Book of Jasher (Sefer haYashar) 11 part 1/2

~156~ In those days after the death of Isaac, God commanded and called a famine over the whole land. At that time, Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, was sitting on his throne in the land of Egypt, and he sat in bed at night and dreamed dreams. And he was at his stand, and he saw, and behold, seven cows, healthy in flesh and good, coming up from the pasture. And after them came seven other cows, thin in flesh and very bad, and the seven bad ones swallowed up the seven good ones, and they still look bad as in the beginning. And he slept and slept and dreamed again, and he saw and behold seven ears of corn rising in one line, full and good. And seven fine ears of corn sprouted after them in the morning wind, and the fine ears swallowed up the full ones, and Pharaoh ended his dream. And it came to be in the morning, and the king remembered his dreams, and his spirit was greatly troubled by his dreams. And the king hastened and sent and called all the leaders of Egypt and the wise men, and they came and stood before the king. And the king said to them, I have dreamed dreams and they do not have a solution. And they said to the king, please tell your servants your dreams and we will hear them. And the king told them his dreams, and they answered and said with one voice to the king, May the king live forever and this is the solution to your dreams. The seven good cows that you saw, seven daughters will be born to you at the end of days. And the seven evil cows that come up after them and devour them, and you see the sign that the daughters that will be born to you will all die in the lifetime of the king. And what you saw in the second dream, seven full and good sheaves coming up in one line, this is their solution seven cities will be built for you in all the land of Egypt at the end of days. And when you saw seven ears of corn growing after them and devoured them, and your eyes see a sign that the cities you will build will all be destroyed at the end of days during the king's lifetime. And these things happened in their words, and the king did not incline his ears to their words and did not put his heart to them, because the king knew in his wisdom that they did not solve the dreams correctly. And it came to pass that they spoke before the king, and the king answered them as said. What is this thing that you spoke to me that was not a lie and a lie that you took out of your mouth, but please tell me the solution to my dreams correctly and you will not die.

~157~ And the king commanded after that, and they sent and called other sages and they came and stood before the king. And the king told them his dreams, and they all answered it as the first solution. And the king's face was angry and he was very angry about it, and the king said to them, do not you speak lies and tell lies in your words. And the king commanded and they spread a voice throughout the land of Egypt to the effect. On behalf of the king and his nobles, every wise man who knows and understands how to solve dreams who does not come before the king today, will be put to death. And there was the man who would tell the king the solution to his dreams about truth, he would be given everything he asked from the king. And all the wise men of the land of Egypt shall come before the king, and all the magicians and all the sorcerers that are in Egypt, and in Goshen, and in Rameses, and in Tahpanchas, and in Tsiwan, and in all the borders of Egypt. And they all stood before the king, and also all the priests and all the ministers and servants belonging to the king came together from all the cities of Egypt, and they all sat before the king. And the king told his dreams before the wise men and all the ministers, and all those sitting before the king were amazed at the sight. And all the sages who were before the king were divided into many parts in solving his dreams. Of them they resolved to the king to say, the seven good cows are the seven kings who will stand over Egypt from the king's seed. And the seven bad cows, seven ministers will stand over them in the last days and the seal. And the seven good crops are the seven great ministers of Egypt, who will fall at the hands of seven ministers of their powerless enemies in the wars of the king's lords. And of those who resolved to the king as this thing to be said. The seven good cows are the seven cities of all the powerful Egyptians, and the seven bad cows are the seven gentiles of the land of Canaan who will come upon the seven cities of Egypt at the end of time and destroy them with them. And since you saw the seven good and bad crops in the second dream, this is a sign that the government of Egypt will once again be for your seed as it was in the beginning. And it was perfect and all the people of the cities of Egypt returned to all the seven cities of Canaan that were stronger than them and they destroyed them, and all the kingdoms of Egypt returned to your seed. And of them he said to the king, this is the solution to your dreams, the seven good cows, seven kingdoms here that you will take for women in the end of days. And the seven evil cows, as a sign that all the women will die during the king's lifetime. And the seven good and bad crops that you saw in the second dream are their fourteen sons and it was in the last days and they fought among themselves, and the seven of them defeated the seven strongest of them.

~158~ And they will say to the king like these words to say, the seven good cows will give birth to seven sons for you and the seven sons of your partner will be killed in the end of days. And the seven good crops that you saw in the second dream are those ministers who will be fought by seven other ministers who are not as strong as them and will corrupt them in the end of days and your sons will take revenge on them, and the kingdom will return to your seed. And the king heard all the words of the wise men of Egypt and all the solutions to his dreams, and not all of them were true in the eyes of the king. And the king knew in his wisdom that they did not speak to him correctly, in all their words together. Because it was from God to thwart the words of the wise men of Egypt, so that Joseph would come out of the house of exiles and so that they would grow up in Egypt. And the king saw that none of the wise men and sages of Egypt had spoken to him correctly, and the king was also very jealous and his anger burned in him. And the king commanded, and all the wise men and all the hypocrites were brought out from before him, and they all went out in shame and shame from before the king. And the king commanded, and they sent a word in Egypt that all the wise men and all the crooks in Egypt should die, and none of them would live. And the chief cooks who belonged to the king stood up and each drew his sword, and began to strike the prows of Egypt and its wise men. And it came to pass after that, that the minister of the king's estates, who belonged to the king, came from Mirod, and bowed to the king and sat before him. And the minister of the waters said to the king, May the king live forever and may his kingdom increase in the land. You whipped your servant in those days for two years and days and you will put me on guard, me and the master of the bakers. And there with us in the pit was a Hebrew servant whose name was Yosef, the minister of the cooks, because his master was angry with him and put him there in the prison and he served us there. And there were days when we were on guard duty and had dreams one night me and the minister of the bakers, each of us dreamed the solution to his dream. And we will come and face that servant in the morning, and he will solve our dreams for us, and a man according to his dream will solve for us a correct answer. And when he resolved for us, so was the matter, he did not fall to the ground from all his words. And now, my lord the king, don't kill all the people of Egypt for nothing, because here is that slave who is still forbidden in the house of the chief cook, his master, in the prison. If it is good for the king, he will send for him and come before you, and he will inform you of the solution to the dream that you dreamed about.

~159~ And the king heard the words of the Minister of Agriculture, and the king commanded not to kill the wise men of Egypt. And the king ordered his servants to bring Joseph before him, and the king said to them, "Do not frighten him, lest he be frightened and not know how to speak properly." And the king's servants went to Yosef and pulled him out of the pit, and the king's servants shaved him and he changed his prison clothes and came before the king. And the king sits on his royal throne in royal clothing, vested in a golden vest. And the stripe on it glitters, and the luster and the ruby ​​and the garnet sparkle. And all the stones of glory that are on the king's head are enflamed, and Joseph is very surprised by the king. And the chair on which the king sits is covered with gold with stones of seventy degrees. And their trial was in all the land of Egypt, every man who came to speak to the king, and if there was a man who sang and was important in the eyes of the king, he went up to the king on the throne up to the thirty-one degree, and the king went down to the thirty-six degree and spoke with him. And if the people's strings he went up to three degrees, and the king came down at the fourth and spoke with him. And their trial was further, every man who understood how to speak in all seventy languages ​​and ascended seventy degrees and ascended and ascended and spoke until he arrived before the king. And every person who does not complete the seventy, will ascend to the ranks as a number who knows and understands the matter. And the judgment of Egypt was in those days that no one would reign over them, but a man who knew how to speak in seventy languages. And it came to pass when Joseph came before the king, and they bowed down to the king on the ground, and he went up to the three degrees and sat on the third degree. And the king went down to him, and sat on the fourth floor and talked with Joseph. And the king said to Yosef, I dreamed a dream and it is not to be resolved on the right. And I will command today and they will come before all the leaders of Egypt and all her wise men and I will tell them my dreams, and there is no one who can interpret them for me. And then I heard about you this day because you are wise, who will hear every dream and solve it on the right. And Joseph answered Pharaoh saying, Pharaoh will tell his dream that he dreamed that God does not have solutions. And Pharaoh told Joseph his dreams, the dream of the cows and the dream of the oats, and the king was able to speak.

~160~ And the Spirit of God clothed Yosef at that time before the king, and he knew all the things that would come upon the king from that day forward. And he knew the solution to the king's dream was correct, and he spoke before the king. And Joseph found favor in the king's eyes, the king inclined his ears and his heart and heard all Joseph's words. And Joseph said to Pharaoh, the king should not think that two dreams are but one dream. Because what the God of heaven wanted to do in all the land, he showed the king in his dream and this is the solution to your dream about correctness. The seven cows and the seven good crops for seven years, and the seven cows and the seven bad crops for seven years, is one dream. Here are seven years coming, a great seven in all the land. And after that there will come seven and two famines followed by a very heavy famine, and all that seven will be forgotten from the land and the famine will consume all the inhabitants of the land, the king dreamed one dream. And every year the dream to the king, because it is very true and God is in a hurry to make it happen. And now I will advise you with advice, and relieve your soul and the souls of the inhabitants of the land from the scourge of hunger. That you will seek in all your kingdoms a wise and very wise man who knows all the things of the kingdom, and you will be able to go out and come over the whole land of Egypt. And that man whom you will place over Egypt will command officials under his hand, and they will collect all the food of the good years to come and accumulate wild and put it in the treasuries of your officials. And keep that food until the second famine, and it will be found for you and your people and all your land, and you and all your land will not die of hunger. And all the inhabitants of your land shall be commanded, and they shall gather every man of the grain of his field, of all the food of the seven good years, and shall give in their treasures, and it shall be found for them in the days of famine, and they shall live on it. This is the solution to your dream of being right, and this is the advisory advice to cement your soul and the souls of all your servants. And the king answered and said to Joseph, who will say and who knows that your words are true. And Joseph said to the king, This is a sign to you about all my words because they are true and my advice is good for you. Here is your wife sitting on the crisis on this day, and she bore you a son and you rejoiced in him. And when the child came out of his mother's womb and your son died in the womb that was born to you two years ago, and you were comforted by the child that was born to you today. And Joseph was able to speak all these things to the king, and he bowed down to the king and went out.

~161~ And it came to pass when Joseph went out from the presence of the king, and these signs came to him which Joseph spoke to the king that day. And the queen gave birth to a son that day, and the king was informed of his son and rejoiced. And it came to pass when the tidings went forth from the presence of the king, and the king's servants found the king's firstborn son falling to the ground dead. And there was a shout and a commotion in the king's house, and the king heard and said, "What is the commotion and the shout that I heard in the house?" And they told the king that his firstborn son had died, so the king knew that all the words of Joseph that he had spoken to him were true. And the king consoled his son for the child born to him that day, when Joseph spoke to him. After these words, the king will send and gather all his ministers and servants and all the minors and servants belonging to the king, and they will all come before the king. And the king said to them, Behold, you have seen and heard all the words of the Hebrew man and all the signs that he said that they had come, and he did not fall from all his words that he spoke to the earth. I knew that the solution to the dream that was solved correctly would come and come, and now please take advice and know what to do and how the country will escape the famine. Please ask and see who is found, who has wisdom and knowledge in his heart and I will deposit him in the land. Because you have heard the advice that the Hebrew man gave about this, to save the land from famine. And I knew that the land would not escape the famine, except with the advice of the Hebrew man who advised me. And they all answered the king and said, the advice that the Hebrew gave about this is good. And now, my lord the king, here is all your land in your hands, do what is good in your eyes. What you desire and what you know in your wisdom, who is wise to cement the land with his wisdom, is the one whom the king will place under his hand over the land. And the king said to all the ministers, I said after God made known to the Hebrew man all that he had spoken, there is no one as wise and wise as him in all the land. If it is good in your eyes, I will put him on the earth, because he is the one who will save the earth with all his wisdom.

~162~ And all the ministers answered the king and said, And it is not written in the religion of Egypt, and it shall not pass that no man shall reign in Egypt, nor shall it matter to the king, except he who knows all the languages ​​of men. And now, my lord the king, here is the Hebrew man, he will speak nothing but the Hebrew language, and how will we have a Mishnah for someone who does not know our language as well. But please send for him and he will come before you and please try him in everything, and when you see do it. And the king said to do so for tomorrow and the thing you spoke was good, and all the ministers went out from before the king that day. And it came to pass that night, that God sent one of his ministering angels before him, and he came to the land of Egypt to Joseph. And the angel of the Lord stood over Joseph, and behold, Joseph was lying in bed for the night in his master's house in the pit, because his master had returned him to the pit because of his wife. And the angel woke him up from his sleep, and Joseph got up and stood on his feet, and behold, the angel of God was standing before him. And the angel of God spoke to Joseph and taught him all the language of man that night, and called his name Joseph. And the angel of God went away from him, and Joseph returned and lay down in his bed, and Joseph was astonished at the sight he saw. And it came to pass in the morning, that the king sent for his ministers and his servants, and they all came and sat before the king. And the king commanded to bring Joseph, and the king's servants went and brought Joseph before Pharaoh, and the king commanded, and Joseph ascended the throne, and Joseph spoke to the king in all languages. And Yosef went up and spoke to the king until he arrived before the king at the height of seventy, and sat before the king. And the king was very happy for Yosef, and all the king's ministers were very happy with the king when they heard all of Yosef's words. And it was better in the eyes of the king and the ministers to entrust Joseph as viceroy over all the land of Egypt. And the king spoke to Joseph saying, You gave me advice to place in all the land of Egypt a wise man to save the land from famine with his wisdom. And now after you have informed them of all this and all the things you have spoken, there is no one as wise and prudent as you in all the land. And your name will no longer be called Yosef, because if you have enciphered a cipher, that will be your name, you will be my Mishnah and by your mouth will be all my royal words, and at your words they will go out and come with me. Even under your hand my servants and servants will take their law which will be given to them every month in its month and to you all the people of the land will bow down, only in the seat that belongs to me I will be greater than you.

~163~ And the king removed his ring from his hand, and put it on Joseph's hand. And the king clothed Joseph in a royal robe and put a gold crown on his head, and put a gold ribbon on his neck. And the king ordered his servants and they put Joseph in the second chariot belonging to the king, which goes in front of the king's chariot. And they mounted him on a huge horse, much larger than the king's horses, and led him through the streets of all the land of Egypt. And the king commanded, and all the games with cymbals and violins and all musical instruments went out with Joseph. And a thousand drums and a thousand dances, also followed him. And five thousand men with their drawn swords in their hands are enraged, and they go to and fro and play before Joseph. And twenty thousand men of the king's greatest men, surrounded by gold-plated leather, go to Joseph's right, and twenty thousand to his left. And all the women and girls went up on the roofs and you will be seen in the streets playing and rejoicing in Joseph, and you will be seen in the title of Joseph and his beauty. And all the king's men go before him and after him, and all along the way they smell frankincense and incense and all the good smells, and they sprinkle myrrh and myrrh all along the way before Yosef. And twenty people call before him throughout the land with a loud voice, go and call like these words. You showed this man whom the king chose for the mishna and all the words of the kingdom will be based on him. And whoever turns his mouth and whoever does not bow down to him on earth will be put to death, because he rebelled against the king and his deputy. And when all the people called to speak and all Egypt bowed down to Joseph in the land and said, Long live the king and long live the Mishnah. And all the inhabitants of Egypt will all bow down on the road going and the callers will call and bow down, rejoicing with every drum and dance and harp before Yosef. And Joseph raised his eyes to heaven from the horse and called and said, Blessed are you who raise up from the dust the poor from the dust, lift up poverty, O Lord of hosts, blessed is the man who trusts in you. And Joseph passed with Pharaoh's servants and all his ministers throughout the land of Egypt, and they showed him all the land of Egypt and all the treasures of the king, and Joseph sat down and came before Pharaoh that day. And the king gave Joseph an estate in the land of Egypt, an estate of fields and vineyards. And the king gave Yosef three thousand silver and one thousand gold and opal stones and crystal, and many gifts.

~164~ And it came to pass the next day that the king went out to all Egypt to bring offerings and gifts to Joseph, and anyone who disobeys the king will be put to death. And they made a big platform in the street of the city and spread clothes there, and everyone who brought something to Yosef would give it to that platform. And all the Egyptians threw on that platform, one goldsmith, and one embroiderer, and round rings, and all the vessels of gold, and silver, and precious stones, and crystal, they gave on that platform, every man that was found in his hand gave. And Joseph took all these, and put them in his treasures. And all the ministers and priests belonging to the king raise Yosef, and they also give him many gifts when they see that the king has chosen him for the Mishnah. And the king sent to Potiphar the son of Ahiram, a priest, and he took his little daughter Osnath and gave her to Joseph as a wife. And the young girl looked very virgin and no one knew, and Joseph took her as his wife. And the king said to Joseph, I am Pharaoh and without you no one will raise his hand or foot to go out and come against my people in all the land of Egypt. And Joseph was thirty years old when he stood before Pharaoh, and Joseph went out from before the king and became the king's mishna in Egypt. And the king gave Joseph a hundred slaves to serve him in his house, and Joseph also sent and bought many slaves and they will be in Joseph's house. So Joseph built him a very large house like the houses of the kings, in front of the courtyard of the king's house. And he made in the house a large hall, very nice to look at and good for his seat, for three years Joseph made his whole house. And Yosef made him a very nice chair of mostly gold and silver, and the floor was paved with agates and crystal. And he made in it the pattern of the whole land of Egypt, and the pattern of the light of Egypt and the water of the whole land of Egypt. And Joseph sat safely in his house on his throne that he had made for him, and Joseph God gave Joseph wisdom for his wisdom. And all the inhabitants of Egypt and Pharaoh's servants and his ministers loved Joseph very much, because this was from God to Joseph. And the Lord was with Joseph and he grew very much and grew, and he was heard throughout the land. And Joseph had an army making war veterans in a battalion numbering four thousand six hundred men doing war with the strength of an army, to help the king and Joseph against the enemy. Apart from the king's ministers and his servants and the inhabitants of Egypt, there is no number for them. And Joseph gave his heroes and all his soldiers shields and spears and hats and armor and sling stones.

~165~ At that time the sons of Tarshish came against all the sons of Ishmael and fought them, and the sons of Tarshish defeated the sons of Ishmael for many days. And the sons of Ishmael were a great number in those days, and they could not overpower all the sons of Tarshish, and they were greatly afflicted. And all the elders of Ishmael sent a book to the king of Egypt saying. Please send your servants ministers and an army to help us and fight against the Bnei Tarshish, for we have been greatly besieged for many days. And Pharaoh sent Joseph and the heroes and the army that was with him and heroes from the king's house, and they went to the land of Havilah to the sons of Ishmael to help them fight against the sons of Tarshish. And the sons of Ishmael fought against the sons of Tarshish, and Joseph defeated the Tarshishites and captured all their land, and the sons of Ishmael lived in it until this day. And it came to pass when the land of Tarshish was captured, and all the Tarshish fled and came to the border of the sons of Jon, their brothers. And Joseph and all the heroes and all the army that he had returned from Egypt, not one of them was absent. And it came to pass at the time of the year, in the second year of Joseph's reign over Egypt, that God gave a great famine in all the land, for seven years when Joseph spoke. Because God blessed all the crops of the land in those days for seven years, and they ate and were very satisfied. And Joseph appointed officials at that time under his hand, and they collected all the food of the good years, and they accumulated a year's worth of food and put it in Joseph's treasures. And it was at all times when they gathered the food, and Joseph commanded, and they brought the bar in the sheaves, and he brought with him dirt from his field so that it would not be lost. And Joseph did this for a year. And the wild blue sea will accumulate a great deal because there is no number for its treasures, because they could not count the multitude. And the inhabitants of Egypt also gathered food in their treasures, a great deal of all the food of the seven good years, but they did not do to him as Joseph did. And all the food that Joseph and all the Egyptians gathered in Sheba the second of the seven for a deposit for the land in treasures, in Sheba the second of the famine for the sustenance of the whole land. And all the inhabitants of Egypt filled every man's treasure and every man's treasure with wild food, for their subsistence in the famine. And Joseph gave all the food that he had gathered, in all the cities of Egypt. And he will seal up all the treasures, and they will be guarded there. And Osnath daughter of Potiphar, Joseph's wife, bore him two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim. And Yosef is thirty-four years old, you bore them.

~166~ And the boys grew up and followed the ways of God and his morals, they did not deviate from the way that their father had taught them right and left. And God be with the boys, and they will grow up and understand and be educated in all wisdom and all the words of the kingdom. And all the king's ministers and the elders of the inhabitants of Egypt carry the boys, and they grow up among the king's sons. And the two of the seven who were in all the land were filled with seven. And it came after them that the two famines were satisfied, as Joseph said, and there was a famine in all the land. And all the Egyptians saw that the famine had begun to be in the land of Egypt, and all the Egyptians opened all the wild treasures that they had, for the famine was strong upon them. And they will find all the food in their treasures full of mold and moth, and they will not be able to eat. And the famine grew stronger throughout the land, and all the inhabitants of Egypt came and cried before Pharaoh, because the famine was heavy upon them. And they said to Pharaoh, Give your servants food and why should we die of hunger in front of you, we also worshiped. And Pharaoh answered them saying, and why do you shout to me and not every seven, the two seven, Joseph commanded to gather bar for the second famine, and why did you not listen to his voice. And the Egyptians tortured the king, as your soul lives, my lord, for all that Joseph spoke, so did your servants. Because your servants also gathered all the food of their fields on the second of the seven and put it in treasures, until this day. And the famine became stronger on your servants and our treasures were opened, and behold, all our food is full of moths and rots and will not be able to eat. And when the king heard all that had happened to the inhabitants of Egypt, the king was greatly afraid of the famine and was greatly frightened. And the king answered the people of Egypt, saying, after all these things have happened to you, go to Joseph, who will tell you to do, not say his words. And all the Egyptians went and came to Joseph and said to him, Give us food and why should we die of hunger against you. Because we gathered our grain in the seven years when you saw, and put them in the treasury and such and such happened to us. And it came to pass when Joseph heard all the words of the Egyptians and what had happened to them, that Joseph opened all the treasures of food that he had and broke it to the Egyptians. And the famine was over the whole land and there was a famine in all the lands, and in the land of Egypt there was food to break. And all the inhabitants of Egypt came to Joseph to break food because the hunger was strong on them and all their food was lost, and Joseph broke for all the Egyptians every day. And all the inhabitants of the land of Canaan, and the Philistines, and the people beyond the Jordan, and the people of old, and all the cities of the land, near and far, heard that there was a famine in Egypt, and they all came from Egypt to harvest a forest, for the famine was strong upon them.

~167~ And Joseph opened the treasuries of food and placed officials over them, and they stood and broke for all who came every day. And Joseph knew that his brothers would also come from Egypt to break food, because the famine was strong over the whole land. And Joseph commanded all his men, and they sent a voice throughout Egypt to the aforesaid. On behalf of the king and the Mishna and their elders, anyone who wants to break a forest in Egypt, should not send his servants to Egypt to break unless his sons. And also any Egyptian or Canaanite who comes from all countries to pluck a bush in Egypt and goes and sells it throughout the land, shall be put to death. For no man shall break, save the life of his household. And any person who drives two or three animals will be put to death, because a person will not drive anything but his animal. And Joseph placed guards at the gates of Egypt, and ordered to say. Anyone who comes to break food, do not let him come, until he writes his name and the name of his father and the name of his father's father. And who wrote every day and sent their names to me in the evening, and I knew their names. And Joseph appointed officials throughout Egypt, and ordered them to do all these things. And Joseph did all these things and all the laws, so that he would know when his brother came from Egypt to break food. And each and every day Joseph's men will send a voice in Egypt in all these things and the laws, which Joseph commanded. And all the inhabitants of the land, east and west, and the whole land, heard the laws and all the things that Joseph had given in Egypt. And all the inhabitants of the ends of the earth shall come, and shall break wild in Egypt day by day, and shall go their way. And all the gatekeepers of Egypt did everything that Joseph commanded, and everyone who came from Egypt to break food and the gatekeepers wrote their names and the names of their fathers and brought them before Joseph in the evening every day. And Jacob heard after that that there was a famine in Egypt and he called his sons to go from Egypt to harvest a forest, because the famine was strong on them as well. And Jacob called his sons and said, Behold, I have heard that there is a breach in Egypt and the whole land is going to be broken from there. And now why should you see your souls satisfied before the whole earth, you also come down from Egypt and break a little food for us among those who are coming and we will live and not die. And the sons of Jacob heard the voice of their father, and arose to go down from Egypt to break food among those who came.

~168~ And Jacob, their father, commanded them to say, when you come to the city, do not come together at one gate before the inhabitants of the land. And the sons of Jacob went out and went from Egypt, and the sons of Jacob did all that their father fasted. And Jacob did not send Benjamin because he said lest they call him disaster on the way, and ten of Jacob's sons go. And when the ten sons of Jacob were on the way, they comforted Joseph in all that they had done to him. And each man said to his brother, saying, We knew that Joseph our brother went down to Egypt, and now we will ask him when we go there. And it will be if we found it and took it from its masters in redemption, and if there is none, in possession and we paid for it. And the sons of Jacob heard this thing and strengthened their hearts for Joseph to save him from the hand of his master, and the sons of Jacob went from Egypt. And there was among them from Egypt, and they separated one from his brother, and they came by ten gates from Egypt. And the policemen wrote their names that day, and brought them to Yosef in the evening. And Joseph called the names from the hand of the city gates, and he found his brothers coming from the ten gates of the city. And Joseph commanded at that time, and they sent a voice in Egypt to the aforesaid. To you keepers of all treasures, close all the treasures of the wild and do not leave open except one to break from it all who come. And all of Joseph's officials did the same at that time, and all the treasures were closed and they left only one open. And Joseph gave the names of his brothers written to confirm the open treasury and said to him, whoever comes to you to break a bar, ask his name. And when these names came to you, you took them and sent them to me, and he did so. And when the sons of Jacob came into the city and gathered together in the city to ask for Joseph, before they broke food for them. And they went to the walls of the harlots, and they sought Joseph in the walls of the harlots for three days. Because they said that Yosef the walled in harlots will come, because Yosef is handsome and very handsome. And the sons of Jacob searched in those walls for three days, and did not find them. And the man over the open treasury asked for those names that Joseph had given him, and did not find them. And he sent to Joseph to say, for three days those men whose names you gave me have not come to me. And Joseph sent servants to ask for the people in all Egypt, to bring them before Joseph. And the servants of Joseph went and sought in Egypt and did not find them, and they went to Goshana and there was none, and they went to Rameses and did not find them. And they came to Joseph and said, We have searched all over the country as far as the city of Ramses and we have not found it.

~169~ And Joseph added another Joseph and sent six slaves to look for his brother, and they went and scattered in the four corners of the city. And four slaves went to the prostitute's house, and found the ten men from whom they were seeking their brothers. And he gathered those four men and brought them before Yosef, and the sons of Jacob came to Yosef's house and bowed before him to the ground. And Joseph sits in his palace on his throne dressed in mud and crimson clothes and on his head a large gold crown, and all the heroes sit around him. And the sons of Jacob saw Yosef, and they marveled greatly at his description and the goodness of his beauty and the splendor of his countenance, and they bowed down to him even more to the ground. And Yosef saw his brothers and recognized them and they did not recognize him, because Yosef grew very tall in their eyes, therefore they did not recognize him. And Joseph spoke to them saying, Where did you come from? And they all answered and said, Your servants have come from the land of Canaan to break food, because the famine is severe throughout the land. And your servants will hear that there is a breach in Egypt, and your servants will come among those who are coming, to break a forest for our livelihood. And Joseph answered them saying, and if you came to break food when you said why would you come at the ten gates of the city, it is not because you came to dig up the whole land. And they all answered Yosef together and said, No honest lord, we were not your servants spies because we came to break food. For all your servants are brothers, sons of one man in the land of Canaan, and our father commanded us to say that when you come to the city, do not come together at one gate from the inhabitants of the land. And Yosef answered them further and said, It is the thing that I spoke to you to dig up the whole land when you came, therefore you all came at the ten gates of the city to see the nakedness of the land. Everyone who comes to break will break and go his way, and you will be in the land for three days today, and what will you do in the walls of the prostitutes that you were there for three days, because spies will do such things. And they said to Joseph, God forbid my lord speak this thing, for we are twelve brothers, the sons of Jacob, our father in the land of Canaan, the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham, the Hebrew. And here is our little father today in the land of Canaan, and the one is gone because he will perish from us. And it is said that perhaps he is in this country, and we will ask in all Egypt and we will also come to the houses of the prostitutes to ask for him there. And Joseph said to them, "Have you not sought him in all the land until there is nothing left for you but to seek him in Egypt?"