וַיְצַ֞ו אֶת־אֲשֶׁ֣ר עַל־בֵּיתוֹ֮ לֵאמֹר֒ מַלֵּ֞א אֶת־אַמְתְּחֹ֤ת הָֽאֲנָשִׁים֙ אֹ֔כֶל כַּאֲשֶׁ֥ר יוּכְל֖וּן שְׂאֵ֑ת וְשִׂ֥ים כֶּֽסֶף־אִ֖ישׁ בְּפִ֥י אַמְתַּחְתּֽוֹ׃
Then he instructed his house steward: “Fill the men’s bags with food, as much as they can carry, and put each man’s money in the mouth of his bag.”
Midrash Tanchuma, Miketz 10:9; Bereshit Rabbah 92:6. Both sources explicitly open their treatment with Yosef’s command concerning the men’s sacks in Bereishis 44:1.
The Midrash Tanchuma connects Yosef’s command with the plan to send the brothers out in the morning and then pursue them. Bereshit Rabbah 92:6 uses the same opening verse to develop a lesson about protection when travelers leave by night.
What Is Learned: The command to fill the sacks is part of Yosef’s deliberate staging of the brothers’ departure and pursuit; the Midrash connects the details of the departure to the larger episode that follows.