They said, “Your servant our father is well; he is still alive.” And they bowed their heads and prostrated themselves.
English Standard Version (ESV)
The brothers' bowing and calling their father "your servant" is a profound fulfillment of Joseph's dreams, showing not just their submission to him, but how Jacob himself, through his sons, acknowledges Joseph's elevated status. This moment is significant because it illustrates how God's plan unfolds, bringing about the very family hierarchy Joseph dreamed of, even through the brothers' reluctant actions.
They said, “Your servant our father is well; he is still alive.” And they bowed their heads and prostrated themselves.
English Standard Version (ESV)
After their return from Egypt, the famine still ravaging the land, the brothers are sent back to Egypt with Benjamin, their father's beloved youngest son. Joseph, now a powerful official, orchestrates a series of tests, first by entertaining them and then by feigning that Benjamin has stolen his prized cup. In this moment, the brothers stand before Joseph, ready to account for their father's well-being and to face whatever consequences may come.
Jacob’s sons have returned to Egypt, but this time with a crucial passenger: Benjamin. Their father’s heart is a mixture of dread and hope.
Jacob’s words in Genesis 43:14 reveal a profound spiritual reality. Though facing the agonizing possibility of losing another son, he entrusts them to God's mercy. He offers a prayer, not of resignation to fate, but of active faith: "And may God Almighty grant you mercy before the man, so that he may send back your other brother and Benjamin! If I am to be bereaved, I am bereaved."
This isn't a statement of despair, but of surrender. Jacob had already experienced immense loss with Joseph. He acknowledges the potential for further grief, but his ultimate trust is in God's sovereign hand. He's saying, "Lord, I've done all I can. I'm sending them. Now, it's in Your hands. Whatever happens, I will accept it, but my deepest desire is for their safe return."
As Joseph’s brothers stand before him, they perform acts of reverence. But what does this deep bowing truly signify?
In Genesis 43:28, the brothers bow down and make obeisance to Joseph. This act has layers of meaning:
Fulfillment of Dreams
This is a direct fulfillment of Joseph's dreams from Genesis 37:7 and 37:9, where his brothers' sheaves and celestial bodies bowed down to him. Their prostration confirms God's sovereign plan unfolding, even when Joseph's brothers didn't understand it.
Acknowledging Authority and Sin
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Beyond the dream's fulfillment, their bowing signifies acknowledging Joseph's authority as the powerful Egyptian ruler. It’s a gesture of respect and submission. Furthermore, for the brothers, this act is deeply tinged with guilt. They are bowing before the very brother they wronged, and this obeisance likely carries a weight of confession and remorse for their past actions. They are not just bowing to a prince, but to the reality of their sin and Joseph's present power.
Understand the original words
ebed · Hebrew Noun
A term of self-humiliation and submission used when addressing a superior, acknowledging the speaker's subordinate status and commitment to serve the person addressed.
qadad · Hebrew Verb
To throw oneself down on the ground in a posture of total surrender, adoration, or entreaty before a person of higher status or before God.
This verse marks a pivotal moment of recognition and reconciliation, fulfilling Joseph's dreams from years earlier. The brothers, under duress from famine and Joseph's test, bow before him, acknowledging his authority and their past wrongs.
c. 1750 BC
Joseph sold into slavery
Joseph's brothers, jealous of his favored status, sell him into slavery. This event sets in motion the long separation and the circumstances that will lead to his rise in Egypt.
c. 1740 BC
Joseph's rise to power in Egypt
After being falsely accused and imprisoned, Joseph interprets dreams for the Pharaoh, leading to his appointment as second-in-command over Egypt.
c. 1730 BC
The Great Famine begins
Seven years of plenty in Egypt, as interpreted by Joseph, are followed by a severe famine that grips Canaan and surrounding regions, forcing people to seek food in Egypt.
c. 1730 BC
First journey to Egypt
Joseph's brothers travel to Egypt to buy grain. Joseph recognizes them but, in disguise, tests them and imprisons Simeon until they return with Benjamin.
c. 1730 BC— this verse
Second journey to Egypt
With the famine worsening and their father Jacob hesitant, the brothers return to Egypt with Benjamin to secure more food and secure Simeon's release.
c. 1730 BC
Joseph's reunion and testing of brothers
Joseph hosts his brothers and Benjamin for a meal, further tests them by planting a cup in Benjamin's sack, and orchestrates Judah's powerful plea to spare Benjamin.
This passage describes Joseph's dreams where his brothers and even his parents bow down to him, directly foreshadowing the scene in Genesis 43 where his brothers, unknowingly at first, bow before him in Egypt, fulfilling the prophecy.
Genesis 42:26-28After their first journey to Egypt and discovery of their money returned, the brothers bowed down before Joseph, a precursor to this scene. Their report to their father, mentioning the return of their money, mirrors the anxieties and obedience shown here.
Genesis 44:14-34Following this event, Judah's impassioned plea to Joseph to spare Benjamin, offering himself in Benjamin's place, demonstrates a profound transformation. This act of selfless love and responsibility highlights the development of the brothers' characters from their earlier harshness.
Matthew 18:21-22While not a direct parallel, Jesus' teaching on forgiveness and the parable of the unforgiving servant underscore the theme of reconciliation. The brothers' eventual reconciliation with Joseph, and their father's joy, speaks to God's boundless capacity for forgiveness when we turn back to Him.
gillGenesis 43:28: "And they answered, Thy servant our father is in good health, he is yet alive. And they bowed down their heads, and made obeisance."
And they answered, thy servant our father is in good health, he is yet alive,.... Which is an answer to both his questions; and by calling their father Joseph's servant, he did obeisance to him in them, as well as by sending a present to him, which they delivered as coming from him his servant; and it is not improbable that Jacob sent his salutation…
calvinGenesis 43:1-34: "And the famine was sore in the land."
And they said, The man asked us straitly of our state, and of our kindred, saying, Is your father yet alive? have ye another brother? and we told him according to the tenor of these words: could we certainly know that he would say, Bring your brother down?
Et dixerunt, Interrogando interrogavit vir ille de nobis et cognatione nostra, discendo, Num adhuc pater vester vivit? Num est vobis frater? Et nuntiavimus ei secundum verba ista:…
The brothers' bowing and calling their father "your servant" is a profound fulfillment of Joseph's dreams, showing not just their submission to him, but how Jacob himself, through his sons, acknowledges Joseph's elevated status. This moment is significant because it illustrates how God's plan unfolds, bringing about the very family hierarchy Joseph dreamed of, even through the brothers' reluctant actions.
After their return from Egypt, the famine still ravaging the land, the brothers are sent back to Egypt with Benjamin, their father's beloved youngest son. Joseph, now a powerful official, orchestrates a series of tests, first by entertaining them and then by feigning that Benjamin has stolen his prized cup. In this moment, the brothers stand before Joseph, ready to account for their father's well-being and to face whatever consequences may come.
After their return from Egypt, the famine still ravaging the land, the brothers are sent back to Egypt with Benjamin, their father's beloved youngest son. Joseph, now a powerful official, orchestrates a series of tests, first by entertaining them and then by feigning that Benjamin has stolen his prized cup. In this moment, the brothers stand before Joseph, ready to account for their father's well-being and to face whatever consequences may come.
"They said, “Your servant our father is well; he is still alive.” And they bowed their heads and prostrated themselves." — The brothers' bowing and calling their father "your servant" is a profound fulfillment of Joseph's dreams, showing not just their submission to him, but how Jacob himself, through his sons, acknowled…
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Last reviewed October 2026