joseph Sets a Trap

Then Joseph gave a command to the ·servant in charge of [^Lone over] his house. He said, “Fill the men’s sacks with as much ·grain [^Lfood] as they can carry, and put each man’s ·money [silver] into his sack with the grain. Put my silver ·cup [goblet] in the sack of the ·youngest [smallest] brother, along with his ·money [silver] for the grain.” ·The servant [^LHe] did what Joseph told him.

Kretzmann’s Commentary    The Test

And he commanded the steward of his house, saying, Fill the men's sacks with food, as much as they can carry, and put every man's money in his sack's mouth. The feast which Joseph had arranged may have lasted a large part of the afternoon. At its conclusion the chief steward received orders to have the sacks of the strangers filled, but with very good measure. The return of the money in this case did not belong to the test but inasmuch as it was intended to strengthen the general impression.

And put my cup, the silver cup, in the sack's mouth of the youngest, and his corn money. The placing of this cup in Benjamin's sack had the object to concentrate the test upon his person, to bring his person into the foreground. And he did according to the word that Joseph had spoken. Everything having been prepared according to Joseph's plans, the brothers spent the night in the Egyptian city.

NET Bible®                             The Final Test

He instructed the servant who was over his household, “Fill the sacks of the men with as much food as they can carry and put each man’s money in the mouth of his sack. Then put [The imperfect verbal form is used here to express Joseph’s instructions.] my cup – the silver cup – in the mouth of the youngest one’s sack, along with the money for his grain.” He did as Joseph instructed [Heb “and he did according to the word of Joseph which he spoke.”]. When it comes to making an actual material change to the text, the NET Bible® is pretty good about indicating this. Since most of these corrections will be clear in the more literal translations below and within the Hebrew exegesis itself, I will not continue to list every NET Bible® footnote. Language footnotes will be placed in the Hebrew exegesis. Some footnotes will quoted elsewhere in this document.

Syndein/Thieme                     .

The Voice                               After the meal was over, Joseph commanded the steward of his house.

Joseph: Fill the men’s sacks with food—as much as they can carry. Put each man’s money back into the top of his sack. One more thing: I want you to put my personal cup, my silver cup, into the top of the sack of the youngest, along with his money for the grain.

The steward did everything Joseph told him to do.

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

Brenner’s Mechanical Trans..

Concordant Literal Version    And instructing is Joseph him who is over his household, saying, "Fill the bags of the mortals with food, as much as they can lift, and place the money of each man in the mouth of his bag.

And my beaker, the silver beaker shall you place in the mouth of the bag of the small one with his victual money.And doing is he according to the word which Joseph speaks.

Context Group Version          .

Darby Translation                  .

Emphasized Bible                  .

English Standard Version      .

English Standard V. – UK       Joseph Tests His Brothers

Then he commanded the steward of his house, “Fill the men's sacks with food, as much as they can carry, and put each man's money in the mouth of his sack, and put my cup, the silver cup, in the mouth of the sack of the youngest, with his money for the grain.” And he did as Joseph told him.

Evidence Bible                       .

Green’s Literal Translation    .

Jack Ballinger’s translation    .

Modern English Version         Joseph Detains Benjamin

Then he commanded the steward of his house, saying, “Fill the men’s sacks with food, as much as they can carry, and put every man’s money in the mouth of his sack. Put my cup, the silver cup, in the mouth of the sack of the youngest, along with his grain money.” And he did according to what Joseph had spoken.

NASB                                     The Brothers Are Brought Back

Then he commanded his house steward, saying, “Fill the men’s sacks with food, as much as they can carry, and put each man’s money in the mouth of his sack. Put my cup, the silver cup, in the mouth of the sack of the youngest, and his money for the grain.” And he did as Joseph had told him.

New European Version          Joseph Tries to Convict His Brothers of Their Sin

He commanded the steward of his house, saying, Fill the men’s sacks with food, as much as they can carry, and put each man’s money in his sack’s mouth. Put my cup, the silver cup, in the sack’s mouth of the youngest, with his grain money. He did according to the word that Joseph had spoken.

New King James Version       Joseph’s Cup

And he commanded the steward of his house, saying, “Fill the men’s sacks with food, as much as they can carry, and put each man’s money in the mouth of his sack. Also put my cup, the silver cup, in the mouth of the sack of the youngest, and his grain money.” So he did according to the word that Joseph had spoken.

Owen's Translation                .

Benner’s Mechanical Trans.  ...and he directed the one who is upon his house saying, fill the bags of the men with foodstuff, just as they are able to lift up and set in place the silver of each in the mouth of his bag, and my cup, the silver cup, you will set in place in the mouth of the bag of the small one and the silver of his barley, and he did according to the word of Yoseph ^[Adding] which he said,...

Ron Snider’s Translation       .

Stuart Wolf’s Translation       .

Third Millennium Bible            A Silver Cup in a Sack

Now Joseph gave these instructions to the steward of his house: “Fill the men’s sacks with as much food as they can carry, and put each man’s silver in the mouth of his sack. Then put my cup, the silver one, in the mouth of the youngest one’s sack, along with the silver for his grain.” And he did as Joseph said.

Updated Bible Version 2.11   .

A Voice in the Wilderness      .

Webster’s Bible Translation  And he commanded the steward of his house, saying, Fill the men's sacks with food, as much as they can carry, and put every man's money in his sack's mouth. And put my cup, the silver cup, in the sack's mouth of the youngest, and his corn money. And he did according to the word that Joseph had spoken.

World English Bible                .

Young's Literal Translation     .

Young's Updated LT              Then he commanded the steward of his house, "Fill the men's sacks with food, as much as they can carry, and put each man's money in the mouth of his sack, and put my cup, the silver cup, in the mouth of the sack of the youngest, with his money for the grain." And he did as Joseph told him.

The gist of this passage:     Joseph gives orders to put each man’s money back into his sack and to place his personal cup into Benjamin’s sack.

Translation: Joseph [lit., he] commanded the one over his house,... This is an unusual combination of words which we saw before in the previous chapter. The relative pronoun is used more like a simple pronoun referring to someone very specific (in both cases, to the servant who was over Joseph’s house).

Joseph issues a series of commands to this man, who would either see to these tasks himself or make certain that they are taken care of.

Translation: ...saying, “Fill the men’s sack with food, as much as he is able [to] carry,... What makes perfect sense is, these young men from Canaan have come to purchase grain, and Joseph tells his servant to give them as much gain as they are able to carry. So, no matter how this was dealt with before, Joseph wanted to make certain that these men had as much as they were able to carry.

Translation: ...and place [each] man’s silver in the mouth of his sack. Then Joseph gave a strange directive; Take each man’s silver and put it into his sack.” Joseph had given this order before, and no matter what his servant may have thought of these orders, he carried them out. Joseph did have a master plan, apparently, and his head servant did not concern himself with what that plan was.

At least one translation questioned this, saying that this act was transposed from the last time that it happened, as this is not considered an issue when the men are stopped. My thinking is, Joseph did this before—why would he not do this a second time? It is not an issue the second time, as, only Joseph’s goblet will become an issue.

Translation: You will also place my cup, the silver cup, into the mouth of the sack of the youngest,... Then, the most unusual of the orders—Joseph tells his servant to take his very expensive silver cup (possibly a bowl) and to place it in the sack of the youngest brother. This was an odd request, but his servant did what he was told to do.

Translation: ...along with the silver for his grain.” The other brothers brought back double the silver; and Benjamin brought enough silver for the purchase of a bag of grain.

Translation: And he did just as Joseph ordered [him]. The servant went ahead and did exactly what was asked of him. Joseph’s servant is going to do exactly what Joseph asks him to do, even though it ought to be clear that, Joseph is setting up these men—in particular Benjamin—for arrest and prosecution. Joseph’s personal servant will set them up; and then he will go out and detain Benjamin. However, all of the brothers will return to Joseph over this matter.

——————————

Here is how others have translated this verse:

Ancient texts:

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        The morning is light and the men were sent away, they and their asses. They had gone out the city they had not gone far off, and Joseph said, to whomever [is] over his house, “Get up; follow after the men and you have overtaken them, and you have said unto them, ‘For why have you [all] requited evil instead of good? Is not this what drinks my adonai and he, divining, divines with it. You [all] have done evil that you [all] have done.’ ”

Dead Sea Scrolls                   .

Targum of Onkelos                The morning lightened, and the men were sent away, they and their asses. They had not gone far from the city, when Joseph said to him who was set over his house, Arise, follow after the men, and overtake them, and say to them, Why have you rendered evil for good? Is it not this from which my lord drinketh, and, behold, by which inquiring he inquireth? You have done the thing that is evil.

Targum Pseudo Jonathan      The morning lightened, and the men were sent away, they and their asses. They had not gone far from city, when Joseph said to Measheh whom he had appointed the intendant of his house, Arise, follow after the men, overtake them and say to them, Why have ye returned evil for good ? Is it not that from which my lord drinketh, and by which divining he divineth? That which you have done is evil.

Revised Douay-Rheims         They had left the city and passed on a little further, when Joseph summoned his steward; Bestir yourself, he said, and go in pursuit of these men. When you overtake them, say, This is a poor return to make for the kindness you have received; you have stolen my master's cup, the one from which he drinks, and takes omens; you have done him a great wrong.

Latin Vulgate                          .

Plain English Aramaic Bible   .

Peshitta (Syriac)                    As soon as the morning was light, the men started on their way, together with their asses. And when they were gone out of the city, but not yet far off, Joseph said to the steward, Arise, pursue the men; and when you overtake them, say to them, Why have you returned evil for good? This is the cup from which my lord drinks, and by which indeed he divines. You have done evil in so doing.

Septuagint (Greek)                The morning dawned, and the men were sent away, they and their asses. And when they had gone out of the city, and were not far off, then Joseph said to his steward, Arise, and pursue after the men; and you shall overtake them, and say to them, Why have you returned evil for good? Why have you stolen my silver cup? is it not this out of which my lord drinks? and he divines augury with it; you have accomplished evil in that which you have done.

NETS (Greek)                        .

Brenton’s Septuagint             .

Significant differences: 

Limited Vocabulary Translations:

Bible in Basic English             And at dawn the men, with their asses, were sent away. And when they had gone only a little way out of the town, Joseph said to the servant who was over his house, Go after them; and when you overtake them, say to them, Why have you done evil in reward for good? Is not this the cup from which my lord takes wine and by which he gets knowledge of the future? Truly, you have done evil.

Easy English                          As soon as daylight came, the *steward sent the brothers off with their *donkeys. The brothers were only a little way out of the city. Then Joseph told his *steward to go. Joseph told him to follow the brothers. He said, ‘Go faster than them, so you catch up with them. And, when you catch up with them, say, “You have done an evil thing, when we behaved well towards you. You have stolen my *lord’s special cup that someone made from silver. My *lord drinks from this cup. He also tries to discover things about the future from it. You did a wrong thing when you stole it.” ’

Easy-to-Read Version–2006  Early the next morning the brothers and their donkeys were sent back to their country. After they had left the city, Joseph said to his servant, “Go and follow the men. Stop them and say to them, ‘We were good to you! So why have you been bad to us? Why did you steal my master’s silver cup? My master drinks from that cup, and he uses it to learn secret things. What you did was wrong!’”

Easy-to-Read Version–2008  .

God’s Word™                         At dawn the men were sent on their way with their donkeys. They had not gone far from the city when Joseph said to the man in charge of his house, “Go after those men at once, and when you catch up with them, say to them, ‘Why have you paid me back with evil when I was good to you? Isn’t this the cup that my master drinks from and that he uses for telling the future? What you have done is evil!’”

Good News Bible (TEV)         Early in the morning the brothers were sent on their way with their donkeys. 4 When they had gone only a short distance from the city, Joseph said to the servant in charge of his house, “Hurry after those men. When you catch up with them, ask them, ‘Why have you paid back evil for good? 5 Why did you steal my master's silver cup? It is the one he drinks from, the one he uses for divination. You have committed a serious crime!’”

International Children’s B.     At dawn the brothers were sent away with their donkeys. They were not far from the city when Joseph said to the servant in charge of his house, “Go after the men. When you catch up with them, say, ‘Why have you paid back evil for good? The cup you have stolen is the one my master uses for drinking. And he uses it for explaining dreams. You have done a very wicked thing!’”

The Message                         At break of day the men were sent off with their donkeys. They were barely out of the city when Joseph said to his house steward, “Run after them. When you catch up with them, say, ‘Why did you pay me back evil for good? This is the chalice my master drinks from; he also uses it for divination. This is outrageous!’”

Names of God Bible               .

NIRV                                      When morning came, the men were sent on their way with their donkeys. They hadn’t gone very far from the city when Joseph spoke to his manager. “Go after those men right away,” he said. “Catch up with them. Say to them, ‘My master was good to you. Why have you paid him back by doing evil? Isn’t this the cup my master drinks from? Doesn’t he also use it to find things out? You have done an evil thing.’ ”

New Simplified Bible              When it was light the men took their donkeys and left. They just left the city and were not far off, when Joseph said to the man in charge of his house: »Follow the men and when you overtake them, say to them: ‘Why have you repaid evil for good?

»‘Is this the cup that my master drinks from and that he uses for telling the future? What you have done is evil!’«

Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

Common English Bible           At dawn, the men and their donkeys were sent off. They had left the city but hadn’t gone far when Joseph said to his household manager, “Get ready, go after the men and catch up with them! Ask them, ‘Why have you repaid hospitality with ingratitude? Isn’t this the cup my master drinks from and uses to discover God’s plans? What you’ve done is despicable.’”

Contemporary English V.       Early the next morning, the men were sent on their way with their donkeys. But they had not gone far from the city when Joseph told the servant, "Go after those men! When you catch them, say, 'My master has been good to you. So why have you stolen his silver cup? Not only does he drink from his cup, but he also uses it to learn about the future. You have done a terrible thing.' "

The Living Bible                     The brothers were up at dawn and on their way with their loaded donkeys.

But when they were barely out of the city, Joseph said to his household manager, “Chase after them and stop them and ask them why they are acting like this when their benefactor has been so kind to them? Ask them, ‘What do you mean by stealing my lord’s personal silver drinking cup, which he uses for fortune-telling? What a wicked thing you have done!’”

New Berkeley Version           .

New Century Version             At dawn the brothers were sent away with their donkeys. They were not far from the city when Joseph said to the servant in charge of his house, “Go after the men. When you catch up with them, say, ‘Why have you paid back evil for good? The cup you have stolen is the one my master uses for drinking and for explaining dreams. You have done a very wicked thing!’”

New Life Version                    Early in the morning the men were sent away with their donkeys. When they had left the city and were not far away, Joseph said to the man who took care of his house, "Get up and follow the men. When you come to them, say to them, 'Why have you returned bad for good? Why have you stolen the silver cup? Is this not my lord's drinking cup that he uses for telling about the future? You have done wrong.' "

New Living Translation           The brothers were up at dawn and were sent on their journey with their loaded donkeys. But when they had gone only a short distance and were barely out of the city, Joseph said to his palace manager, “Chase after them and stop them. When you catch up with them, ask them, ‘Why have you repaid my kindness with such evil? Why have you stolen my master’s silver cup, which he uses to predict the future? What a wicked thing you have done!’”

Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

American English Bible          Then the next morning, the men and their burros were sent away.

Well, after they left the city (but before they had traveled very far), JoSeph said to his house manager: 'Get up and chase after those men; and when you catch up with them, ask: Why have you returned evil for good why have you stolen my silver cup? Isn't this the [cup] that our lord drinks from and the one that he uses to foretell the future? You've done an evil thing!'

Beck’s American Translation .

International Standard V        Early the next morning, the men were sent on their way, along with their donkeys. They had not traveled far from the city when Joseph ordered his palace manager, “Get up, follow those men, and when you’ve caught up with them, ask them, ‘Why did you repay evil for good? Don’t you have [Lit. Isn’t this] the cup that my master uses to drink from and also uses to practice divination? You’re wrong to have done this.’”

New Advent (Knox) Bible       ...and now morning came, and they were given leave to depart, with their asses. They had left the city and passed on a little further, when Joseph summoned his steward; Bestir thyself, he said, and go in pursuit of these men. When thou overtakest them, say, This is a poor return to make for the kindness you have received; you have stolen my master’s cup, the one from which he drinks, and takes omens; you have done him a great wrong.

Today’s NIV                          .

Translation for Translators     The next morning at dawn the men started on the way home with their donkeys. When they had not gone far from the city, Joseph said to the servant in charge of things in his house, “Pursue those men immediately. When you catch up to them, say to them, ‘We did good things for you! Why have you paid us back by doing something bad to us? You have stolen the cup that my master drinks from [RHQ]! It is the cup that he uses to find out things that nobody knows! What you did was very wicked!’ ”

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

Awful Scroll Bible                   As the morning is to have become illuminated, the men are to have been sent out on their donkeys. They are to have led out of the city - are they to have gone far? - Even Joseph was to say to he of his house: Be rising up, be pursuing after the men, you is to have overtaken them, even is to have said: are yous to have requited evil for good? - My lord was to drink, even was to observe an observing of signs of it. Yous are to have fractured in what yous are to have done.

Conservapedia                       As soon as the day broke, the men were sent on their way, they and their donkeys. They had not yet gone very far out of the city when Joseph told his steward, "Rise and pursue those men! When you catch up to them, you say this to them: 'Why have you repaid evil for good? Isn't this the vessel from which my master drinks, and by which he takes the auguries? That was a wicked thing to do.'"

Ferrar-Fenton Bible                At morning-light the men went off with their asses. When they had gone not far from the city, Joseph said to his steward, " Mount and follow those men ; secure them, and say to them, ' Why have you returned evil for good ? Where is that my lord drinks from ? He is very sharp-sighted. He saw what you were doing ! '" So he pursued, and said this to them.

God’s Truth (Tyndale)           And in the morning as soon as it was light, the men were let go with their asses. And when they were out of the city and not yet far away, Joseph said unto the ruler of his house: up and follow after the men and overtake them, and say unto them: wherefore have you rewarded evil for good? is that not the cup of which my lord drinks, and does he not prophesy therein? you have evil done that you have done.

HCSB                                     .

Jubilee Bible 2000                  .

Lexham English Bible            [When] the morning light [came] the men were sent away, they and their donkeys. They went out of the city, [and] had not gone far when Joseph said to [the one] who [was] over his house, "Arise! Pursue after the men and overtake them. Then you shall say to them, 'Why have you repaid evil for good? Is this not that from which my master drinks? Now he himself certainly practices divination with it. You have done evil [in] what you have done.'"

NIV, ©2011                             As morning dawned, the men were sent on their way with their donkeys. They had not gone far from the city when Joseph said to his steward, “Go after those men at once, and when you catch up with them, say to them, ‘Why have you repaid good with evil? Isn’t this the cup my master drinks from and also uses for divination? This is a wicked thing you have done.’ ”

NIV – UK                                .

Tree of Life Version                When the morning dawned, the men were sent off, they and their donkeys. They left the city and did not get far, when Joseph said to the one over his household, “Get up, go after the men. When you catch up to them, say to them, “Why have you repaid evil for good? Isn’t this the one from which my lord drinks? He even uses it especially to discern by divination. What you’ve done is evil!” 6 So he caught up to them and spoke these words to them.

Catholic Bibles (those having the imprimatur):

Christian Community (1988)  As soon as it was light next morning the men were sent away with their donkeys. When they had gone but were still not far from the city, Joseph said to his steward, “Go quickly after those men and when you have caught up with them, say this: Why have you re paid good with evil? Isn’t this the cup my master drinks from and uses for divi nation? You have done a wicked thing.”

The Heritage Bible                 The mortal men were sent away at the light of dawn, they and their donkeys. They had gone out of the city, not even a wide distance, and Joseph said to the one over his house, Rise up, run after the men; and reach them, and say to them, Why have you completed evil for good? Is not this in which my lord drinks, and by which whispering spells, he whispers spells? You have done evil in what you have done. This is the only place that whispering spells is attributed to a godly man. Laban did, but I do not consider him godly, Gen 30:27. It is my belief that Joseph spoke it this way in pretense to his brothers to make them think for the present test that he was actually Egyptian.

New American Bible (2002)   At daybreak the men and their donkeys were sent off. They had not gone far out of the city when Joseph said to his head steward: "Go at once after the men! When you overtake them, say to them, 'Why did you repay good with evil? Why did you steal the silver goblet from me? It is the very one from which my master drinks and which he uses for divination. What you have done is wrong.'" Divination: seeking omens through liquids poured into a cup or bowl was a common practice in the ancient Near East; cf ⇒ Genesis 44:15. Even though divination was frowned on in later Israel (⇒ Lev 19:31), it is in this place an authentic touch which the sacred author does not hesitate to ascribe to Joseph, the wisest man in Egypt.

New American Bible (2011)   At daybreak the men and their donkeys were sent off. They had not gone far out of the city when Joseph said to his steward: “Go at once after the men! When you overtake them, say to them, ‘Why did you repay good with evil? Why did you steal my silver goblet? Is it not the very one from which my master drinks and which he uses for divination?* What you have done is wrong.’” Divination: seeking omens through liquids poured into a cup or bowl was a common practice in the ancient Near East; cf. v. 15. Even though divination was frowned on in later Israel (Lev. 19:31), it is in this place an authentic touch which is ascribed to Joseph, the wisest man in Egypt.

New Jerusalem Bible             At daybreak, the men were sent off with their donkeys. They had gone only a little way from the city, when Joseph said to his chamberlain, 'Away now and follow those men. When you catch up with them, say to them, "Why have you repaid good with evil? Is this not what my lord uses for drinking and also for reading omens? What you have done is wrong." '

New RSV                               As soon as the morning was light, the men were sent away with their donkeys. When they had gone only a short distance from the city, Joseph said to his steward, ‘Go, follow after the men; and when you overtake them, say to them, “Why have you returned evil for good? Why have you stolen my silver cup [Gk Compare Vg: Heb lacks Why have you stolen my silver cup?]? Is it not from this that my lord drinks? Does he not indeed use it for divination? You have done wrong in doing this.” ’

Revised English Bible            At first light the brothers were allowed to take their donkeys and set off; but before they had gone very far from the city, Joseph said to his steward, “Go after those men at once, and when you catch up with them, say, ‘Why have you repaid good with evil? Why have you stolen the silver goblet? It is the one my lord drinks from, and which he uses for divination. This is a wicked thing you have done.’”

Jewish/Hebrew Names Bibles:

Complete Jewish Bible           At daybreak the men were sent off with their donkeys; but before they were far from the city Yosef said to his manager, “Up, go after the men; and when you overtake them, say to them, ‘Why have you repaid good with evil? Isn’t this the goblet my lord drinks from, indeed the one he uses for divination? What you have done is evil!’”

exeGeses companion Bible   The morning is light,

and they send the men away

- them and their he burros:

and when they go from the city, not yet far removed,

Yoseph says to his house steward,

Rise! Pursue after the men!

And when you overtake them, say to them,

Why shalam you evil for good?

Is not this from which my adoni drinks?

And in prognosticating, he prognosticates?

You vilify in so working.

Hebraic Roots Bible               At the morning light, the men were sent away, they and their donkeys . They had gone out from the city, not having gone far, and Joseph said to the one over his house, Rise up, pursue the men and overtake them, and say to them, Why have you repaid evil for good? Is this not that in which my master usually drinks in, and surely he divines by it? You have done evil in what you have done.

JPS (Tanakh—1985)               With the first light of morning, the men were sent off with their pack animals. They had just left the city and had not gone far, when Joseph said to his steward, “Up, go after the men! And when you overtake them, say to them, ‘Why did you repay good with evil? It is the very one from which my master drinks and which he uses for divination. It was a wicked thing for you to do!’ ”

Judaica Press Complete T.    .

Kaplan Translation                 With the first morning light, the brothers took their donkeys and were sent on their way.  They had just left the city and had not gone far, when Joseph said to his overseer, 'Set out and pursue those men. Catch up with them and say to them, 'Why did you repay good with evil? It's [the cup] from which my master drinks, and he uses it for divination. You did a terrible thing.' This [city] was Memphis, the ancient capital of Egypt. It was also the city where Joseph lived with Potiphar (cf. Tzava'ath Yosef 4:6). It was on the west bank of the Nile, some 12 miles south of the present Cairo, and some 25 miles south of On (Genesis 41:45). In Hebrew, Memphis is known as Moph (Hosea 9:6) or Noph (Isaiah 19:13, Jeremiah 2:16, Ezekiel 30:13, etc.). However, if this was during the time of the Hyksos, the capital might have been Tanis

Orthodox Jewish Bible           As soon as the boker ohr, the anashim were sent away, they and their chamorim. And when they were gone out of the ir, and not yet far off, Yosef said unto the ish over Bais Yosef, Up, follow after the anashim; and when thou dost overtake them, say unto them, Wherefore have ye rewarded ra’ah for torah? Is not this it in which adoni drinketh, and whereby indeed he divineth? Ye have done ra’ah in so doing.

The Scriptures 1998              .

Expanded/Embellished Bibles:

The Amplified Bible                As soon as the morning was light, the men were sent away, they and their donkeys. When they had left the city, and were not yet far away, Joseph said to his steward, “Get up, follow after the men; and when you overtake them, say to them, ‘Why have you repaid evil [to us] for good [paid to you]? Is this not my lord’s drinking cup and the one which he uses for divination? You have done [a great and unforgivable] wrong in doing this.’”

The Expanded Bible              At dawn the ·brothers [^Lmen] were sent away with their donkeys. They were not far from the city when Joseph said to the ·servant in charge of [^Lone over] his house, “·Go after [^LGet up and pursue] the men. When you catch up with them, say, ‘Why have you paid back evil for good? ·The cup you have stolen is the one [^LIs this not what…?] my ·master [lord] uses for drinking and for ·explaining dreams [divination; ^C perhaps by pouring oil in water as a means of telling the future (called lecanomancy)]. ·You [^LIs not what you…?] have done a very wicked thing!’ ”

The Geneva Bible                  .

Kretzmann’s Commentary    As soon as the morning was light, with the earliest dawn, the men were sent away, they and their asses, they were dismissed without any intimation of the surprise in store for them.

And when they were gone out of the city, and not yet far off, Joseph said unto his steward, Up, follow after the men; and when thou dost overtake them (he was to pursue until he did overtake them), say unto them, Wherefore have ye rewarded evil for good? Having been received and feasted by Joseph in such a royal manner, had they been so mean and treacherous as to become guilty of theft? The haste was necessary lest some one of the brothers open his sack and they all return of their own free will.

Is not this it in which my lord drinketh, and whereby indeed he divineth? in order to play his role as Egyptian ruler to the end, Joseph has the steward represent the matter as though he practiced hydromancy, that is, presumed to predict future events from the appearance of the liquid contents of his cup, also to expose hidden things. Ye have done evil in so doing. They were flatly to be accused of the theft, the subsequent discovery of the cup being intended to confirm the impression of Joseph's supernatural wisdom.

NET Bible®                             When morning came [Heb “the morning was light.”], the men and their donkeys were sent off [Heb “and the men were sent off, they and their donkeys.” This clause, like the preceding one, has the subject before the verb, indicating synchronic action.]. They had not gone very far from the city [Heb “they left the city, they were not far,” meaning “they had not gone very far.”] when Joseph said [Heb “and Joseph said.” This clause, like the first one in the verse, has the subject before the verb, indicating synchronic action.] to the servant who was over his household, “Pursue the men at once! [Heb “arise, chase after the men.” The first imperative gives the command a sense of urgency.] When you overtake8 them, say to them, ‘Why have you repaid good with evil? Doesn’t my master drink from this cup [Heb “Is this not what my master drinks from.” The word “cup” is not in the Hebrew text, but is obviously the referent of “this,” and so has been supplied in the translation for clarity.] and use it for divination? [Heb “and he, divining, divines with it.” The infinitive absolute is emphatic, stressing the importance of the cup to Joseph.] You have done wrong [Heb “you have caused to be evil what you have done.”]!’”

Syndein/Thieme                     .

The Voice                               The next morning, as soon as it was light, the men were sent off with their donkeys toward home. But when they had gone only a short distance from the city, Joseph spoke to his steward.

Joseph: Go now, and follow them. When you catch up to them, say to them, “Why have you repaid kindness with evil? My master’s silver cup is missing, and you have it. Isn’t this the cup from which he drinks? Doesn’t he use it for divination, to discover secrets hidden from most men? You have committed evil in doing this.”

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

Concordant Literal Version    When the morning is light, the mortals are sent away, they and their asses.

They fare forth, not far from the city, and Joseph says to him who is over his household, "Rise! Pursue after the mortals and overtake them and say to them, `Why do you repay evil for good? Why did you steal my silver beaker?

Is not this that from which my lord drinks? And he, when he augurs, auguring is he in it. Evil do you in what you do'.

Context Group Version          As soon as the morning was light, the men were sent away, they and their donkeys. [ And ] when they were gone out of the city, and were not yet far off, Joseph said to his steward, Get up, follow after the men; and when you overtake them, say to them, Why have you { pl } rewarded evil for good? Isn't this that in which my lord drinks, and by which he indeed uses it for divination? You { pl } have done evil in so doing.

Darby Translation                  In the morning, when it was light, the men were sent away, they and their asses. They were gone out of the city, [and] not [yet] far off, when Joseph said to him who was over his house, Up! follow after the men; and when thou overtakest them, thou shalt say to them, Why have ye rewarded evil for good? Is not this [it] in which my lord drinks, and in which indeed he divines? Ye have done evil [in] what ye have done.

Emphasized Bible                  .

English Standard Version      .

English Standard V. – UK       .

Evidence Bible                       .

Green’s Literal Translation    .

H. C. Leupold                         Morning came and the men were dismissed with their asses. They on their part went forth from the city. They had not yet gone far when Joseph said to the one who was over his house: Up, follow after the men, and when thou hast overtaken them, thou shalt say to them: Why have ye requited evil for good? Is not this that out of which my master drinks? in fact, he practices divination thereby. Ye have done evil in so doing. And he overtook them and spoke these very words.

Jack Ballinger’s translation    .

Modern English Version         As soon as the morning was light, the men were sent away, they and their donkeys. When they were gone out of the city, but not yet far off, Joseph said to his steward, “Get up, follow after the men. When you overtake them, say to them, ‘Why have you rewarded evil for good? Is this not the one from which my lord drinks and uses as he practices divination? You have done evil in doing this.’ ”

Modern KJV                           .

NASB                                     .

New European Version          .

New King James Version       .

Owen's Translation                .

Benner’s Mechanical Trans.  ...the morning light and the men were sent, they and their donkeys, they had gone out of the city, they were not far and Yoseph ^[Adding] had said to who was upon his house, rise, pursue after the men and you will overtake them and you will say to them why did you make a restitution of dysfunction in place of function, is not this which my lord gulps with, and he greatly divines with, you made dysfunction by what you did,...

Stuart Wolf                             .

Third Millennium Bible            .

Updated Bible Version 2.11   .

A Voice in the Wilderness      .

Webster’s Bible Translation  As soon as the morning was light, the men were sent away, they and their asses. And when they were gone out of the city, and not yet far off, Joseph said unto his steward, Up, follow after the men; and when thou dost overtake them, say unto them, Wherefore have ye rewarded evil for good? Is not this it in which my lord drinketh, and whereby indeed he divineth? ye have done evil in so doing.

World English Bible                .

Young's Literal Translation     .

Young’s Updated LT             The morning is bright, and the men have been sent away, they and their asses— they have gone out of the city—they have not gone far off—and Joseph has said to him who is over his house, “Rise, pursue after the men; and you have overtaken them, and you have said unto them, Why have you [all] recompensed evil for good? Is not this that with which my lord drinketh? and he observes diligently with it; you [all] have done evil in that which you [all] have done.”

The gist of this passage:     Joseph’s brothers were sent away, and then, Joseph sends his head servant out after them, to ask them why they repaid evil for good.

Translation: [In] the morning light, then men were sent away, they and their asses. John Owens lists light above as a masculine singular noun. My e-sword KJV (with Strong’s #’s and morphology) lists this as a Qal perfect verb. Obviously, the spelling is nearly identical (or identical; I have not checked), but the understanding of this verse is unchanged—it is the morning when the men are sent away. They are sent away with their asses, of course, because all of the grain is carried on their asses.

Translation: They had gone out of the city, not going far,... This was a little difficult to translate, simply because this could have been rendered they had gone out to the city... However, given that Joseph collected the grain in the various cities (rather than at a single collection point), this would have been one of the first cities that the sons of Jacob had come to. It is also possible that this is the city which was where the selling of grain to foreigners was allowed.

Insofar as we know, there are not a set of cities outside of Egypt. And, the verb allows for this to mean that they have gone out of the city, without requiring the inclusion of the min preposition.

So, before they get very far out, Joseph calls for his servant.

Translation: ...and Joseph said to [him] who [is] over his house,... This is Joseph’s primary servant. Just as he was over all of Potiphar’s home at one time, Joseph has a personal servant himself who handles all of the matters at home. On several occasions, he is referred to with exactly this phrase.

Translation:...“Get up [and] follow after the men,... Joseph tells him to get up and go follow after the men. This does not mean that he is laying around with nothing to do and Joseph says, “Hey, servant, I’ve got something for you to do.” It simply is a word which indicates that Joseph wants his servant to spring into action.