Genesis 45:14

Gen 45:14 And he fell upon his brother Benjamin’s neck, and wept; and Benjamin wept upon his neck.

Ver. 14. And he fell upon his brother, &c.] God’s people are not senseless stoics or flinty Nabals; but have natural affections in them, as others; yea, above others, that have banished good nature, and can weep as little as witches. The enemy hath stopped the wells, and stayed the watercourses, as Holofernes: what should hinder him now from taking the town?

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.

Gen_45:14

And he fell upon his brother Benjamins neck, and wept; and Benjamin wept upon his neck

Tears of love

This incident is the most unquestionable instance in the Bible of tears of love.

No other feeling but love made Joseph weep.

I. Tears of love are true evidences--and evidences which can scarcely speak falsely.

II. Tears have much of the nature of sacrifice in them.

III. Though there are no tears in heaven, yet loving tears on earth come nearer than anything else in the world to the alleluias of the saints, for they are the outbursts of an irrepressible emotion.

IV. Tears of kindness act back again, and make the kindness from which they spring. In order to have the heart soft enough for tears--

(1) You must lead a pure life;

(2) You must feel that you are loved;

(3) You must be subdued;

(4) You must help yourself by action;

(5) You must have pity. (J. Vaughan, M. A.)

Lessons

1. Grace forbids not natural working of affection in its measure.

2. Mutual workings of hearts in brethren is but natural (Gen_45:14).

3. Sincere kisses and tears of injured brethren to offenders are remarkable.

4. Brotherly communion may be freely had, when grace had put away all offences, and accepted offenders (Gen_45:15). (G. Hughes, B. D.)

The first embrace for Benjamin

There was an instinctive delicacy in selecting that one for his first embraces who was best able to return them freely. It gave the others time. Not that he thought of that and planned it; but the instincts of a good heart are very wise. Benjamin could weep tears of unmingled joy, for he had love only to accept--not forgiveness as well. One looks eagerly through the story to find some word telling that the others wept, the ten men who were over forty years of age, the sinners convicted, humbled, pardoned. Such a word would be very welcome; but I do not find it. We have to be content to take another lesson in the mystery of restoring love--that it is easier for God to forgive us than for us to forgive ourselves; that the part of Christs work which most proves the omnipotence of His grace, is when He persuades us to believe that He has forgiven us. That once believed by the heart, tears flow fast. There is only One who can so look on us that we shall go forth and weep bitterly. Leaving Benjamin after a time, Joseph went from one to another of his brethren, kissing them and weeping on them. I see him beginning with Reuben and Simeon, ending with Judah. The appeal, if one may translate so tender an utterance of the heart into any words, meant this, I love and forgive you: love me and trust me, trust me and love in return. And after that his brethren talked with him. The struggle had been a hard one, but love had conquered. It matters little what they talked about--the wonders of Egypt, the storehouses, the capabilities of Goshen, Asenath and Manasseh and Ephraim, the state of the flocks at home, the children of each, their father, the dreams; the great thing was that they talked at all. It was not now as it had been at the banquet yesterday; restraint and stratagem had gone for ever; brother talked to brother, heart to heart. (A. M.Symington, D. D.)

The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

45:14-15 Joseph was reunited with his brothers—first with Benjamin and then with the rest. Their previous hatred and jealousy of Joseph (37:4-11) had come to an end. The brothers experienced forgiveness from God and from Joseph. Far from commanding his brothers to bow down to him (see 42:6-7), Joseph welcomed them. Joseph held no grudge because he accepted what had happened as God’s work and saw the good that had resulted (see 50:14-21). This is how wisdom rules: The wise leader will forgive and restore (see study note on 37:2–50:26).

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

And he fell upon . . . Benjamin's neck--The sudden transition from a condemned criminal to a fondled brother, might have occasioned fainting or even death, had not his tumultuous feelings been relieved by a torrent of tears. But Joseph's attentions were not confined to Benjamin. He affectionately embraced every one of his brothers in succession; and by those actions, his forgiveness was demonstrated more fully than it could be by words.

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 14. He fell upon his brother Benjamin's neck] Among the Asiatics kissing the beard, the neck, and the shoulders, is in use to the present day; and probably falling on the neck signifies no more than kissing the neck or shoulders, with the arms around.

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

And he fell upon his brother Benjamin's neck and wept,.... On his neck first, because he was his own brother by father and mother's side; and he wept over him for joy that he had a sight of him once more: the word for "neck" is in the plural number, and being used, may signify that he fell first on one side of his neck, and then on the other, to show his great affection for him:

and Benjamin wept upon his neck; their love and the tokens of it were reciprocal.

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

Vers. 14, 15. And he (i.e. Joseph) fell upon his brother Benjamin"s neck, and wept; and Benjamin wept upon his neck. "Benjamin is the central point whence leads out the way to reconciliation" (Langs). "Here brotherly affection is drawn out by affection, tear answering tear"; (Hughes Gen_33:4) Moreover he kissed all his brethren, seal of recognition, of reconciliation, and of salutation" (Lange)and wept upon them. It has been thought that Benjamin stood when Joseph embraced him, and that the two wept upon each other"s neck, but that the brethren bowed themselves at Joseph"s feet, causing the expression to be, "and he wept upon them" (Lange). And after that his brethren talked with him feeling themselves reassured by such demonstrations of affection.

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

He hugged his brother Benjamin's neck and wept, and Benjamin wept on his neck

"Joseph hugged his brother Benjamin, and they both wept"

He kissed all his brothers

In ancient Near East, it is common to greet a relative with a kiss. If your language has an affectionate greeting for a relative, use that. If not, use what is appropriate.

wept over them

This means Joseph was crying while he kissed them.

After that his brothers talked with him

Earlier they were too afraid to speak. Now they feel they can speak freely. The full meaning of this statement can be made explicit. AT: "After that his brothers talked freely with him" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)

translationWords

kiss

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

ויפל על צוארי בנימן אחיו ויבך AND HE FELL UPON HIS BROTHER BENJAMIN’S NECK AND WEPT — for the Temples which were to be in Benjamin’s territory and which would ultimately be laid in ruins (Genesis Rabbah 93:12).

ובנימין בכה על צואריו AND BENJAMIN WEPT ON HIS NECK — for the Tabernacle of Shiloh which was to be in Joseph’s territory and which would ultimately be laid in ruins (Genesis Rabbah 93:12).

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.

ויפול, seeing that Joseph and Binyamin were full brothers the bond between them was stronger. They cried one after another.

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.