Genesis 42:15

Genesis 42:15 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Hereby ye shall be proved: By the life of Pharaoh ye shall not go forth hence, except your youngest brother come hither.
• New International Version (NIV)And this is how you will be tested: As surely as Pharaoh lives, you will not leave this place unless your youngest brother comes here.
• New King James Version (NKJV)In this manner you shall be tested: By the life of Pharaoh, you shall not leave this place unless your youngest brother comes here.
• New Living Translation (NLT)This is how I will test your story. I swear by the life of Pharaoh that you will never leave Egypt unless your youngest brother comes here!

Context of Genesis 42:15

13And they said, "We, your servants, are twelve brothers, the sons of one man in the land of Canaan, and behold, the youngest is this day with our father, and one is no more." 14But Joseph said to them, "It is as I said to you. You are spies. By this you shall be tested: by the life of Pharaoh, you shall not go from this place unless your youngest brother comes here. 16Send one of you, and let him bring your brother, while you remain confined, that your words may be tested, whether there is truth in you. Or else, by the life of Pharaoh, surely you are spies." 17And he put them all together in custody for three days.

Genesis 42:15 word by word

בְּזֹ֖את תִּבָּחֵ֑נוּ חֵ֤י פַרְעֹה֙ אִם־תֵּצְא֣וּ מִזֶּ֔ה כִּ֧י אִם־בְּב֛וֹא אֲחִיכֶ֥ם הַקָּטֹ֖ן הֵֽנָּה׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Herebyזֹאתzô'th · thisH2063
• ye shall be provedבָּחַןbâchan · to testH974
• By the lifeחַיchay · aliveH2416
• of Pharaohפַּרְעֹהpar‛ôh · PharaohH6547
• ye shall not go forthיָצָאyâtsâ' · to come out: comeH3318
• hence, except your youngestקָטֹןqâţân qâţôn · small: youngH6996
• brotherאָח'âch · brother: male-siblingH251
• comeבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): comeH935

Cross-references for Genesis 42:15

• Genesis 42:7Joseph saw his brothers and recognized them, but he treated them like strangers and spoke roughly to them. "Where do you come from?" he said. They said, "From the land of Canaan, to buy food."
• Deuteronomy 6:13It is the Lord your God you shall fear. Him you shall serve and by his name you shall swear.
• 1 Samuel 1:26And she said, "Oh, my lord! As you live, my lord, I am the woman who was standing here in your presence, praying to the Lord.
• 1 Samuel 17:55As soon as Saul saw David go out against the Philistine, he said to Abner, the commander of the army, "Abner, whose son is this youth?" And Abner said, "As your soul lives, O king, I do not know."
• 1 Samuel 20:3But David vowed again, saying, "Your father knows well that I have found favor in your eyes, and he thinks, 'Do not let Jonathan know this, lest he be grieved.' But truly, as the Lord lives and as your soul lives, there is but a step between me and death."
• Jeremiah 5:2Though they say, "As the Lord lives," yet they swear falsely.
• Matthew 5:33"Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn.'
• Matthew 23:16"Woe to you, blind guides, who say, 'If anyone swears by the temple, it is nothing, but if anyone swears by the gold of the temple, he is bound by his oath.'
• James 5:12But above all, my brothers, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath, but let your "yes" be yes and your "no" be no, so that you may not fall under condemnation.
• Genesis 42:20and bring your youngest brother to me. So your words will be verified, and you shall not die." And they did so.
• Genesis 43:3But Judah said to him, "The man solemnly warned us, saying, 'You shall not see my face unless your brother is with you.'
• Genesis 44:20And 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.'

Commentaries on Genesis 42:15

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 15By the life of Pharaoh - פרעה חי chey Pharaoh, Pharaoh liveth. As if he had said, As surely as the king of Egypt lives, so surely shall ye not go hence unless your brother come hither. Here therefore is no oath; it is just what they themselves make it in their report to their father, Genesis 43:3; : the man did solemnly protest unto us; and our translators should not have put it in the form of an oath, especially as the original not only will bear another…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. 7-20Verses 7-20 Joseph was hard upon his brethren, not from a spirit of revenge, but to bring them to repentance. Not seeing his brother Benjamin, he suspected that they had made away with him, and he gave them occasion to speak of their father and brother. God, in his providence, sometimes seems harsh with those he loves, and speaks roughly to those for whom yet he has great mercy in store. Joseph settled at last, that one of them should be left, and the…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 15-17Joseph put his brothers in prison for three days. He did this to see if they felt guilt for what they had done in the past (42:21–23). The brothers had similarly thrown Joseph into a cistern-prison while they decided what to do with him (37:24).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1515. By the life of Pharaoh--It is a very common practice in Western Asia to swear by the life of the king. Joseph spoke in the style of an Egyptian and perhaps did not think there was any evil in it. But we are taught to regard all such expressions in the light of an oath (Mt 5:34; Jas 5:12).Read the comment

Topics related to Genesis 42:15

• Commerce
• Dissembling

In the dictionaries

• Pharaoh
• Pharaoh, king of Egypt
• Bereave
• Espy
• Famine
• Fear
• Joseph
• Lade
• Lord
• Nakedness

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