1 Then it came to pass, at the end of two full years, that Pharaoh had a dream; and behold, he stood by the river. 2 Suddenly there came up out of the river seven cows, fine looking and fat; and they fed in the meadow. 3 Then behold, seven other cows came up after them out of the river, ugly and gaunt, and stood by the other cows on the bank of the river. 4 And the ugly and gaunt cows ate up the seven fine looking and fat cows. So Pharaoh 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 behold, seven thin heads, blighted by the east wind, sprang up after them. 7 And the seven thin heads devoured the seven plump and full heads. So Pharaoh awoke, and indeed, it was a dream. 8 Now it came to pass in the morning that his spirit was troubled, and he sent and called for all the magicians of Egypt and all its wise men. And Pharaoh told them his dreams, but there was no one who could interpret them for Pharaoh. ~ Genesis 41:1-8
Today, we transition into our study of Genesis 41. In the book of Genesis, God revealed a lot of truth through dreams. Through many of them, He revealed pictures of the Lord Jesus Christ for this is God’s ultimate goal in our lives, to reveal His Son in, to and through our yielded lives. In the approximately 2500 years of time which Genesis records, only 6 people had dreams; Abimelech the king of Gerar during Isaac’s time; Jacob when he dreamed of the ladder reaching to heaven; Joseph in his two dreams about the sheaves and the stars; the cupbearer and the baker who were in prison with Joseph; and Pharaoh’s two dreams in today’s chapter. Interestingly, there are 12 God-directed dreams in the Bible which are specifically noted as dreams.
In v.1 of today’s passage we read, “Then it came to pass, at the end of two full years, that Pharaoh had a dream; and behold, he stood by the river.”
In the previous chapter the butler forgot to tell Pharaoh about Joseph, but God never forgot about Joseph. At this point in the narrative God had to leave Joseph in that prison to accomplish other work in and through Joseph. Getting to the place that we no longer complain and we rest in the providential plan of God in our lives is hard and arduous but it is necessary for us to walk with the Lord. And so, now two years will go by until Joseph will be released from the prison. Again, the God of eternity is not bound by time like we are. He is not myopic, He knows all things and we can rest assured that we can trust Him with everything.
In v. 2 of today’s passage we read, “Suddenly there came up out of the river seven cows, fine looking and fat; and they fed in the meadow.”
In this next dream, Pharaoh stood by the Nile river. Suddenly seven cows come up out of the river. The heifer cow was regarded by ancient Egyptians as divine. The fact that they rose out of the Nile shows that the cause of their fatness was derived from the Nile which they also considered divine. After arising from the Nile, Pharaoh saw them feeding on the marsh grass which was abundant along the Nile.
In v.3 of today’s passage we read, “Then behold, seven other cows came up after them out of the river, ugly and gaunt, and stood by the other cows on the bank of the river.”
The next set of seven cows came out of the river as evil looking and thin. They stood by the cows on the bank of the Nile. Instead of eating like the first seven cows, they just stood there. These cows were miserable bags of bones with their skin hanging loosely off them.
In v.4 of today’s passage we read, “And the ugly and gaunt cows ate up the seven fine looking and fat cows. So Pharaoh awoke.”
In what is contrary to nature on several levels, the thin cows ate the healthy ones. It is contrary that a skinny animal would be able to eat another fat one of the same kind. It is contrary that the weaker should overcome the stronger. And it is contrary that a herbivore would eat another of its own kind as if it were a carnivore. Nothing in the dream seems to fit with reason, and so for the dream there must be a reason. Due to the disturbing nature of the dream, Pharaoh was awakened.
In v.5 of today’s passage we read, “He slept and dreamed a second time; and suddenly seven heads of grain came up on one stalk, plump and good.”
As surely as Joseph had two dreams, and as was seen in the two dreams revealed to Joseph in prison, Pharaoh now has a second dream. This one, following the biblical pattern of the number two, will contrast the first and yet confirm the message. In this dream, healthy wheat grain that bears seven ears on one stalk appeared.
In v.6 of today’s passage we read, “Then behold, seven thin heads, blighted by the east wind, sprang up after them.”
Then, there where the Nile River had run dry, appeared seven thin stalks sprang up from the ground. The southeast wind which usually comes to Egypt in March and April is the one of the longest duration and of the greatest harm to the land.
In v.7 of today’s passage we read, “And the seven thin heads devoured the seven plump and full heads. So Pharaoh awoke, and indeed, it was a dream.”
Just like the previous dream which is contrary to sound reason occurs. Stalks of grain don’t normally go around eating other stalks of grain. And even if they did, which they don’t, skinny ones couldn’t eat fat ones. Again, this caused Pharaoh to be awakened.
In v.8 of today’s passage we read, “Now it came to pass in the morning that his spirit was troubled, and he sent and called for all the magicians of Egypt and all its wise men. And Pharaoh told them his dreams, but there was no one who could interpret them for Pharaoh.”
Troubled by his double dream, Pharaoh sent the next morning for all the scribes and wise men of Egypt, to have it interpreted. But not one of them could interpret it, although the clue to the interpretation was to be found in the religious symbols of Egypt. For the cow was the symbol of Isis, the goddess of the all-sustaining earth, and in the hieroglyphics it represented the earth, agriculture, and food; and the Nile, by its overflowing, was the source of the fertility of the land. But however simple the explanation of the fat and lean cows ascending out of the Nile appeared to be, not one of Pharaoh's interpreters could interpret it.
Mankind's problem is that we have been separated from God by our sin. This problem is solved when we repent from trusting ourselves and then turn to God for His help. Once we have received the Lord Jesus Christ as our Savior, He ushers us into a right relationship with God. This is when our disposition on life changes and we begin to be taught by Him on how to live our lives. This doesn't mean that all of our problems will be over, it does mean that we will have a point of reference with regard to the inner issues that still plagues us, such as anger, jealousy, resentment, worry, and feelings of worthlessness.
In Galatians 2:20 the Apostle reminds us that we are free to enjoy the life of Christ lived in and through us. It reads, "I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." The Christian life is the realization of the life of Christ come to bear on the believer in Christ. This is the answer and this is why we do not get life right or arrive at the right interpretation of life because apart from having a personal relationship with our Creator, we are nothing and we will not get life right.
