Gen 42:38 | NETfull | STEP | But Jacob replied, “My son will not go down there with you, for his brother is dead and he alone is left. If an accident happens to him on the journey you have to make, then you will bring down my gray hair in sorrow to the grave.”

Genesis 42:38

38 But Jacob ^{▼▼ Heb “he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.} replied, “My son will not go down there with you, for his brother is dead and he alone is left. ^{▼▼ The expression he alone is left meant that (so far as Jacob knew) Benjamin was the only surviving child of his mother Rachel.} If an accident happens to him on the journey you have to make, then you will bring down my gray hair ^{▼▼ The expression bring down my gray hair is figurative, using a part for the whole – they would put Jacob in the grave. But the gray head signifies a long life of worry and trouble.} in sorrow to the grave.” ^{▼▼ Heb “to Sheol,” the dwelling place of the dead.}