"This one?" "This one?" "Come on." "No, no, no!" "Two more. yes?" "Yes." "Pay heed to Potiphar." "chief steward of the Pharaoh!" "Quiet!" "The slave market of Avaris crown city of Egypt. home to the Pharaoh. god to his people welcomes the chief steward and the head of Pharaoh's guards the most honored Potiphar!" "Potiphar!" "Potiphar!" "I have fine slaves." "Both of them are excellent." "Which one do you want?" "Which one?" "Do you want one of these?" "No." "No?" "This one?" "Look." "There?" "In the corner?" "This one?" "This one. sir?" "He's the best. sir." "He's a fine slave. sir." "Look at that fine head." "Look." "Look at those shoulders." "Look at that back." "Those arms." "He is perfect." "Teeth." "Young." "He's healthy enough. but probably never done a hard day's labor." "But he can be trained. master." "He" " He's submissive." "He's obedient." "He would do anything without a whimper." "And he knows his place." "Never opens his mouth except to pray." "is that true. boy?" "Answer the master." "And to whom are these prayers addressed?" "Which gods?" "Only one. my lord." "Only one god." "Must be very poor indeed." "Well. boy?" "My one God provides all my needs. my lord." "Well. he hasn't done very well for you now. has he?" "These Semites are a superstitious lot. my lord ." "These what?" "Semites." "Semites?" "Semites." "But when they are not praying." "they work very hard." "Hard workers. are they?" "Yes." "I don't know." "What do you think. overseer?" "l could knock the piety out of him. master." "l know that." "When I finish with him." "he'll need a city full of gods." "He's young." "There would be 10 more good years in a slave like this." "Stupid!" "We could have made a fortune." "You destroyed the deal." "Stupid!" "Oh. my lord!" "Come and have a closer look. my lord." "The boy's amusing." "For a good price." "I'll take him off your hands." "He wants you!" "Did you hear that?" "He wants you!" "Come on." "Move on!" "Move the other way!" "My name is Ednan." "You sleep here." "You bathe each day." "The mistress likes her slaves clean and silent." "She sleeps 16 hours a day." "Remember that." "Before work each day we give praise to Amun father of all gods." "And praise is how you begin your life here." "Praise to the all-powerful Amun!" "Praise to the all-powerful Amun." "Praise to the all-powerful Amun!" "Praise to the all-powerful Amun." "I thought you were bias. boy" "Are you too good to praise our god?" "No. master." "Not too good." "Then what?" "I've-- l've only ever prayed to the God of my fathers." "Well. you won't find him in Egypt." "Don't you think you could use Amun's good graces?" "I need workers. boy not holy men." "I'll just have to teach you to learn respect for my gods." "Now. sleep!" "All of you!" "Move!" "Move!" "Don't go near the water." "Come with me." "All of you. stack them in the shade." "Fill the urn with water." "Run. holy boy. run!" "I said. run!" "Come on. boy." "Where's your god now?" "He doesn't seem very powerful to me." "Are you ready to praise Amun yet?" "Not ready?" "You spilled the water!" "Refill the urn." "Now." "It's a fight you want. is it?" "Come on." "Put your backs into it." "Get back." "I gave you very definite instructions." "But I thought" "All of this area should've been cleared." "Look at this here." "What are you doing. fool?" "Put the bricks against that wall." "not this one." "Quiet. man." "It is the slave who is right." "They do go here." "The soil over there is too porous." "The shrine would sink in a month." "We'd both lose our heads." "Keep to the plans." "Ednan." "Follow the dimensions exactly as I've written them." "It's simple enough." "It's no good to me." "I can't read. idiot." "I can." "A slave who can read?" "According to this. we begin here." "That slave. who is he?" "Joseph the Semite. mistress." "And he understands drawings?" "Yes. mistress." "Explain his bruises." "Well. I...." "A slave's life. mistress." "His lot is no different than any other." "Well. it should be." "A good foreman would see that this is a special man." "My wife wishes to compliment you. architect." "The garden is an absolute marvel." "lt's quite lovely." "Thank you. mistress." "I wish only to serve." "You've served well." "I owe you a special gift." "Name a prize." "If it's not too forward I should like to buy one of your slaves." "The one who can understand drawings." "the Semite." "Potiphar. I thought you said you favored him." "l did?" "Yes." "And the good architect is correct." "We underuse a slave of his skills." "His manner is gentle." "a quality lost on ordinary labor." "Bring the Semite slave." "Semite!" "Here!" "They tell me I did well the day I purchased you." "I am grateful. master. that God chose to be gracious to us both." "What?" "Surely you remember. master." "He speaks incessantly of his god." "I'd be careful if I were you." "You worship as you like in Canaan. but in Egypt only Pharaoh. son of Ra. is god." "is this insolence. boy?" "No. master." "Good." "I serve you with humility and honest labor." "but I cannot deny my God." "A slave who insists on his own ways." "What do you make of that. wife?" "We have enough fools who pander to us." "If the estate is to grow an honest slave who can read drawings and cipher is a valuable addition especially if we taught him our own writing." "You see the respect..." "Pharaoh's chief steward commands in his own home?" "Slaves instruct him on religion his wife tells him how to run his household" "A good wife keeps her wits about and draws attention to what is good." "And you see the slave as good?" "They say whatever he touches flourishes." "is this true?" "It is. my lord." "Do you have a name?" "I am Joseph. master." "Joseph. son of Jacob." "Well." "Joseph. son of Jacob do you think you could bring some order to my house if I brought you out of the fields?" "To be out of the fields. master I can do anything." "Then out of the fields you shall be." "We'll see just how matters flourish under your hands or the hand of your god." "You'll have to name another prize." "We've already got as much in store as the whole of last year's harvest and there's still plenty left in the fields." "Joseph. how do you do it?" "Ednan. I don't create the crops for harvest." "Must be." "I know Potiphar thinks you do." "Why else would he dress you in robes as fine as these?" "Clothes mean nothing." "I'm still a slave." "Mistress. please." "You should not be here." "Really?" "Has my husband elevated you to a position where you can tell me where l belong?" "No. mistress. of course not." "Then be still." "You have some dust on your shoulder." "Here." "let me splash it off for you." "Come on." "You work hard and you have the muscles to prove it." "I am told the barley harvest is even bigger than last season's." "Yes. mistress." "Joseph the golden." "My husband is convinced that your god is behind all of his success that you are the key to everything he's ever hoped for." "My God provides for me." "Would he grant my wishes if I were your friend?" "Please. mistress. I'm only flesh and blood." "and you press the limits of my strength." "You dare restrain me?" "If my master knew why." "he would understand." "Really?" "is it my fault you lured me here to take advantage of me?" "He knows me better than that." "It's my word against that of a slave." "Joseph." "Come lie with me." "lmpossible." "Potiphar has entrusted me with all that is his." "The only thing I cannot touch is you." "How could I betray your husband's trust and sin against God?" "The time will come." "Joseph." "Mistress." "Joseph." "I thought we understood each other." "Oh. I understood you but I think you misjudged me." "So I've decided to give you a second chance." "Stop!" "Where is he?" "What my wife's maidservant ran to tell me. is it true?" "Would you have me call your own wife a liar. master?" "Potiphar!" "What took you so long?" "Didn't my maid tell you of the pain I'm in?" "Yes. of course she did." "Of course. my love." "but the Pharaoh has first call on his chief steward's time." "Anyway. I'm here now." "I'm here now and will right any wrong that has been done." "l-- l was alone and he came here" "He came to my chamber." "On what excuse?" "That's exactly what I said." "but he just laughed at me." "He said he needed no excuse that he was your chief steward and that I had to do what he said." "or it would be the worse for me." "He grabbed my arms." "He forced himself upon me." "l-- l screamed. and I pushed him away." "And then I scratched wildly at him." "You scratched him?" "Yes." "With the power of the goddess Bastet with me. I drove him out!" "I see." "I want the full measure of the law. husband." "The full measure!" "I want his death." "Go!" "Leave me with the slave." "Come." "l thought I could trust you." "But you can. master." "If anyone approaches." "keep your hands behind you." "Thank you. master." "Now explain yourself." "How. master?" "She accuses you of the vilest crime..." "Joseph ...and demands the full measure of the law." "which means your head." "A man guilty of that crime would deserve nothing less." "So you deny it?" "Yes. of course." "But who would believe a slave pleading for his life?" "I deserve better than that from you!" "I've treated you more like a son than a slave." "Trusted my entire estate to you." "Made you the law of my house in my absence." "You. a slave!" "Your lands prospered under me." "I'd rather not see you dead." "It would take years to find another like you." "is there nothing you can say in your defense?" "Only if you allow me to speak openly." "as though I were a free man." "So be it." "But on this occasion only. and no one must ever know I allowed you such a liberty." "You know you can trust me." "I'd never betray you." "not after the goodness you've shown me." "Isn't forcing yourself on my wife a betrayal?" "Of course." "And I repeat." "I would never betray you." "You're saying my wife's a liar." "That's not my place. master." "But whatever happened to her was not by my hand." "I could not do such a thing." "No. no. you couldn't." "It goes against everything I've ever seen in you." "By all the gods. why this now when things were going so well for my house?" "Give me a reason to believe you." "When the blood runs hot. a man forgets his acts have consequences." "I have seen the evil that comes from rape!" "It is hateful to me." "and an abomination in the eyes of God!" "Tell me more." "Tell me more." "Give me a way of proving this isn't the way of a man like you." "These are old memories. master." "Thoughts of a better time before my slavery." "And thoughts of a great pain." "If you value your life, Joseph." "you'll share them with me." "I was only a child." "And a happy one in so many ways." "Father!" "Father!" "During a long and hard journey, the Lord. our God. watched over us and brought us to a fertile plain near the Hivite town of Shechem." "Joseph." "Gather the others." "Here my father, Jacob, said we should raise our tents." "Quick." "Father says you must come." "There were my 10 brothers:" "Reuben Simeon Levi and Judah." "Dan Naphtali Gad and Asher." "issacar Zebulon." "It's time!" "It's time!" "It's time!" "And there were his wives:" "Leah. who bore my father's first sons." "Rachel, my mother, the one my father loved most." "And the handmaids." "Zilpah and Bilah." "And my sister." "Dinah." "It was a happy time. master." "A feeling we had finally come home." "The Lord is truly our shepherd." "He has fulfilled the promise made to me at Beth-El and has led us safely back to the land of my fathers." "The Lord is my God the God of Israel." "Who are they?" "I am Hamor." "King of Shechem." "which lies behind those walls." "This is Bera. my counseller." "and this is my son. also named Shechem so there's no doubt as to what the future holds for our city." "I am Jacob. also called Israel and these are my people." "We come in peace. in search of a land our God promised would be home for us." "I see." "And which god is that?" "We have only one." "Just one?" "You must be a people very short on feasts." "Our Lord provides." "indeed he does?" "Indeed he does." "It was to him you dedicated the sacrifice?" "But where's the idol?" "I'd like to see a single god who could provide for you as well as this one has." "We keep no graven images." "Even so. we know he is always with us." "You'll find we're friendly people." "And if you also come in peace." "we welcome you to camp near our city to find the home your single god promised." "We come only in peace." "And we intend to pay full measure for the land and the use of the spring." "Just name the price." "One-tenth of your grain and of your flocks and a third of the animals' increase for five years." "Done." "And I thank you for your kindness." "We shall be worthy neighbors." "Neighbors. yes." "Strangers. no." "In a week. we honor the goddess Astarte with a marriage followed by a grand feast." "You must join us." "But we're so many." "Then at least some representatives." "Your sons." "Perhaps the young girl here." "Your invitation is kind." "Count upon some of us being among your number." "I don't like it." "They're fat townspeople." "I say we keep our distance." "If they give us trouble" "Always the sword." "Simeon." "ls the hard way the only way you know?" "lt's the surest way." "No." "The only sure way is the way of the Lord." "As he has brought us thus far." "he will continue to guide us." "Leah!" "Bilah!" "lilpah!" "Quick!" "It's nothing." "It's nothing." "This new child keeps telling me he's almost ready." "Are you all right?" "Yes. it's nothing." "Go." "Go." "It's nothing." "Go." "It's all right." "Go." "You must take better care of yourself." "There is no need to be doing this heavy work." "No itt's better that I work." "There's enough anger boiling under the surface." "Under the surface is where it will stay." "Why settle here. pay more for the land than it's worth if not to let you rest before you give birth?" "Because it's also proof that the promises are coming true." "We will inherit the land that God promised to Abraham." "I know you accepted his terms so I could be settled when I have our second child but." "Jacob. the others know it too." "Rachel. I've made no secret of my love for you." "I never have." "You're first in my eye and my heart." "Second." "Jacob." "Second." "Joseph comes first with you." "Wait. my dear." "You're Jacob's daughter. aren't you?" "Yes. I am." "Let's sit here." "No. thank you." "Now. enjoy yourself." "This is a feast." "Oh. poor girl." "Are you all right. my dear?" "Don't worry. I'll see to her." "You need a quiet moment to gather yourself together." "You'll be fine." "I'll take you to a cool room for a rest." "You need to rest." "Lie down here for a while." "You'll be fine." "Don't be frightened." "It's only me." "Yes." "I mean. I'm not frightened." "You're perfectly safe." "Nobody as beautiful as you could ever really be in danger." "You're a woman who can have anything she wants." "Yes." "Well. not really a woman." "Just a girl. really." "No. a woman whose face haunts me at night whose smell makes my head spin." "Please. I have to go." "I shouldn't be here." "This is exactly where you belong." "With me." "Stay away." "My brothers." "Simeon!" "There's no excuse for what my son did to your daughter to all of you..." "...other than that he was drunk with love." "What?" "!" "It's outrageous!" "The crime shames us." "violates all laws and traditions." "No love can come from violence!" "I gave you my trust. my friendship." "Please." "Jacob. listen." "I'm asking for your daughter." "I ask for her in marriage to my son." "I'll do anything. whatever you ask." "But I beg you let me marry Dinah." "Your people and mine can be one." "Jacob." "We will take your daughters as wives." "and you will take ours." "Then you'll be strangers here no more." "That you seek a peace that can wash away the stain of violence is good and appreciated." "But our traditions and beliefs demand that we can only marry those who worship our God. and our God alone." "He's a good god. your god." "We see his presence among you." "see how you prosper." "We watched your sacrifice to him." "We respect your beliefs." "and we can learn to worship as you do." "And you can embrace all our rituals?" "We both have much to think about." "Until tomorrow. perhaps." "Until tomorrow. then." "Be strong. little one." "is it that simple?" "They take our sister for a whore." "and the reward is we embrace them?" "Make them family?" "Masters of our women's dowries?" "Not if I have a say in it." "But you don't." "None of us do." "This decision is for our father alone." "I've heard enough." "You're like the women. clucking away." "Good night. brothers." "He's right. it is Father's decision." "Yes." "But what happens after that is something else altogether." "Continue." "Go on." "Accepting our rituals means all their males must be circumcised." "And if they are...." "They'll be sick." "Weak." "At our mercy." "Get to the pastures." "Spread the word." "We'll need every man." "It takes three days for the fever and weakness." "By the fourth morning it'll have passed." "along with our one chance." "Yes." "Well." "Israel. have you thought upon it?" "I have." "And I see great wisdom in your offer." "But have you considered what you must do to marry amongst us?" "Circumcision is a harsh demand to make of grown men." "Jacob." "But absolutely necessary." "It is a sign we bear on our flesh of our covenant with our Lord a proof that we embrace his commandments." "Only then can we be allowed to be united through marriage." "So be it." "Our men shall be circumcised and we shall be united in peace a new and strong people." "Levi!" "No!" "Come!" "Come!" "Madness!" "Insanity!" "How in your hearts could you have done such a thing?" "Ruthless." "Merciless." "is this the good way?" "The right way?" "You have brought ruin upon us." "Someone had to defend Dinah." "She can't be treated as a whore." "She was to be treated like a bride!" "You've broken the peace and used our traditions for vengeance." "Now Shechem's neighbors will join forces against us." "We're so few in number." "Gather our things." "We must leave this place." "We must leave this place!" "Gather our things!" "And so we were forced to leave the land that held so much promise." "We went up to Beth-El, where my father had once erected a monument to God and again God spoke to him." "As my father told me. the Lord said." ""Be fertile and increase." "A nation. an assembly of nations." "shall descend from you." "Kings shall issue from your loins." "The land I gave Abraham and Isaac I now give to you." "And to your offspring to come." "I will give this land." "Push!" "Push." "Rachel. push." "Push." "You have another son." "Rachel?" "Rachel?" "Stay awake." "Rachel!" "Jacob!" "My sister. she's dying!" "Rachel!" "Call him Ben-Oni." ""Child of pain."" "No." "Not Ben-Oni." "Ben-Jamin." ""Child of happiness."" "Nine years have passed" "Joseph!" "Joseph!" "Benjamin !" "Benjamin !" "Benjamin !" "Joseph!" "Benjamin!" "Bilah." "Bilah. spend a moment with me." "l have work." "Reuben." "But I have things to tell you." "Important things." "Perhaps tomorrow." "You know this is my last night." "When Jacob returns." "I must go out with the herds." "l know." "So this is my last chance to speak to you privately." "That's impossible." "Reuben." "I belong to your father." "For now." "Bilah." "But I am the eldest." "And all the concubines that belong to him now will belong to me sooner or later." "Bilah." "Bilah." "Bilah." "Are you mad?" "I've got Benjamin sleeping in here with me." "Come. come." "I thought you should know." "I should send them both away." "Go!" "How could he do this to me?" "How dare he do this to me!" "Reuben seduces Bilah." "Rachel's maidservant who bore me children?" "Bilah is like a mother to Benjamin." "Your sons give me nothing but grief." "Forcing us to leave Shechem like-- Like thieves!" "Forcing us to take Rachel on a trek that killed her!" "And now this?" "He was wrong. I know that." "But once you speak to him" "No more words!" "Things must change!" "Reuben is my first-born. your first son." "No more words!" "One phase of the moon." "then you return to help with the harvest." "Be careful." "Be alert." "While you are gone." "Joseph will be in authority." "You will hear his words as if they were mine." "Joseph?" "is this a game." "Father?" "l am the eldest." "And the one who shows me no respect." "You and Bilah shamed me before the entire camp." "Simeon and Levi betrayed my word at Shechem." "If my sons will not honor me." "I cannot honor them." "Here." "Here." "Here." "Come here. come here." "What?" "See what Joseph does." "Make him eat it." "Here he comes now." "Meat for supper. little brother." "Meat?" "From where?" "A sheep." "You can pick the one for slaughter if you like." "Me?" "Never." "Father specifically forbade us" "Well. he's not here. is he?" "He's not stuck out here." "baking under the sun. living on dried fruit." "Here's a nice fat one who'll stick to our ribs." "But what will you tell Father?" "He won't find out." "At least. he'd better not." "No wagging tongues." "You'd lie to him?" "Us?" "No." "We wouldn't lie." "It's not our fault if the poor lamb strays off and gets mauled by a mountain lion." "Understand. little brother?" "What difference does it make?" "He's got more sheep than anyone in Hebron." "But Father put me in charge of the sheep!" "Sit down and be quiet." "Come on." "Joseph." "Have something to eat." "It's only a lamb." "Poor little thing." "Mauled to death by a mountain lion." "Eat." "I'm not hungry." "Look at the hide." "Any fool can see it was killed by a wild animal." "Let's give him a close look." "Hey!" "Any fool!" "Right. brother?" "Do you take me for a fool?" "!" "I've been a shepherd my entire life." "I know the problems shepherds face." "l also know their tricks." "Father. we" "Silence!" "Now. take it away." "Get it out of my sight!" "At least now we know what to expect from Joseph." "Betrayal." "He's a spy." "He certainly looks like a prince." "So tall and strong." "Oh." "Jacob. it's beautifully made." "lf only his mother could see him now." "lt's wonderful." "Surely I don't deserve it." "None of his brothers have anything this fine." "None of them deserve it." "He does." "He has proven his loyalty and responsibility." "He has earned the coat." "just as he's earned the succession." "Now." "leave me alone with him." "Go. all of you." "Go." "I'm honoring you." "Joseph." "naming you my heir next in line as head of the tribe." "You can count on all your sons." "Father." "Some more than others." "Simeon." "Levi." "Reuben I can never forget what they did." "The coat is a mark that you will carry on the line." "When you wear it." "remember. it is a robe of honor." "Now. get some sleep." "We have a lot of work to do." "The harvest starts tomorrow." "Joseph. tell me again what our mother was like." "She was gentle kind." "loving and very beautiful." "More beautiful than Leah." "Zilpah and Bilah?" "Yes. much more." "is it true that I killed her?" "Of course not." "Where did you ever get such an idea?" "I heard some of the women say that she died because I was born." "That's foolishness." "Benjamin." "That's not why she died." "Why. then?" "I don't know why." "Benjamin." "People are born live and die." "Even the stars fall and die and the sun sets every day just to be reborn the next morning." "I wish I'd have known Mother." "I'd never have let her go." "It's not that simple. little brother." "Hush. now." "Go to sleep." "Are you going to sleep in your new coat?" "Yes." "I love it so much." "I must sleep now." "Tomorrow's harvest." "Hard work." "So then we all began to bind our sheaves and brought them together and set them upright." "And as soon as they were on end...." "Well. don't stop now." "What happened?" "Then your sheaves all prostrated themselves." "They bowed down before mine." "That's it!" "I've taken all I can." "He's gone crazy because of Father's promises." "He already thinks he's our master." "l also had a dream." "In mine. there were 1 2 piles of manure." "The smallest one walked and talked and told tales." "No. be serious." "I've had enough of him." "It's time we had this out." "Tonight. after the day's work." "We'll see what Father thinks about this." "So we all began to bind our sheaves and brought them together and set them upright." "And as soon as they were on end their sheaves bowed down before mine." "Do you hear that." "Father?" "He dreams of being our master." "This has to be stopped!" "Now. that's as foolish a thing as I've ever heard." "Should I order the boy to stop dreaming?" "Dreams have meanings." "And when God intends for us to understand them. he'll make it all clear." "Until such time. all we can do is listen." "Joseph. you spoke of another dream." "Yes." "Father." "Tell us." "I'd better not. I think." "If God gave you a dream." "you must share it with us." "I dreamt the sun and the moon and the stars paid homage to me." "I don't know what that means." "Am I the sun. perhaps?" "Surely not." "Your mother. the moon?" "Your brothers. the stars?" "I mean. should we all bow down to you?" "Now you've listened to this madness perhaps we can go back to the way things were. the way things ought to be." "Yes. I'm sure you'd like that." "But dreams do not change what happened at Shechem or with the lambs in the fields." "Dreams do not change my decisions." "I'm sending you to see how the flocks are doing. not to a feast." "Son. you're getting older. bigger and where once your brothers might resent you as you gain strength and position." "they begin to feel very threatened by you." "I want you to try and make peace with them." "Yes." "Father." "That's also what I want." "but sometimes their anger is" "Time will ease that if you're more careful of their feelings." "Joseph. they're different than you are." "They're all brought up together like a pack of lion cubs." "You and Benjamin are the children of my old age." "You were given more attention. perhaps." "but your brothers see that as more love." "We both must help try to make them see the truth. understand?" "Yes." "Father." "Good." "Then go safely and with a steady pace." "You should find them within a two days' journey." "Each night grows colder than the one before." "We have another cycle of the moon before we can return." "I'm in no hurry." "The only thing waiting for us at Hebron is our new master in his wonderful coat." "Come. little sheaves." "Bow down before the great man." "Joseph." "Come on. bow!" "Mercy!" "Mercy. master." "Please have mercy upon us." "A wild animal tore a little lamb to pieces!" "Please. please!" "Oh. we are innocent." "O great Joseph." "Please have mercy upon us." "No. my brothers." "I'm in no hurry to see him again." "It's peaceful here." "Unless he comes looking for us." "I think we should move west." "What makes you think the pastures will be better somewhere else?" "We'll move west tomorrow." "to the region near Dothan." "The grass is fuller there." "Listen to him give orders and predict what we'll find." "Must have been a dream." "Runs in the family." "The only thing I dream about is women." "But I do know that if we move on." "no one will know where we are." "And no one will be able to spy on us." "I agree." "Let anyone who wants to find us have to dream where we are." "What are you looking for?" "I'm looking for my brothers." "They're pasturing the flock somewhere near here." "They moved on. I heard them say they were going to Dothan." "Thank you." "Are you sure they went west?" "Last night I dreamt i was on one of those ships that dock in jaffa" "I had 3 women. one had red hair, the other gold, the third..." "Your dreams don't count." "You're not Joseph." "I wonder." "Father wasn't so pleased with his last dream." "That's right." "What if they are prophetic?" "All of us kneeling down to him." "Father too." "Sickening!" "Stop it." "It's only a dream." "We'll end up bowing and scraping to him." "crawling to beg for favors." "Stop it." "What is it?" "Here. brothers." "Look. the dreamer himself." "And in the coat." "I swear. I could rip it from his back." "Father sends you fresh food." "I say we kill him." "What?" "l say we kill him." "It's the only way to be done with him." "Hold your tongue." "Don't even think it." "No. no." "Simeon is right." "To kill him?" "Never!" "To teach him a lesson." "throw him in a pit..." "...but you don't spill your brother's blood!" "lt could happen." "A long journey by himself." "Thieves or mountain lions." "No. wait." "We tried this with the lamb." "Father saw through it." "Imagine what he'd make of this." "The fact that he caught us makes this one more believable" "He'd never expect us to lie a second time." "Especially about Joseph." "Brothers!" "Well?" "This is the only chance you'll ever have to be done with him." "That is right." "To assume our rightful place." "Let's do it!" "Have you lost your minds?" "You can't spill a brother's blood!" "Have you thought of the curse which will fall on us?" "Stop it!" "Stop it now before it's too late!" "Stop what?" "ignore him." "Don't speak to boys who come to work in grooms' clothing" "You come in search of more tales to.tell?" "Father wants a report. and he thinks I'm the one to do the job." "He told" "Forget what he told you." "Report on me." "and it'll be the last thing you do!" "Simeon!" "l'll do as Father instructed." "l warn you!" "Simeon. stop it!" "I'll do as Father says." "Your warning smells of too much wine." "Hold him back!" "Drop him!" "Don't do it!" "I'll remember. brother." "I'll remember that when the time came to act for ourselves. you weren't there." "No. I wasn't." "Perhaps I'm just not as big and brave as you are brother." "You're letting him go?" "What if he tells our father?" "He won't do anything." "Not Reuben." "He stands the most to gain from all this." "With Joseph gone. who else will our father put in line to replace him?" "He'll be back." "I am Joseph. hail to me!" "Take it off!" "Take it off!" "Brothers!" "Help me. brothers!" "Please!" "Help me!" "Brothers!" "Grow up. all of you!" "Sitting and moping like women." "What's done is done." "Now." "let's get on with our own business!" "The boy is our business." "Brothers!" "Was. brother. was." "There's no turning back." "lf we pulled him out?" "From the well where you helped me throw him?" "And have him tell Father what we did?" "At least he's not dead." "We could tell Father we were just trying to teach him a lesson." "And Father will teach us a thing or two." "The flocks are his. the tents." "the food. everything!" "I've worked too hard to be disowned and left with nothing." "No. brother. we'll have to see this one through because what our father doesn't know can't hurt us." "Brothers!" "Help me!" "Father!" "Judah!" "There's not much grazing left in these fields." "Judah!" "Simeon." "I think it best if you and Levi take part of the flock to fresh pastures near Shechem." "So you can fish out the boy and throw the blame on us?" "Never." "Brothers!" "Help me!" "Gad!" "Oh. do something." "Simeon." "before we all go insane!" "We should have killed him." "I'll shut him up." "You want to fight me. brother?" "lf that's what it takes." "Sould not gonna kill him." "And you're not gonna fish him out." "If that's the only way to avoid his blood on my hands then fish him out we will." "To avoid spilling his blood." "you'll have to shed mine if you can." "But I'm a reasonable man." "I'll give you till dawn to come up with another suggestion." "Help me!" "Brothers!" "Help me!" "ishmaelite traders." "Now the boy must be killed." "before they hear his damned whining." "No ,no, no." "They're the answer!" "Them?" "How?" "They can take him for a slave." "Down to Egypt." "He'll live. our hands will be clean." "If he escapes. comes back and tells Father what happened?" "ishmaelite and Egyptian slaves don't escape!" "They'd pay for him." "There's money in it for all of us. and no blood!" "Father!" "Twenty shekels. not a piece more." "ln silver?" "Of course." "Done." "What?" "What is it?" "Brothers!" "Brothers. help me!" "Please!" "Brothers!" "Brothers!" "Help me!" "Come to save him?" "I won't have his blood on my hands." "It's too late for that." "We found this on the road." "He must have gotten lost." "Wild animal." "No." "No!" "No!" "No!" "No!" "No!" "What's left to me if Joseph is dead?" "Joseph!" "Joseph!" "Here. then. master is my version of even'ts." "And may the Lord. my God." "stand by me as I speak only truth and desert me if I lie." "If you lie. I will kill you." "It was the last day of the harvest festival the gratitude to the gods." "I set about arranging the house." "believing it to be empty" "Joseph." "Mistress." "Joseph." "I thought we understood each other." "Oh. I understood you but I think you misjudged me." "So I've decided to give you a second chance." "Stop!" "Oh." "Joseph." "Perhaps...." "Perhaps if we talked more became close perhaps you might see me differently." "You might see how melancholy I am." "My husband is so busy all the time." "Loneliness is a terrible thing." "Joseph." "I know you hurt. but...." "Oh. you are not a common man." "Where does the mystery come from with you?" "Where are you from?" "This house is my home now." "Tell me about your father." "You once said he was a prince." "Does he have many herds of animals?" "Servants. fields?" "Yes." "So he's a powerful man." "Do you think he's happy with his wealth?" "I don't think my father's wealth brings him much joy." "Then what would?" "I expect if he could see me again." "You know. your freedom is within my gift." "Yes." "But I can't." "It would offend God." "You know you want me." "Look how you're shaking." "You want me as much as I want you." "Come." "Joseph." "Come lie with me." "Leave me!" "Stop!" "Who do you think you are. you fool?" "You dare lay a hand on your mistress?" "My husband would kill you for this." "is that all?" "As I swear before the Lord. my God." "Summon the household." "Good." "Let them all hear him sentenced to death." "I have heard the reports and weighed them." "The slave is guilty." "Here. then. is my decision." "As I say it. so it be written." "so it be done." "The slave is to be taken to the Pharaoh's prison and held there at my pleasure." "The jailer is to report to me weekly on his treatment and his progress." "Thus is this matter now closed." "Bring him." "You humiliated me." "You sent him to prison at your pleasure?" "What about my honor?" "What honor?" "How dare you." "I know you. wife." "I know you." "You don't understand." "Whatever you believe of me how can you let him live?" "How can you humiliate me like that?" "Because one humiliation deserves another." "Wife anyone who knows Joseph also knows that if he swears by his god he's telling the truth." "What is more important to you?" "His god..." "...or my good name?" "The truth." "Truth." "Yes. that's what matters." "Well. then you might as well set him free and complete my shame." "Wherever he is whatever happens to him he is free." "Because his god is with him." "Get in there!" "Come on!" "Move!" "God!" "My God!" "Why have you forsaken me?" "God!" "To be continued" "JOSEPH" "7 years passed" "Peace be with you. master." "Do you know about this?" "The warder said only to expect two new prisoners." "The excellence of your work here is becoming common knowledge." "They say the prisoners have never eaten better." "The warder's never been richer." "The Pharaoh has never had to spend less to keep his jails running." "Ten times a day." "I'm asked how you do it." "God blesses my work. master." "As I've seen for myself." "I know that one day he'll see me gone from this place." "He'll have to deal with the Pharaoh first." "I'm not so sure they're on speaking terms." "As you see. two very fine specimens." "Fine garments." "Royal eye tattoos." "Men of station and breeding." "The fat one is-- Well. was." "Pharaoh's baker." "The scrawny one. his cupbearer." "Important men." "How did they end up here?" "Accused of theft." "The Pharaoh's bracelet of the sun." "The mark of the true sun god." "It's gone." "Missing." "Pharaoh's seers and prognosticators say that one of these two is the culprit." "Then their lives are over." "Probably." "But you never know what can happen." "In case they get out of this place and find themselves restored at court it would serve you well to serve them well." "You understand?" "Completely. master." "You do this well." "Joseph." "and you can give me a valuable ally when the time comes to plead your case with Pharaoh himself." "May your god be with you." "I am Joseph. my lords." "I have been instructed to attend you during your stay here." "Are you the warder?" "No. my lord. his servant." "You must be the Semite who does the warder's work for him." "I am honored that you know of me. my lord." "Yes." "The court knows how well you serve your masters." "And their wives." "There are many stories that have no truth. my lord." "Are you calling Potiphar a liar. slave?" "No. my lord." "Are you calling his beautiful wife a liar?" "I accuse no one. my lord." "Really?" "Well I accuse you. slave." "I accuse you of staining Potiphar's wife's good name of calling Potiphar a liar!" "Guard!" "Guard. come here!" "Beat this man with your whip." "Careful. my friend." "We are in his prison." "His prison?" "He's a slave!" "Potiphar will thank me for punishing such insolence." "Don't look to this slave for permission." "I serve in the court of the Pharaoh." "god on earth." "Do as I tell you!" "You will not slander the name of Potiphar!" "You will not slander the name of his wife!" "He will praise me for upholding his honor!" "Slave!" "Slave!" "Slave!" "IN THE LAND OF CANAAN" "They say this season's market will be bigger than last." "I hope so." "It gets harder to scratch out a living." "Judah. you don't have the animals to prosper." "You know that." "You need good. rutting males." "healthy she-goats. ewes that-- l won't return to my father's camp." "I can't live with Jacob's sorrow." "He still mourns the loss of Joseph." "and the entire settlement is a pool of grief." "As a widower I've enough of my'own." "I will give your camel water. master." "A nice at sight." "A whore." "A Canaanite who hides her face." "They're always bewitching." "It's a strange custom." "but it adds to the mystery." "Traveler lie with me and ease your mind." "While lining your pockets." "Who can put a price on a moment's escape from the troubles of the world?" "I have no money with me." "My friend is a recent widower and while he may not have money with him. he does own fine flocks." "Perfect animals." "The softest fleece you've ever felt." "Though I can't say what someone like you might have felt." "I see no herds." "They're at the market." "I could bring you a sheep on the way back." "Tomorrow." "And until then?" "Only my word." "Then you can leave me your staff and seal as a pledge." "Tomorrow. when you bring the fleece I'll return them." "Life is hard on you?" "A barren daughter-in-law that buried my first son." "People die." "They do." "But as is the custom with my people." "I forced my second son to marry her so that his brother's wealth would not be lost." "And he. too. died." "Misfortune indeed." "You have other family?" "Eleven brothers." "Once there were 1 2 but the second youngest was taken by a wild animal." "Ever since. not a day passes but my father sheds a tear at the youngster's memory." "His sorrow was so thick l had to leave and start my own encampment." "You grieve as if the boy's death was your fault." "Never!" "There no way!" "Why would you even think such a thing?" "No injury intended." "You're a very fine woman." "Thank you." "Until tomorrow. then when I bring you your fleece and redeem my staff and seal." "Until tomorrow." "Pay homage to Potiphar." "chief steward to" "Peace be upon you. master." "Guard the door." "Ednan." "The door." "Come." "The warder says your guests aren't sleeping well." "It seems their sleep's troubled by dreams?" "They're not alone." "Strange dreams." "Full of signs." "As soon as I learned of this." "I came myself because I know of your gift for reading the messages of the night." "Redeem yourself by interpreting for them." "You can't remain silent now that they know you have this special gift." "How do they know?" "I'm due back at court." "Pharaoh's men work night and day to retrieve the bracelet." "They'll have it before long." "I hear you have the gift of second sight." "At times. master when God sees fit to grant it." "How low have we fallen?" "Listening to the ramblings of a Semite slave." "The ability to interpret dreams is a gift from God." "Then why don't you see how well he can do for you. vintner." "I intend to." "Be seated." "Joseph." "Here is my dream." "I was in a vineyard in the countryside." "There was a vine in front of me." "and on the vine were three branches one of which began to bud." "Now. no sooner had it budded than it blossomed and its clusters became rich grapes." "I had Pharaoh's cup in my hand." "I picked the grapes and I squeezed them into Pharaoh's cup." "And then I handed the cup to Pharaoh." "Now, can you interpret?" "This is what it means." "The three branches are three days." "In another three days." "the Pharaoh will lift up your head and restore you to your position." "Then you will hand the Pharaoh his cup." "as you have always done." "Rest easy." "Your days here are numbered." "Can it be true?" "Now listen to me. slave." "l. too. had a dream." "There were three wicker trays on my head." "In the top tray were all kinds of pastries for Pharaoh such as a baker might make." "But birds were eating them off the tray on my head." "Give me its meaning." "I am sorry." "I cannot interpret that dream." "You can." "I know you can." "You're hiding something from me." "Tell me what it means." "Very well." "This is what I believe your dream to mean." "The three trays are also three days." "In another three days. the Pharaoh will lift up your head as well by hanging you from a gallows." "Then the birds will eat the flesh from your bones." "The Pharaoh's bracelet has been found." "Warrants have been issued." "What does it say?" "She promised she'd be here!" "More to your good fortune she's not." "You kept your end of the bargain." "If she's not here. you get the sweet memory of her bed and get to keep your animals." "I gave her my staff and seal as a pledge. remember?" "Come. I think I can find her home." "My punishment will never end." "Never." "I am most grateful for your judgment in this matter." "I always knew. even in the darkest days." "that I could always" "Yes?" "I trust my master's stay here was made as easy as possible." "Yes. yes." "Considering the circumstances." "JACOB'S ENCAMPMENT NEAR DOTHAN" "Now , Repeat everything you have learned." "Benjamin." "The table of the descendants of Terah who was 70 when he begat Abram." "Nahor and Haran...." "Father, You know I have the lines of our family memorized." "Shouldn't I help my brothers pen the flocks?" "Their backs are strong enough for the job." "For you. this is more important." "You have to carry on the line." "But I'm the youngest." "Father." "Reuben. even Judah" "Could spend a lifetime showing me they're not up to the task." "It would have been Joseph who would've carried on the line but my other sons.... lt was a wild animal who took Joseph." "You can't go on blaming the others forever." "We must take our signs from God." "In my heart. I know Rachel was called to give us the next in line." "And with Joseph gone. that means you must keep our traditions alive." "Maintain Abraham's covenant with our Lord. blessed be his name." "Now. young man. back to the tables." "And the sons of Abraham were Isaac and Ishmael." "And Isaac begat Esau and Jacob." " Esau. who is called Edom. took his wives ..." " Father!" "Father!" "Father." "Quickly." "It's Judah." "Judah?" "Look. it's Judah!" "Judah has returned!" "Judah has returned!" "Judah!" "He's returned after all these years." "Judah!" "Reuben." "Judah." "Simeon." "Levi." "Dan!" "Naphtali." "Naphtali." "Gad." "Asher." "lssacar." "Hey." "Judah." "Zebulon." "And little Benjamin." "Though not so little anymore." "And my father." "My father." "Jacob." "Welcome to my" " Our camp." "To you and yours though I am surprised to see you." "I couldn't stay away from you." "Father." "Especially now when my clan faces a problem that needs a wiser head than mine." "What sort of problem?" "Tamar. widow of two of my sons and betrothed to Selah. my third." "is with child." "And Selah is the father?" "No." "And she refuses to say who she laid with." "And no matter how hard we press her she stays silent." "Then. by custom. she must be banished." "But by Canaanite way when a woman lies with a man other than her betrothed she must die." "What should I have done." "Father?" "I gave her my first-born in marriage." "and he died childless." "So I insisted my second son marry her." "as his duty to the family." "Still she remained barren." "Then when he died...." "You promised your son Selah." "as is our custom." "But I kept delaying the marriage." "The woman's cursed." "Father." "She buries husbands before there are sons to replace them." "I'm lost two boys I loved." "Should I have risked a third?" "I know the pain of losing a child you love dearly." "I know it well." "Yes?" "She'll speak of anything you ask except the father of the child in her stomach." "And she's unafraid." "This is not our problem." "Jacob." "That much is true." "Judah." "You left this camp and established your own line." "You must be responsible for yourself and the decisions you made." "We'll take her back to our camp." "There. by Canaanite custom she must die." "We leave at first light." "Fine-looking flock." "Well. there is rumor there's some outbreak of fever among...." "So. what do you have?" "A knife?" "You think that by killing me you can save your own life?" "You do me a favor. whore!" "By trying to spill my blood. you justify my own decision to see you executed." "You?" "I only did it because I wanted a child." "This child that is rightfully mine." "A son to continue the name of my husband Er your own son and first-born." "But you didn't give Selah to me when he came of age. as you should have done." "You're a very courageous girl." "Tamar." "But not brave enough to face death." "That won't happen." "I have enough to answer for." "The crime of taking your life for something I have done is more than I can bear." "You were right and I was wrong." "I should have given you to Selah." "The only sin there is belongs to me." "You will live to have your child and raise him as a mother should living in your own tent with respect and love." "Pay heed as the god Ra walks among you." "Pay heed to the Pharaoh." "sun of the heavens Ra incarnate." "The Pharaoh is Ra." "Ra is the Pharaoh." "As the god Ra fills the heavens with the sun so the Pharaoh Ra on earth does the same here below." "Potiphar. the gods must be blinding you." "A fool can see I shed no light." "The Pharaoh is not well." "Physician. attend the god on earth!" "It's not my body that ails!" "If you knew your signs. vizier you'd see it's my heart that weighs me down." "I'm beginning to wonder if you know your art." "If the Pharaoh is in pain." "then let him speak of it and the answer will be his." "Dreams. I am haunted by dreams." "I dreamt...." "l dreamt I was in the great river..." "Near me were seven wonderfully fat and gentle water cows who seemed to float along with me." "It was serene." "So very serene." "But we were not alone." "Horrible. starving cows suddenly appeared and the thin. wretched cows ate the sleek. fat cows." "I woke in a cold sweat and. to my horror when I finally got back to sleep." "I had a second dream just as frightening." "In this dream there were seven plump ears of corn growing on a stalk." "Then seven blighted ears meager and scorched by the east wind... .. .sprouted teeth and devoured the good ears." "What can these dreams possibly mean?" "They can't be a good sign." "Let us begin." "A cup of wine." "Majesty. as might be expected from the messages to god there is a balance in these holy dreams." "First. the sacred. life-giving Nile and then the divine presence of the omnipotent Pharaoh himself." "The healthy cows and then the lean cows." "The ripe ears and then the unripe ears." "I know what was in the dreams." "I had them!" "Your job is to tell me what they mean." "We do not know." "Majesty." "How can you remain silent when you know of a man who can ease your Pharaoh's mind?" "I dare not. master." "The Pharaoh's mood is black." "I dare not remind him that I was in his disfavor." "Come on. man." "Don't be a fool." "But I am a humble wine-bearer. master." "It is for you." "Potiphar." "the chief steward." "It is for you to speak up." "More wine!" "May I speak with you." "Pharaoh?" "Only so others may not hear." "You'd have the dreams of your Pharaoh interpreted by an alien slave?" "Sire?" "The Semite slave interpreted both this man's dreams and that of the baker." "He saw the Pharaoh's hand in our dreams and predicted his judgments accurately." "Well. this slave of yours." "how is he called?" "Joseph. sire." "Bring me Joseph, the semite from the dungeon  and tell him nothing about my dreams." "What is this?" "I order you. speak!" "What are you doing?" "Please." "What have I done?" "Lie prostrate. quick." "I cannot." "You know that." "You what?" "Truly. the Pharaoh is greatness itself but. sire. my faith decrees I can kneel only before God himself." "Even on pain of death." "Come forward." "Take heed. magicians." "Whatever else. I know this man won't lie to me to save his life." "Look upon my face." "But surely. great Pharaoh." "this is forbidden." "Only to people who know our god." "Since you hold some primitive being in higher regard I expect that you can look upon me without burning up." "Try it." "I'm told you've learned the secret of reading messages of the night." "Interpreting dreams is not a thing to be learned." "Pharaoh." "It is a gift from God." "Careful!" "One mention too many of this god and you'll be at his side with your head under your arm." "So you've been given this gift?" "I imagine we shall soon see." "Pharaoh." "Your life depends upon what we shall see." "Now. listen carefully." "In my dream... .. .there were seven cows." "fat and sleek and they grazed peacefully...." "He is a very beautiful boy." "Yes. he is." "Do you know what his crime was?" "I've heard the rumors." "but I don't believe it." "He doesn't strike me as a fool and everyone knows that Potiphar's wife deceives him." "I've never seen such poor cows in all of Egypt." "But it was impossible to tell they had eaten the fat cows for they looked as wretched as ever." "Was there a second dream?" "We have told him nothing. sire." "Yes." "In the second dream there were seven ears of grain." "beautifully ripe." "Then. sprouting up behind them were seven withered ears of grain which devoured the ripe ones." "God has revealed to Pharaoh what he intends to do." "Yes?" "Pharaoh's dreams are one and the same." "The seven fine cows and seven ripe ears of grain represent seven years of plenty." "The seven wretched cows and seven shriveled ears of grain are years of great want." "There will be seven years of famine. my lord." "Madness." "Madness!" "As if my brother. the sun." "and sister. the moon would send me messages only a slave could read!" "Potiphar. take him from my sight!" "Get him back to his dungeon and keep him there until I decide how best to deal with him." "No!" "No!" "No!" "Husband. another dream to ruin all our sleep?" "No. the same one." "This is too important to ignore." "I'm lost. wife." "Help me." "Me?" "And risk your anger?" "No. I'll keep my own counsel. my lord." "Asenath here. on the other hand...." "Yes." "Let me guess." "She's so taken with this foreign slave." "Oh. yes." "Nothing escapes Pharaoh's eye." "young woman." "She thinks he has the answer." "By your own word." "Iord. we know he does nothing against his conscience even on pain of death." "And you yourself seem reluctant to see him hanged." "There must be a reason you held your mighty hand spared him to live to see another day." "I've thought long and hard of your reading of my messages." "Have you?" "Yes. master." "And?" "I am certain that Pharaoh has been blessed by a warning from the Lord himself." "So assume. then. that your reading is accurate." "is there nothing we can do to prevent this disaster?" "Yes. master. there is." "How?" "Pharaoh must select a wise and honest man and set him above the land of Egypt." "He must see that Pharaoh's overseers collect a fifth of what is produced during the years of plenty and store it for use during the years of famine." "In that way." "Egypt will not be destroyed by the drought." "lmpossible." "Storing seven years of grain." "It's impossible." "is there no other way to avert disaster?" "No. master." "Nothing like this has ever been attempted ." "So a fifth of all the harvest would be entrusted to Pharaoh." "Yes. master." "All Egypt would be required to pay you this tribute." "It would call for a man of exceptional talent." "That excludes each of you!" "Potiphar. perhaps." "The answer is obvious." "There could be no better man for this job than this man himself." "Can we find anyone endowed with the spirit of god as he is?" "I think not." "Well said. wife." "Now. hear the word of Pharaoh." "Ra on earth. god as man:" "You shall be my chancellor." "And all my people shall respect your orders." "Only this throne shall set me above you." "I make you the governor of all of Egypt." "I set you over my house my people. my entire kingdom." "Without your consent." "no man shall lift up hand or foot in all of Egypt." "Your name shall be Zaphenath-paneah." "And this fine woman shall be your wife." "The Pharaoh is Ra." "He sees into the depths of every being." "God has seen and spoken." "Pharaoh is Ra." "Pharaoh is Ra." "Pharaoh is Ra." "This time.the blessing of your god makes you a master. even me." "Pharaoh is Ra." "Pharaoh is Ra." "I trust you will treat me kindly.." "What is your name?" "Asenath." "I'm the daughter of the high priest of On." "Execuse me.But what is my name?" "I've forgotten it." "Zaphenath-paneah." "Zaphenath-paneah." "What does it mean?" ""The savior."" " The savior." " Am I pleasing you?" "Yes." "Yes." "Greatly." "I present to you Zaphenath-paneah." "Zaphenath_paneah!" "If you permit me." "Joseph ... I'm sorry." "Zaphenath-paneah." "In this great task." "you'll need someone at your side as you were once at mine." "To serve thee. master would be a high honor .." "...but my sins against you are many." "On your feet." "Ednan." "Forgiveness is greater than vengeance..." "As I myself have learned." "May your god watch over you." "Like all Egypt my life depends on it." "Go now." "Go." "Zaphenath_paneah!" "Zaphenath_paneah!" "Make way!" "Make way there!" "Make way!" "My son." "How fortunate a child to have so beautiful a mother." "Have you decided on a name for your son?" "He shall be called Manasseh which in my tongue means "causing to forget."" "And God has made me forget my hardship." "I doubt that you've forgotten the house of your father." "Joseph." "Jacob would be pleased to learn his son has become the second-most powerful man in the world." "And your beloved brother Benjamin would be pleased as well." "I wonder what sort of a man Benjamin has become." "Perhaps he. too. has a son." "But it's not for me to know." "Not yet." "God in his own good time will decide." "My place now is here with you and Manasseh." "Manasseh!" "Ephraim!" "7 YEARS HAVE PASSED" "Ready?" "Ready!" "Father." "Father!" "Father." "Father!" "Manasseh." "Ephraim." "You should be learning the ciphers." "Season started well." "The Nile flooded. but the rains didn't last long enough." "If it goes on like this." "there'll be no crop to speak of this year." "Zaphenath-Paneah!" "Come quickly!" "Fires are raging out of control in the fields north of the city." "It's begun as God promised." "The wells are clogging. but they'll hold." "And for a while. at any rate. there'll be water to drink." "But the grain runs low." "Two phases of the moon and we'll have to eat the animals instead of feeding them." "Once they are gone." "Father" "And without grain for us and the animals" "Starvation kills us all." "Unless...." "Well." "Hirah. my old friend and ally says the reports of vast stocks of grain and fodder in Egypt are true." "Which is all well and good for the Egyptians. but why should they care..." "...what happens to us?" "They don't." "But they do care what happens to our money." "He's already sent his caravan with silver and loom-work to trade." "As if an Egyptian trader can be trusted." "Listen for once." "It's not in the hands of private traders." "Their Pharaoh has set one man above all others to supervise his affairs." "You should deal with him." "We are not people who measure our wealth in silver." "We can't carry fields to Egypt." "The animals would die before we go there." "We'd better move eastward." "Asher. don't interrupt." "Over the years the tribe has earned some silver and gold." "I've kept it because I believed that one day God would show us a use for it." "Could there be a better use than this?" "No. I think not." "It's a long trek." "and the roads are filled with thieves." "Which is why you must all go." "Properly armed. you'll find there's safety in numbers." "All of us?" "And who will tend to things here?" "There'll be nothing to tend if you don't go." "All of you except for Benjamin." "But." "Father" "Enough." "You're the last link to Rachel left." "I will not see you lost as I did Joseph." "Prepare the animals." "You leave at nightfall." "I'll give you the silver then." "First he raised Joseph above us." "now Benjamin." "Then so be it!" "We'll not tease God a second time." "Ednan." "Yes. master. it's just" "Well. this man's dialect. I know" "Never mind." "Give him what he needs." "Go." "Go!" "Are you well." "Zaphenath-paneah?" "They're here. I'm sure they're here." "Who?" "My brothers." "Your brothers?" "The ones in Canaanite dress." "What should I do. master?" "Bring them to me." "You. you. you." "Come. all of you. come!" "This way." "Bring them all." "All of these men." "You. you. you. come!" "And you!" "Lift your heads." "Look upon your master." "They don't even recognize me." "O mighty one. have mercy." "We come from Canaan." "where the drought destroys everything." "We bring silver to trade so that we and our families might survive." "Your master.Zaphenath-paneah asks why your Canaanite gods do not provide for your needs." "We're not like the other Canaanites." "great master." "We worship our own God." "But we sojourn in the land of Canaan." "The master says you are spies." "Spies?" "No. master." "Our father sent us to buy food." "The master says no. you are spies." "sent to see the weakness of Egypt." "No. master." "We are nothing more than shepherds. sons of Jacob. son of Isaac." "What man would send all his sons on such a mission and leave himself alone?" "What you see are not all his sons." "One other the youngest he is called Benjamin." "remains with our father." "A man is fortunate indeed to have such a wealth of sons." "Are you sure you speak the truth of your number?" "There was one other. master." "A brother called Joseph." "but he was taken from us." "What enemy would send 1 O brothers as spies?" "One or two perhaps. but 10?" "Take them!" "Now!" "Take them!" "No!" "No!" "Why us?" "There were hundreds there today." "and the Egyptians picked us out to be spies." "not fool yourself" "We must be able to prove he's wrong." "What would you suggest. brother?" "We probably wouldn't be here if you'd paid more respect." "Leave it alone!" ""One or two brothers perhaps. but 10?"" "What kind of fool uses an excuse like that?" "what kind of fool would use an excuse like that?" "Stop it!" "Stop it!" "Arguing won't get us out of here." "Then what will?" "Not what. but who!" "God." "Is this his final punishment for what we did?" "No!" "Now we know how Joseph must have felt." "Not quite!" "We have each other." "You left him alone!" ""you"?" "We!" "We put him in the well." "There's no point dwelling on that!" "For 20 years." "you've harped on the same thing." "But what's done is done!" "And one thing has nothing to do with another!" "Are you sure. brother?" "That's the last you speak of it!" "Reuben. no!" "Give it back. it's mine!" "No!" "It's mine. I found it." "I did." "No." "Manasseh." "Ephraim." "Look what Manasseh did." "Yes. yes. we can't have that." "Joseph. are you ill?" "Then what is it?" "I saw my brothers today." "That's wonderful." "You always said they'd come to you." "More good fortune from the troubles." "They came to the granary." "The drought has reached Canaan." "I wish I could've been there to see their faces when they saw you." "The governor of all of Egypt." "You would have been disappointed." "I've waited all these years and they did not even recognize me." "How can that be possible?" "It's been over 20 years since they last saw me. I was still a boy." "Not surprising." "Where are they now?" "In the prison." "In the prison?" "Why?" "Because my anger was stronger than my compassion." "And what will you do with them?" "My father's people are in need of food." "I must send them back." "Why not just reveal yourself to them." "Because they seem unchanged no different from when they betrayed me." "Perhaps God will reveal a way to test them." "How?" "I'm not sure." "Well. I want to see these men to whom I owe my happiness." "After all. it was their cruelty that brought you here gave you to me. saved Egypt." "And it's to them our children owe their existence." "Another of your curious insights." "But I'm not so sure God is ready to see this thing forgotten." "God. or you?" "You must bring them." "I have to at least meet little Benjamin." "Benjamin was left with my father." "I'm sorry." "I know he's the one who counted most." "But they are all your brothers." "Blood of your blood." "Your master.Zaphenath-Paneah will allow you to buy the grain you need to feed your people." "These sacks have provisions for your journey." "But the accusations against you still stand." "Evidence that your story is true and you're not spies will depend upon proof of the existence of the missing brother." "But your master.Zaphenath-Paneah. is a merciful man." "Thus. he will keep only one of you here." "He will be released when the rest of you return from Canaan with that brother." "He wish us to return to our father then journey once again to Egypt?" "'" "Yes." "With the missing brother." "That one shall remain with us." "No!" "No!" "No!" "Now. go!" "Leave!" "And return swiftly with the missing brother." "You've probably seen the last of them;" "Master." "It will be difficult for them to keep away." "The drought has just begun." "The silver they gave in payment." "did you do what I asked?" "As ever. master." "There was water here at least." "We camp here tonight." "lssacar.lssacar." "Open your bag of grain and feed the animals." "What's this?" "The silver I used to buy the grain." "What kind of game is God playing with us now?" "We can't stay here." "Feed the animals quickly." "We'll travel through the night." "Father!" "Father's home!" "Father's returned!" "Father!" "Father!" "Levi." "Nephtali." "No!" "But the only proof of our story he'll accept is Benjamin." "And the only way to redeem Simeon." "But after that. he promises we can trade freely in Egypt." "The grain is abundant. the best quality." "is this is all the Egyptian asks?" "Just for my youngest?" "is there more to this sorry tale?" "What is that?" "The money with which we purchased the grain." "What's it doing here?" "We don't know." "Father." "Perhaps God" "Be careful what you lay at the door of the Lord." "Blessed be His name.." "Blessed be His name.." "Why..why did you tell this man I've another son?" "First I lose Joseph. then Simeon." "And you. poor soul." "want me to give him Benjamin." "Well. hear my words." "It will not happen." "I will never. never risk Benjamin to your care." "Never!" "But." "Father." "Simeon rots in an Egyptian jail like a common criminal." "How do I know Benjamin won't meet that same fate?" "Or this Egyptian might put you all to the sword?" "My father,perhaps if I went" "Quiet, you have no say in this." "Father!" "I cannot leave Simeon there." "Please." "let me do as this Egyptian suggests." "If we don't return. I offer you the lives of my own two sons." "A typical idea of yours." "Reuben." "If I lose Benjamin. I can begin exterminating my entire family." "is that your grand solution?" "Now. hear me!" "This is my last son by Rachel." "I will not risk losing him." "Now. go about your business and pray." "Pray that the grain you brought back will outlast the drought." "Nowhere to go." "Father." "We don't have many choices left." "You know my mind in this matter!" "We will not talk of it again!" "Another month and we'll not talk of anything." "Soon we will all die and the line started by Abraham will have vanished." "And what would you have me do?" "Listen for once." "Think about what God promised you." "Then listen to your sons and see if what they have to say doesn't make sense." "Unless you want to see us all die because you're too frightened to trust God." "What has this to do with trusting God?" "Isn't it obvious?" "He's left you only one way out." "One road to our survival." "And it leads through Egypt." "Egypt is our only salvation." "Jacob." "Jacob." "Come." "These are the finest gifts we can offer." "Present them to the Egyptian along with this." "Silver enough for double payment for the grain you will buy and the grain you brought back." "Have an easy mind." "Father." "All will be well." "I know it." "May God go with you at your right hand and bring you back safely to me." "Why have we been brought here to the great man's house?" "Because of the silver we found in our sacks.I'm sure." "But we don't know how it got there." "All we need do is be truthful" "Silver?" "What silver?" "I know I received payment for your grain." "But we had money in our grain nonetheless." "Here. we offer double repayment." "You owe us nothing." "Whatever you found must be a gift from that god of yours." "Master. our other brother." "Simeon." "He's in health?" "Alive. you mean?" "Simeon!" "Welcome to Egypt!" "Are you all right?" "Where did you get the tunic?" "ls that linen?" "The answer to every question is yes." "I don't really understand it." "But from the time you went away." "I sat back eating and drinking like the Pharaoh himself." "Come." "You must be washed before you dine with the master." "You will sit here aside from the master." "This is a great honor." "Egyptians never eat with strangers." "To them. it is considered an abomination." "Now. you will sit in the order I tell you." "Please." "Benjamin. you will sit here." "So that's Benjamin." "A handsome young man if ever I saw one." "And I hope a pure spirit." "Gad." "Enough delay." "Asher." "issacar." "Zebulon." "Zaphenath-paneah he who guides us on the road of life." "Lift up your heads." "Your master asks." "is your father in good health?" "Yes. master. and he sends you these gifts as homage." "So this is the brother of whom you spoke." "What is your name?" "I am Benjamin. master." "How is it. master that you come to speak ou'r tongue?" "Have you been to our land?" "God be gracious to you. my son." "Was I wrong to ask the master how he came to speak our tongue?" "The master has traveled widely." "He understands a great deal." "Look." "We're sitting according to the order of our birth." "Reuben and Simeon Levi Judah." "Dan Naphtali." "Gad and Asher lssacar.Zebulon finally me." "I divined the order of your birth by looking into my magic cup." "It is a great honor." "The master has given you the food from his own plate." "Thank you. master." "We eat the same dish at home." "In fact. this is the favorite food of my father." "I could have done with a little more sleep." "I don't understand." "He was so friendly last night." "Yet now he has us roused from our beds before the cock crows and sends us on our way." "Look. our asses are already loaded down with grain." "Why did you return good with evil?" "What can you possibly mean?" "You deny stealing from my master?" "What kind of fools would you take us for?" "This." "If you find anything." "you can kill the culprit and make slaves of the rest of us." "What have you done. you little fool?" "Have you taken leave of your senses?" "Why did you do such a wicked thing?" "Master. we have done nothing." "Then how do you explain it?" "God is punishing us for a crime we committed many years ago." "It seems he wants us all to taste the bitterness of slavery for surely we are all your slaves now." "I am not a vindictive man." "You can return to your father." "I shall keep only Benjamin." "No!" "You dare raise your voice to me?" "Men can die for less." "A thousand pardons. master but the very idea is unthinkable." "Master. I cannot pretend to grasp the meaning of these strange happenings." "Benjamin has never stolen in his life." "Never. master." "And he's too clever to take a cherished object from a man as powerful as you." "Nor do I know how the money got into our sacks in the previous trip." "Perhaps it was all the work of God." "Master. please." "Spare the life of Benjamin." "beloved son of our father's old age." "Losing Benjamin would kill our old father whom we have already wounded deeply." "Take me as a slave in place of Benjamin." "Allow the boy to go home to his father." "No." "Benjamin will stay with me." "No!" "I'm sorry. master. but we must take the boy back to our father!" "Or die in the attempt?" "We'd rather die 1000 times than see such pain in our father's eyes again!" "Or live another 20 years of wretched cowardice!" "No. master!" "So you are now ready to sacrifice your lives for one of your brothers?" "Why. then. did you not do the same for the other one?" "The one you said died. when. in truth." "you yourselves sold him into slavery." "You know about Joseph?" "How?" "Because he is alive." "Alive" "What?" "He's here in this palace." "Joseph. alive?" "In fact. he's in this room." "Leave us." "I said." "leave us." "Get out!" "Guards!" "Come!" "I am Joseph." "Joseph?" "Joseph?" "It is my brother Joseph!" "Yes." "It is I." "But be at peace." "Come closer." "Don't be afraid. I will not harm you." "Am I to take the place of God?" "Joseph." "It is not for me to punish you." "You meant evil against me. yes." "But God meant it for good." "To bring it about that many people should be kept alive. as they are today." "So fear not." "I shall provide for you and for your families and especially for our father." "I am most to blame." "I deserve to be enslaved or killed." "No." "My brother I shall not kill you." "That is not the lesson the Lord." "blessed be his name. has put before us." "Blessed be his name." "Perhaps we have learned the meaning of brotherhood. of family." "And that wherever we may go." "no matter how God's plan separates us we must always be true to one another to be family." "You must return for our father." "Tell him of what I have achieved and move him here with all your belongings." "I want you near me in the land of Goshen , so I may provide for you during the remaining years of the famine." "I have spoken to the Pharaoh." "All is prepared." "Come to me." "Come to me." "I'm your brother." "I am Joseph." "Blessed be his name." "Blessed be his name." "Blessed be his name." "Father." "Father." "Truly. this is my Joseph." "My son. my son." "I did not think to ever see your face again." "And these. I see to be my grandchildren." "Rachel's light shines in their eyes." "Come. come. my children." "Come that I might bless you." "Come." "I am indeed blessed that I have again held you in my arms and laid eyes upon your sons." "Now. truly. I can die in peace." "There will be no talk of death. my father." "Then God will it." "And then you will take me back to Canaan the land God promised Abraham." "And it willl be as the Lord promised" "Our descendants shall be known as Israel and will be a multitude of nations each brother unto himself a tribe of Israel."