him all that had befallen them in Egypt. Then Jacob cried
out: "What have ye done? I sent Joseph to you to see
whether it be well with you, and ye said, An evil beast hath
devoured him. Simon went forth with you for to buy corn,
and you say, The king of Egypt hath cast him into prison.
And now ye will take Benjamin away and kill him, too. Ye
will bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to the grave."[221]

The words of Jacob, which he uttered, "Me have ye bereaved
of my children," were meant to intimate to his sons
that he suspected them of the death of Joseph and of
Simon's disappearance as well, and their reports concerning
both he regarded as inventions.[222] What made him inconsolable
was that now, having lost two of his sons, he could
not hope to see the Divine promise fulfilled, that he should