28. A New Encounter with Language!!

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28. A New Encounter with Language!!

“Naked I came from my mother’s womb,

and naked I will depart.

The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away;

may the name of the Lord be praised.” (Job 1:21)

Joseph had no choice but to look around cautiously and observe the situation. As he wandered here and there, the other servants seemed to be engrossed in their own tasks, barely noticing him. No matter how much he thought about it, the only thing he could do was sweep the yard. Just then, a broom caught his eye. Joseph grabbed the broom and began to sweep the yard slowly, still observing the house and the people’s movements. As he was sweeping, an old man approached him from the gate.

“Are you from the land of Canaan?”

Joseph was startled by the old man’s question because he had asked it in Hebrew, a language Joseph had not expected to hear in Egypt. Not only was it the first time he had heard his native language since arriving in Egypt, but he had also never imagined meeting someone who spoke it.

“Yes! I am a Hebrew.”

Joseph replied excitedly. The old man calmly responded,

“Nice to meet you!”

and then continued with another question.

“But how did you end up here?”

“I was sold.”

“Sold?”

The old man looked at Joseph with a curious expression‎, as if asking who had sold him. Joseph answered again,

“My brothers!”

“Your brothers?”

“Yes!”

“No! How could your brothers sell their own sibling as a slave?”

The old man continued to ask, still curious.

"Yes, actually!..”

Joseph was so happy to meet someone who spoke Hebrew that he told the old man the whole story of how he had been sold and brought to this place. He told him about his birth, how his father had loved him specially among his many brothers, the dreams he had where eleven sheaves of grain bowed down to his sheaf, and how he had boasted about it to his brothers. He also told him about the dream where eleven stars bowed down to his star, which had made his brothers angry. One day, while running an errand for his father to help his brothers in the field, his brothers had thrown him into an empty well, intending to kill him. But then Judah, one of his brothers, had suggested selling him as a slave instead of killing him, and the other brothers had agreed. They sold him to a caravan of merchants for twenty pieces of silver, and that was how he ended up here.

“Oh dear! Oh dear!

How could that happen?

Among brothers, no less!..”

Hearing this, Joseph felt a surge of sorrow and began to cry uncontrollably. The old man, understanding his feelings, let him cry for a while before patting him on the back to comfort him.

“There, there! How unfair and frustrating it must be!

But if you want to survive here,

you must endure even more difficult things.

So stop crying!”

Hearing the old man’s words, Joseph finally calmed down and stopped crying. After crying, he felt a sense of relief, but he was also embarrassed to have cried in front of the old man.

“I’m sorry, sir!”

he apologized to the old man. But the old man comforted him,

“No need to apologize!”

“But from now on, you must gather your strength to survive here!”

When Joseph first arrived in Egypt, he had no one to look after him and couldn’t speak the language, so he felt utterly lost. Meeting this old man was a great relief. But now, Joseph was curious about how the old man had ended up here.

“How did you come to be here, sir?”

The old man laughed heartily and began to tell his story.

“Like you, I was also sold and brought here!”

“What?”

“But the more surprising thing is that the person who sold you and the person who sold me have the same name!”

“What?”

Joseph asked again, surprised.

“You were also sold by someone named Judah?”

“Yes!”

“How could that be?”

Seeing Joseph’s puzzled expression‎, the old man continued,

“But it’s not that surprising!

In our homeland, the name Judah is quite common.”

The old man looked into the distance, as if reminiscing about his homeland. Then, as if he had remembered something, he looked at Joseph and asked,

“I heard from the master that when you first arrived here, although your clothes were worn out,

they were made of fine fabric.

You must have been wealthy?”

Joseph replied with a playful tone,

“Not me, but my father was wealthy!

In our homeland, everyone knows my father, Jacob.”

Before Joseph could finish his sentence, the old man suddenly raised his voice and asked,

“Your father is Jacob?”

Joseph calmly replied to the old man’s sudden question,

“Yes! My father’s name is Jacob.”

“Is he the Jacob who returned from his uncle Laban’s house?”

The old man wanted to confirm‎ whether Joseph’s father was the same Jacob he knew or just someone with the same name. Joseph had heard many times about how his father had fled to his uncle Laban’s house to escape his elder brother Esau and had returned with two wives and great wealth. So he knew the story well. Now, the old man was talking about that very story. So Joseph asked the old man in return,

“How do you know about my family and my father?”

Before Joseph could finish his question, the old man suddenly knelt before him and, with a voice full of emotion, said,

“Young master!”

The old man began to sob. Joseph, not understanding what was happening, quickly helped the old man up and asked,

“Why are you doing this, sir?

Why do you call me young master when we have just met?”

The other servants, who had been busy with their tasks since early morning, stopped what they were doing and looked at the two of them, wondering what was going on. But the old man, oblivious to their stares, continued to sob. Joseph was the one who felt embarrassed. Seeing the old man, a slave, kneeling and crying in front of him, Joseph felt awkward. He repeatedly asked the old man to calm down, but the old man continued to cry. Earlier, when Joseph had met the old man from his homeland and cried out of regret and sorrow, the old man had comforted him. But now, in this reversed situation, Joseph didn’t know how to comfort the old man. After a while, the old man stopped crying and looked at Joseph.

“You have grown so much, young master!”

“Sir! Why do you call me young master?”

Finally, the old man stood up and began to tell Joseph his story.

After Jacob returned from his uncle Laban’s house and settled in Canaan, everything he did prospered. His flocks of sheep, camels, and cattle increased, and he eventually became a prominent figure in the region. Naturally, he began to take care of the local people and became a leader in the area.

Years passed, and during that time, I had no particular job, so I went around helping with various tasks at other people’s houses. One day, Jacob decided to help those in need, and I made up my mind to visit him. I asked if he could lend me some sheep, promising to take good care of them and return not only the sheep but also a fair interest based on the number and duration of the loan. Jacob gladly agreed and lent me 50 sheep.

I was filled with dreams of becoming a successful livestock farmer and worked hard to tend the sheep. Over time, the number of sheep gradually increased, and I was so happy that I didn’t even notice the hardships. However, when it was time for the sheep to give birth, they needed to eat a lot of grass to stay healthy and produce many lambs. There was fierce competition among livestock farmers to find good pastures. Large-scale farmers quickly found pastures with their manpower, but people like me, who tended sheep alone, often had to make do with whatever was left or go to places where other flocks had already grazed.

One day, my wife became pregnant, which was a joyous occasion. I felt a strong sense of responsibility to raise the sheep well to provide for my growing family. That day, I patted my wife’s swollen belly and promised the baby inside that I would return with many lambs after feeding the sheep well. I then led the sheep to find green pastures.

There was a valley between two rocky mountains that other shepherds avoided because it was considered dangerous. However, the valley had plenty of good grass and flowing water, making it an ideal place for grazing. I decided to take the risk and entered the valley. Inside, I found steep cliffs on both sides and good grass and clear water in between. Given the number of sheep I had, the valley could provide enough forage for the duration of the lambing period, so I carefully fed the sheep while being cautious of potential accidents.

Three days later, while the sheep were grazing, I suddenly heard a sheep bleating from an unusual place. It was crying from a crevice on top of a cliff. I counted the sheep and found that one was missing. Somehow, one sheep had climbed up the cliff. If I had a large number of sheep and the situation was dangerous, I might have given up on that sheep. However, with my small flock, every sheep was a valuable asset. Driven by the desire to retrieve the sheep, I looked for a way to climb the cliff and started ascending from a seemingly safe spot.

Fortunately, I managed to climb up by stepping on protruding rocks. When I was about 10 meters away from the sheep, I found myself on a precarious ledge that only a sheep could pass through. It was a dangerous situation, but having come this far, I couldn’t give up with just 10 meters left. As I carefully approached the sheep, a rock I stepped on couldn’t bear my weight and rolled down, triggering a landslide. Rocks and soil cascaded down, burying the sheep grazing below.

It all happened in an instant. I climbed up to the top of the cliff and looked down at the valley, which had completely disappeared. I had lost all my sheep in an instant and was left in a daze, unable to comprehend what had happened.

My small greed had cost me everything. I returned home and told my wife what had happened. She said that instead of repaying Jacob’s kindness, I had killed all the sheep, and the only way to repay the debt was to become a servant in Jacob’s house. Agreeing with her, I immediately went to Jacob and explained the situation. I requested to be taken in as a servant and promised to work hard if he would provide for us, especially since my wife was pregnant. Jacob, understanding that mistakes can happen in life, said that becoming a servant was not necessary. He invited us to stay in his house, help with household chores, and promised to give us sheep to start our own flock after a certain period.

I moved into Jacob’s house and started working with his servants. After a few years of working diligently as if it were my own home, Jacob entrusted me with managing all his property. During this time, my son was born. However, problems began to arise. As the steward managing all the property, I had conflicts with Jacob’s sons. They used to sell sheep at will, drink, and gamble, but my presence prevented them from doing so. Despite my warnings, they continued their bad habits. Eventually, I had to inform Jacob, who became very angry and scolded his sons severely. He warned them that if they left the sheep unattended while managing them, they would no longer be entrusted with the sheep.

After that incident, Jacob’s sons harbored resentment towards me, and I felt a burden in my heart. Jacob, realizing the issues with his sons, began to monitor and manage them strictly. One day, Jacob’s son was born, and he instructed his sons to check on the sheep. As I visited the places where the brothers were tending the sheep, I found that Judah was not there, and only the servants were looking after the sheep. When I asked the servants where Judah was, they pretended not to know. I started searching the area to find out what Judah was doing. After some time, I discovered a group of people in a cave. They were camel traders who traveled around selling and buying goods. When they got tired, they rested in caves they had marked. To relieve the fatigue of long journeys, they sometimes gambled among themselves.

Occasionally, shepherds working in the fields would join them in gambling. Among them was Judah. When I tried to advise Judah, the camel traders suddenly attacked and tied me up. With several people attacking, I had no chance to resist.

And they forcibly put me on the back of a camel and hurriedly left the place. No matter how much I called out to Master Judah, he did not respond. Eventually, I was brought here to Egypt by the merchants. On the way, I asked the merchants why they were doing this to me, and they said that Judah had incurred a debt from drawing lots and had to repay it. When they saw you heading towards the cave, they said you were a servant of their house and offered you in exchange, so they captured you. Later, I heard through people traveling to and from Canaan that my wife had already passed away due to various shocks. Fortunately, Jacob is still taking good care of my son, for which I am grateful. But to meet you, who has grown so splendidly here, is like a dream. However, it seems that you and I share a tragic fate, as you have also come here under similar circumstances.

Joseph listened to the old man’s words and felt that while his own situation was difficult, the old man’s situation was truly heartbreaking.

“As for me, I think it’s not a problem if I repay the debt I owe to Jacob in this way. But I feel sorry for my wife who left early and my remaining son. It was painful not being able to see my son even though I wanted to. Seeing Joseph, tears suddenly welled up, and I cried like that.”

The old man’s words not only pained Joseph’s heart but also showed that the old man was worried about Joseph. Until now, Joseph had been struggling with his own pain and suffering, but hearing the old man’s words, he felt a new sense of responsibility. Seeing the old man’s pitiful life, Joseph couldn’t help but think that he might end up like the old man. Tears welled up again. “Elder!” he cried, unable to hold back his tears, and ran into the old man’s arms. The old man also called out, “Master!” and the two embraced and cried loudly once more.