John Calvin Commentary Genesis 42:28

"And he said unto his brethren, My money is restored; and, lo, it is even in my sack: and their heart failed them, and they turned trembling one to another, saying, What is this that God hath done unto us?" — Genesis 42:28 (ASV)

What is this that God has done unto us? They do not remonstrate with God, as if they thought this danger had come upon them without cause: but, perceiving that God was angry with them in many ways, they lament their misery. But why do they not rather turn their thoughts to Joseph?

For the suspicion was natural that this had been done by fraud, because he wished to lay new snares for them. How does it happen, then, that losing sight of man, they set God as an avenger directly before them? Truly, because this single thought possessed their minds: that a just reward, such as their sins deserved, would be given to them; and from that time, they referred whatever evils happened to the same cause.

Before (as we have said) they were asleep; but from the time that they began to be affected by a vivid fear of God’s judgment, His providence always presented itself to their view. So David, when, by the inward suggestion of the Spirit, he has learned that the rod with which he was chastised had been sent from heaven, is not distracted or perplexed, though he sees plainly that the evils have come from another source, but prays to God to heal the wounds which He had made.

It is no common act of prudence, and it is also profitable, whenever any adversity overtakes us, to accustom ourselves to consider the judgments of God. We see how unbelievers, while they imagine their misfortunes to be accidental or while they are intent on accusing their enemies, only intensify their grief by fretting and raging, and thus cause the anger of God to burn more fiercely against them.

But he who, in his affliction, exercises himself in reflecting on his own sins, and sets God before him as his Judge, will humble himself in the divine presence, and will compose his mind to patience by the hope of pardon. Let us, however, remember that the providence of God is not truly acknowledged, except in connection with His justice.

For though the men by whose hand He chastises us are often unjust, yet, in an incomprehensible manner, He executes His judgments through them, against which judgments it is not lawful for us either to reply or to murmur. For sometimes even the reprobate, though they acknowledge themselves to be struck by the hand of God, yet do not cease to complain against Him, as Moses teaches us by the example of Cain. I do not, however, understand that this complaint was made by the sons of Jacob, for the purpose of charging God with tyrannical violence; but because they, being overcome with fear, inferred from this double punishment that God was highly displeased with them.