Genesis 42:27

27–38. The Return to Canaan

27. one of them] Anticipating Gen_42:35. Lit. “the one,” i.e. the others followed. This verse and Gen_42:28 are from J, according to which the money is found in the sacks at their first lodging place; see Gen_43:21. According to E, the money is found in their sacks, when they reach their home (see Gen_42:35). A word for “sack,”  ’amtâhath, a very unusual one, occurs twice in Gen_42:27 (end), 28, and thirteen times in chs. 43, 44 (J), but not in Gen_42:35 or elsewhere in the O.T.

the lodging place] i.e. “the shelter,” or wayside quarters, where they could rest during the night. Cf. Exo_4:24; Jer_9:2. There is, perhaps, scarcely sufficient warrant for us to assume that this was a khan, or road-side inn. Such places hardly existed. A rough shelter, a meagre encampment of black tents, with a scanty protection of a few sticks, brushwood, and blankets, behind which the men and asses would rest, is perhaps all that is meant.

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.

Gen 42:27 And as one of them opened his sack to give his ass provender in the inn, he espied his money; for, behold, it [was] in his sack’s mouth.

Ver. 27. To give his ass provender in the inn.] Their inns then were not so well furnished as ours are; but they were forced to carry their provender, which was a trouble.

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.

inn--a mere station for baiting beasts of burden.

he espied his money--The discovery threw them into greater perplexity than ever. If they had been congratulating themselves on escaping from the ruthless governor, they perceived that now he would have a handle against them; and it is observable that they looked upon this as a judgment of heaven. Thus one leading design of Joseph was gained in their consciences being roused to a sense of guilt.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 27. One of them opened his sack] From Ge 42:35 we learn that each of the ten brethren on emptying his sack when he returned found his money in it; can we suppose that this was not discovered by them all before? It seems not; and the reason was probably this: the money was put in the mouth of the sack of one only, in the sacks of the others it was placed at or near to the bottom; hence only one discovered it on the road, the rest found it when they came to empty their sacks at their father's house.

In the inn] במלון bammalon, from לן lan, to lodge, stay, remain, c. The place at which they stopped to bait or rest themselves and their asses. Our word inn gives us a false idea here there were no such places of entertainment at that time in the desert over which they had to pass, nor are there any to the present day. Travellers generally endeavour to reach a well, where they fill their girbahs, or leathern bottles, with fresh water, and having clogged their camels, asses, &c., permit them to crop any little verdure there may be in the place, keeping watch over them by turns. This is all we are to understand by the malon or inn in the text, for even caravanseries were not then in use, which are generally no more than four walls perfectly exposed, the place being open at the top.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

27. And as one of them opened his sack. With what intention Joseph had commanded the price paid for the corn to be secretly deposited in the sacks of his brethren, may easily be conjectured; for he feared lest his father being already impoverished, would not be able again to buy provisions. The brethren, having found their money, knew not where to seek the cause; except that, being terrified, they perceived that the hand of God was against them. That they were greatly astonished appears from their not voluntarily returning to Joseph, in order to prove their own innocence: for the remedy of the evil was at hand, if they had not been utterly blinded. Wherefore we must ask God to supply us, in doubtful and troubled affairs, not only with fortitude, but also with prudence. We see also how little can be effected even by a great multitude, unless the Lord preside among them. The sons of Jacob ought mutually to have exhorted each other, and to have consulted together what was necessary to be done: but there is an end to all deliberation; no solace nor remedy is suggested. Even while each sees the rest agitated, they mutually increase each other’s trepidation. Therefore, the society and countenance of men will profit us nothing, unless the Lord strengthen us from heaven.

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.

(27) In the inn.—Heb., lodging-place, literally, place to pass the night. It is quite possible that on a route frequented by numerous caravans there were places where a certain amount of protection for the beasts of burden and their attendants had been provided, either by the rulers, or by benevolent people. But Joseph’s brethren would find there at most only walls and water. “The one” who opened his sack is said by tradition to have been Levi. At the end of the verse this sack is called by another name, signifying a travelling-bag, or wallet for forage. The translation of these three different words, vessel, wallet, and sack, indifferently by the last of them, has led to the absurd view, common among commentators, that Joseph’s brethren went down into Egypt, each with one ass and one sack. Hence their astonishment that such an insignificant knot of men should be brought before the governor of Egypt. But the word used in Gen_42:25 signifies everything into which corn could be put; and the word at the end of this verse is the travelling-bag, which each of the patriarchs carried behind him on his riding ass. Their men would go on foot at the side of the beasts of burden laden with the corn.

It is said here that one only found his money at the lodging-place, and that the rest did not find their money until they emptied their sacks on reaching home. the sacks mentioned here (in Gen_42:35) were the same as the travelling-bags, for they are expressly so called in Gen_43:21-23. In Gen_43:21, however, they tell Joseph’s steward that they all found their money in the mouth of their sacks on opening them at the lodging-place. This was not strictly accurate, but it would have been wearisome and useless to enter into such details. Two things it was necessary to show: the first, that all had found their money; the second, that they had gone too far on their journey homewards to be able to return and give the money back. Probably what is said in Gen_43:21 was literally true only of one, and he found his money because it had been put in last, and was therefore at the mouth of the wallet. In all the other sacks it had been put in first, under the corn, and so they did not find it until “they had emptied their sacks.”

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And we said unto him, we are true men,.... Honest, upright men, not given to treacherous and treasonable practices, either in the country where they lived, or any other; they came to Egypt with no ill design upon the country, only to buy corn for the relief of their families in necessity:

we are no spies; or never were (e): they had never been guilty of such practices, and never charged with anything of that kind; they denied the charge, and detested the character.

(e) "non fuimus", Montanus; "nunquam fuimus", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator, Schmidt.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

And after him the rest by his example and information did so, as is affirmed Gen 43:21, and it is not denied here.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

27. The inn — מלון, a lodging place; some sheltered and suitable place for encampment over night. Possibly some sort of caravansary was, even in that early time, provided along the great highways of travel for the convenience of caravans like this.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And as one of them opened his sack literally, and the one opened his sack, i.e. they did not all open their sacks on the homeward journey, although afterwards, in reporting the circumstance to Joseph, they represent themselves as having done so; (Gen_43:21) but only one at the wayside inn, and the rest on reaching home (ver. 35; vide infra, Gen_43:21) to give his ass provender in the inn (the wOlm from Wl, an inn to pass the night, was not in the modern sense of the term, but simply a halting-place or camping station where travelers were wont to lodge, without finding for themselves or animals any other food than they carried with them), he espied his money; for, behold, it was in his sack"s mouth literally, in the opening, of his amtachath, tjTma, from jtm to spread out, an old word for a sack, (Gen_43:18, Gen_43:21, Gen_43:22) here used synonymously with qc, from which it would seem that the travelers carried two sorts of bags, one for the corn yliK (ver. 25), and another for the called asses" provender called tjTma. It was in the latter that the money had been placed.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

ויפתח האחד literally, AND THE ONE OPENED HIS SACK — This was Levi who remained alone (one) being without Simeon his companion (cf Targum Jonathan).

במלון means the place where they stayed over night — THE INN.

אמתחתו is the sack (שק) just mentioned.

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.

AND AS ONE OF THEM OPENED HIS SACK. One of them opened his sack in the inn to give therefrom some fodder to his ass, while the others did not open their sacks until they were with their father, just as it says, And it came to pass as they emptied their sacks, for perhaps the others took straw for their asses, lest they consume their entire loads on the way. But the one who opened the sack on the way had a weak ass, which required fodder, and he thus found the money in the mouth of his bag (‘amtachto’).Now Rashi writes that amtachath is the sack, but Onkelos translated it as “load.” It appears from Onkelos’ opinion that each one in order to equalize his load, had large sacks and small sacks, and the total load of each one is called amtachath. Thus it happened that one of them found his money at the mouth of the particular sack he opened, while it did not happen to the others until they emptied all their sacks.It seems plausible to me that amtachath is a large sack containing two sides, known in the language of the Talmud as matrata, meaning that if a person is carrying two leather sacks of equal weight on his right and left shoulders, why should he change one sack for the other? (See Rashi there.) and the money of each one was put at the mouth of one of the sides. Now it so happened that one of them opened the side where the money lay, but it did not happen to the others. This kind of sack is called amtachath because it stretches (yimtach) at the sides.

Ramban (Nachmanides) on the Tanakh — English translation: “Commentary on the Torah by Ramban (Nachmanides). Translated and annotated by Charles B. Chavel. New York, Shilo Pub. House, 1971-1976” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.

ויפתח האחד, one of them. According to a homiletic comment quoted by Rashi, the definitive article at the beginning of the word האחד is a hint that this was Levi, who, through his buddy Shimon having been detained by Joseph, was now “the one,” i.e. left alone without his closest companion.

בפי אמתחתו, Joseph had instructed that the money of one of them should be not just placed back in his sack, but should be placed near the top so that he would find it immediately he opened the sack. The money of the other brothers had been placed somewhere in the middle section of their respective containers, or even at the very bottom. If the money of all of them had been placed near the top of their bags they would see it as soon as they started giving fodder to their beasts, and they would turn around to Egypt pointing out that someone had made a mistake. They would be anxious to clear themselves of the danger of being accused of an additional crime, of being thieves. Joseph had therefore taken precautions that only one of them should find his money before they would get home. He had arranged matters in a way to cause them maximum worry.

Radak on the Tanakh — English translations: “Sefaria Community Translation” (CC0 1.0 (public-domain dedication)); “Eliyahu Munk, HaChut Hameshulash” (CC BY 4.0); “Rabbi Mike Feuer, Jerusalem Anthology” (CC BY 4.0); and “R. David Kimhi on the first book of Psalms, Translated by R.G. Finch, London, 1919” (public domain). Text via Sefaria.