Genesis 43:28

 Genesis 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.

a. NASB 1995: They said, “Your servant our father is well; he is still alive.” They bowed down [fn]in homage.  [New American Standard Bible 1995 (NASB1995) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.]

b. NKJV: And they answered, “Your servant our father is in good health; he is still alive.” And they bowed their heads down and prostrated themselves.  [Scripture quotations marked "NKJV" are taken from the New King James Version®, Copyright© 1982, Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.]

c. Amplified Bible:  And they answered, “Your servant our father is in good health; he is still alive.” And they bowed down [their heads before Joseph] in respect. [AMPLIFIED BIBLE 2015 AMP Amplified Bible Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, CA 90631. All rights reserved.]

d. Stone Edition Torah/Prophets/Writings: They replied, “Your servant our father is at peace; he still lives,” And they bowed and prostrated themselves.  [The Artscroll Series/Stone Edition, THE TANACH--STUDENT SIZE EDITION Copyright 1996, 1998 by Mesorah Publications, Ltd.]

e. ESV:  They said, “Your servant our father is well; he is still alive.” And they bowed their heads and prostrated themselves. [Scripture quotations are from the Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001, 2007, 2011, 2016 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.]

f. Unless otherwise stated, all Greek and Hebrew definitions are from Blue Letter Bible

1. And they answered, Thy servant our father [is] in good health, he [is] yet alive. And they bowed down their heads, and made obeisance.

a. [And they] answered [Strong: 559 ʼâmar, aw-mar'; a primitive root; to say (used with great latitude):—answer, appoint, avouch, bid, boast self, call, certify, challenge, charge, (at the, give) command(-ment), commune, consider, declare, demand, × desire, determine, × expressly, × indeed, × intend, name, × plainly, promise, publish, report, require, say, speak (against, of), × still, × suppose, talk, tell, term, × that is, × think, use (speech), utter, × verily, × yet.]

b. [Thy] servant [Strong: 5650 ʻebed, eh'-bed; from H5647; a servant:—× bondage, bondman, (bond-) servant, (man-) servant.]

c. [our] father [Strong: 1 ʼâb, awb; a primitive word; father, in a literal and immediate, or figurative and remote application:—chief, (fore-) father(-less), × patrimony, principal.]

d. [is in] good health [Strong: 7965 shâlôwm, shaw-lome'; or שָׁלֹם shâlôm; from H7999; safe, i.e. (figuratively) well, happy, friendly; also (abstractly) welfare, i.e. health, prosperity, peace:—× do, familiar, × fare, favour, friend, × great, (good) health, (× perfect, such as be at) peace(-able, -ably), prosper(-ity, -ous), rest, safe(-ty), salute, welfare, (× all is, be) well, × wholly.]

e. [he is] yet [Strong: 5750 ʻôwd, ode; or עֹד ʻôd; from H5749; properly, iteration or continuance; used only adverbially (with or without preposition), again, repeatedly, still, more:—again, × all life long, at all, besides, but, else, further(-more), henceforth, (any) longer, (any) more(-over), × once, since, (be) still, when, (good, the) while (having being), (as, because, whether, while) yet (within).]

f. alive [Strong: 2416 chay, khah'-ee; from H2421; alive; hence, raw (flesh); fresh (plant, water, year), strong; also (as noun, especially in the feminine singular and masculine plural) life (or living thing), whether literally or figuratively:— age, alive, appetite, (wild) beast, company, congregation, life(-time), live(-ly), living (creature, thing), maintenance, merry, multitude, (be) old, quick, raw, running, springing, troop.]

1). Joseph’s ten older brothers had been living with a guilty conscience for over twenty years, they must have thought of Joseph and wondered what had become of him in Egypt.

2). Why did Joseph deal with his brothers the way he did? Some Jewish writers maintain that before Joseph would reveal himself to his brothers he needed to know if they still hated him. If he showed himself here he would never know if they still hated him. 

3). Before he was ever sold into slavery when he was seventeen he had dreams that his family would bow down to him. 

a). Genesis 37:4-11 And when his brethren saw that their father loved him more than all his brethren, they hated him, and could not speak peaceably unto him.

37:5 And Joseph dreamed a dream, and he told it his brethren: and they hated him yet the more.

37:6 And he said unto them, Hear, I pray you, this dream which I have dreamed:

37:7 For, behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and, lo, my sheaf arose, and also stood upright; and, behold, your sheaves stood round about, and made obeisance to my sheaf.

37:8 And his brethren said to him, Shalt thou indeed reign over us? or shalt thou indeed have dominion over us? And they hated him yet the more for his dreams, and for his words.

37:9 And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it his brethren, and said, Behold, I have dreamed a dream more; and, behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance to me.

37:10 And he told it to his father, and to his brethren: and his father rebuked him, and said unto him, What is this dream that thou hast dreamed? Shall I and thy mother and thy brethren indeed come to bow down ourselves to thee to the earth?