Now it happened at the end of two full years that Pharaoh had a dream, and behold, he was standing by the Nile. 2 And lo, from the Nile there came up seven cows, sleek and ¹fat; and they grazed in the ^amarsh grass. 3 Then behold, seven other cows came up after them from the Nile, ugly and ¹gaunt, and they stood by the other cows on the bank of the Nile. 4 The ugly and ¹gaunt cows ate up the seven sleek and fat cows. Then Pharaoh awoke. 5 He fell asleep and dreamed a second time; and behold, seven ears of grain came up on a single stalk, plump and good. 6 Then behold, seven ears, thin and scorched by the east wind, sprouted up after them. 7 The thin ears swallowed up the seven plump and full ears. Then Pharaoh awoke, and behold, it was a dream. 8 Now in the morning ^ahis spirit was troubled, so he sent and called for all the ^1bmagicians of Egypt, and all its ^cwise men. And Pharaoh told them his ²dreams, but ^dthere was no one who could interpret them to Pharaoh.

9 Then the chief cupbearer spoke to Pharaoh, saying, “I would make mention today of ^amy own ¹offenses. 10 Pharaoh was ^afurious with his servants, and ^bhe put me in confinement in the house of the captain of the bodyguard, both me and the chief baker. 11 ^aWe had a dream ¹on the same night, ²he and I; each of us dreamed according to the interpretation of his own dream. 12 Now a Hebrew youth was with us there, a ^aservant of the captain of the bodyguard, and we related them to him, and ^bhe interpreted our dreams for us. To each one he interpreted according to his own dream. 13 And just ^aas he interpreted for us, so it happened; he restored me in my ¹office, but he hanged him.”

14 Then Pharaoh sent and ^acalled for Joseph, and they ^bhurriedly brought him out of the dungeon; and when he had shaved himself and changed his clothes, he came to Pharaoh. 15 Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I have had a dream, ^abut no one can interpret it; and ^bI have heard ¹it said about you, that ²when you hear a dream you can interpret it.” 16 Joseph then answered Pharaoh, saying, “^1aIt is not in me; ^bGod will ²give Pharaoh a favorable answer.” 17 So Pharaoh spoke to Joseph, “In my dream, behold, I was standing on the bank of the Nile; 18 and behold, seven cows, ¹fat and sleek came up out of the Nile, and they grazed in the marsh grass. 19 Lo, seven other cows came up after them, poor and very ugly and ¹gaunt, such as I had never seen for ²ugliness in all the land of Egypt; 20 and the lean and ¹ugly cows ate up the first seven fat cows. 21 Yet when they had ¹devoured them, it could not be ²detected that they had ³devoured them, ⁴for they were just as ugly as ⁵before. Then I awoke. 22 I saw also in my dream, and behold, seven ears, full and good, came up on a single stalk; 23 and lo, seven ears, withered, thin, and scorched by the east wind, sprouted up after them; 24 and the thin ears swallowed the seven good ears. Then ^aI told it to the ¹magicians, but there was no one who could explain it to me.”

25 Now Joseph said to Pharaoh, “Pharaoh’s ¹dreams are one and the same; ^aGod has told to Pharaoh what He is about to do. 26 The seven good cows are seven years; and the seven good ears are seven years; the ¹dreams are one and the same. 27 The seven lean and ugly cows that came up after them are seven years, and the seven thin ears scorched by the east wind ^awill be seven years of famine. 28 ¹It is as I have spoken to Pharaoh: ^aGod has shown to Pharaoh what He is about to do. 29 Behold, ^aseven years of great abundance are coming in all the land of Egypt; 30 and after them ^aseven years of famine will ¹come, and all the abundance will be forgotten in the land of Egypt, and the famine will ²ravage the land. 31 So the abundance will be unknown in the land because of that subsequent famine; for it will be very severe. 32 Now as for the repeating of the dream to Pharaoh twice, it means that ^athe matter is determined by God, and God will quickly bring it about. 33 Now let Pharaoh look for a man ^adiscerning and wise, and set him over the land of Egypt. 34 Let Pharaoh take action to appoint overseers ¹in charge of the land, and let him exact a fifth of the produce of the land of Egypt in the seven years of abundance. 35 Then let them ^agather all the food of these good years that are coming, and store up the grain for food in the cities under Pharaoh’s authority, and let them guard it. 36 Let the food become as a reserve for the land for the seven years of famine which will occur in the land of Egypt, so that the land will not perish during the famine.”

37 Now the ¹proposal seemed good ²to Pharaoh and ³to all his servants.

38 Then Pharaoh said to his servants, “Can we find a man like this, ^ain whom is a divine spirit?” 39 So Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Since God has informed you of all this, there is no one so ^adiscerning and wise as you are. 40 ^aYou shall be over my house, and according to your ¹command all my people shall ²do homage; only in the throne I will be greater than you.” 41 Pharaoh said to Joseph, “See, I have set you ^aover all the land of Egypt.” 42 Then Pharaoh ^atook off his signet ring from his hand and put it on Joseph’s hand, and clothed him in garments of fine linen and ^bput the gold necklace around his neck. 43 He had him ride in ¹his second chariot; and they proclaimed before him, “²Bow the knee!” And he set him over all the land of Egypt. 44 Moreover, Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Though I am Pharaoh, yet ^awithout ¹your permission no one shall raise his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt.” 45 Then Pharaoh named Joseph ¹Zaphenath-paneah; and he gave him Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera priest of ^2aOn, as his wife. And Joseph went forth over the land of Egypt.

46 Now Joseph was ^athirty years old when he ¹stood before Pharaoh, king of Egypt. And Joseph went out from the presence of Pharaoh and went through all the land of Egypt. 47 During the seven years of plenty the land brought forth ¹abundantly. 48 So he gathered all the food of these seven years which occurred in the land of Egypt and placed the food in the cities; he placed in every city the food from its own surrounding fields. 49 Thus Joseph stored up grain ¹in great abundance like the sand of the sea, until he stopped ²measuring it, for it was ³beyond measure.

50 Now before the year of famine came, ^atwo sons were born to Joseph, whom Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera priest of ¹On, bore to him. 51 Joseph named the firstborn ¹Manasseh, “For,” he said, “God has made me forget all my trouble and all my father’s household.” 52 He named the second ¹Ephraim, “For,” he said, “^aGod has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction.”

53 When the seven years of plenty which had been in the land of Egypt came to an end, 54 and ^athe seven years of famine began to come, just as Joseph had said, then there was famine in all the lands, but in all the land of Egypt there was bread. 55 So when all the land of Egypt was famished, the people cried out to Pharaoh for bread; and Pharaoh said to all the Egyptians, “Go to Joseph; ^awhatever he says to you, you shall do.” 56 When the famine was spread over all the face of the earth, then Joseph opened all ¹the storehouses, and sold to the Egyptians; and the famine was severe in the land of Egypt. 57 The people of all the earth came to Egypt to buy grain from Joseph, because ^athe famine was severe in all the earth.

Now it happened at the end of two full years that Pharaoh dreamed that he was standing by the ¹Nile. 2 And lo, there came up out of the Nile seven healthy cows, sleek and handsome and fat; and they grazed in the ^areed grass in a marshy pasture. 3 Then behold, seven other cows came up after them out of the Nile, ugly and gaunt and raw-boned, and stood by the fat cows on the bank of the Nile. 4 Then the ugly and gaunt and raw-boned cows ate up the seven sleek and fat cows. Then Pharaoh awoke. 5 Then he fell asleep and dreamed a second time; and behold, seven ears of grain came up on a single stalk, plump and good. 6 Then behold, seven ears of grain, thin and dried up by the east wind, sprouted after them. 7 Then the thin ears swallowed the seven plump and full ears. And Pharaoh awoke, and it was a dream. 8 So when morning came ^ahis spirit was troubled and disturbed and he sent and called for all the ^bmagicians and all the ^cwise men of Egypt. And Pharaoh told them his dreams, but ^dno one could interpret them to him.

9 Then the chief cupbearer spoke to Pharaoh, saying, “I would mention ^amy faults today. 10 Two years ago Pharaoh was ^aangry with his servants, and ^bhe put me in confinement in the house of the captain of the guard, both me and the chief baker. 11 ^aWe dreamed a dream on the same night, he and I; each of us dreamed according to the significance of the interpretation of his own dream. 12 Now there was with us in the prison a young man, a Hebrew, ^aservant to the captain of the guard; and we told him, and ^bhe interpreted our dreams for us, to each man according to the significance of his own dream. 13 And just ^aas he interpreted the dreams for us, so it happened; I was restored to my office as chief cupbearer, and the baker was hanged.”

14 Then Pharaoh sent and ^acalled for Joseph, and they ^bhurriedly brought him out of the dungeon; and when Joseph shaved himself and changed his clothes making himself presentable, he came to Pharaoh. 15 Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I have dreamed a dream, and ^athere is no one who can interpret it; and ^bI have heard it said about you that you can understand a dream and interpret it.” 16 Joseph answered Pharaoh, “^aIt is not in me to interpret the dream; ^bGod not I will give Pharaoh a ¹favorable answer through me.” 17 So Pharaoh said to Joseph, “In my dream, I was standing on the bank of the Nile; 18 and seven fat, sleek and handsome cows came up out of the river, and they grazed in the reed grass of a marshy pasture. 19 Lo, seven other cows came up after them, very ugly and gaunt just skin and bones; such emaciated animals as I have never seen in all the land of Egypt. 20 And the lean and ugly cows ate up the first seven fat cows. 21 Yet when they had devoured them, it could not be detected that they had eaten them, because they were still as thin and emaciated as before. Then I awoke but again I fell asleep and dreamed. 22 I saw in my second dream, seven ears of grain, plump and good, growing on a single stalk; 23 and lo, seven other ears, withered, thin, and scorched by the east wind, sprouted after them; 24 and the thin ears devoured the seven good ears. Now ^aI told this to the magicians and soothsayers, but there was no one who could explain it to me.”

25 Then Joseph said to Pharaoh, “The two dreams are one and the same and have one interpretation; ^aGod has shown Pharaoh what He is about to do. 26 The seven good cows are seven years, and the seven good ears are seven years; the two dreams are one and the same. 27 The seven thin and ugly cows that came up after them are seven years; and also the seven thin ears, dried up and scorched by the east wind, ^athey are seven years of famine and hunger. 28 This is the message just as I have told Pharaoh: ^aGod has shown Pharaoh what He is about to do. 29 Listen very carefully: ^aseven years of great abundance will come throughout all the land of Egypt; 30 but afterward ^aseven years of famine and hunger will come, and there will be such desperate need that all the great abundance of the previous years will be forgotten in the land of Egypt as if it never happened, and famine and destitution will ravage and destroy the land. 31 So the great abundance will become forgotten in the land because of that subsequent famine, for it will be very severe. 32 That the dream was repeated twice to Pharaoh and in two different ways indicates that ^athis matter is fully determined and established by God, and God will bring it to pass very quickly. 33 So now let Pharaoh prepare ahead and look for a man ^adiscerning and clear-headed and wise, and set him in charge over the land of Egypt as governor under Pharaoh. 34 Let Pharaoh take action to appoint overseers and officials over the land, and set aside one-fifth of the produce of the entire land of Egypt in the seven years of abundance. 35 Let them ^agather as a tax all of the fifth of the food of these good years that are coming, and store up grain under the direction and authority of Pharaoh, and let them guard the food in fortified granaries in the cities. 36 That food shall be put in storage as a reserve for the land against the seven years of famine and hunger which will occur in the land of Egypt, so that the land (people) will not be ravaged during the famine.”

37 Now the plan seemed good to Pharaoh and to all of his servants.

38 So Pharaoh said to his servants, “Can we find a man like this a man equal to Joseph, ^ain whom is the divine spirit of God?” 39 Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Since your God has shown you all this, there is no one as ^adiscerning and clear-headed and wise as you are. 40 ^aYou shall have charge over my house, and all my people shall ¹be governed according to your word and pay respect to you with reverence, submission, and obedience; only in matters of the throne will I be greater than you in Egypt.” 41 Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “See, I have set you in charge ^aover all the land of Egypt.” 42 Then Pharaoh ^atook off his signet ring from his hand and put it on Joseph’s hand, and dressed him in official vestments of fine linen and ^bput a gold chain around his neck. 43 He had him ride in his second chariot; and runners proclaimed before him, “ Attention, bow the knee!” And he set him over all the land of Egypt. 44 Moreover, Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Though I am Pharaoh, yet ^awithout your permission shall no man raise his hand to do anything or set his foot to go anywhere in all the land of Egypt all classes of people shall submit to your authority.” 45 Then Pharaoh named Joseph ¹Zaphenath-paneah; and he gave him Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera, priest of ^aOn (Heliopolis in Egypt) , as his wife. And Joseph went out over all the land of Egypt to inspect and govern it.

46 Now Joseph had been in Egypt thirteen years and was ^athirty years old when he stood before Pharaoh, king of Egypt. Joseph departed from the presence of Pharaoh and went through all the land of Egypt performing his duties. 47 In the seven abundant years the earth produced handfuls for each seed planted. 48 And Joseph gathered all the surplus food of the seven good years in the land of Egypt and stored enormous quantities of the food in the cities. He stored away in every city the food collected from its own surrounding fields. 49 Thus Joseph gathered and stored up grain in great abundance like the sand of the sea, until he stopped counting it, for it could not be measured.

50 Now ^atwo sons were born to Joseph before the years of famine came, whom Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera, priest of On, bore to him. 51 Joseph named the firstborn Manasseh (causing to forget) , for he said, “God has made me forget all my trouble and hardship and all the sorrow of the loss of my father’s household.” 52 He named the second son Ephraim (fruitfulness) , for “^aGod has caused me to be fruitful and very successful in the land of my suffering.”

53 When the seven years of plenty came to an end in the land of Egypt, 54 ^athe seven years of famine began to come, just as Joseph had said they would; the famine was in all the surrounding lands, but in the land of Egypt there was bread (food) . 55 So when all the land of Egypt was famished, the people cried out to Pharaoh for food; and Pharaoh said to all the Egyptians, “Go to Joseph; do ^awhatever he says to you.” 56 When the famine was spread over all the land, Joseph opened all the storehouses, and sold surplus grain to the Egyptians; and the famine grew extremely severe in the land of Egypt. 57 And the people of all countries came to Egypt to Joseph to buy grain, because ^athe famine was severe over all the known earth.