What happensPermalink
Pharaoh has two dreams of cows and corn. Joseph interprets the dreams as seven good years followed by seven years of famine. Pharaoh puts Joseph in charge of Egypt to carry out his plan for survival. Joseph has two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim. The famine begins.
Why it mattersPermalink
By God’s providence, Joseph goes from slave to prison to the second-most-powerful man in Egypt in thirteen years. The famine is the tool God uses to protect Israel: in Canaan, they are in danger of integration; the Egyptians would never permit such a thing.
Key versePermalink
Moreover, all the earth came to Egypt to Joseph to buy grain, because the famine was severe over all the earth.