When famine hits the whole region of Canaan, Yaakov sends 10 of his sons down to Egypt where he’s heard there is food. Little do they realize that their long-lost brother Yosef oversees distributing rations. Yosef recognizes his brothers and starts playing tricks on them. He accuses them of being spies trying to see the land in its vulnerable state. The brothers insist that they are “honest people.” Yosef holds one brother, Shimon, hostage. Then he insists that the others need to come back with the youngest brother Binyamin to prove their honesty and get Shimon back. The others return home and tell Yaakov about their interactions with the Egyptian vizier, continuing to insist that they are honest and need to prove their honesty to Yosef. Our observant students think they know all the telltale signs of a liar. Read more about those conversations below.
How are the brothers feeling when they tell Yaakov about their interactions with Yosef?
- Guilty about having sold Yosef.
- Guilty about lying to Yaakov about what happened to Yosef.
- Guilty about their money being put back in their bags.
- Guilty about leaving Shimon behind in Egypt.
- Like they were stuck in a hard place because of Yosef’s demands.
- Responsible for the brothers that hard things are happening to (Yosef, Shimon, Binyamin).
What do the brothers mean that they keep insisting that they’re honest people?
- That they’ve never really done anything wrong.
Who are honest people I know? How do I know they are honest?
- My dog, when she doesn’t poop in my room.
- My friend, because she doesn’t yell at me or try to twist my arm.
- I can tell someone is honest by looking in their eyes. If they won’t look at you, they’re probably lying.
- I can tell if someone’s honest from the way they talk. If they trip over their words, then I think they’re lying.
- If you look at their eyes and they’re smiling, it gives away that they’re lying.
- If they look to one side instead of right at you, they’re probably lying.
- Fake smiles mean that someone isn’t telling the truth.