“My silver has been returned!” he said to his brothers. “It is here in my sack.” Their hearts sank, and trembling, they turned to one another and said, “What is this that God has done to us?”
Parallel translations
- WEB He said to his brothers, “My money is restored! Behold, it is in my sack!” Their hearts failed them, and they turned trembling to one another, saying, “What is this that God has done to us?”
- KJV And he said unto his brethren, My money is restored; and, lo, it is even in my sack: and their heart failed them, and they were afraid, saying one to another, What is this that God hath done unto us?
- NKJV So he said to his brothers, “My money has been restored, and there it is, in my sack!” Then their hearts failed them and they were afraid, saying to one another, “What is this that God has done to us?”
- NASB So he said to his brothers, “My money has been returned, and look, it is right in my sack!” Then their hearts sank, and they turned trembling to one another, saying, “What is this that God has done to us?”
- NLT “Look!” he exclaimed to his brothers. “My money has been returned; it’s here in my sack!” Then their hearts sank. Trembling, they said to each other, “What has God done to us?”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Discovering the silver, the brothers tremble and ask what God has done to them. They rightly sense God's hand, but read it with fear rather than faith.
Overview
Their cry "What is this that God has done to us?" shows awakened awareness that they stand under divine scrutiny. Guilt makes them anticipate judgment in what is actually an act of kindness. Scripture often shows that the same providence terrifies the guilty and comforts the trusting; here the brothers are not yet at peace with God.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 13
- Isa 45:7I form the light and create the darkness; I bring prosperity and create calamity. I, the LORD, do all these things.
- Lam 3:37Who has spoken and it came to pass, unless the Lord has ordained it?
- Gen 42:36Their father Jacob said to them, “You have deprived me of my sons. Joseph is gone and Simeon is no more. Now you want to take Benjamin. Everything is going against me!”
- Gen 27:33Isaac began to tremble violently and said, “Who was it, then, who hunted the game and brought it to me? Before you came in, I ate it all and blessed him—and indeed, he will be blessed!”
- Deut 28:65Among those nations you will find no repose, not even a resting place for the sole of your foot. There the LORD will give you a trembling heart, failing eyes, and a despairing soul.
- Ps 61:2From the ends of the earth I call out to You whenever my heart is faint. Lead me to the rock that is higher than I.
- Lam 2:17The LORD has done what He planned; He has accomplished His decree, which He ordained in days of old; He has overthrown you without pity. He has let the enemy gloat over you and exalted the horn of your foes.
- 1 Kgs 10:5the food at his table, the seating of his servants, the service and attire of his attendants and cupbearers, and the burnt offerings he presented at the house of the LORD, it took her breath away.
- Gen 43:23“It is fine,” said the steward. “Do not be afraid. Your God, the God of your father, gave you the treasure that was in your sacks. I received your silver.” Then he brought Simeon out to them.
- Lev 26:36As for those of you who survive, I will send a faintness into their hearts in the lands of their enemies, so that even the sound of a windblown leaf will put them to flight. And they will flee as one flees the sword, and fall when no one pursues them.
- Song 5:6I opened for my beloved, but he had turned and gone. My heart sank at his departure. I sought him, but did not find him. I called, but he did not answer.
- Amos 3:6If a ram’s horn sounds in a city, do the people not tremble? If calamity comes to a city, has not the LORD caused it?
- Luke 21:26Men will faint from fear and anxiety over what is coming upon the earth, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
From the first promise that the seed of the woman would crush the serpent (3:15), through Abraham's blessing to all nations and Judah's coming ruler, Genesis sows every seed that flowers in Christ — the true offspring, the better Adam, the ram caught for Isaac.
How Genesis 42:28 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.