After two whole years, Pharaoh dreamed that he was standing by
the Nile, and behold, there came up out of the Nile seven cows,
attractive and plump, and they fed in the reed grass. And behold,
seven other cows, ugly and thin, came up out of the Nile after
them, and stood by the other cows on the bank of the Nile. And the
ugly, thin cows ate up the seven attractive, plump cows. And
Pharaoh awoke. And he fell asleep and dreamed a second time. And
behold, seven ears of grain, plump and good, were growing on one
stalk. And behold, after them sprouted seven ears, thin and
blighted by the east wind. And the thin ears swallowed up the seven
plump, full ears. And Pharaoh awoke, and behold, it was a dream. So
in the morning his spirit was troubled, and he sent and called for
all the magicians of Egypt and all its wise men. Pharaoh told them
his dreams, but there was none who could interpret them to Pharaoh.
Then the chief cupbearer said to Pharaoh, “I remember my offenses
today. When Pharaoh was angry with his servants and put me and the
chief baker in custody in the house of the captain of the guard, we
dreamed on the same night, he and I, each having a dream with its
own interpretation. A young Hebrew was there with us, a servant of
the captain of the guard. When we told him, he interpreted our
dreams to us, giving an interpretation to each man according to his
dream. And as he interpreted to us, so it came about. I was
restored to my office, and the baker was hanged.”
Then Pharaoh sent and called Joseph, and they quickly brought him
out of the pit. And when he had shaved himself and changed his
clothes, he came in before Pharaoh. And Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I
have had a dream, and there is no one who can interpret it. I have
heard it said of you that when you hear a dream you can interpret
it.” Joseph answered Pharaoh, “It is not in me; God will give
Pharaoh a favorable answer.” Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Behold,
in my dream I was standing on the banks of the Nile. Seven cows,
plump and attractive, came up out of the Nile and fed in the reed
grass. Seven other cows came up after them, poor and very ugly and
thin, such as I had never seen in all the land of Egypt. And the
thin, ugly cows ate up the first seven plump cows, but when they
had eaten them no one would have known that they had eaten them,
for they were still as ugly as at the beginning. Then I awoke. I
also saw in my dream seven ears growing on one stalk, full and
good. Seven ears, withered, thin, and blighted by the east wind,
sprouted after them, and the thin ears swallowed up the seven good
ears. And I told it to the magicians, but there was no one who
could explain it to me.”
Then Joseph said to Pharaoh, “The dreams of Pharaoh are one; God
has revealed to Pharaoh what he is about to do. The seven good cows
are seven years, and the seven good ears are seven years; the
dreams are one. The seven lean and ugly cows that came up after
them are seven years, and the seven empty ears blighted by the east
wind are also seven years of famine. It is as I told Pharaoh; God
has shown to Pharaoh what he is about to do. There will come seven
years of great plenty throughout all the land of Egypt, but after
them there will arise seven years of famine, and all the plenty
will be forgotten in the land of Egypt. The famine will consume the
land, and the plenty will be unknown in the land by reason of the
famine that will follow, for it will be very severe. And the
doubling of Pharaoh's dream means that the thing is fixed by God,
and God will shortly bring it about. Now therefore let Pharaoh
select a discerning and wise man, and set him over the land of
Egypt. Let Pharaoh proceed to appoint overseers over the land and
take one-fifth of the produce of the land of Egypt during the seven
plentiful years. And let them gather all the food of these good
years that are coming and store up grain under the authority of
Pharaoh for food in the cities, and let them keep it. That food
shall be a reserve for the land against the seven years of famine
that are to occur in the land of Egypt, so that the land may not
perish through the famine.”
This proposal pleased Pharaoh and all his servants. And Pharaoh
said to his servants, “Can we find a man like this, in whom is the
Spirit of God?” Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Since God has shown
you all this, there is none so discerning and wise as you are. You
shall be over my house, and all my people shall order themselves as
you command. Only as regards the throne will I be greater than
you.” And Pharaoh said to Joseph, “See, I have set you over all the
land of Egypt.” Then Pharaoh took his signet ring from his hand and
put it on Joseph's hand, and clothed him in garments of fine linen
and put a gold chain about his neck. And he made him ride in his
second chariot. And they called out before him, “Bow the knee!”
Thus he set him over all the land of Egypt. Moreover, Pharaoh said
to Joseph, “I am Pharaoh, and without your consent no one shall
lift up hand or foot in all the land of Egypt.” And Pharaoh called
Joseph's name Zaphenath-paneah. And he gave him in marriage
Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera priest of On. So Joseph went out
over the land of Egypt.
Joseph was thirty years old when he entered the service of
Pharaoh king of Egypt. And Joseph went out from the presence of
Pharaoh and went through all the land of Egypt. During the seven
plentiful years the earth produced abundantly, and he gathered up
all the food of these seven years, which occurred in the land of
Egypt, and put the food in the cities. He put in every city the
food from the fields around it. And Joseph stored up grain in great
abundance, like the sand of the sea, until he ceased to measure it,
for it could not be measured.
Before the year of famine came, two sons were born to Joseph.
Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera priest of On, bore them to him.
Joseph called the name of the firstborn Manasseh. “For,” he said,
“God has made me forget all my hardship and all my father's house.”
The name of the second he called Ephraim, “For God has made me
fruitful in the land of my affliction.”
The seven years of plenty that occurred in the land of Egypt came
to an end, and the seven years of famine began to come, as Joseph
had said. There was famine in all lands, but in all the land of
Egypt there was bread. When all the land of Egypt was famished, the
people cried to Pharaoh for bread. Pharaoh said to all the
Egyptians, “Go to Joseph. What he says to you, do.”
So when the famine had spread over all the land, Joseph opened
all the storehouses and sold to the Egyptians, for the famine was
severe in the land of Egypt. Moreover, all the earth came to Egypt
to Joseph to buy grain, because the famine was severe over all the
earth.
