Genesis 41

Pharaoh’s Dreams

41Then it came to pass, at the end of two full years, that ^aPharaoh had a dream; and behold, he stood by the river. ²Suddenly there came up out of the river seven cows, fine looking and fat; and they fed in the meadow. ³Then behold, seven other cows came up after them out of the river, ugly and gaunt, and stood by the other cows on the bank of the river. ⁴And the ugly and gaunt cows ate up the seven fine looking and fat cows. So Pharaoh awoke. ⁵He slept and dreamed a second time; and suddenly seven heads of grain came up on one stalk, plump and good. ⁶Then behold, seven thin heads, blighted by the ^beast wind, sprang up after them. ⁷And the seven thin heads devoured the seven plump and full heads. So Pharaoh awoke, and indeed, it was a dream. ⁸Now it came to pass in the morning ^cthat his spirit was troubled, and he sent and called for all ^dthe magicians of Egypt and all its ^ewise men. And Pharaoh told them his dreams, but there was no one who could interpret them for Pharaoh.

⁹Then the ^fchief butler spoke to Pharaoh, saying: “I remember my faults this day. ¹⁰When Pharaoh was ^gangry with his servants, ^hand put me in custody in the house of the captain of the guard, both me and the chief baker, ¹¹ⁱwe each had a dream in one night, he and I. Each of us dreamed according to the interpretation of his own dream. ¹²Now there was a young ^jHebrew man with us there, a ^kservant of the captain of the guard. And we told him, and he ^linterpreted our dreams for us; to each man he interpreted according to his own dream. ¹³And it came to pass, just ^mas he interpreted for us, so it happened. He restored me to my office, and he hanged him.”

¹⁴ⁿThen Pharaoh sent and called Joseph, and they ^obrought him quickly ^pout of the dungeon; and he shaved, ^qchanged his clothing, and came to Pharaoh. ¹⁵And Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I have had a dream, and there is no one who can interpret it. ^rBut I have heard it said of you that you can understand a dream, to interpret it.”

¹⁶So Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, ^s“It is not in me; ^tGod will give Pharaoh an answer of peace.”

¹⁷Then Pharaoh said to Joseph: “Behold, ^uin my dream I stood on the bank of the river. ¹⁸Suddenly seven cows came up out of the river, fine looking and fat; and they fed in the meadow. ¹⁹Then behold, seven other cows came up after them, poor and very ugly and gaunt, such ugliness as I have never seen in all the land of Egypt. ²⁰And the gaunt and ugly cows ate up the first seven, the fat cows. ²¹When they had eaten them up, no one would have known that they had eaten them, for they were just as ugly as at the beginning. So I awoke. ²²Also I saw in my dream, and suddenly seven ¹heads came up on one stalk, full and good. ²³Then behold, seven heads, withered, thin, and blighted by the east wind, sprang up after them. ²⁴And the thin heads devoured the seven good heads. So ^vI told this to the magicians, but there was no one who could explain it to me.”

²⁵Then Joseph said to Pharaoh, “The dreams of Pharaoh are one; ^wGod has shown Pharaoh what He is about to do: ²⁶The seven good cows are seven years, and the seven good ²heads are seven years; the dreams are one. ²⁷And the seven thin and ugly cows which came up after them are seven years, and the seven empty heads blighted by the east wind are ^xseven years of famine. ^28yThis is the thing which I have spoken to Pharaoh. God has shown Pharaoh what He is about to do. ²⁹Indeed ^zseven years of great plenty will come throughout all the land of Egypt; ³⁰but after them seven years of famine will ^aarise, and all the plenty will be forgotten in the land of Egypt; and the famine ^bwill deplete the land. ³¹So the plenty will not be known in the land because of the famine following, for it will be very severe. ³²And the dream was repeated to Pharaoh twice because the ^cthing is established by God, and God will shortly bring it to pass.

³³“Now therefore, let Pharaoh select a discerning and wise man, and set him over the land of Egypt. ³⁴Let Pharaoh do this, and let him appoint ³officers over the land, ^dto collect one-fifth of the produce of the land of Egypt in the seven plentiful years. ³⁵And ^elet them gather all the food of those good years that are coming, and store up grain under the ⁴authority of Pharaoh, and let them keep food in the cities. ³⁶Then that food shall be as a ⁵reserve for the land for the seven years of famine which shall be in the land of Egypt, that the land ^fmay not ⁶perish during the famine.”

Joseph’s Rise to Power

³⁷So ^gthe advice was good in the eyes of Pharaoh and in the eyes of all his servants. ³⁸And Pharaoh said to his servants, “Can we find such a one as this, a man ^hin whom is the Spirit of God?”

³⁹Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Inasmuch as God has shown you all this, there is no one as discerning and wise as you. ⁴⁰ⁱYou shall be ⁷over my house, and all my people shall be ruled according to your word; only in regard to the throne will I be greater than you.” ⁴¹And Pharaoh said to Joseph, “See, I have ^jset you over all the land of Egypt.”

⁴²Then Pharaoh ^ktook his signet ring off his hand and put it on Joseph’s hand; and he ^lclothed him in garments of fine linen ^mand put a gold chain around his neck. ⁴³And he had him ride in the second ⁿchariot which he had; ^oand they cried out before him, “Bow the knee!” So he set him ^pover all the land of Egypt. ⁴⁴Pharaoh also said to Joseph, “I am Pharaoh, and without your consent no man may lift his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt.” ⁴⁵And Pharaoh called Joseph’s name ⁸Zaphnath-Paaneah. And he gave him as a wife ^qAsenath, the daughter of Poti-Pherah priest of On. So Joseph went out over all the land of Egypt.

⁴⁶Joseph was thirty years old when he ^rstood before Pharaoh king of Egypt. And Joseph went out from the presence of Pharaoh, and went throughout all the land of Egypt. ⁴⁷Now in the seven plentiful years the ground brought forth ⁹abundantly. ⁴⁸So 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; he laid up in every city the food of the fields which surrounded them. ⁴⁹Joseph gathered very much grain, ^sas the sand of the sea, until he stopped counting, for it was immeasurable.

^50tAnd to Joseph were born two sons before the years of famine came, whom Asenath, the daughter of Poti-Pherah priest of On, bore to him. ⁵¹Joseph called the name of the firstborn ¹Manasseh: “For God has made me forget all my toil and all my ^ufather’s house.” ⁵²And the name of the second he called ²Ephraim: “For God has caused me to be ^vfruitful in the land of my affliction.”

⁵³Then the seven years of plenty which were in the land of Egypt ended, ^54wand the seven years of famine began to come, ^xas Joseph had said. The famine was in all lands, but in all the land of Egypt there was bread. ⁵⁵So when all the land of Egypt was famished, the people cried to Pharaoh for bread. Then Pharaoh said to all the Egyptians, “Go to Joseph; ^ywhatever he says to you, do.” ⁵⁶The famine was over all the face of the earth, and Joseph opened ³all the storehouses and ^zsold to the Egyptians. And the famine became severe in the land of Egypt. ^57aSo all countries came to Joseph in Egypt to ^bbuy grain, because the famine was severe in all lands.