Barashyt(Genesis) — 41

Pharauh Dreams 

1 Then it came to pass, at the end of two full years, that Phar'uh had a dream; and behold, he stood by the river. 

2 In his dream he saw seven fat, healthy cows come up out of the river and begin grazing in the marsh grass.

3 Then he saw seven more cows come up behind them from the Nile, but these were scrawny and thin. These cows stood beside the fat cows on the riverbank. 

4 And the ugly and gaunt cows ate up the seven fine looking and fat cows. So Phar'uh awoke. 

5 He slept and dreamed a second time; and suddenly seven heads of grain came up on one stalk, plump and good. 

6 Then seven more heads of grain appeared, but these were shriveled and withered by the east wind.

7 And these thin heads swallowed up the seven plump, well-formed heads! Then Phar'uh woke up again and realized it was a dream.

8 The next morning Pharauh was very disturbed by the dreams. So he called for all the magicians and wise men of Mitzraym. When Phar'uh told them his dreams, not one of them could tell him what the dreams meant.

9 Finally, Phar'uh’s chief cup-bearer spoke up. “Today I have been reminded of my failure,” he told Phar'uh. 

10 “Some time ago, you were angry with the chief baker and me, and you imprisoned us in the palace of the captain of the guard. 

11 One night the chief baker and I each had a dream, and each dream had its own meaning. 

12 There was a young Abarym (Hebrew) man with us in the prison who was a slave of the captain of the guard. We told him our dreams, and he told us what each of our dreams meant. 

13 And everything happened just as he had predicted. I was restored to my position as cup-bearer, and the chief baker was executed and impaled on a pole.”

14 Phar'uh sent for Ya'asaf at once, and he was quickly brought from the prison. After he shaved and changed his clothes, he went in and stood before Phar'uh. 

15 Then Phar'uh said to Ya'asaf, “I had a dream last night, and no one here can tell me what it means. But I have heard that when you hear about a dream you can interpret it.”

16 “It is beyond my power to do this,” Ya'asaf replied. “But 𐤀𐤋𐤅𐤄_ALUAH can tell you what it means and set you at ease.”

17 So Phar'uh told Ya'asaf his dream. “In my dream,” he said, “I was standing on the bank of the Nile River, 

18 and I saw seven fat, healthy cows come up out of the river and begin grazing in the marsh grass. 

19 But then I saw seven sick-looking cows, scrawny and thin, come up after them. I’ve never seen such sorry-looking animals in all the land of Mitzraym. 

20 These thin, scrawny cows ate the seven fat cows. 

21 But afterward you wouldn’t have known it, for they were still as thin and scrawny as before! Then I woke up.

22 “In my dream I also saw seven heads of grain, full and beautiful, growing on a single stalk. 

23 Then seven more heads of grain appeared, but these were blighted, shriveled, and withered by the east wind. 

24 And the shriveled heads swallowed the seven healthy heads. I told these dreams to the magicians, but no one could tell me what they mean.”

25 Ya'asaf responded, “Both of Phar'uh’s dreams mean the same thing. 𐤀𐤋𐤅𐤄_ALUAH is telling Phar'uh in advance what he is about to do. 

26 The seven healthy cows and the seven healthy heads of grain both represent seven years of prosperity. 

27 The seven thin, scrawny cows that came up later and the seven thin heads of grain, withered by the east wind, represent seven years of famine.

28 “This will happen just as I have described it, for 𐤀𐤋𐤅𐤄_ALUAH has revealed to Phar'uh in advance what He is about to do. 

29 The next seven years will be a period of great prosperity throughout the land of Mitzraym. 

30 But afterward there will be seven years of famine so great that all the prosperity will be forgotten in Mitzraym. Famine will destroy the land. 

31 This famine will be so severe that even the memory of the good years will be erased. 

32 As for having two similar dreams, it means that these events have been decreed by 𐤀𐤋𐤅𐤄_ALUAH, and He will soon make them happen.

33 “Therefore, Phar'uh should find an intelligent and wise man and put him in charge of the entire land of Mitzraym. 

34 Then Phar'uh should appoint supervisors over the land and let them collect one-fifth of all the crops during the seven good years. 

35 Have them gather all the food produced in the good years that are just ahead and bring it to Phar'uh’s storehouses. Store it away, and guard it so there will be food in the cities. 

36 That way there will be enough to eat when the seven years of famine come to the land of Mitzraym. Otherwise this famine will destroy the land.”

Ya'asaf Made Ruler of Mitzraym (Egypt)

37 Ya'asaf’s suggestions were well received by Phar'uh and his officials. 

38 So Phar'uh asked his officials, “Can we find anyone else like this man so obviously filled with the Ruach of 𐤀𐤋𐤅𐤄_ALUAH?” 

39 Then Phar'uh said to Ya'asaf, “Since 𐤀𐤋𐤅𐤄_ALUAH has revealed the meaning of the dreams to you, clearly no one else is as intelligent or wise as you are. 

40 You will be in charge of my court, and all my people will take orders from you. Only I, sitting on my throne, will have a rank higher than yours.”

41 Phar'uh said to Ya'asaf, “I hereby put you in charge of the entire land of Mitzraym.” 

42 Then Phar'uh removed his signet ring from his hand and placed it on Ya'asaf’s finger. He dressed him in fine linen clothing and hung a gold chain around his neck. 

43 Then he had Ya'asaf ride in the chariot reserved for his second-in-command. And wherever Ya'asaf went, the command was shouted, “Kneel down!” So Phar'uh put Ya'asaf in charge of all Mitzraym. 

44 And Phar'uh said to Ya'asaf, “I am Phar'uh, but no one will lift a hand or foot in the entire land of Mitzraym without your approval.”

45 Then Phar'uh gave Ya'asaf a new Mitzraym name, Zaphanath-panaah. He also gave him a wife, whose name was Asanath. She was the daughter of Putiphara, the priest of Un. So Ya'asaf took charge of the entire land of Mitzraym. 

46 Ya'asaf was thirty years old when he began serving in the court of Pharauh, the king of Mitzraym. And when Ya'asaf left Phar'uh’s presence, he inspected the entire land of Mitzraym.

47 As predicted, for seven years the land produced bumper crops. 

48 During those years, Ya'asaf gathered all the crops grown in Mitzraym and stored the grain from the surrounding fields in the cities. 

49 He piled up huge amounts of grain like sand on the seashore. Finally, he stopped keeping records because there was too much to measure.

50 During this time, before the first of the famine years, two sons were born to Ya'asaf and his wife, Asanath, the daughter of Putiphara, the priest of Un. 

51 Ya'asaf named his older son Manassah, for he said, “𐤀𐤋𐤅𐤄_ALUAH has made me forget all my troubles and everyone in my father’s family.” 

52 Ya'asaf named his second son Aphraim, for he said, “𐤀𐤋𐤅𐤄_ALUAH has made me fruitful in this land of my grief.”

53 At last the seven years of bumper crops throughout the land of Mitzraym came to an end. 

54 Then the seven years of famine began, just as Ya'asaf had predicted. The famine also struck all the surrounding countries, but throughout Mitzraym there was plenty of food. 

55 Eventually, however, the famine spread throughout the land of Mitzraym as well. And when the people cried out to Pharauh for food, he told them, “Go to Ya'asaf, and do whatever he tells you.” 

56 So with severe famine everywhere, Ya'asaf opened up the storehouses and distributed grain to the Mitzraym, for the famine was severe throughout the land of Mitzraym. 

57 And people from all around came to Mitzraym to buy grain from Ya'asaf because the famine was severe throughout the world.