Kejadian 41:1-3

Joseph’s Rise to Power

41:1 At the end of two full years ¹  Pharaoh had a dream. ²  As he was standing by the Nile, 41:2 seven fine-looking, fat cows were coming up out of the Nile, ³  and they grazed in the reeds. 41:3 Then seven bad-looking, thin cows were coming up after them from the Nile, ⁴  and they stood beside the other cows at the edge of the river. ⁵ 

Kejadian 41:17-18

41:17 Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “In my dream I was standing ⁶  by the edge of the Nile. 41:18 Then seven fat and fine-looking cows were coming up out of the Nile, and they grazed in the reeds. ⁷ 

[41:1]  ¹ tn Heb “two years, days.”

[41:1]  ² tn Heb “was dreaming.”

[41:2]  ³ tn Heb “And look, he was standing by the Nile, and look, from the Nile were coming up seven cows, attractive of appearance and fat of flesh.” By the use of the particle הִנֵּה (hinneh, “look”), the narrator invites the audience to see the dream through Pharaoh’s eyes.

[41:3]  ⁴ tn Heb “And look, seven other cows were coming up after them from the Nile, bad of appearance and thin of flesh.”

[41:3]  ⁵ tn Heb “the Nile.” This has been replaced by “the river” in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[41:17]  ⁶ tn Heb “In my dream look, I was standing.” The use of the particle הִנֵּה (hinneh, “look”) here (and also in vv. 18, 19, 22, 23) invites the hearer (within the context of the narrative, Joseph; but in the broader sense the reader or hearer of the Book of Genesis) to observe the scene through Pharaoh’s eyes.

[41:18]  ⁷ tn Heb “and look, from the Nile seven cows were coming up, fat of flesh and attractive of appearance, and they grazed in the reeds.”