He said, “Far be it from me that I should do so. The man in whose hand the cup is found, he will be my slave; but as for you, go up in peace to your father.”
Parallel Translations
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He said, “Far be it from me that I should do so. The man in whose hand the cup is found, he will be my slave; but as for you, go up in peace to your father.”
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And he said, God forbid that I should do so: but the man in whose hand the cup is found, he shall be my servant; and as for you, get you up in peace unto your father.
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And he said: 'Far be it from me that I should do so; the man in whose hand the goblet is found, he shall be my bondman; but as for you, get you up in peace unto your father.'
Cross-references (7)
Passages linked to Genesis 44:17 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Genesis 18:25 May it be far from you to do things like that, to kill the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous should be like the wicked. May that be far from you. Shouldn’t the Judge of all the earth do right?”
- Genesis 26:29 that you will do us no harm, as we have not touched you, and as we have done to you nothing but good, and have sent you away in peace.’ You are now the blessed of Yahweh.”
- Genesis 37:32-33 They took the tunic of many colors, and they brought it to their father, and said, “We have found this. Examine it, now, and see if it is your son’s tunic or not.” He recognized it, and said, “It is my son’s tunic. An evil animal has devoured him. Joseph is without doubt torn in pieces.”
- Genesis 42:18 Joseph said to them the third day, “Do this, and live, for I fear God.
- 2 Samuel 23:3 The God of Israel said, the Rock of Israel spoke to me, ‘One who rules over men righteously, who rules in the fear of God,
- Psalms 75:2 When I choose the appointed time, I will judge blamelessly.
- Proverbs 17:15 He who justifies the wicked, and he who condemns the righteous, both of them alike are an abomination to Yahweh.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (4 sources)
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain 17. God forbid that I should do so If…
17. God forbid that I should do so If Joseph intended to retain Benjamin alone, and to dismiss the others, he would have done his utmost, to rend the Church of God by the worst possible dissension. But I have previously shown (what may also be elicited from the context) that his design was nothing else than to pierce their hearts more deeply. He must have anticipated great mischief, if he had perceived that they did not care for their brother: but the Lord provided against this danger, by causing the earnest apology of Judah not only to soften his mind, but even to draw forth tears and weeping in profusion.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Gen 44:17 And he said, God forbid that I…
Gen 44:17 And he said, God forbid that I should do so: [but] the man in whose hand the cup is found, he shall be my servant; and as for you, get you up in peace unto your father.
Ver. 17. But the man in whose hand, &c.] This was the heat that Joseph shot at in all this interdealing with them, - to try the truth of their love to Benjamin, and whether they would stick to him in his utmost peril God hath like ends in afflicting his children. "The king of Babylon stood at the parting way, at the head of the two ways, to use divination." {Eze 21:21} So doth God. He knows that the best divining of men is at the parting way; there every dog will show to what master he belongs. God shoots at his servants for trial, as men shoot bullets against armour of proof, not to hurt it, but to praise it.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain And he said, God forbid that I should do…
And he said, God forbid that I should do so,.... This would be doing an unjust thing, Joseph suggests, should he take them all for bondmen, for the offence of one:
but the man in whose hand the cup is found, he shall be my servant; not die, as they had supposed, but become his servant:
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and as for you, get ye up in peace unto your father; they had leave, yea, an order to return to their father in the land of Canaan, with their corn and cattle, in peace and plenty; there being no charge against them, nor would any hurt or damage come to them: this Joseph said to try their affection to their brother Benjamin, and see whether they would leave him to distress, and then he should know better how to conduct both towards him and them.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 17. God forbid] As Gen_44:7. Joseph deprecates Judah’s proposal,…
17. God forbid] As Gen_44:7. Joseph deprecates Judah’s proposal, and insists on the milder sentence already proposed by his steward. Benjamin should be kept as a slave.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.