¹ In the mean time the famine was heavy upon all the land.

² And when they had eaten up all the corn, which they had brought out of Egypt, Jacob said to his sons: Go again and buy us a little food.

³ Juda answered: The man declared unto us with the atteststion of an oath, saying: You shall not see my face, unless you bring your youngest brother with you.

⁴ If therefore thou wilt send him with us, we will set out together, and will buy necessaries for thee.

⁵ But if thou wilt not, we will not go: for the man, as we have often said, declared unto us, saying: You shall not see my face without your youngest brother.

⁶ Israel said to them: You have done this for my misery in that you told him you had also another brother.

⁷ But they answered: The man asked us in order concerning our kindred: if our father lived: if we had a brother: and we answered him regularly, according to what he demanded: Bring hither your brother with you?

⁸ And Juda said to his father: Send the bou with me, that we may set forward, and may live: lest both we and our children perish.

⁹ I take the boy upon me, require him at my hand: unless I bring him again, and restore him to thee, I will be guilty of sin against thee for ever.

¹⁰ If delay had not been made, we had been here again the second time.

¹¹ Then Israel said to them: If it must needs be so, do what you will: take of the best fruits of the land in your vessels, and carry down presents to the man, a little balm, and honey, and storax, myrrh, turpentine, and almonds.

¹² And take with you double money, and carry back what you found in your sacks, lest perhaps it was done by mistake.

¹³ And take also your brother, and go to the man.

¹⁴ And may my almighty Bod make him favourable to you; and send back with you your brother, whom he keepeth, and this Benjamin: and as for me I shall be desolate without children.

¹⁵ So the men took the presents, and double money, and Benjamin: and went down into Egypt, and stood before Joseph.

¹⁶ And when he had seen them, and Benjamin with them, he commanded the steward of his house, saying: Bring in the men into the house, and kill victims, and prepare a feast: because they shall eat with me at noon.

¹⁷ He did as he was commanded, and brought the men into the house.

¹⁸ And they being much afraid, said there one to another: Because of the money, which we carried back the first time in our sacks, we are brought in: that he may bring upon us a false accusation, and by violence make slaves of us and our asses.

¹⁹ Wherefore going up to the steward of the house, at the door,

²⁰ They said: Sir, we desire thee to hear us: We came down once before to buy food:

²¹ And when we had bought, and come to the inn, we opened our sacks, and found our money in the mouths of the sacks: which we have now brought again in the same weight.

²² And we have brought other money besides, to buy what we want: we cannot tell who put it in our bags.

²³ But he answered: Peace be with you, fear not: your God, and the God of your Father hath given you treasure in your sacks. For the money, which you gave me, I have for good. And he brought Simeon out to them.

²⁴ And having brought them into the house, he fetched water, and they washed their feet, and he gave provender to their asses.

²⁵ But they made ready the presents, against Joseph came at noon: for they had heard that they should eat bread there.

²⁶ Then Joseph came into his house, and they offered him the presents holding them in their hands, and they bowed down with their face to the ground.

²⁷ But he, courteously saluting them again, asked them, saying: Is the old man your father in health, of whom uou told me? Is he yet living?

²⁸ And they answered: Thy servant our father is in health, he is yet living. And bowing themselves they made obeisance to him.

²⁹ And Joseph lifting up his eyes, saw Benjamin his brother, by the same mother, and said: Is this your young brother, of whom you told me? And he said: God be gracious to thee, my son.

³⁰ And he made haste becouse his heart was moved upon his brother, and tears gushed out: And going into his chamber he wept.

³¹ And when he had washed his face, coming out again, he refrained himself, and said: Set bread on the table.

³² And when it was set on, for Joseph apart, and for his brethren apart, for the Egyptians also that ate with him, apart, (for it is unlawful for the Egyptians to eat with the Hebrews, and they think such a feast profane:)

³³ They sat before him, the firstborn according to his birthright, and the youngest according to his age. And they wondered very much:

³⁴ Taking the messes which they received of him: and the greater mess came to Benjamin, so that it exceeded by five parts. And they drank, and were merry with him.

¹ Blow the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, for the day of Yahweh comes, for it is close at hand:

² A day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness. As the dawn spreading on the mountains, a great and strong people; there has never been the like, neither will there be any more after them, even to the years of many generations.

³ A fire devours before them, and behind them, a flame burns. The land is as the garden of Eden before them, and behind them, a desolate wilderness. Yes, and no one has escaped them.

⁴ The appearance of them is as the appearance of horses, and as horsemen, so do they run.

⁵ Like the noise of chariots on the tops of the mountains do they leap, like the noise of a flame of fire that devours the stubble, as a strong people set in battle array.

⁶ At their presence the peoples are in anguish. All faces have grown pale.

⁷ They run like mighty men. They climb the wall like warriors. They each march in his line, and they don't swerve off course.

⁸ Neither does one jostle another; they march everyone in his path, and they burst through the defenses, and don't break ranks.

⁹ They rush on the city. They run on the wall. They climb up into the houses. They enter in at the windows like thieves.

¹⁰ The earth quakes before them. The heavens tremble. The sun and the moon are darkened, and the stars withdraw their shining.

¹¹ Yahweh thunders his voice before his army; for his forces are very great; for he is strong who obeys his command; for the day of Yahweh is great and very awesome, and who can endure it?

¹² "Yet even now," says Yahweh, "turn to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning."

¹³ Tear your heart, and not your garments, and turn to Yahweh, your God; for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abundant in loving kindness, and relents from sending calamity.

¹⁴ Who knows? He may turn and relent, and leave a blessing behind him, even a meal offering and a drink offering to Yahweh, your God.

¹⁵ Blow the trumpet in Zion! Sanctify a fast. Call a solemn assembly.

¹⁶ Gather the people. Sanctify the assembly. Assemble the elders. Gather the children, and those who nurse from breasts. Let the bridegroom go forth from his room, and the bride out of her room.

¹⁷ Let the priests, the ministers of Yahweh, weep between the porch and the altar, and let them say, "Spare your people, Yahweh, and don't give your heritage to reproach, that the nations should rule over them. Why should they say among the peoples, 'Where is their God?'"

¹⁸ Then Yahweh was jealous for his land, And had pity on his people.

¹⁹ Yahweh answered his people, "Behold, I will send you grain, new wine, and oil, and you will be satisfied with them; and I will no more make you a reproach among the nations.

²⁰ But I will remove the northern army far away from you, and will drive it into a barren and desolate land, its front into the eastern sea, and its back into the western sea; and its stench will come up, and its bad smell will rise." Surely he has done great things.

²¹ Land, don't be afraid. Be glad and rejoice, for Yahweh has done great things.

²² Don't be afraid, you animals of the field; for the pastures of the wilderness spring up, for the tree bears its fruit. The fig tree and the vine yield their strength.

²³ "Be glad then, you children of Zion, and rejoice in Yahweh, your God; for he gives you the former rain in just measure, and he causes the rain to come down for you, the former rain and the latter rain, as before.

²⁴ The threshing floors will be full of wheat, and the vats will overflow with new wine and oil.

²⁵ I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, the great locust, the grasshopper, and the caterpillar, my great army, which I sent among you.

²⁶ You will have plenty to eat, and be satisfied, and will praise the name of Yahweh, your God, who has dealt wondrously with you; and my people will never again be disappointed.

²⁷ You will know that I am in the midst of Israel, and that I am Yahweh, your God, and there is no one else; and my people will never again be disappointed.

²⁸ "It will happen afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; and your sons and your daughters will prophesy. Your old men will dream dreams. Your young men will see visions.

²⁹ And also on the servants and on the handmaids in those days, I will pour out my Spirit.

³⁰ I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth: blood, fire, and pillars of smoke.

³¹ The sun will be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and terrible day of Yahweh comes.

³² It will happen that whoever will call on the name of Yahweh shall be saved; for in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there will be those who escape, as Yahweh has said, and among the remnant, those whom Yahweh calls.