בראשית, פרק מ״ד, פסוק י׳

The brothers have just handed down their own severe sentence, offering the thief's life and their own freedom in response to the accusation of theft. The response from Joseph's steward, however, introduces a striking contradiction. He appears to agree with their terms, yet immediately issues a vastly different ruling: the thief will live as a slave, and the rest of the group will go completely free.

The primary approach among commentators is that the steward does, in fact, agree with the strict legal standard the brothers presented. According to the legal customs of the time, when stolen property is found with one member of a traveling group, the entire party is viewed as accomplices and shares the guilt. Therefore, their admission of collective punishment is legally sound. Yet, the steward chooses to act with leniency, deciding to punish only the individual offender rather than the whole group [רש״י, רבנו בחיי, מזרחי, שפתי חכמים].

Alternatively, a different perspective suggests the steward's agreement has nothing to do with the proposed punishment. Instead, he is validating their claim of innocence. The brothers had previously argued that they were honest men, pointing to the money they voluntarily returned from Canaan as proof. The steward accepts this defense. He assures them that despite the suspicion created by the missing cup, he still believes they are upright. Because their overall credibility remains intact, he does not suspect a collective conspiracy. He concludes that only one individual broke their trust, and therefore, only that person will face the consequences [רד״ק, שד״ל, רלב״ג, העמק דבר]. Building on this, the steward may be subtly hinting that the person who stole the cup is likely the same individual who previously hid the money in the sacks without the rest of the brothers knowing [מלבי״ם].

As for replacing the death penalty with slavery, the steward flatly rejects the brothers' extreme sentence. The standard and appropriate penalty for stealing property is not death, but servitude, a legal norm that existed well before the Torah was given [חזקוני, משכיל לדוד]. Interestingly, the steward specifies that the thief will become a slave to him personally, rather than to his master. Because the cup was under his direct supervision, the steward would be personally responsible for paying for its loss. Consequently, the thief is enslaved directly to him to pay off the debt of the stolen item [דעת זקנים].

Finally, the steward assures the rest of the brothers that they will be completely clear of any wrongdoing. Since their reputation for honesty stands and there is no evidence of a group plot, they are fully exempt from slavery, fines, or any other punishment, allowing them to return home in peace [ספורנו, אור החיים, העמק דבר].