Genesis 41
1 It came about at the end of two full years that Pharaoh had a dream. Behold, he stood by the Nile.
Two complete years later, the king of Egypt had a dream. In the dream, he was standing alongside the Nile [River].
2 Behold, seven cows came up out of the Nile, desirable and fat, and they grazed in the reeds.
Suddenly seven healthy fat cows come up out of the river. They started eating the grass that was on the riverbank.
3 Behold, seven other cows came up after them out of the Nile, undesirable and thin. They stood by the other cows on the bank of the river.
Soon seven other cows, unhealthy-looking and thin, came up behind them from the Nile [River]. They stood alongside the fat cows that were on the riverbank.
4 Then the undesirable and thin cows ate the seven desirable and fat cows. Then Pharaoh woke up.
Then the unhealthy thin cows ate the seven healthy fat cows. And then the king woke up.
5 Then he slept and dreamed a second time. Behold, seven heads of grain came up on one stalk, wholesome and good.
The king went to sleep again, and he had another dream. This time he saw seven heads of grain that were full of kernels of grain and ripe, and all growing on one stalk.
6 Behold, seven heads, thin and scorched by the east wind, sprouted up after them.
After that, the king saw that seven other heads of grain sprouted on that (OR, on another) stalk. They were thin and had been dried up by the hot east wind.
7 The thin heads swallowed up the seven wholesome and full heads. Pharaoh woke up, and, behold, it was a dream.
Then the thin heads of grain swallowed up the seven ripe full heads. Then the king woke up. He realized that he had been dreaming.
8 It came about in the morning that his spirit was troubled. He sent and called for all the magicians and wise men of Egypt. Pharaoh told them his dreams, but there was no one who could interpret them to Pharaoh.
But the next morning he was worried about the meaning of the dream. So he summoned all the magicians and wise men who lived in Egypt. He told them what he had dreamed, but none of them could tell him the meaning of the two dreams.
9 Then the chief cupbearer said to Pharaoh, “Today I am thinking about my offenses.
Then the chief drink-server said to the king, “Now I remember something that I should have told you! I made a mistake by forgetting to tell it to you.
10 Pharaoh was angry with his servants, and put me in custody in the house of the captain of the guard, the chief baker and me.
One time you were angry with two of us. So you put me and the chief baker in the prison in the house of the captain of the palace guards.
11 We dreamed a dream the same night, he and I. We dreamed each man according to the interpretation of his dream.
While we were there, one night each of us had a dream, and the dreams had different meanings.
12 There was with us there a young Hebrew man, a servant of the captain of the guard. We told him and he interpreted for us our dreams. He interpreted for each of us according to his dream.
There was a young Hebrew man there with us. He was a servant of the captain of the palace guards. We told him what we had dreamed, and he told us what our dreams meant. He told each of us the meaning of our dreams.
13 It came about as he interpreted for us, so it happened. Pharaoh restored me to my post, but the other one he hanged.”
And what happened was exactly the same as the meanings that he told us: You said I could have my previous job again, but the other man was killed by being hanged. [The Hebrew man’s name was Joseph].”
14 Then Pharaoh sent and called for Joseph. They quickly took him out of the dungeon. He shaved himself, changed his clothes, and came in to Pharaoh.
When the king heard that, he told some servants to bring Joseph to him, and they quickly brought Joseph out of the prison. Joseph shaved and put on better clothes, and then he went and stood in front of the king.
15 Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I had a dream, but there is no interpreter for it. But I have heard about you, that when you hear a dream you can interpret it.”
The king said to Joseph, “I had two dreams, and no one can tell me what they mean. But someone told me that when you hear someone tell about a dream he has had, you can tell that person what the dream means.”
16 Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, “It is not in me. God will answer Pharaoh with favor.”
But Joseph replied to the king, “No, I cannot do that. It is God who knows the meaning of dreams, but he will enable me to tell you their meaning, and they will mean something good.”
17 Pharaoh spoke to Joseph, “In my dream, behold, I stood on the bank of the Nile.
The king said to Joseph, “In my first dream I was standing on the bank of the Nile [River].
18 Behold, seven cows came up out of the Nile, fat and desirable, and they grazed among the reeds.
Suddenly seven healthy fat cows came up out of the river, and they started eating the grass that was on the riverbank.
19 Behold, seven other cows came up after them, weak, very undesirable, and thin. I never saw in all the land of Egypt such undesirableness like them.
Soon seven other cows, ugly and thin ones, came up behind them from the river. I never saw such ugly cows in all the land of Egypt!
20 The thin and undesirable cows ate up the first seven fat cows.
The thin ugly cows ate the seven fat cows that came up first.
21 When they had eaten them up, it could not be known that they had eaten them, for they were still as undesirable as before. Then I awoke.
But afterwards, no one would have known that the thin cows ate them, because they were just as ugly as they were before. Then I woke up.
22 I looked in my dream, and, behold, seven heads came up upon one stalk, full and good.
Then I had another dream. I saw seven heads of grain. They were full of kernels of grain and ripe, and they were all growing on one stalk.
23 Behold, seven more heads—withered, thin, and scorched by the east wind—sprang up after them.
Then [to my surprise] I saw seven other heads of grain that sprouted. They were thin and had been dried up by the hot east wind.
24 The thin heads swallowed up the seven good heads. I told these dreams to the magicians, but there was none that could explain it to me.”
The thin heads of grain swallowed the seven good heads. I told these dreams to the magicians, but none of them could explain to me what they meant.”
25 Joseph said to Pharaoh, “The dreams of Pharaoh are the same. What God is about to do, he has declared to Pharaoh.
Then Joseph said to the king, “Both your dreams have the same meaning. God is revealing to you in your dreams what he is about to do.
26 The seven good cows are seven years, and the seven good heads are seven years. The dreams are the same.
The seven healthy cows represent seven years. The seven good heads of grain also represent seven years. The two dreams both have the same meaning.
27 The seven thin and undesirable cows that came up after them are seven years, and also the seven thin heads scorched by the east wind will be seven years of famine.
The seven thin ugly cows that came up behind them and the seven worthless heads of grain that were dried up by the hot east wind each represent seven years (of famine/when food will be very scarce).
28 That is the thing which I spoke to Pharaoh. What God is about to do he has revealed to Pharaoh.
It will happen just as I have told you, because God has revealed to you what he is about to do.
29 Look, seven years of great abundance will come throughout all the land of Egypt.
There will be seven years in which there will be plenty of food throughout the land of Egypt,
30 Seven years of famine will come after them, and all the abundance will be forgotten in the land of Egypt, and the famine will devastate the land.
but after that there will be seven years (of famine/when food will be very scarce). Then people will forget all the years when there was plenty of food, because the famine that will come afterward will ruin the country.
31 The abundance will not be remembered in the land because of the famine that will follow, for it will be very severe.
The people will forget how plentiful food was previously, because the famine will be very terrible.
32 That the dream was repeated to Pharaoh is because the matter has been established by God, and God will soon do it.
The reason God gave to you two dreams is that he [wants you to know] that this will happen, and he will cause it to happen very soon.
33 Now let Pharaoh look for a man discerning and wise, and put him over the land of Egypt.
“Now I suggest that you should choose a man who is wise and can make good decisions. I suggest that you appoint him to direct the affairs of the whole country.
34 Let Pharaoh appoint officials over the land, and let them take a fifth of the crops of Egypt in the seven abundant years.
You should also appoint supervisors over the country, in order that they can arrange to collect one-fifth of all the grain that is harvested during the seven years when food is plentiful.
35 Let them gather all the food of these good years that are coming and store up grain under the authority of Pharaoh, for food to be used in the cities. They should preserve it.
They should collect this amount of grain during those seven years that are coming, when there will be plenty of food. You should supervise them as they store it in the cities.
36 The food will be a supply for the land for the seven years of famine which will be in the land of Egypt. In this way the land will not be devastated by the famine.”
This grain should be stored so that it can be eaten during the seven years when there will be a famine here in Egypt, so that the people in this country will not die from hunger.”
37 This advice was good in the eyes of Pharaoh and in the eyes of all his servants.
The king and his officials thought that this would be a good plan.
38 Pharaoh said to his servants, “Can we find such a man as this, in whom is the Spirit of God?”
So the king said to them, “(Can we find any other man like Joseph, a man to whom God has given his Spirit?/It is not likely that we will find another man like this man, one to whom God has given his Spirit!)” [RHQ]
39 So Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Since God has shown you all this, there is none so discerning and wise as you.
Then the king said to Joseph, “Because God has revealed all this to you, it seems to me that there is no one who is as wise as you and who can decide wisely about things.
40 You will be over my house, and according to your word will all my people be ruled. Only in the throne will I be greater than you.”
So I will put you in charge of everything in my palace. All the people here in Egypt must obey what you command. Only because I am king [MTY] will I have more authority than you.”
41 Pharaoh said to Joseph, “See, I have put you over all the land of Egypt.”
Then the king said to Joseph, “I am now putting you in charge of the whole country of Egypt.”
42 Pharaoh took off his signet ring from his hand and put it upon Joseph's hand. He clothed him with clothes of fine linen, and put a gold chain on his neck.
The king took from his finger the ring that had his seal on it, and he put it on Joseph’s finger. He put robes made of fine linen on him, and he put a gold chain around his neck.
43 He had him ride in the second chariot which he possessed. Men shouted before him, “Bend the knee.” Pharaoh put him over all the land of Egypt.
Then he arranged for Joseph to ride around in the chariot [that showed that he was] the second-most important man in the country. When Joseph rode in the chariot, men shouted to the people who were on the road in front of him, “Get off the road!” So the king put Joseph in charge of everything in the country.
44 Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I am Pharaoh, and apart from you, no man will lift his hand or his foot in all the land of Egypt.”
The king said to Joseph, “I am the king, but no one in the whole land of Egypt will do anything [IDM] if you do not permit them to do it.”
45 Pharaoh called Joseph's name “Zaphenath-Paneah.” He gave him Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera priest of On, as a wife. Joseph went out over the land of Egypt.
The king gave Joseph a new name, Zaphenath-Paneah. He also gave him Asenath to be his wife. She was the daughter of Potiphera, who was a priest in a temple in On [city]. Then Joseph became known (OR, traveled) through all the land of Egypt.
46 Joseph was thirty years old when he stood before Pharaoh, king of Egypt. Joseph went out from the presence of Pharaoh, and went throughout all the land of Egypt.
Joseph was 30 years old when he started to work for the king of Egypt. To do his work, he left the king’s palace and traveled throughout Egypt.
47 In the seven bountiful years the land produced abundantly.
During the next seven years, the land produced abundant crops, so there was plenty of food.
48 He gathered up all the food of the seven years that was in the land of Egypt and put the food in the cities. He put into each city the food from the fields that surrounded it.
As Joseph supervised them, his helpers collected one-fifth of all the grain that was produced during those years, and stored it in the cities. In each city, he had his helpers store up the grain that was grown in the fields that surrounded that city.
49 Joseph stored up grain like the sand of the sea, so much that he stopped counting, because it was beyond counting.
Joseph had them store up a huge amount of grain. It looked as plentiful as the sand on the seashore. There was so much grain that after a while they stopped keeping records of how much grain was stored, because there was more grain than they could measure.
50 Joseph had two sons before the years of famine came, whom Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera priest of On, bore to him.
Before the seven years of famine started, Joseph’s wife Asenath gave birth to two sons.
51 Joseph called the name of his firstborn Manasseh, for he said, “God has made me forget all my trouble and all my father's household.”
Joseph named the first one Manasseh, [which sounds like the Hebrew word that means ‘forget]’, because, he said, “God has caused me to forget all my troubles and all my father’s family.”
52 He called the name of the second son Ephraim, for he said, “God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction.”
He named his second son Ephraim, [which means ‘to have children]’, because, he said, “God has given me children here in this land where I have suffered.”
53 The seven years of abundance that was in the land of Egypt came to an end.
Finally the seven years in which there was plenty of food ended.
54 The seven years of famine began, as Joseph had said. There was famine in all lands, but in all the land of Egypt there was food.
Then the seven years of famine started, just as Joseph had predicted. There was also a famine in all the other nearby lands, but although the crops did not grow, there was food everywhere in Egypt, because of the grain they had stored up in the cities.
55 When all the land of Egypt was famished, the people loudly called on Pharaoh for food. Pharaoh said to all the Egyptians, “Go to Joseph and do what he says.”
When all the people of [MTY] Egypt had eaten all of their own food and were still hungry, they begged the king for food. So the king told all the people of Egypt, “Go to Joseph, and do what he tells you to do.”
56 The famine was over all the face of the whole land. Joseph opened all the storehouses and sold to the Egyptians. The famine was severe in the land of Egypt.
When the famine was very bad throughout the whole country, Joseph ordered his helpers to open the storehouses. Then they sold the grain in the storehouses to the people of Egypt, because the famine was very severe all over Egypt.
57 All the earth was coming to Egypt to buy grain from Joseph, because the famine was severe in all the earth.
And people from many [HYP] nearby countries came to Egypt to buy grain from Joseph, because the famine was very severe everywhere [HYP].
