The famine gets worse in chapter 43, so Jacob (who is now referred to as Israel in this chapter) asks his sons to go back to Egypt for more food, but Judah tells him that there is no point because Joseph warned them not to come back without Benjamin. He manages to convince his father to let them take Benjamin, and Judah would be personally responsible if anything happens. Israel agrees only if they take a bunch of gifts for Joseph and twice as much money as they got back in case it was a mistake. When they get there, Joseph tells his steward to prepare a nice meal for them and make them at home. Joseph's brothers were afraid that they would be turned into slaves, so they explained to the steward that they didn't take the money on purpose and that they've brought it back plus more. The steward tells them not to worry because no money was missing, so god must be watching out for them, and gave Simeon back to them. When Joseph came back home his brothers showered him with the gifts they brought. He asked how their father was and if he was still alive, and they said he was. When Joseph saw Benjamin, he almost cried, so he excused himself to another room. When dinner was served, Benjamin's plate was piled higher than any of the other brothers'.
Joseph decides to play a little trick on his brothers. He tells his steward to load of their sacks with as much food as they can carry, and put all their money at the top, as well as his chalice in Benjamin's bag, then when they leave, run after them and ask them why they took Joseph's chalice, because Joseph drinks from this chalice, and he also uses it for divination. When the steward does this, they say that they do not have it, and if any of the brothers has it, they will be killed, and the other brothers will be slaves. When the chalice is revealed to be in Benjamin's sack, they all ripped their clothes in despair (a strange way of dealing with grief), and headed back to the city. When they get there they throw themselves on the ground in front of Joseph, saying this is god's way of exposing how bad they are (as a benevolent god would do), and that they are all in this together. Joseph says that he only wants the one who was found with the chalice. Judah begs and pleads, saying he can't go back to his father without Benjamin, because his father would die on the spot from grief.
Joseph can't hold back anymore in Chapter 45, and he reveals himself to his brothers. He tells his brothers not to blame themselves, god sent him to Egypt to save lives (from the famine he caused). He tells them to go back to his father who he is and that he is alive, and to bring him back there where he will be taken care of for the remainder of the famine. Pharaoh heard the news, so he helped Joseph's brothers by giving them wagons and land. When Jacob heard the good news, his spirit was revived.



We're not finished with the story of Joseph. I'd just like to say that the story of Joseph is one of my favorites, but it's just a story. There is no evidence of a seven year famine at the time Joseph was supposed to exist, or any evidence to suggest that Joseph even existed. Plus, I had enjoyed the animated movie based on the story, and the idea of a colorful dreamcoat really appealed to me as a child! Joseph is also one of the most flawless characters I have come across in the bible, and I think this might have to do with the commonly held belief that Jesus' story is a loose retelling of Joseph's story. Essentially, they appear to be very similar people with very similar stories. I will probably touch on this a lot more when we reach the New Testament, because I don't want to give away too much of what happens in the life of Jesus to those who might not be familiar with it before we even reach it. In the meantime, here is a small table to show some of the similarities between Joseph and Jesus.

Joseph	Jesus
was a shepherd	was commonly referred to as a shepherd
was betrayed by Judah	was betrayed by Judas (the greek name for Judah is Judas)
was a servant	was a servant
was tempted but did not sin	was tempted but did not sin
dispersed bread	dispersed bread (fed 5000; used bread to represent his flesh)
became a saviour	is considered the saviour