17
Then Pharaohוַ פַּרְעֹהspokeיְדַבֵּרto Joseph:אֶל יוֹסֵף“In my dream,בַּחֲלֹמִיlook,הִנְI wasנִיstandingעֹמֵדon the bankעַל שְׂפַתof the Nile;הַיְאֹר
Genesis 41:17
Study it in the app“Then Pharaoh spoke to Joseph: “In my dream, look, I was standing on the bank of the Nile;”
With the Hebrew beneath
Genesis 41:17, word by word
- Then Pharaohפַּרְעֹהparo
Pharaoh
Pharaoh: the title of the kings of Egypt, not a personal name.
Where else “paro” appears- spokeיְדַבֵּרyedaber
speak
To speak, say something; above all God to his people.
Where else “yedaber” appears- to Josephיוֹסֵףyosef
Joseph
Joseph, a name borne by several Israelites, above all the son of Jacob and Rachel, sold into Egypt, who became ruler there and saved his family; his sons Ephraim and Manasseh became tribes. The name means "may he add".
Where else “yosef” appears- “In my dreamחֲלֹמִchalomi
dream
Dream: what one sees while asleep. In the Bible, God sometimes speaks through dreams.
Where else “chalomi” appears- standingעֹמֵדomed
stand
To be on one's feet, firm in a place, or to rise up to act.
Where else “omed” appears- on the bankשְׂפַתsefat
edge
The edge where the sea or a river ends and the land begins.
Where else “sefat” appears- of the Nileיְאֹרyeor
Nile
See it on the mapWhere else “yeor” appears
Places in this verse
Nile
Today: Nile River, Uganda to Egypt and the Mediterranean
Egypt's great river; it flows north to the Mediterranean Sea.
Pharaoh dreamed beside the Nile (Gen 41:1). God turned its waters to blood (Exod 7:20), and baby Moses was placed on its bank (Exod 2:3-5).
The context
16Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, “It is not in me; Elohim will answer with peace for Pharaoh.”
17 · This verse (above)
18and look, from the Nile there came up seven cows, fat in flesh and beautiful in form, and they grazed in the reed grass.
To study Genesis 41 in a group
1. What it says
What did Pharaoh dream, and what plan did Joseph propose (vv. 1-7, 33-36)?
2. What it means
Why did Pharaoh recognize that the spirit of Elohim was in Joseph (v. 38)?
3. How I live it
What can you wisely prepare today for hard times that might come?