Genesis 43:29

29 Then he lifted up his eyes and saw Benjamin his brother, the son of his mother, and said, "Is this your youngest brother of whom you told me?" And he continued, "God be gracious to you, my son."

Genesis 43:29 Meaning and Commentary

Genesis 43:29

And he lifted up his eyes and saw his brother Benjamin
He had seen him before when his brethren first presented themselves to him, but then took no particular and special notice of him, only gave him a side look as it were, but now he looked wistly at him: his mother's son;
the son of Rachel his mother, and who was his only brother by his mother's side, the rest, though his brethren, yet only by his father's side, not his mother's sons: and said, [is] this your younger brother, of whom ye spake unto me?
he knew he was the same, but was willing to have it from their mouths, to lead on to what he had further to say: and he said;
after they had answered his question, and told him it was he: God be gracious unto thee, my son;
speaking as a superior, a governor, in which capacity he was a father to his inferiors; and as a man, a relation, a brother, though not as yet discovered; he spoke in the most tender and affectionate manner, and, as a religious good man, he wishes the best thing he could for his brother, the grace and goodness of God; and which may be understood in the largest and most expressive sense, as including all good things, temporal, spiritual, and eternal.

Genesis 43:29 In-Context

27 And {he greeted them} and said, "Is your father well, the old man of whom you spoke? Is he still alive?"

28 And they said, "Your servant our father [is] well; he is still alive." And they knelt and bowed down.

29 Then he lifted up his eyes and saw Benjamin his brother, the son of his mother, and said, "Is this your youngest brother of whom you told me?" And he continued, "God be gracious to you, my son."

30 Then Joseph {hurried away}, {being overcome with emotion} toward his brother, and sought for [a place] to cry. Then he went into a room and wept there.

31 Then he washed his face and went out, now controlling himself, and said, "Serve the food."

Footnotes

• [a]. Or "said"