New Living Translation
Genesis 43:31
31After washing his face, he came back out, keeping himself under control. Then he ordered, “Bring out the food!”
Genesis 43:31 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And he washed his face, and went out, and refrained himself, and said, Set on bread.
- New International Version (NIV)After he had washed his face, he came out and, controlling himself, said, “Serve the food.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)Then he washed his face and came out. And controlling himself he said, "Serve the food."
- New King James Version (NKJV)Then he washed his face and came out; and he restrained himself, and said, “Serve the bread.”
Context of Genesis 43:31
29Then Joseph looked at his brother Benjamin, the son of his own mother. “Is this your youngest brother, the one you told me about?” Joseph asked. “May God be gracious to you, my son.” 30Then Joseph hurried from the room because he was overcome with emotion for his brother. He went into his private room, where he broke down and wept. After washing his face, he came back out, keeping himself under control. Then he ordered, “Bring out the food!” 32The waiters served Joseph at his own table, and his brothers were served at a separate table. The Egyptians who ate with Joseph sat at their own table, because Egyptians despise Hebrews and refuse to eat with them. 33Joseph told each of his brothers where to sit, and to their amazement, he seated them according to age, from oldest to youngest.
Read all of Genesis 43Genesis 43:31 word by word
וַיִּרְחַ֥ץ פָּנָ֖יו וַיֵּצֵ֑א וַיִּ֨תְאַפַּ֔ק וַיֹּ֖אמֶר שִׂ֥ימוּ לָֽחֶם׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Genesis 43:31
- Genesis 45:1Joseph could stand it no longer. There were many people in the room, and he said to his attendants, “Out, all of you!” So he was alone with his brothers when he told them who he was.
- Isaiah 42:14He will say, “I have long been silent; yes, I have restrained myself. But now, like a woman in labor, I will cry and groan and pant.
- Jeremiah 31:16But now this is what the Lord says: “Do not weep any longer, for I will reward you,” says the Lord. “Your children will come back to you from the distant land of the enemy.
- 1 Peter 3:10For the Scriptures say, “If you want to enjoy life and see many happy days, keep your tongue from speaking evil and your lips from telling lies.
- Genesis 43:25They were told they would be eating there, so they prepared their gifts for Joseph’s arrival at noon.
Commentaries on Genesis 43:31
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1-34Verses 1-34 - Joseph and His Eleven Brethren 11. דבשׁ debash “honey,” from the bee, or sirup from the juice of the grape. בטנים bôṭen “pistachio nuts.” שׁקד shâqêd “almond tree;” related: “awake.” The tree is also called לוּז lûz Some refer the former to the fruit, the latter to the tree. The eleven brothers are now to bow down before Joseph. Genesis 43:1-10 The famine was severe. The pressure began to be felt more and more. The twelve households had…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 26-34Verses 26-34 Observe the great respect Joseph's brethren paid to him. Thus were Joseph's dreams more and more fulfilled. Joseph showed great kindness to them. He treated them nobly; but see here the early distance between Jews and gentiles. In a day of famine, it is enough to be fed; but they were feasted. Their cares and fears were now over, and they ate their bread with joy, reckoning they were upon good terms with the lord of the land. If God accept…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-34Joseph did several unusual things to his brothers when they came looking for grain. The last time Joseph had been with them, they were filled with jealousy, hatred, and anger; they attempted to destroy their brother, and they deceived their father. Joseph put them through various tests, similar to the trying situations they had put him through, to see if they had changed.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 31-3431. Joseph said, Set on bread--equivalent to having dinner served, "bread" being a term inclusive of all victuals. The table was a small stool, most probably the usual round form, "since persons might even then be seated according to their rank or seniority, and the modern Egyptian table is not without its post of honor and a fixed gradation of place" [Wilkinson]. Two or at most three persons were seated at one table. But the host being the highest in…Read the comment
Topics related to Genesis 43:31
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Genesis 43
- 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
New Living Translation — © 1996, 2004, 2015 Tyndale House Foundation
Commentaries