Egyptian wife and his royal friends. Probably his heart had often yearned towards Jacob, towards the land of Palestine. When, therefore, a son was born to him, he looked upon him as a compensation for the troubles he had suffered in the past, and exclaimed, 'God has made me forget all my toils and all my father's house ;' and he called him Manasseh. When a second child gladdened his home, he said: 'I will call him Ephraim, for God has caused me to be fruitful in the land of my afflictions.'

When the seven years of plenty had elapsed, a famine of most fearful and unexampled rigour began. It was not confined to Egypt alone, but extended to all the surrounding countries. The hungering people raised a cry of despair; and, as usual in such distress, they appealed to the king. Pharaoh bid them go to Joseph and submit to his directions. Then the large granaries disclosed their treasures of corn, and all the Egyptians came and bought from Joseph. The intelligence that corn was piled up in Egypt soon spread into other countries, and from all sides men flocked to the kingdom of Pharaoh, in order to purchase the staff of life.

Twenty-two years had passed since Joseph had left the tent of Jacob; but the old patriarch still lived; and his eleven sons, all herdsmen like their father, dwelt round about him, with their wives and children. The famine spread to Palestine also; and Jacob, aroused by the example of the people from neighbouring countries, called his sons to him, and urged them to go likewise to Egypt to buy corn, so that they might live and not die.' So ten of the brothers set out upon their journey; for Jacob, now clinging with even greater attachment to his youngest child Benjamin, the only one left of his fondly-beloved Rachel, would not consent to expose him to the dangers of the road, lest a misfortune might befall him.'

Joseph, distributing corn to the nations, saw the men

approach from the distance. They came to the great governor of the land, and prostrated themselves before him. How should they suspect that that proud and mighty Egyptian in his magnificent robes, surrounded by the state and pomp of a royal prince, could be the brother they had sold as a slave? But Joseph knew at a glance

6

that these Hebrew herdsmen, with the freshness of the valley on their faces, were no other than his own brothers. Joseph was not impulsive, still less revengeful; but a strong sense of justice pervaded his mind. He felt that the brothers deserved a signal punishment for the inhuman cruelty they had committed against him. He felt, moreover, that that punishment was now entrusted to his own hands; and he was resolved to perform the painful and unwelcome office with manly firmness. He made himself strange to his brothers, and spoke roughly to them; and he said to them, From whence do you come ? And they said, From the land of Canaan to buy corn for food.' Joseph of course was well aware of the truth of this reply; but the Egyptians were proverbially suspicious, especially to strangers, and availing himself of this well-known trait of his adopted people, he retorted with assumed anger, You are spies; to see the nakedness of the land you are come. And they said to him, No, my lord, but to buy corn for food are thy servants come; we are all one man's sons; we are true men; thy servants are no spies. And he said to them, No, but to see the nakedness of the land And they said, Thy servants are twelve you are come. 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. And Joseph said to them, That is what I spoke to you saying, You are spies;' and swearing in true Egyptian fashion, he added: "By the life of Pharaoh, you shall not go home, except your youngest brother come hither. Send one of you, and let him fetch your brother,

and you shall be kept in prison, that your words may be proved, whether there be any truth in you, or else, by the life of Pharaoh, surely you are spies.' The threat, so completely in harmony with the arbitrary despotism of the Oriental ruler, was at once carried into effect, and the unfortunate brothers were thrown into prison. On the third day, he liberated them with apparently equal capriciousness, and said to them, This do and live; for I fear God; if you are true men, let one of your brothers be imprisoned in the house of your custody; and you go, carry corn for the famine of your houses; but bring your youngest brother to me. Then will your words be verified, and you shall not die.'

The brothers looked awe-struck at this strange Egyptian, so haughty, nay cruel, yet professing to be a Godfearing man. Their consciences began to trouble them, they were in fear and torture, and they spoke one to another in their native Hebrew tongue: "We are verily guilty concerning our brother; for we saw the anguish of his soul when he implored us, and we would not hear; therefore is this distress come upon us. And Reuben answered them, saying, Did I not say to you, Do not sin against the child, and you would not hear? Therefore, behold his blood is required.' Joseph understood them well, and the touching words went straight to his heart; he left the brothers and wept, but then returned, determined to carry out his difficult mission. So he took from them Simeon, and ordered him to be bound before their eyes. Partly to try and partly to harass them, he commanded that the money should be secretly returned in the sack of each. When they discovered this on their homeward journey at a resting-place, they were seized with fear, and were unable to explain the matter. They arrived in their father's home care worn and unhappy: Simeon was a captive in Egypt; their words had been

disbelieved by the governor; their very actions seemed to belie their honesty; and worse than all, they had promised to return with the darling of Jacob's heart, Benjamin; for thus alone could Simeon be released and their good faith proved. They told their sad tale to the unfortunate patriarch, who, seeing the bundle of money in each man's sack, said in agony, 'You have bereaved me of my children; Joseph is no more, and Simeon is no more, and you will take Benjamin away: all this comes upon me. And Reuben said to his father, Thou mayest kill my two sons if I do not bring him to thee: deliver him into my hand, and I will restore him to thee. And he said, My son shall not go down with you; for his brother is dead, and he alone is left to me; if an accident befall him on the way in which you go, then you will bring down my grey hair with sorrow into the grave.'

And yet the dire scourge of the famine compelled the brothers soon to undertake another journey to Egypt. The story of that journey and of the remarkable incidents connected with it, must be related in the very words of the Bible; no others can do justice to the pathos of the events, as no others can approach them in impressive simplicity.

And the famine was heavy in the land. And when they had entirely eaten up the purchase of corn which they had brought out of Egypt, their father said to them, Go again, buy corn for us for a little food. And Judah. said to him, The man solemnly protested to us, saying, You shall not see my face, except your brother be with you if thou wilt send our brother with us, we will go down and buy for thee corn for food; but if thou wilt not send him, we shall not go down; for the man said to us, You shall not see my face, except your brother be with you. And Israel said, Wherefore have you done evil to me, to tell the man, whether you had yet a brother?

And they said, The man asked us closely about ourselves and about our kindred, saying, Is your father yet alive? have you another brother? and we told him in accordance with these words; could we indeed know that he would say, Bring your brother down? And Judah said to Israel his father, Send the youth with me, and we will rise and go, that we may live, and not die, both we, and thou, and our little ones. I will be surety for him; of my hand thou mayest demand him; if I do not bring him to thee, and place him before thee, then let me have sinned against thee for ever; for if we had not lingered, surely we had now returned twice. And their father Israel said to them, If it is so indeed, do this; take of the choicest fruits of the land in your utensils, and carry down to the man a present, a little balsam and a little honey, tragacanth and ladanum, pistacchio-nuts and almonds. And take other money in your hand; and the money that was returned in the mouth of your bags, take it back in your hand; perhaps it was a mistake. Take also your brother, and rise, go again to the man. And may God Almighty give you mercy before the man, that he may send with you your other brother, and Benjamin : and I, as I am bereaved, I am bereaved. And the men took their present, and they took double money in their hand, and Benjamin; and they rose, and went down to Egypt, and stood before Joseph. And when Joseph saw Benjamin with them, he said to the steward of his house, Bring these men into the house, and kill, and make ready; for these men shall dine with me at noon. And the man did as Joseph had ordered, and the man brought the men into Joseph's house; and the men were afraid, and they said, On account of the money that was returned in our bags at the first time we are brought in, that he may throw himself upon us, and fall upon us, and take us for bondmen, and our asses.