Genesis 41

 

Joseph’s Rise to Power

Gen 1 At the end of two full years Pharaoh had a dream. As he was standing by the Nile,

 

At this time, Joseph was 36 years old. He has been enslaved and imprisoned in Egypt for 19 years. 

 

During this same 19 year time period, Judah (the seed-son) has lived with the Canaanites. He married two Canaanite women. He fathered three boys, who were half-Jewish-half-Canaanite. His boys grew up with Canaanite influence from their mother and their society. The oldest son was Er. He married Tamar, committed the sin unto death, and died at 18 years old. The second son was Onan. He refused to father a child with Tamar, and he died the next year at 17 years old. 

 

While all of these historical events were going on in Canaan, Pharaoh had a dream which would turn Egypt into a mighty River Valley Civilization.

 

 2seven fine-looking, fat cows were coming up out of the Nile, and they grazed in the reeds. 

 

In the dream, Pharaoh observed seven healthy cows coming out of the Nile River. 

 

3Then seven bad-looking, thin cows were coming up after them from the Nile, and they stood beside the other cows at the edge of the river. 

 

Afterwards, seven skinny cows came out of the Nile.

 

4The bad-looking, thin cows ate the seven fine-looking, fat cows. Then Pharaoh woke up.

 

This was such an unusual action in the dream that the shock woke up Pharaoh.

 

5Then he fell asleep again and had a second dream: There were seven heads of grain growing on one stalk, healthy and good. 

 

After the troubled Pharaoh went back to sleep, he had a second dream. There were seven healthy stalks of grain. Grain was the food staple of Egypt.  The flooding Nile River produced an abundance of grain, which turned Egypt into an international River Valley world power.

 

6Then seven heads of grain, thin and burned by the east wind, were sprouting up after them. 

 

Seven unhealthy heads of grain sprouted after them.

 

7The thin heads swallowed up the seven healthy and full heads. Then Pharaoh woke up and realized it was a dream.

 

The thin heads of grain ate the healthy heads of grain. This dream shocked Pharaoh again and woke him up.

 

8In the morning he was troubled, so he called for all the diviner-priests of Egypt and all its wise men. Pharaoh told them his dreams, but no one could interpret them for him. 

 

The Hebrew word for “diviner-priests” is חַרְטֹם (harum), meaning those who deciphered hieroglyphics. The Hebrew word for “wise men” is חָכָם (hacom), meaning expositors of ritual books. These men were Egyptian occultic priests of magic. Egypt was being advised politically by these demonic priests.  The reason that these occultic priests could not interpret these dreams is because these dreams did not have demonic origins. These dreams were given by God.

 

9Then the chief cupbearer said to Pharaoh, “Today I recall my failures. 

 

The chief cupbearer remembered his prison days with Joseph.

 

10Pharaoh was enraged with his servants, and he put me in prison in the house of the captain of the guards – me and the chief baker. 

 

This imprisonment was a divine appointment, although the cupbearer did not realize it at this time.

 

11We each had a dream one night; each of us had a dream with its own meaning. 

 

The cupbearer informed Pharaoh about his dream experience.

 

12Now a young man, a Hebrew, a servant of the captain of the guards, was with us there. We told him our dreams, and he interpreted the meaning of each of our respective dreams for us. 

 

Joseph’s nationality was Hebrew. Since the cupbearer finally shared the news about the dream,  he would be blessed by the Abrahamic Covenant. The cupbearer would be known to Pharaoh as the one who introduced him to the savior of Egypt, 

 

13It happened just as he had said to us – Pharaoh restored me to my office, but he impaled the baker.”

 

The dream was fulfilled. The cupbearer was found innocent and returned to his royal position. The baker was found guilty and executed.

 

14Then Pharaoh summoned Joseph. So they brought him quickly out of the dungeon; he shaved himself, changed his clothes, and came before Pharaoh. 

 

Egyptians did not approve of beards. In Egyptian paintings, the Semites are seen with beards and the Egyptians without beards.

 

15Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I had a dream, and there is no one who can interpret it. But I have heard about you, that you can interpret dreams.” 

 

Pharaoh asked Joseph to interpret his dream.

 

16Joseph replied to Pharaoh, “It is not within my power, but God will speak concerning the welfare of Pharaoh.”

 

The Hebrew word for “God” is אֱלֹהִ֕ים (elohim), meaning the Triune-Creator-God.  Joseph introduced the name, identity, and character of the one true God to the Pharaoh of Egypt. Joseph cannot give Pharaoh good news. Joseph can only tell Pharaoh what God reveals about his dream.

 

17Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “In my dream I was standing by the edge of the Nile. 

 

Pharaoh told Joseph the dream.

 

18Then seven fat and fine-looking cows were coming up out of the Nile, and they grazed in the reeds. 

 

Pharaoh described the fat cows. 

 

19Then seven other cows came up after them; they were scrawny, very bad-looking, and lean. I had never seen such bad-looking cows as these in all the land of Egypt! 

 

Pharaoh described the lean cows.

 

20The lean, bad-looking cows ate up the seven fat cows. 

 

Pharaoh described the unusual and shocking part of his dream.

 

21When they had eaten them, no one would have known that they had done so, for they were just as bad-looking as before. Then I woke up.

 

Pharaoh revealed new information about his dream. When the thin cows ate the fat cows, the thin cows were still thin.

 

 22I also saw in my dream seven heads of grain growing on one stalk, full and good. 

 

Pharaoh described his second dream. There were seven heads of full grain.

 

23Then seven heads of grain, withered and thin and burned with the east wind, were sprouting up after them. 

 

Afterwards, seven heads of thin grain sprouted.

 

24The thin heads of grain swallowed up the seven good heads of grain. So I told all this to the diviner-priests, but no one could tell me its meaning.”

 

This dream came from God, and not demonic forces, so none of the occultic priests could interpret it.

 

25Then Joseph said to Pharaoh, “Both dreams of Pharaoh have the same meaning. God has revealed to Pharaoh what He is about to do. 

 

God revealed the meaning of the dream to Joseph. Both dreams meant the same thing, so there will only be one interpretation. Joseph told Pharaoh the future of Egypt.

 

26The seven good cows represent seven years, and the seven good heads of grain represent seven years. Both dreams have the same meaning. 

 

Egypt will have seven more prosperous years of agriculture. 

 

27The seven lean, bad-looking cows that came up after them represent seven years, as do the seven empty heads of grain burned with the east wind. They represent seven years of famine. 

 

Afterwards, Egypt will experience seven years of famine.

 

28This is just what I told Pharaoh: God has shown Pharaoh what He is about to do. 

 

The Triune-Creator-God, not the polytheistic occultic gods of Egypt, revealed the future of Egypt to Pharaoh.

 

29Seven years of great abundance are coming throughout the whole land of Egypt. 

 

Egypt was a nation with limited rainfall. The abundance in agriculture came from the flooding of the Nile River. For the next seven years, the Nile would continue to flood and bring large crops to Egypt.

 

30But seven years of famine will occur after them, and all the abundance will be forgotten in the land of Egypt. The famine will devastate the land. 

 

Seven years later, the Nile would not adequately flood the Egyptian crops. This lack of flooding would cause a great `famine in Egypt. It is interesting to note that seven-year famines were recorded in ancient Egyptian documents.  For example, there is the text from the reign and rule of King Djoser of the Third Dynasty (2700 b.c.):

 

I was in distress on the Great Throne, and those who are in the palace wherein the heart’s affliction from a very great evil, since the Nile had not come in my time for a space of seven years. Grain was scant, fruits were dried up, and everything which they ate was short. Every man robbed his companion. They moved without going (ahead). The infant was wailing; the youth was waiting; the heart of the old men was in sorrow; their legs were bent, crouching on the ground, their arms were folded. 

 

31The previous abundance of the land will not be remembered because of the famine that follows, for the famine will be very severe. 

 

The reason Pharaoh stood next to the Nile River in his dream was to emphasize his dependability upon the Nile. The Egyptians worshiped the Nile River as “the artery of Egypt.”    God was showing this pagan Pharaoh that He was the one who actually controlled the Nile. It was Elohim, not the polytheistic gods of Egypt, who was actually caring and feeding Egypt.

 

Other Egyptian gods would be affected as well.  Osiris (an Egyptian god in the form of a bull) was the god of the Nile. He would be powerless to stop the famine by the Hebrew God. Isis (who was a goddess in the form of a cow) was the goddess of fertility. She would be powerless to make the land fertile.

 

32The dream was repeated to Pharaoh because the matter has been decreed by God, and God will make it happen soon.

 

God repeated the dream so that Pharaoh would not misinterpret His message. This pagan Pharaoh only had to be told twice and he received and acted upon the revelation he received. The future Pharaoh during the time of Moses would be told ten times, but he would never get the message. Unless the Holy Spirit opens the ears, no one can understand the Word of God.

 

33“So now Pharaoh should look for a wise and discerning man and give him authority over all the land of Egypt. 

 

Joseph recommended that Pharaoh hire an economic advisor.

 

34Pharaoh should do this – he should appoint officials throughout the land to collect one-fifth of the produce of the land of Egypt during the seven years of abundance. 

 

Joseph suggested a 20% tax on all agricultural products.

 

35They should gather all the excess food during these good years that are coming. By Pharaoh’s authority they should store up grain so the cities will have food, and they should preserve it. 

 

Pharaoh was advised to take advantage of the seven prosperous years. He was to build storage cities of grain.

 

36This food should be held in storage for the land in preparation for the seven years of famine that will occur throughout the land of Egypt. In this way the land will survive the famine.”

 

Pharaoh was advised to store the surplus in the storage cities.

 

37This advice made sense to Pharaoh and all his officials. 

 

Pharaoh and his advisors liked the advice of Joseph. They shifted their political position from the occult pagan priests to that of a Hebrew slave.

 

38So Pharaoh asked his officials, “Can we find a man like Joseph, one in whom the Spirit of God is present?” 

 

The Hebrew word for “God” is אֱלֹהִ֖ים (elohim), meaning plural gods. Pharaoh was pagan, so he may have meant “the spirit of the gods.” Another possibility is that he accepted Joseph’s testimony of אֱלֹהִ֖ים (elohim) as the Triune-Creator-God. He and his political cabinet did see the divine viewpoint in Joseph's advice.

 

39So Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Because God has enabled you to know all this, there is no one as wise and discerning as you are! 

 

Joseph possessed a direct line to אֱלֹהִ֖ים (elohim) which no other person in Egypt could match, so Joseph was the best choice.

 

40You will oversee my household, and all my people will submit to your commands. Only I, the king, will be greater than you.

 

Joseph was promoted from prisoner of Egypt to Second-in-Command of Egypt. The second-in-command was called the vizier. 

 

41“See here,” Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I place you in authority over all the land of Egypt.” 

 

This was a position of a vizier or a prime minister. A parallel was found in the records of Thutmose III: “Look you to this office of vizier. Be vigilant over everything that is done in it. Behold, it is the support of the entire land.”

 

42Then Pharaoh took his signet ring from his own hand and put it on Joseph’s. He clothed him with fine linen clothes and put a gold chain around his neck.

 

The signet ring would be used to sign royal documents. The clothes were those worn by the vizier, which archaeology also confirms. The gold chain was another symbol of authority.

 

43Pharaoh had him ride in the chariot used by his second-in-command, and they cried out before him, “Kneel down!” So he placed him over all the land of Egypt. 

 

The Hyksos introduced the chariots into Egypt. The Hittites also had mastered the chariot. Joseph rode in a chariot. Heralds went before him, commanding all to kneel down. This historical event was also recorded in many ancient Egyptian pictures.

 

44Pharaoh also said to Joseph, “I am Pharaoh, but without your permission no one will move his hand or his foot in all the land of Egypt.” 

 

Joseph was given full authority by Pharaoh to rule Egypt.

 

45Pharaoh gave Joseph the name Zaphenath-Paneah. He also gave him Asenath daughter of Potiphera, priest of On, to be his wife. So Joseph took charge of all the land of Egypt.

 

Joseph’s name was changed to Zaphenath-Paneah. This was an Egyptian name meaning “the God speaks and he lives,” or “God has spoken and he shall live.” 

 

it was customary for the owner to provide a wife for his slaves. Asenath is an Egyptian name, meaning “she of Neith.” This was the name of the Egyptian goddess Athena or Minerva. She was the daughter of Potiphera, meaning “him whom Ra gave.” Ra was the Egyptian sun god. Therefore, Joseph married into a pagan, priestly family. His father-in-law was the priest of On. Later, On was renamed as the city of Heliopolis, meaning “the city of the sun.”

 

46Now Joseph was 30 years old when he began serving Pharaoh king of Egypt. Joseph was commissioned by Pharaoh and was in charge of all the land of Egypt. 

 

Joseph was 30 years old, meaning that he had lived in Egypt for 13 years. Joseph would meet his brothers 13 years later, making Joseph 43 years old

 

Joseph lived in Egypt during the Hyksos Dynasty, which lasted from 1750-1550 B.C. The Hyksos Dynasty were Semitics who conquered and ruled over Hamitic peoples. Semitics came from the line of Shem. Hamitics come from the line of Ham, which was a cursed line by Noah. Since Joseph was Semitic, this gave ethnic reason as to how he could have been crowned as second-in-command of Egypt.

 

47During the seven years of abundance the land produced large, bountiful harvests. 

 

Egypt was very prosperous during these seven years.

 

48Joseph collected all the excess food in the land of Egypt during the seven years and stored it in the cities. In every city he put the food gathered from the fields around it. 

 

Joseph collected a 20% tax from the people. Notice that he stored the grains not in the country, but in the cities. This way, it could be protected by Egyptian armies.

 

49Joseph stored up a vast amount of grain, like the sand of the sea, until he stopped measuring it because it was impossible to measure.

 

There was so much grain surplus, that it became uncountable. An abundance of grain or rice would cause massive population explosions in agricultural regions, such as those found in the River Valley civilizations of Mesopotamia, Egypt, India, and China.

 

50Two sons were born to Joseph before the famine came. Asenath daughter of Potiphera, priest of On, was their mother. 

 

Joseph’s first son was born in Egypt. 

 

51Joseph named the firstborn Manasseh, saying, “Certainly God has made me forget all my trouble and all my father’s house.” 

 

Manasseh was a Hebrew name, meaning “making to forget.” 

 

52He named the second child Ephraim, saying, “Certainly God has made me fruitful in the land of my suffering.”

 

Ephraim was a Hebrew name, meaning “double fruit.”  Even though Joseph was immersed in Egyptian culture and forced to marry Egyptian wives, he did not depart from his Hebrew religion.

 

53The seven years of abundance in the land of Egypt came to an end. 

 

The prosperous years came to an end. Mesopotamia, Egypt, India, and China were beginning to grow in population.

 

54Then the seven years of famine began, just as Joseph had predicted. There was famine in all the other lands, but throughout the land of Egypt there was food. 

 

The famine in all of the other lands would convert Egypt into a world power. During this time in Canaan, Judah was the seed-son. He was still living among the Canaanites. His two older sons had just died, because of the evil they performed with Tamar. Tamar was also impregnated by Judah. One year later, Joseph’s brothers would come to Egypt to seek food from Joseph.

 

55When all the land of Egypt experienced the famine, the people cried out to Pharaoh for food. Pharaoh said to all the people of Egypt, “Go to Joseph and do whatever he tells you.”

 

Joseph controlled who ate and who did not eat. He was the most powerful man in the world.

 

56While the famine was over all the earth, Joseph opened the storehouses and sold grain to the Egyptians. The famine was severe throughout the land of Egypt. 

 

Egypt had food to feed their armies and their population explosion. The rest of the nations were becoming weak and powerless. It is important to remember that the world population was very small at this time. Mesopotamia was waning in power. Egypt was a world power. India and China were migrating east and developing.

 

57People from every country came to Joseph in Egypt to buy grain because the famine was severe throughout the earth.

 

Joseph determined which surrounding nations and which tribes would survive. These nations would bring great wealth to Egypt. The trading routes were controlled by Egypt.