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Spiritual Gifts, Volume 3
and their families would suffer for food. And then again, who among
them would undertake the journey alone, leaving their brethren in a
prison. How could that one meet his father? They saw his distress at
the supposed death of Joseph, and he would feel that he was deprived
of all his sons. As they conversed with one another in this manner,
Joseph heard them. They said, further, It may be we shall lose our
lives, or be made slaves. And if one go back to our father for Benjamin,
and bring him here, he may be made a slave also, and our father will
surely die. They decided to all remain, and suffer together, rather than
to bring greater sorrow upon their father by the loss of his much-loved
Benjamin.
The three days of confinement were days of bitter sorrow with
Jacob’s sons. They reflected upon their past wrong course, especially
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their cruelty to Joseph. They knew if they were convicted of being
spies, and they could not bring evidence to clear themselves, they
would all have to die, or become slaves. They doubted whether any
effort any one of them might make would cause their father to consent
to have Benjamin go from him, after the cruel death, as he thought,
Joseph had suffered. They sold Joseph as a slave, and they were fearful
that God designed to punish them by suffering them to become slaves.
Joseph considers that his father and the families of his brethren, may be
suffering for food, and he is convinced that his brethren have repented
of their cruel treatment of him, and that they would in no case treat
Benjamin as they had treated him.
Joseph makes another proposition to his brethren. And he said
unto them the third day, “This do, and live; for I fear God. If ye
be true men, let one of your brethren be bound in the house of your
prison. Go ye, carry corn for the famine of your houses. But bring
your youngest brother unto me; so shall your words be verified, and
ye shall not die.” They agree to accept this proposition of Joseph; but
express to one another little hope that their father will let Benjamin
return with them. They accuse themselves, and one another, in regard
to their treatment of Joseph. “And they said one to another, We are
verily guilty concerning our brother, in that we saw the anguish of his
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soul, when he besought us, and we would not hear; therefore is this
distress come upon us. And Reuben answered them, saying, Spake I
not unto you, saying, Do not sin against the child; and ye would not
hear? therefore behold also his blood is required. And they knew not