Genesis 43:1-10

1And the famine was grievous in the land.

2And it came to pass, when they had finished eating the grain which they had brought from Egypt, that their father said to them, Go again, buy us a little food.

3And Judah spoke to him, saying, The man did positively testify to us, saying, Ye shall not see my face, unless your brother be with you.

4If thou wilt send our brother with us, we will go down and buy thee food;

5but if thou do not send [him], we will not go down, for the man said to us, Ye shall not see my face, unless your brother be with you.

6And Israel said, Why did ye deal [so] ill with me [as] to tell the man whether ye had yet a brother?

7And they said, The man asked very closely after us, and after our kindred, saying, Is your father yet alive? have ye a brother? And we told him according to the tenor of these words. Could we at all know that he would say, Bring your brother down?

8And Judah said to Israel his father, Send the lad with me, and we will arise and go, that we may live, and not die, both we and thou and our little ones.

9I will be surety for him: of my hand shalt thou require him; if I bring him not to thee, and set him before thy face, then shall I be guilty toward thee for ever.

10For had we not lingered, we should now certainly have returned already twice.