Later Pharʹaoh becomes angry with his cupbearer and his baker, and puts them into prison. One night they each have a special dream, but they do not know the meaning of their dreams. The next day Joseph says: ‘Tell me your dreams.’ And when they do, Joseph, with God’s help, explains the meaning of their dreams.

To the cupbearer, Joseph says: ‘In three days you will be let out of prison, and you will become Pharʹaoh’s cupbearer again.’ So Joseph adds: ‘When you get out, tell Pharʹaoh about me, and help me to get out of this place.’ But to the baker, Joseph says: ‘In just three days Pharʹaoh will have your head cut off.’

In three days it happens just as Joseph said. Pharʹaoh has the baker’s head cut off. The cupbearer, though, is let out of prison and begins to serve the king again. But the cupbearer forgets all about Joseph! He does not tell Pharʹaoh about him, and Joseph has to stay in prison.

TWO years pass, and Joseph is still in prison. The cupbearer has not remembered him. Then one night Pharʹaoh has two very special dreams, and he wonders what they mean. Do you see him sleeping there? The next morning Pharʹaoh calls his wise men and tells them the things that he has dreamed. But they are not able to tell him the meaning of his dreams.

Now the cupbearer at last remembers Joseph. He says to Pharʹaoh: ‘When I was in prison there was a man there who could tell the meaning of dreams.’ Pharʹaoh has Joseph brought out of prison right away.

Pharʹaoh tells Joseph his dreams: ‘I saw seven fat, beautiful cows. Then I saw seven very thin and bony cows. And the thin ones ate up the fat cows.

‘In my second dream I saw seven heads of full, ripe grain growing on one stalk. Then I saw seven thin, dried-out heads of grain. And the thin heads of grain began to swallow up the seven good heads of grain.’

Joseph says to Pharʹaoh: ‘The two dreams mean the same thing. The seven fat cows and the seven full heads of grain mean seven years, and the seven thin cows and the seven thin heads of grain mean seven more years. There will be seven years when a lot of food will grow in Egypt. Then there will be seven years when very little food will grow.’

So Joseph tells Pharʹaoh: ‘Choose a wise man and put him in charge of collecting food during the seven good years. Then the people will not starve during the following seven bad years when very little food will grow.’

Pharʹaoh likes the idea. And he chooses Joseph to collect the food, and to store it up. Next to Pharʹaoh, Joseph becomes the most important man in Egypt.