Mila kwe kopi
1 Josefa kadwa ntjengeti we ng'umba iye kati, “Pakila balume ibaba zojiwa zwabangatubula senga mu hwomo dzabo, ube ulonga mari e mmwe ne mmwe wabo mu hwomo iye. 2 Ulonge kopi yangu mu hwomo ye nnung'una wabo kose ne mari e mathunde awe.” Ngono kathama sekwa adwiwa ndi Josefa. 3 Tjimuka mangwanana balume ibabo bakatola gwendo gwabo ne madonki abo. 4 Kukati batjadwa pa bhuda koga mu nzi basathu bakabe kule, Josefa kadwa ntjengeti we ng'umba iye kati, “Tobela balume ibabaje, uti ubabhata uti ku bali, ‘Mobuzililani ndulamo nge mbipo kene? 5 Apa ate ili iyo kopi inong'wa na tetshi wangu kabuya kakandila ndiyo kene? Mathama nlandu usinshoma!’ ”
6 Kati ebabhata mu zila kabgwilulula matama aapiwa ku bali. 7 Balume ibabo bakashandula beti, “Kwatini tetshi wedu etilebesa nge matama akajali? Iswi balanda benyu atingathame tjithu tjakajali! 8 Naiko takabuya tidwa ku Kanana tikazha ne mari atakawana mu milomo ye hwomo dzedu. Ndizo wali, tingakwiba siliva kene golide mu ng'umba ya tetshi wedu tjini? 9 Mmwe wedu ha angawang'wa anayo ngaabulawe, basala banowobe balanda benyu.”
10 Ntjengeti kabe eti, “Kwakalulwama, ngakube sekwa maleba. Iye unowowang'wa anayo unowobe nlanda wangu, bamwe ibo banowobe basununguka.” 11 Tjinyolotjo mmwe ne mmwe wabo kabelesenula hwomo iye kaigadza pasi kaizhula. 12 Ipapo ntjengeti katangisa kafunyungudza kudwa mu hwola yabo kunoti mu ntjetjana pabali bose. Ngono kopi ikawang'wa mu hwomo ya Bhenjamini. 13 Balume ibabo bakapalula zwiambalo zwabo. Bakabelesa donki dzabo bakabgwilila ku nzi.
14 Juda ne bakulu babe ne banung'una babe bakaswika bewana Josefa atjiyapo mu ng'umba. Ngono bakanthigamila. 15 Josefa kati ku bali, “Ini ikoku kwamathama? Amutoziba kuti nlume unonga imi ungabona zwithu nge kukandila?”
16 Juda kashandula eti, “Tingatini dumbu kuna tetshi wedu? Tingatini? Tingalakidza tjini kusabe nlandu kwedu? Ndzimu wazumbunula nlandu we balanda benyu. Tabe balanda ba tetshi wedu ngwenu, iswi tose ne wawang'wa ana kopi.” 17 Koga Josefa kabe eti, “Aa! Andingashinge tjithu tjakajalo! Nthu wawang'wa ana kopi koga ndiye unowobe nlanda wangu. Imwi bamwe mose bgwililani kuna tate benyu nge mbakiso.”
Juda unokumbilila Bhenjamini
18 Ipapo Juda kasedzela panli kati, “Ndomukumbila tetshi, letjani nlanda wenyu alebeleke namwi. Nenguba mulizana na Faro musitongo gwadzila moyo nlanda wenyu. 19 Tetshi wedu wakabhuzwa balanda babe kati, ‘Apa muna tate kene nnung'una?’ 20 Tikadabila titi, ‘Tina tate bakwegula ne nnung'una wedu wakazwagwa tate bakula. Nkulu uwe wakatjinyika, ndizo iye ndiye yega mwana wa mmeyabe wakasala. Tate babe banon'da kwazo.’ 21 Ndiko imwi mukabe muti ku balanda benyu, ‘Kazheni naye kuti ndizwibonegwe.’ 22 Ngono iswi tikashandula tetshi wedu titi, ‘Mbisana iwoyu aangathubukane na tate babe ngoti ha angathubukana na tate babe banowofa.’ 23 Ndizo imwi mukabe muti, ‘Ha musabuya ne nnung'una wenyu anditoda ne kumubona.’
24 “Takati tabgwilila kuna tate bangu nlanda wenyu, tikababudza tjalebgwa ndimwi tetshi wedu. 25 Kwakati tate bedu beti, ‘Bgwililani munotengela zojiwa zwishomanana,’ 26 iswi tikadabila titi, ‘Atingayende. Tingayenda koga nnung'una wedu anaswi. Nlume iwouje aatoshaka kutibona nge mesho ha tisina nnung'una wedu.’ 27 Nlanda wenyu tate bedu bakabe beti ku tili, ‘Moziba kuti nkadzi wangu Rahele wakandizwalila bakololo babili. 28 Mmwe wabo wakandisiya ngono abe nditi, “Wakazandabugwa.” Ndizo andizodwa ambona kudwa ipapo. 29 Ha munditolela iwoyu kakale tjimwe tjibi tjibe tjinshingikalila, mowobe mathama kuti nsholo wangu ntjena unongina mu ikumbu nge shungu.’
30 “Ha tibgwilila kuna tate bedu, mbisana asinaswi, se butjilo gwabo guli mbisana, 31 bangafa ha basingambone. 32 Imi nlanda wenyu ndakatuna kuna tate nditi, ‘Ha ndingasabuya naye ndowobe nlandu kumuli bupenyu gwangu gose.’ 33 Ndizo ndokumbila kuti imi nlanda wenyu ndisale ndili nlanda wenyu mu bumo gwe mbisana, iye abgwilile ne bakulu babe. 34 Ndingabgwilila tjini ndisina mbisana? Andingamilane nge kubona tate bali mu zogwadza.”
The Missing Cup
1 Joseph commanded the servant in charge of his house, “Fill the men's sacks with as much food as they can carry, and put each man's money in the top of his sack. 2 Put my silver cup in the top of the youngest brother's sack, together with the money for his grain.” He did as he was told. 3 Early in the morning the brothers were sent on their way with their donkeys. 4 When they had gone only a short distance from the city, Joseph said to the servant in charge of his house, “Hurry after those men. When you catch up with them, ask them, ‘Why have you paid back evil for good? 5 Why did you steal my master's silver cup? It is the one he drinks from, the one he uses for divination. You have committed a serious crime!’”
6 When the servant caught up with them, he repeated these words. 7 They answered him, “What do you mean, sir, by talking like this? We swear that we have done no such thing. 8 You know that we brought back to you from the land of Canaan the money we found in the top of our sacks. Why then should we steal silver or gold from your master's house? 9 Sir, if any one of us is found to have it, he will be put to death, and the rest of us will become your slaves.”
10 He said, “I agree; but only the one who has taken the cup will become my slave, and the rest of you can go free.” 11 So they quickly lowered their sacks to the ground, and each man opened his sack. 12 Joseph's servant searched carefully, beginning with the oldest and ending with the youngest, and the cup was found in Benjamin's sack. 13 The brothers tore their clothes in sorrow, loaded their donkeys, and returned to the city.
14 When Judah and his brothers came to Joseph's house, he was still there. They bowed down before him, 15 and Joseph said, “What have you done? Didn't you know that a man in my position could find you out by practicing divination?”
16 “What can we say to you, sir?” Judah answered. “How can we argue? How can we clear ourselves? God has uncovered our guilt. All of us are now your slaves and not just the one with whom the cup was found.”
17 Joseph said, “Oh, no! I would never do that! Only the one who had the cup will be my slave. The rest of you may go back safe and sound to your father.”
Judah Pleads for Benjamin
18 Judah went up to Joseph and said, “Please, sir, allow me to speak with you freely. Don't be angry with me; you are like the king himself. 19 Sir, you asked us, ‘Do you have a father or another brother?’ 20 We answered, ‘We have a father who is old and a younger brother, born to him in his old age. The boy's brother is dead, and he is the only one of his mother's children still alive; his father loves him very much.’ 21 Sir, you told us to bring him here, so that you could see him, 22 and we answered that the boy could not leave his father; if he did, his father would die. 23 Then you said, ‘You will not be admitted to my presence again unless your youngest brother comes with you.’
24 “When we went back to our father, we told him what you had said. 25 Then he told us to return and buy a little food. 26 We answered, ‘We cannot go; we will not be admitted to the man's presence unless our youngest brother is with us. We can go only if our youngest brother goes also.’ 27 Our father said to us, ‘You know that my wife Rachel bore me only two sons. 28 One of them has already left me. He must have been torn to pieces by wild animals, because I have not seen him since he left. 29 If you take this one from me now and something happens to him, the sorrow you would cause me would kill me, as old as I am.’
30-31 “And now, sir,” Judah continued, “if I go back to my father without the boy, as soon as he sees that the boy is not with me, he will die. His life is wrapped up with the life of the boy, and he is so old that the sorrow we would cause him would kill him. 32 What is more, I pledged my life to my father for the boy. I told him that if I did not bring the boy back to him, I would bear the blame all my life. 33 And now, sir, I will stay here as your slave in place of the boy; let him go back with his brothers. 34 How can I go back to my father if the boy is not with me? I cannot bear to see this disaster come upon my father.”