Genesis 43:28

Good News Translation

They answered, "Your humble servant, our father, is still alive and well." And they knelt and bowed down before him.

Parallel Translations

Hebrew Names Version
They said, "Your servant, our father, is well. He is still alive." They bowed the head, and did homage.

King James Version
And they answered, Thy servant our father is in good health, he is yet alive. And they bowed down their heads, and made obeisance.

Lexham English Bible
And they said, "Your servant our father is well; he is still alive." And they knelt and bowed down.

New Century Version
The brothers answered, "Your servant, our father, is well. He is still alive." And they bowed low before Joseph to show him respect.

New English Translation
"Your servant our father is well," they replied. "He is still alive." They bowed down in humility.

Amplified Bible
And they answered, "Your servant our father is in good health; he is still alive." And they bowed down [their heads before Joseph] in respect.

New American Standard Bible
And they said, "Your servant our father is well; he is still alive." Then they bowed down again in homage.

Geneva Bible (1587)
Who answered, Thy seruant our father is in good health, he is yet aliue: and they bowed downe, and made obeysance.

Legacy Standard Bible
And they said, "Your servant our father is well; he is still alive." They bowed down and prostrated themselves.

Contemporary English Version
They answered, "Your servant our father is still alive and well." And again they bowed down to Joseph.

Complete Jewish Bible
They answered, "Your servant our father is well; yes, he is still alive," as they bowed in respect.

Darby Translation
And they said, Thy servant our father is well; he is yet alive. And they bowed, and made obeisance.

Easy-to-Read Version
The brothers answered, "Yes, sir, our father is still alive." And they again bowed before Joseph.

English Standard Version
They said, "Your servant our father is well; he is still alive." And they bowed their heads and prostrated themselves.

George Lamsa Translation
And they answered, Your servant our father is well. he is still alive. And they bowed down their heads and made obeisance.

Christian Standard Bible®
They answered, “Your servant our father is well. He is still alive.” And they knelt low and paid homage to him.

Literal Translation
And they said, Peace is to your servant, to our father; he still lives. And they fell down and bowed.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
They answered: Thy seruaunt oure father is in good health, and is yet alyue. And they bowed them selues, and fell downe before him.

American Standard Version
And they said, Thy servant our father is well, he is yet alive. And they bowed the head, and made obeisance.

Bible in Basic English
And they said, Your servant, our father, is well, he is still living. And they went down on their faces before him.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
They aunswered: Thy seruaunt our father is in good health, & is yet alyue. And they bowing them selues, made theyr obeysaunce.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
And they said: 'Thy servant our father is well, he is yet alive.' And they bowed the head, and made obeisance.

King James Version (1611)
And they answered, Thy seruant our father is in good health, hee is yet aliue: & they bowed downe their heads, and made obeisance.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And they said, Thy servant our father is well; he is yet alive. And he said, Blessed be that man by God; —and they bowed, and did him reverence.

English Revised Version
And they said, Thy servant our father is well, he is yet alive. And they bowed the head, and made obeisance.

Berean Standard Bible
"Your servant our father is well," they answered. "He is still alive." And they bowed down to honor him.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Whiche answeriden, He is hool, thi seruaunt oure fadir lyueth yit; and thei weren bowid, and worschipiden hym.

Young's Literal Translation
and they say, `Thy servant our father [is] well, he is yet alive;' and they bow, and do obeisance.

Update Bible Version
And they said, Your slave our father is well, he is yet alive. And they bowed the head, and made obeisance.

Webster's Bible Translation
And they answered, Thy servant, our father, [is] in good health, he [is] yet alive: and they bowed their heads and made obeisance.

World English Bible
They said, "Your servant, our father, is well. He is still alive." They bowed the head, and did homage.

New King James Version
And they answered, "Your servant our father is in good health; he is still alive." And they bowed their heads down and prostrated themselves.

New Living Translation
"Yes," they replied. "Our father, your servant, is alive and well." And they bowed low again.

New Life Bible
And they said, "Your servant, our father is well. He is still alive." Then they bowed their heads low in honor to Joseph.

New Revised Standard
They said, "Your servant our father is well; he is still alive." And they bowed their heads and did obeisance.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And they said - It is well with thy servant our father, he is yet alive. And they bent their heads and bowed them-selves down.

Douay-Rheims Bible
And they answered: Thy servant our father, is in health; he is yet living. And bowing themselves, they made obeisance to him.

Revised Standard Version
They said, "Your servant our father is well, he is still alive." And they bowed their heads and made obeisance.

THE MESSAGE
They said, "Yes—your servant our father is quite well, very much alive." And they again bowed respectfully before him.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
They said, "Your servant our father is well; he is still alive." They bowed down in homage.

Contextual Overview

²⁶ When Joseph got home, they took the gifts into the house to him and bowed down to the ground before him. ²⁷ He asked about their health and then said, "You told me about your old father—how is he? Is he still alive and well?" ²⁸ They answered, "Your humble servant, our father, is still alive and well." And they knelt and bowed down before him. ²⁹ When Joseph saw his brother Benjamin, he said, "So this is your youngest brother, the one you told me about. God bless you, my son." ³⁰ Then Joseph left suddenly, because his heart was full of tender feelings for his brother. He was about to break down, so he went to his room and cried. ³¹ After he had washed his face, he came out, and controlling himself, he ordered the meal to be served. ³² Joseph was served at one table and his brothers at another. The Egyptians who were eating there were served separately, because they considered it beneath their dignity to eat with Hebrews. ³³ The brothers had been seated at the table, facing Joseph, in the order of their age from the oldest to the youngest. When they saw how they had been seated, they looked at one another in amazement. ³⁴ Food was served to them from Joseph's table, and Benjamin was served five times as much as the rest of them. So they ate and drank with Joseph until they were drunk.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

bowed: Genesis 43:26, Genesis 37:7, Genesis 37:9, Genesis 37:10

made obeisance: Exodus 18:7, 2 Samuel 1:2, 2 Samuel 14:4, 1 Kings 1:16, 2 Chronicles 24:17

Reciprocal: Genesis 18:2 - bowed 1 Samuel 20:41 - and fell Proverbs 14:19 - General Mark 15:19 - and bowing

Cross-References

Genesis 37:7
We were all in the field tying up sheaves of wheat, when my sheaf got up and stood up straight. Yours formed a circle around mine and bowed down to it."

Genesis 43:9
I will pledge my own life, and you can hold me responsible for him. If I do not bring him back to you safe and sound, I will always bear the blame.

Genesis 43:10
If we had not waited so long, we could have been there and back twice by now."

Genesis 43:26
When Joseph got home, they took the gifts into the house to him and bowed down to the ground before him.

Exodus 18:7
so Moses went out to meet him, bowed before him, and kissed him. They asked about each other's health and then went into Moses' tent.

2 Samuel 1:2
The next day a young man arrived from Saul's camp. To show his grief, he had torn his clothes and put dirt on his head. He went to David and bowed to the ground in respect.

2 Samuel 14:4
The woman went to the king, bowed down to the ground in respect, and said, "Help me, Your Majesty!"

1 Kings 1:16
Bathsheba bowed low before the king, and he asked, "What do you want?"

2 Chronicles 24:17
But once Jehoiada was dead, the leaders of Judah persuaded King Joash to listen to them instead.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And they answered, thy servant our father [is] in good health, he [is] yet alive,.... Which is an answer to both his questions; and by calling their father Joseph's servant, he did obeisance to him in them, as well as by sending a present to him, which they delivered as coming from him his servant; and it is not improbable that Jacob sent his salutation to him as his servant, and so that part of the dream of Joseph's was also fulfilled, which represented the sun doing obeisance to him, Genesis 37:9:

and they bowed their heads, and made obeisance; a second time, as they did, no doubt, at every time they gave answer to Joseph's questions; and this is again observed, to show the full completion of the above dream.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

- Joseph and His Eleven Brethren

11. דבשׁ d^ebash, “honey,” from the bee, or sirup from the juice of the grape. בטנים bôṭ^en, “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 at length consumed all the corn they had purchased, and the famine still pressed heavily upon them. Jacob directs them to return. “And Judah said.” Reuben had offended, and could not come forward. Simon and Levi had also grieved their father by the treacherous slaughter of the Shekemites. Judah therefore, speaks. “Is your father yet alive?” “Have ye a brother?” These questions do not come out in the previous narrative, on account of its brevity. But how pointed they are, and how true to Joseph’s yearnings! They explain how it was that these particulars came out in the replies of the brothers to Joseph. For the charge of being spies did not call for them in exculpation. Judah now uses all the arguments the case would admit of, to persuade his father to allow Benjamin to go with them. He closes with the emphatic sentence, If I bring him not unto thee, and set him before thee, then let me have sinned against thee all my days; that is, let me bear the blame, and of course the penalty of having sinned against thee in so tender a point. Both Judah and his father knew that this was a matter that touched the interest of the former very deeply. Reuben was bearing the blame of a grievous sin, and had no hope of the birthright. Simon and Levi were also bearing blame, and, besides, had not the natural right, which belonged only to Reuben. Judah came next, and a failure in securing the safe return of Benjamin might set him also aside. He undertakes to run this risk.

Genesis 43:11-15

Jacob at length reluctantly sends Benjamin with them. He employs all means, as is usual with him, of securing a favorable result. “The best of the land” - the sung or celebrated products of the land. “A little honey.” Palestine abounded with bee honey. A sirup obtained by boiling down the juice of the grape was also called by the same name, and formed an article of commerce. “Nuts.” These are supposed to be pistachio nuts, from the pistacia vera, a tree resembling the terebinth, a native of Anatolia, Syria, and Palestine. “Almonds.” The almond tree buds or flowers earlier in the spring than other trees. It is a native of Palestine, Syria, and Persia. For the other products see Genesis 37:25. “Other silver;” not double silver, but a second sum for the new purchase. “God Almighty” - the Great Spirit, who can dispose the hearts of men as he pleases. Jacob looks up to heaven for a blessing, while he uses the means. “If I am bereaved, I am bereaved.” This is the expression of acquiescence in whatever may be the will of Providence. “Double silver,” - what was returned and what was to pay for a second supply of corn.

Genesis 43:16-18

The invitation into Joseph’s house fills the brothers with alarm. “Saw with them Benjamin.” This was an unspeakable relief to Joseph, who was afraid that his full brother, also the favorite of his father, might have incurred the envy and persecution of the brothers. “Brought the men to Joseph’s house.” This he eventually did, but not until after the conference between him and them took place. The men were afraid of a plot to rob them of their liberty and property.

Genesis 43:19-25

They are encouraged by the steward of Joseph’s house to lay aside their fears, and prepare their present. “Spake to him at the door of the house.” This was, of course, before they entered. “When we came to the inn.” The relater is prone to lump matters in the narration, for the sake of brevity. They began to “open their bags” at the first lodging-place, and finished the process at the last when they got home. Other silver. This explains the phrase “second silver” in Genesis 43:12. “Peace be to you.” Be at rest. All is well. Your God. The steward of Joseph expresses himself as one who fears and trusts God, the God of the Hebrews, who had displayed his omniscience and omnipotence in Egypt. “He brought out unto them Simon.” While they still linger at the entrance, the considerate steward bethought himself of bringing out Simon to them, which reassured their hearts, and induced them to enter willingly. He now succeeds therefore, in bringing them in, and then bestows upon them the usual attentions of Eastern hospitality. They now “make ready their present.”

Genesis 43:26-34

They are now entertained by Joseph. They brought the present, and made a lowly obeisance before him. “They bent the head.” See Genesis 24:26. “God be gracious unto thee, my son.” His kind treatment of Benjamin, on whose presence he had so much insisted, was calculated to reassure the brothers. The latter was born in his thirteenth year, and therefore, he was entitled to assume the paternal style in regard to him. Joseph still appeals with a natural and unconstrained reverence to his own God. “And Joseph hastened away.” The little touch of tenderness he had involuntarily thrown into his address to Benjamin, is too much for his feelings, which yearn toward his brother, and he is obliged to retreat to his chamber to conceal his tears and compose his countenance. “They set for him by himself.” As the governor, or as connected by affinity with the priestly caste, Joseph does not eat with the other Egyptians. The Egyptians cannot eat with the Hebrews. “That is an abomination to the Mizrites.” For the Hebrews partook of the flesh of kine, both male and female.

But Herodotus informs us (ii. 41), that “male kine, if clean, are used by the Egyptians, but the females they are not allowed to sacrifice, since they are sacred to Isis.” And he adds that “a native of Egypt will not kiss a Greek, use his knife, his spit, or his cauldron, or taste the flesh cut with a Greek knife.” They considered all foreigners unclean, and therefore, refused to eat with them (see Rawlinson’s Herodotus on p. q.). They sat in his presence; arranged according to the order of their birth, to their great amazement. Egypt was to them a land of wonders, and Egypt’s sultan a man of wonder. “Benjamin’s mess.” The honored guest was distinguished by a larger or daintier portion of the fare (1 Samuel 9:23-24; Homer, ii. 7,321). A double portion was assigned to the Spartan kings. The fivefold division was prominent in Egyptian affairs Genesis 41:34; Genesis 45:22; Genesis 47:2, Genesis 47:24, Genesis 47:26. “And were merry.” They drank freely, so as to be exhilarated, because their cares were dissipated by the kindness they were receiving, the presence of Simon, and the attention paid to Benjamin.