Genesis 41

Two full years went by. Then Pharaoh had a dream. In it he was standing beside the river.

1And it came to pass at the end of two full years, that Pharaoh dreamed: and, behold, he stood by the river.

NoteThe two years are counted from the events of the previous chapter, where Joseph interpreted the cupbearer's dream and asked to be remembered, and was forgotten. "The river" throughout this chapter is the Nile, Egypt's single source of water and the thing on which every harvest depended; a dream set on its bank was already a dream about the food supply.

2Seven cows came up out of the river. They looked healthy and were fat. They fed on the grass by the water.

2And, behold, there came up out of the river seven well favoured kine and fatfleshed; and they fed in a meadow.

NoteCattle wading in the Nile shallows to graze and escape insects was an everyday Egyptian sight. The word behind "meadow" is an Egyptian loanword for the reedy marsh grass along the river's edge.

3Then seven other cows came up out of the river after them. These looked sickly and were thin. They stood next to the other cows on the riverbank.

3And, behold, seven other kine came up after them out of the river, ill favoured and leanfleshed; and stood by the other kine upon the brink of the river.

4The sickly, thin cows ate up the seven healthy, fat cows. Then Pharaoh woke up.

4And the ill favoured and leanfleshed kine did eat up the seven well favoured and fat kine. So Pharaoh awoke.

5He fell asleep and dreamed a second time. Seven heads of grain grew up on one stalk. They were plump and good.

5And he slept and dreamed the second time: and, behold, seven ears of corn came up upon one stalk, rank and good.

Note"Corn" in the King James Version means grain of any kind, here Egyptian wheat or barley, not maize, which Europeans had not yet met when the translation was made. It carries this general sense everywhere it appears in this chapter.

6Then seven thin heads of grain sprouted up after them. They were dried out by the hot east wind.

6And, behold, seven thin ears and blasted with the east wind sprung up after them.

NoteThe east wind is the khamsin, a scorching wind off the desert that can shrivel a standing crop in a day. It was the standard image for ruined grain.

7The seven thin heads swallowed up the seven plump, full heads. Then Pharaoh woke up, and he saw that it had been a dream.

7And the seven thin ears devoured the seven rank and full ears. And Pharaoh awoke, and, behold, it was a dream.

8In the morning his mind was troubled. He sent for all the magicians of Egypt and all its wise men. Pharaoh told them his dream, but not one of them could tell him what it meant.

8And it came to pass in the morning that his spirit was troubled; and he sent and called for all the magicians of Egypt, and all the wise men thereof: and Pharaoh told them his dream; but there was none that could interpret them unto Pharaoh.

NoteEgypt's "magicians" were not stage conjurers but a recognized professional class of temple scholars, the word behind it suggests engravers or keepers of sacred writing. Interpreting dreams and omens was part of their training, and Egyptian dream manuals listing images and their meanings have survived. The point of the verse is that the accredited experts failed.

9Then the chief cupbearer said to Pharaoh, "Today I remember what I did wrong.

9Then spake the chief butler unto Pharaoh, saying, I do remember my faults this day:

NoteThe cupbearer ("butler" in the King James) tasted and served the king's wine. Because the job guarded the king against poison it went to a trusted intimate, and such men often became powerful court figures with the king's ear, which is why his word carries weight here.

10Pharaoh was angry with his servants, and he put me under guard in the house of the captain of the guard. He put both me and the chief baker there.

10Pharaoh was wroth with his servants, and put me in ward in the captain of the guard’s house, both me and the chief baker:

11One night we each had a dream, he and I. Each dream had its own meaning.

11And we dreamed a dream in one night, I and he; we dreamed each man according to the interpretation of his dream.

12A young man was there with us, a Hebrew, a servant of the captain of the guard. We told him our dreams, and he told us what they meant. He explained each man's dream to him.

12And there was there with us a young man, an Hebrew, servant to the captain of the guard; and we told him, and he interpreted to us our dreams; to each man according to his dream he did interpret.

Note"Hebrew" is the label outsiders used for Joseph's people rather than the name they used for themselves. In an Egyptian court it marked him as a foreigner of no standing, which is part of what makes the cupbearer's recommendation surprising.

13And it turned out just as he had told us. I was given my job back, and the other man was hanged."

13And it came to pass, as he interpreted to us, so it was; me he restored unto mine office, and him he hanged.

NoteThe Hebrew verb covers hanging, but more likely impaling or hanging the body on a pole or stake after execution, a public display, standard practice in the ancient Near East.

14So Pharaoh sent for Joseph, and they hurried to bring him out of the dungeon. He shaved, changed his clothes, and came in to Pharaoh.

14Then Pharaoh sent and called Joseph, and they brought him hastily out of the dungeon: and he shaved himself, and changed his raiment, and came in unto Pharaoh.

Note"Dungeon" is literally "the pit," the same word used for the cistern his brothers threw him into. The shaving matters: Egyptians shaved their faces and heads and regarded beards as barbarian, so a Semite entering the royal presence had to be made to look presentable by Egyptian standards.

15Pharaoh said to Joseph, "I have had a dream, and no one can tell me what it means. But I have heard it said about you that when you hear a dream, you can explain it."

15And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, I have dreamed a dream, and there is none that can interpret it: and I have heard say of thee, that thou canst understand a dream to interpret it.

16Joseph answered Pharaoh, "It is not in me. God will give Pharaoh an answer that brings peace."

16And Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, It is not in me: God shall give Pharaoh an answer of peace.

Note"An answer of peace" translates the Hebrew shalom, which means well-being and wholeness more than the absence of conflict. Joseph is promising an answer that will settle the matter and do Pharaoh good, not necessarily good news.

17Pharaoh said to Joseph, "In my dream I was standing on the bank of the river.

17And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, In my dream, behold, I stood upon the bank of the river:

18Seven cows came up out of the river. They were fat and looked healthy, and they fed on the grass by the water.

18And, behold, there came up out of the river seven kine, fatfleshed and well favoured; and they fed in a meadow:

19Then seven other cows came up after them. They were weak, very sickly looking, and thin. I have never seen cows as bad as these in all the land of Egypt.

19And, behold, seven other kine came up after them, poor and very ill favoured and leanfleshed, such as I never saw in all the land of Egypt for badness:

20The thin, sickly cows ate up the first seven fat cows.

20And the lean and the ill favoured kine did eat up the first seven fat kine:

21But after they had eaten them, no one could tell that they had eaten anything. They looked just as sickly as they had at the start. Then I woke up.

21And when they had eaten them up, it could not be known that they had eaten them; but they were still ill favoured, as at the beginning. So I awoke.

22I also saw in my dream seven heads of grain coming up on one stalk. They were full and good.

22And I saw in my dream, and, behold, seven ears came up in one stalk, full and good:

23Then seven heads of grain sprouted up after them. They were withered, thin, and dried out by the hot east wind.

23And, behold, seven ears, withered, thin, and blasted with the east wind, sprung up after them:

24The thin heads swallowed up the seven good heads. I told this to the magicians, but no one could explain it to me."

24And the thin ears devoured the seven good ears: and I told this unto the magicians; but there was none that could declare it to me.

25Joseph said to Pharaoh, "Pharaoh's dream is one and the same. God has shown Pharaoh what he is about to do.

25And Joseph said unto Pharaoh, The dream of Pharaoh is one: God hath shewed Pharaoh what he is about to do.

26The seven good cows are seven years, and the seven good heads of grain are seven years. The dream is one and the same.

26The seven good kine are seven years; and the seven good ears are seven years: the dream is one.

27The seven thin, sickly cows that came up after them are seven years. So are the seven empty heads of grain dried out by the east wind. They will be seven years of famine.

27And the seven thin and ill favoured kine that came up after them are seven years; and the seven empty ears blasted with the east wind shall be seven years of famine.

28This is what I have said to Pharaoh: God has shown Pharaoh what he is about to do.

28This is the thing which I have spoken unto Pharaoh: What God is about to do he sheweth unto Pharaoh.

29Seven years are coming when there will be great plenty all through the land of Egypt.

29Behold, there come seven years of great plenty throughout all the land of Egypt:

30After them, seven years of famine will come. All the plenty will be forgotten in the land of Egypt, and the famine will eat up the land.

30And there shall arise after them seven years of famine; and all the plenty shall be forgotten in the land of Egypt; and the famine shall consume the land;

31The plenty will not be remembered in the land, because the famine that follows will be so terrible.

31And the plenty shall not be known in the land by reason of that famine following; for it shall be very grievous.

32The dream came to Pharaoh twice because the matter is settled by God, and God will bring it about soon.

32And for that the dream was doubled unto Pharaoh twice; it is because the thing is established by God, and God will shortly bring it to pass.

NoteIn the ancient world a dream that repeated itself in two forms was read as confirmed and imminent, not merely as one dream told twice. Joseph is explaining the doubling as part of the message.

33So now let Pharaoh find a man who is careful and wise, and put him in charge of the land of Egypt.

33Now therefore let Pharaoh look out a man discreet and wise, and set him over the land of Egypt.

Note"Discreet" in the King James means discerning and perceptive, able to size a situation up. It does not mean tight-lipped or tactful, the sense the word has taken on since.

34Let Pharaoh do this, and let him appoint officers over the land to take a fifth of the harvest of Egypt during the seven years of plenty.

34Let Pharaoh do this, and let him appoint officers over the land, and take up the fifth part of the land of Egypt in the seven plenteous years.

NoteA fifth is twenty percent. Egypt already levied a tax on harvests, usually reckoned at around a tenth, so this is a doubling of the normal state claim on grain, imposed only during the good years.

35Let them gather all the food of those good years that are coming, and store up grain under Pharaoh's authority. Let them keep the food in the cities.

35And let them gather all the food of those good years that come, and lay up corn under the hand of Pharaoh, and let them keep food in the cities.

36That food will be a supply for the land for the seven years of famine that will come on the land of Egypt. Then the land will not die from the famine."

36And that food shall be for store to the land against the seven years of famine, which shall be in the land of Egypt; that the land perish not through the famine.

37The plan seemed good to Pharaoh and to all his officials.

37And the thing was good in the eyes of Pharaoh, and in the eyes of all his servants.

38Pharaoh said to his officials, "Can we find anyone like this man, one in whom the Spirit of God is?"

38And Pharaoh said unto his servants, Can we find such a one as this is, a man in whom the Spirit of God is?

NoteThe phrase can be read either as "the Spirit of God" or, on the lips of an Egyptian king, as "a spirit of the gods", the Hebrew word for God is plural in form and the sentence does not settle which is meant. Pharaoh is recognizing that some divine power is at work in Joseph.

39Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, "Since God has shown you all this, there is no one as careful and wise as you are.

39And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, Forasmuch as God hath shewed thee all this, there is none so discreet and wise as thou art:

40You will be over my house, and all my people will be ruled by what you say. Only in the throne will I be greater than you."

40Thou shalt be over my house, and according unto thy word shall all my people be ruled: only in the throne will I be greater than thou.

NoteThe Hebrew of the middle clause is difficult: the verb usually means "kiss" and is variously understood as the people ordering themselves, submitting, or paying homage at Joseph's command. The overall sense, that Joseph's word governs everyone below the throne, is not in doubt.

41Pharaoh said to Joseph, "See, I have set you over all the land of Egypt."

41And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, See, I have set thee over all the land of Egypt.

42Then Pharaoh took his ring off his own hand and put it on Joseph's hand. He dressed him in clothes of fine linen and put a gold chain around his neck.

42And Pharaoh took off his ring from his hand, and put it upon Joseph’s hand, and arrayed him in vestures of fine linen, and put a gold chain about his neck;

NoteThe ring is a signet: its engraved face pressed into clay or wax stamped a document with the king's own authority. Handing it over is the legal transfer of power, not a gift of jewelry. Fine linen was the dress of the Egyptian official class, and a heavy gold collar was the standard royal award for high service, Egyptian tomb paintings show the ceremony.

43He had him ride in the second chariot that he owned, and men called out ahead of him, "Bow the knee!" So he made him ruler over all the land of Egypt.

43And he made him to ride in the second chariot which he had; and they cried before him, Bow the knee: and he made him ruler over all the land of Egypt.

Note"Bow the knee" translates the Hebrew abrek, a word that appears nowhere else and whose meaning is genuinely unknown. It has been explained as a Hebrew command to kneel, as an Egyptian or Akkadian title of respect, and as a herald's cry to clear the way. Translators pick one; the original is uncertain.

44Pharaoh said to Joseph, "I am Pharaoh, and without your word no one in all the land of Egypt will lift a hand or a foot."

44And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, I am Pharaoh, and without thee shall no man lift up his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt.

Note"Lift up his hand or foot" is an idiom for taking any action at all. Pharaoh is saying nothing happens in Egypt without Joseph's authorization.

45Pharaoh gave Joseph the name Zaphnath-paaneah. He gave him Asenath, the daughter of Potipherah, priest of On, to be his wife. And Joseph went out over all the land of Egypt.

45And Pharaoh called Joseph’s name Zaphnathpaaneah; and he gave him to wife Asenath the daughter of Potipherah priest of On. And Joseph went out over all the land of Egypt.

NoteZaphnath-paaneah is an Egyptian name whose exact form is disputed; the most common reconstruction means something like "the god speaks and he lives." Renaming a man was the mark of a new master or a new office, and marks Joseph's absorption into the Egyptian establishment. On is Heliopolis, the great center of the sun god's worship, and its chief priest stood among the most powerful men in Egypt, so this is a marriage into the top of Egyptian society.

46Joseph was thirty years old when he stood before Pharaoh, king of Egypt. Joseph left Pharaoh's presence and traveled throughout all the land of Egypt.

46And Joseph was thirty years old when he stood before Pharaoh king of Egypt. And Joseph went out from the presence of Pharaoh, and went throughout all the land of Egypt.

NoteJoseph was seventeen when his brothers sold him, so thirteen years have passed. "Stood before Pharaoh" is a set phrase for entering royal service, not simply for being in the room.

47During the seven years of plenty, the land produced crops in great heaps.

47And in the seven plenteous years the earth brought forth by handfuls.

Note"By handfuls" renders the Hebrew literally: the land produced grain in gathered heaps, more than could be dealt with in the usual way.

48He gathered up all the food of those seven years in the land of Egypt and stored the food in the cities. In each city he stored the food from the fields around it.

48And he gathered up all the food of the seven years, which were in the land of Egypt, and laid up the food in the cities: the food of the field, which was round about every city, laid he up in the same.

49Joseph piled up grain like the sand of the sea, so much that he stopped keeping count, because it could not be counted.

49And Joseph gathered corn as the sand of the sea, very much, until he left numbering; for it was without number.

50Before the years of famine came, two sons were born to Joseph. Asenath, the daughter of Potipherah, priest of On, gave birth to them.

50And unto Joseph were born two sons before the years of famine came, which Asenath the daughter of Potipherah priest of On bare unto him.

51Joseph named the firstborn Manasseh, saying, "God has made me forget all my hard work and all my father's family."

51And Joseph called the name of the firstborn Manasseh: For God, said he, hath made me forget all my toil, and all my father’s house.

NoteManasseh sounds like the Hebrew verb "to make forget." Hebrew names in these narratives are usually given for the way they echo a word in the parent's explanation, not as translations of it.

52He named the second son Ephraim, saying, "God has made me fruitful in the land where I suffered."

52And the name of the second called he Ephraim: For God hath caused me to be fruitful in the land of my affliction.

NoteEphraim echoes the Hebrew word for being fruitful. "The land of my affliction" is Egypt, the same country that has now made him rich.

53The seven years of plenty in the land of Egypt came to an end.

53And the seven years of plenteousness, that was in the land of Egypt, were ended.

54Then the seven years of famine began to come, just as Joseph had said. There was famine in all lands, but in all the land of Egypt there was bread.

54And the seven years of dearth began to come, according as Joseph had said: and the dearth was in all lands; but in all the land of Egypt there was bread.

Note"Dearth" in the King James simply means famine; the two words translate the same Hebrew term and are used interchangeably here.

55When all the land of Egypt was starving, the people cried out to Pharaoh for bread. Pharaoh said to all the Egyptians, "Go to Joseph. Do whatever he tells you."

55And when all the land of Egypt was famished, the people cried to Pharaoh for bread: and Pharaoh said unto all the Egyptians, Go unto Joseph; what he saith to you, do.

Note"Bread" translates a Hebrew word that commonly means food in general, not only baked loaves. The people are crying out for something to eat.

56The famine was over the whole face of the earth. Joseph opened all the storehouses and sold grain to the Egyptians, and the famine grew worse in the land of Egypt.

56And the famine was over all the face of the earth: And Joseph opened all the storehouses, and sold unto the Egyptians; and the famine waxed sore in the land of Egypt.

57People from all countries came to Egypt, to Joseph, to buy grain, because the famine was so bad in all lands.

57And all countries came into Egypt to Joseph for to buy corn; because that the famine was so sore in all lands.