EasyEnglish Bible 2018
Genesis 42:38
38But Jacob said, ‘My son will not go with you. His brother is already dead. Benjamin is the only one left. Something bad may happen to him on your journey. I am already an old man. If I lose Benjamin, I would be so sad that I would die.’
Genesis 42:38 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And he said, My son shall not go down with you; for his brother is dead, and he is left alone: if mischief befall him by the way in the which ye go, then shall ye bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to the grave.
- New International Version (NIV)But Jacob said, “My son will not go down there with you; his brother is dead and he is the only one left. If harm comes to him on the journey you are taking, you will bring my gray head down to the grave in sorrow.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)But he said, "My son shall not go down with you, for his brother is dead, and he is the only one left. If harm should happen to him on the journey that you are to make, you would bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to Sheol."
- New King James Version (NKJV)But he said, “My son shall not go down with you, for his brother is dead, and he is left alone. If any calamity should befall him along the way in which you go, then you would bring down my gray hair with sorrow to the grave.”
Context of Genesis 42:38
36Their father Jacob said to them, ‘You are taking my children away from me! Joseph is not here any more. Simeon also is not here. Now you want to take Benjamin away from me. Everything that happens is hurting me!’ 37Then Reuben said to his father, Jacob, ‘I will bring Benjamin back to you. If I do not, then you can kill both of my sons. Trust me to take care of him. I will bring him back.’ But Jacob said, ‘My son will not go with you. His brother is already dead. Benjamin is the only one left. Something bad may happen to him on your journey. I am already an old man. If I lose Benjamin, I would be so sad that I would die.’
Read all of Genesis 42Genesis 42:38 word by word
וַיֹּ֕אמֶר לֹֽא־יֵרֵ֥ד בְּנִ֖י עִמָּכֶ֑ם כִּֽי־אָחִ֨יו מֵ֜ת וְה֧וּא לְבַדּ֣וֹ נִשְׁאָ֗ר וּקְרָאָ֤הוּ אָסוֹן֙ בַּדֶּ֙רֶךְ֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר תֵּֽלְכוּ־בָ֔הּ וְהוֹרַדְתֶּ֧ם אֶת־שֵׂיבָתִ֛י בְּיָג֖וֹן שְׁאֽוֹלָה׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And he saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- My sonבֵּןbên · son: childH1121
- shall not go downיָרַדyârad · to go downH3381
- with you; for his brotherאָח'âch · brother: male-siblingH251
- is deadמוּתmûth · to dieH4191
- and he is leftשָׁאַרshâ'ar · to remainH7604
- alone: if mischiefאָסוֹן'âsôn · harmH611
- befallקָרָאqârâ' · to encounter: chancedH7122
- him by the wayדֶּ֫רֶךְderek · way: journeyH1870
- in the which ye goיָלַךְyâlak · to walkH3212
- my gray hairsשֵׂיבָהώêybâh · hoary headH7872
- with sorrowיָגוֹןyâgôn · sorrowH3015
- to the graveשְׁאוֹלshe'ôl she'ôl · hell: SheolH7585
Cross-references for Genesis 42:38
- Genesis 42:13Joseph's brothers replied, ‘We belong to a family of 12 brothers. We are the sons of one man who lives in Canaan. Our youngest brother stayed at home with our father. One other brother is not with us any more.’
- Genesis 30:22Then God decided to help Rachel. He listened to her and he let her become pregnant.
- Genesis 35:16Then they left Bethel and they continued to travel. When they were still a long way from Ephrath, Rachel began to give birth. She had a lot of pain.
- Genesis 37:33Jacob saw that it was Joseph's coat. He said, ‘It is my son's coat! A wild animal must have eaten him! The animal has torn Joseph's body into pieces.’
- Genesis 44:20And we replied, “We have a father who is very old. He has a young son who was born when our father was already old. That son's brother is dead. He is the only son of his mother who still lives. His father loves him.”
- Genesis 42:4But Jacob did not send his youngest son, Benjamin, with them. Jacob was afraid that something bad might happen to Benjamin.
- Genesis 44:29If you take my youngest son away from me too, something bad may happen to him. I am already an old man. If I lose Benjamin, I would be so sad that I would die.” ’
- Genesis 37:35All Jacob's sons and daughters came to comfort him. But Jacob was very sad, so they could not make him happy. Jacob said, ‘I will be sad until the day that I die, because my son is dead.’ Jacob wept because Joseph was dead.
- 1 Kings 2:6So you should punish him in a way that you think is right. Do not let him die in peace as an old man.
- Psalms 71:18And even when I am old and my hair is grey, do not turn away from me, God. I need to tell the people still to be born about your great strength. My descendants need to know about your power.
- Psalms 90:10The number of our days make 70 years, or maybe 80 years if we are strong enough. But even in the best years of our lives, we have trouble and pain. Our lives quickly pass, and we hurry towards death.
- Ecclesiastes 1:14I thought about all the things that people do on the earth. I realized that all these things have no purpose. It is like somebody who tries to catch the wind.
- Ecclesiastes 2:26God gives wisdom, knowledge and joy to people who please him. Wicked people may work hard and become rich. But God takes away their valuable things and he gives them to someone who pleases him. So their hard work has no purpose. It is like somebody who tries to catch the wind.
- Isaiah 38:10I thought that I might die in the middle of my life. I thought that I would go into the deep hole of death, before I had lived all the years of my life.
- Isaiah 46:4I will continue to take care of you until you are old, until your hair becomes grey. I made you who you are, and I will supply everything that you need. I will carry you, and I will save you.
Commentaries on Genesis 42:38
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 38He is left alone - That is, Benjamin is the only remaining son of Rachel; for he supposed Joseph, who was the other son, to be dead. Shall ye bring down my gray hairs with sorrow - Here he keeps up the idea of the oppressive burden mentioned Genesis 42:36, to which every occurrence was adding an additional weight, so that he felt it impossible to support it any longer. The following observations of Dr. Dodd on this verse are very appropriate and…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1-38Verses 1-38 - Joseph and Ten of His Brethren 1. שׁבר sheber “fragment, crumb, hence, grain.” בר bar “pure,” “winnowed,” hence, “corn” (grain). 6. שׁליט shallı̂yṭ “ruler, governor, hence,” Sultan. Not elsewhere found in the Pentateuch. 25. כלי kelı̂y “vessel,” here any portable article in which grain may be conveyed. שׂק śaq “sack,” the very word which remains in our language to this day. אמתחת 'amtachath “bag.” Twenty years, the period of Joseph‘s long…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 29-38Verses 29-38 Here is the report Jacob's sons made to their father. It troubled the good man. Even the bundles of money Joseph returned, in kindness, to his father, frightened him. He laid the fault upon his sons; knowing them, he feared they had provoked the Egyptians, and wrongfully brought home their money. Jacob plainly distrusted his sons, remembering that he never saw Joseph since he had been with them. It is bad with a family, when children behave…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 38Jacob continued to show special favor to Rachel’s only remaining son. He refused to let Benjamin go to Egypt, even if it meant that Simeon, Leah’s son, would not return. Jacob’s deep grief later weighed heavily on the brothers’ conscience (44:18–34).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-381. Now when Jacob saw that there was corn in Egypt--learned from common rumor. It is evident from Jacob's language that his own and his sons' families had suffered greatly from the scarcity; and through the increasing severity of the scourge, those men, who had formerly shown both activity and spirit, were sinking into despondency. God would not interpose miraculously when natural means of preservation were within reach.Read the comment
Topics related to Genesis 42:38
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Genesis 42
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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