Genesis 44:1-3

"And he commanded the steward of his house, saying, Fill the men's sacks with food, as much as they can carry, and put every man's money in his sack's mouth. And put my cup, the silver cup, in the sack's mouth of the youngest, and his grain money. And he did according to the word that Joseph had spoken. As soon as the morning was light, the men were sent away, they and their asses."

Why did Joseph order the actions related here? It is agreed by many that his purpose was that of finding out whether or not his brothers had in any manner changed from the heartless hatred of their father's favorite son as evidence in their sale of Joseph so long ago. The fine point of the trial Joseph arranged for them was just this: If given the opportunity, would the brothers abandon Benjamin, with a perfectly valid excuse, and, ignoring the grief and distress of their aged father, abandon their brother and return home without him? Everything in the procedure here exhibits that purpose. Even the special partiality shown to Benjamin at the preceding banquet fitted into this purpose of testing the true attitude of the brothers.