1 And it came to pass at the end of two full years, that Pharaoh dreamed, and behold, he stood by the river.
2 And behold, there came up out of the river seven kine, fine-looking and fat-fleshed, and they fed in the reed-grass.
3 And behold, seven other kine came up after them out of the river, bad-looking and lean-fleshed, and stood by the kine on the bank of the river.
4 And the kine that were bad-looking and lean-fleshed ate up the seven kine that were fine-looking and fat. And Pharaoh awoke.
5 And he slept and dreamed the second time; and behold, seven ears of corn grew up on one stalk, fat and good.
6 And behold, seven ears, thin and parched with the east wind, sprung up after them.
7 And the thin ears devoured the seven fat and full ears. And Pharaoh awoke; and behold, it was a dream.
8 And it came to pass in the morning, that his spirit was troubled; and he sent and called for all the scribes of Egypt, and all the sages who were therein, and Pharaoh told them his dream; but {there was} none to interpret them to Pharaoh.
9 Then spoke the chief of the cup-bearers to Pharaoh, saying, I remember mine offences this day.
10 Pharaoh was wroth with his bondmen, and put me in custody into the captain of the life-guard's house, me and the chief of the bakers.
11 And we dreamed a dream in one night, I and he; we dreamed each according to the interpretation of his dream.
12 And there was there with us a Hebrew youth, a bondman of the captain of the life-guard, to whom we told {them}, and he interpreted to us our dreams; to each he interpreted according to his dream.
13 And it came to pass, just as he interpreted to us, so it came about: me has he restored to my office, and him he hanged.
14 Then Pharaoh sent and called Joseph; and they brought him hastily out of the dungeon. And he shaved {himself}, and changed his clothes, and came in to Pharaoh.
15 And Pharaoh said to Joseph, I have dreamt a dream, and there is none to interpret it. And I have heard say of thee, thou understandest a dream to interpret it.
16 And Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, It is not in me: God will give Pharaoh an answer of peace.
17 And Pharaoh said to Joseph, In my dream, behold, I stood on the bank of the river.
18 And behold, there came up out of the river seven kine, fat-fleshed and of fine form, and they fed in the reed-grass.
19 And behold, seven other kine came up after them, poor, and very ill-formed, and lean-fleshed-such as I never saw in all the land of Egypt for badness.
20 And the lean and bad kine ate up the seven first fat kine;
21 and they came into their belly, and it could not be known that they had come into their belly; and their look was bad, as at the beginning. And I awoke.
22 And I saw in my dream, and behold, seven ears came up on one stalk, full and good.
23 And behold, seven ears, withered, thin, parched with the east wind, sprung up after them;
24 and the thin ears devoured the seven good ears. And I told it to the scribes; but there was none to make it known to me.
25 And Joseph said to Pharaoh, The dream of Pharaoh is one. What God will do he has made known to Pharaoh.
26 The seven fine kine are seven years; and the seven good ears are seven years: the dream is one.
27 And the seven lean and bad kine that came up after them are seven years; and the seven empty ears, parched with the east wind, will be seven years of famine.
28 This is the word which I have spoken to Pharaoh: what God is about to do he has let Pharaoh see.
29 Behold, there come seven years of great plenty throughout the land of Egypt.
30 And there will arise after them seven years of famine; and all the plenty will be forgotten in the land of Egypt, and the famine will waste away the land.
31 And the plenty will not be known afterwards in the land by reason of that famine; for it will be very grievous.
32 And as regards the double repetition of the dream to Pharaoh, it is that the thing is established by God, and God will hasten to do it.
33 And now let Pharaoh look himself out a man discreet and wise, and set him over the land of Egypt.
34 Let Pharaoh do {this}: let him appoint overseers over the land, and take the fifth part of the land of Egypt during the seven years of plenty,
35 and let them gather all the food of these coming good years, and lay up corn under the hand of Pharaoh, for food in the cities, and keep {it}.
36 And let the food be as store for the land for the seven years of famine, which will be in the land of Egypt, that the land perish not through the famine.
37 And the word was good in the eyes of Pharaoh, and in the eyes of all his bondmen.
38 And Pharaoh said to his bondmen, Shall we find {one} as this, a man in whom the Spirit of God is?
39 And Pharaoh said to Joseph, Since God has made all this known to thee, there is none {so} discreet and wise as thou.
40 Thou shalt be over my house, and according to thy commandment shall all my people regulate themselves; only concerning the throne will I be greater than thou.
41 And Pharaoh said to Joseph, See, I have set thee over all the land of Egypt.
42 And Pharaoh took off his ring from his hand, and put it on Joseph's hand, and arrayed him in clothes of byssus, and put a gold chain on his neck.
43 And he caused him to ride in the second chariot that he had; and they cried before him, Bow the knee! and he set him over all the land of Egypt.
44 And Pharaoh said to Joseph, I am Pharaoh; and without thee shall no man lift up his hand or his foot in all the land of Egypt.
45 And Pharaoh called Joseph's name Zaphnath-paaneah, and gave him as wife Asnath the daughter of Potipherah the priest in On. And Joseph went out over the land of Egypt.
46 And Joseph was thirty years old when he stood before Pharaoh king of Egypt. And Joseph went out from Pharaoh, and passed through the whole land of Egypt.
47 And in the seven years of plenty the land brought forth by handfuls.
48 And he gathered up all the food of the seven years that was in the land of Egypt, and put the food in the cities; the food of the fields of the city, which were round about it, he laid up in it.
49 And Joseph laid up corn as sand of the sea exceeding much, until they left off numbering; for it was without number.
50 And to Joseph were born two sons before the year of famine came, whom Asnath the daughter of Potipherah the priest in On bore to him.
51 And Joseph called the name of the firstborn Manasseh-For God has made me forget all my toil, and all my father's house.
52 And the name of the second he called Ephraim-For God has caused me to be fruitful in the land of my affliction.
53 And the seven years of plenty that were in the land of Egypt were ended;
54 and the seven years of the dearth began to come, according as Joseph had said. And there was dearth in all lands; but in all the land of Egypt there was bread.
55 And all the land of Egypt suffered from the dearth. And the people cried to Pharaoh for bread; and Pharaoh said to all the Egyptians, Go to Joseph: what he says to you, that do.
56 And the famine was on all the earth. And Joseph opened every place in which there was {provision}, and sold grain to the Egyptians; and the famine was grievous in the land of Egypt.
57 And all countries came into Egypt to Joseph, to buy {grain}, because the famine was grievous on the whole earth.
1 过了两年, 法老作了一个梦, 梦见自己站在河边。
2 有七头母牛从河里上来, 又健美又肥壮, 在芦苇中吃草。
3 接着, 又有另外七头母牛从河里上来, 又丑陋又瘦弱, 站在岸上其他母牛旁边。
4 这些丑陋瘦弱的母牛, 竟把那些健美肥壮的母牛吃掉, 法老就醒了。
5 他又睡着, 作了第二个梦, 梦见一根麦茎, 长出七个麦穗, 又肥壮又美好。
6 接着, 又长出七个麦穗, 又干瘦又被东风吹焦了。
7 这些干瘦的麦穗, 竟把那七个又肥壮又饱满的麦穗吞下去, 法老就醒了, 原来是一个梦。
8 到了早晨, 法老心里烦乱, 就派人去把埃及所有的术士和智慧人都召了来; 法老把自己的梦告诉他们, 但是没有人能替法老解梦。
9 那时酒政告诉法老说: "我今日想起了我的过错。
10 从前法老恼怒臣仆, 把我和膳长关在军长府的监房里。
11 我们二人在同一夜都作了梦; 我们的梦各有不同的解释。
12 在那里有一个希伯来的少年人与我们在一起, 他是军长的仆人, 我们把梦告诉了他, 他就替我们解梦, 各人的梦有不同的解释。
13 结果, 事情都照着他给我们的解释实现了: 我恢复了原职, 膳长却被挂起来。"
14 法老于是派人去召约瑟。他们就急忙把约瑟从监里带出来。他剃了头、刮了脸、换了衣服, 就进去见法老。
15 法老对约瑟说: "我作了一个梦, 没有人能够解释。我听见人说, 你听了梦, 就能解释。"
16 约瑟回答法老, 说: "解梦不在于我, 但 神必给法老一个吉祥的解答。"
17 法老告诉约瑟: "在梦里我看见我站在河边。
18 有七头母牛从河里上来, 又肥壮又健美, 在芦苇中吃草。
19 接着, 又有另外七头母牛上来, 又软弱又消瘦又十分丑陋, 在埃及全地我没有见过这样丑陋的牛。
20 这又消瘦又丑陋的母牛, 竟把先前七头肥壮的母牛吃掉。
21 它们吃了以后, 却看不出它们是吃掉了肥牛, 因为它们丑陋的样子仍是与先前一样。我就醒了。
22 在梦里我又看见一根麦茎, 长出七个麦穗, 又饱满又美好。
23 接着, 又长出了七个麦穗, 又枯干又干瘦又被东风吹焦了。
24 这些干瘦的麦穗, 竟把那七个美好的麦穗吞下去。我把梦告诉了术士, 但是没有人能替我解答。"
25 约瑟对法老说: "法老的梦都是同一个意思, 神已经把所要作的事告诉法老了。
26 七头美好的母牛是七年, 七个美好的麦穗也是七年; 两个梦都是同一个意思。
27 那接着上来的七头又消瘦又丑陋的母牛是七年, 那七个不结实、被东风吹焦了的麦穗也是七年, 都是七年饥荒。
28 这就是我对法老所说: 神要作的事, 他已经向法老显明了。
29 看哪, 埃及全地必有七年大丰收。
30 接着又必有七年饥荒; 甚至埃及地所有的丰收都被人忘记了, 饥荒必把这地毁灭。
31 因为接着而来的饥荒太严重了, 使人不觉得这地有过丰收。
32 至于法老两次作梦, 是因为 神已经命定这事, 并且要快快地实行。
33 因此, 法老要找一个有见识有智慧的人, 派他管理埃及地。
34 法老要这样行, 在国中指派官员, 当七年丰收的时候, 征收埃及地出产的五分之一。
35 又叫他们把将要来的七个丰年的粮食收集起来, 积蓄五谷归在法老的手下, 收在各城里作粮食。
36 这些粮食要储存起来, 可以应付将来埃及地的七年饥荒, 免得这地被饥荒所灭。"
37 法老和他的臣仆, 都赞同这件事。
38 于是法老对臣仆说: "像这样的人, 有 神的灵在他里面, 我们怎能找得着呢?"
39 法老对约瑟说: " 神既然把这事指示了你, 就再没有人像你这样有见识有智慧了。
40 你可以掌管我的家, 我的人民都要听从你的话; 只有在王位上我比你大。"
41 法老又对约瑟说: "你看, 我任命你治理埃及全地。"
42 于是, 法老脱下他手上打印的戒指, 戴在约瑟的手上; 给他穿上细麻的衣服, 把金颈链挂在他的颈项上;
43 又叫约瑟坐在他的副车, 有人在他前面喊着: "跪下。"这样, 法老任命了约瑟治理埃及全地。
44 法老对约瑟说: "我是法老, 但在埃及全地, 如果没有你的许可, 没有人可以随意作事。"
45 法老给约瑟起名叫撒发那忒.巴内亚, 又把安城的祭司波提非拉的女儿亚西纳, 给约瑟为妻。约瑟出去巡行埃及全地。
46 约瑟侍立在埃及王法老面前的时候, 年三十岁。约瑟从法老面前出来, 遍行埃及全地。
47 在七个丰年的时候, 地里的出产非常丰盛。
48 约瑟把埃及七个丰年的一切粮食都收集起来, 把粮食存放在城中; 各城周围田地所出的粮食, 也存放在各城中。
49 约瑟积蓄了极多的五谷, 好像海沙那样多, 甚至他不再记下数量, 因为实在无法计算。
50 在荒年还没有来到以前, 约瑟生了两个儿子, 是安城的祭司波提非拉的女儿亚西纳给约瑟生的。
51 约瑟给长子起名叫玛拿西, 因为他说: " 神使我忘记我所有的困苦, 以及我父的全家。"
52 他给次子起名叫以法莲, 因为他说: " 神使我在受苦之地繁盛起来。"
53 埃及地的七年丰收一结束,
54 七年饥荒就随着来了, 正像约瑟所说的一样。各地都有饥荒, 只有埃及全地仍有粮食,
55 等到埃及全地也要挨饿的时候, 人民就向法老求粮。法老对所有的埃及人说: "你们到约瑟那里去, 他吩咐你们什么, 你们就作什么。"
56 当时饥荒遍及全国, 约瑟就开了所有的粮仓, 把粮食卖给埃及人, 因为埃及地的饥荒非常严重。
57 各地的人都到埃及去, 向约瑟买粮, 因为各地的饥荒都非常严重。