Genesis 42:21

42:21 They said to one other, ¹  “Surely we’re being punished ²  because of our brother, because we saw how distressed he was ³  when he cried to us for mercy, but we refused to listen. That is why this distress ⁴  has come on us!”

Genesis 42:27

42:27 When one of them ⁵  opened his sack to get feed for his donkey at their resting place, ⁶  he saw his money in the mouth of his sack. ⁷ 

Genesis 42:35

42:35 When they were emptying their sacks, there was each man’s bag of money in his sack! When they and their father saw the bags of money, they were afraid.

Genesis 43:12

43:12 Take double the money with you; ⁸  you must take back ⁹  the money that was returned in the mouths of your sacks – perhaps it was an oversight.

Genesis 43:21-22

43:21 But when we came to the place where we spent the night, we opened our sacks and each of us found his money – the full amount ¹⁰  – in the mouth of his sack. So we have returned it. ¹¹  43:22 We have brought additional money with us to buy food. We do not know who put the money in our sacks!”

[42:21]  ¹ tn Heb “a man to his neighbor.”

[42:21]  ² tn Or “we are guilty”; the Hebrew word can also refer to the effect of being guilty, i.e., “we are being punished for guilt.”

[42:21]  ³ tn Heb “the distress of his soul.”

[42:21]  ⁴ sn The repetition of the Hebrew noun translated distress draws attention to the fact that they regard their present distress as appropriate punishment for their refusal to ignore their brother when he was in distress.

[42:27]  ⁵ tn Heb “and the one.” The article indicates that the individual is vivid in the mind of the narrator, yet it is not important to identify him by name.

[42:27]  ⁶ tn Heb “at the lodging place.”

[42:27]  ⁷ tn Heb “and look, it [was] in the mouth of his sack.” By the use of the particle הִנֵּה (hinneh, “look”), the narrator invites the reader to look through the eyes of the character and thereby draws attention to the money.

[43:12]  ⁸ tn Heb “in your hand.”

[43:12]  ⁹ tn Heb “take back in your hand.” The imperfect verbal form probably has an injunctive or obligatory force here, since Jacob is instructing his sons.

[43:21]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “in its weight.”

[43:21]  ¹¹ tn Heb “brought it back in our hand.”