Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Sforno · Torah

Sforno on Genesis 43:2/ספורנו על בראשית מ״ג:ב׳

אשׁוּבוּ שִׁבְרוּ לָנוּ. כִּי חָשַׁב שֶׁהָיוּ מְבַקְּשִׁים לְהוֹלִיךְ עִמָּם אֶת בִּנְיָמִין כְּדֵי לְאַבְּדוֹ כְּיוֹסֵף, כְּמוֹ שֶׁאָמַר לָהֶם אֹתִי שִׁכַּלְתֶּם, לֹא שֶׁהָיָה הַדָּבָר כַּאֲשֶׁר סִפְּרוּ.
1שובו שברו לנו, for he thought that their intent in wanting to take Binyamin with them was in order to lose him as they had lost Joseph. He had previously accused them of bereaving him (deliberately) when he had said (42,36) אותי שכלתם, “you have bereaved me,” (transitive active conjugation). He meant to deny that what they had told him at the time had been the truth.