Pharaoh had a dream about skinny cows eating fat cows. Then he had another dream about wind scorched grain swallowing healthy grain.
Pharaoh was troubled by his dreams and asked the wise men of Egypt to explain it to him. None were able to do that.
Then Pharaoh’s chief wine steward remembered how Joseph had correctly interpreted two dreams.
14. Then Pharaoh sent and called Joseph, and they brought him quickly out of the dungeon; and he shaved, and changed his garment, and came in to Pharaoh.
15. And Pharaoh said to Joseph, I have dreamed a dream, and there is none who can interpret it; and I have heard say of you, that you can understand a dream to interpret it.
16. And Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, It is not in me; God shall give Pharaoh a favorable answer.
Let’s look at the meaning of these verses and a couple of lessons we can learn from them.
Genesis 41:14 – Joseph Summoned
14. Then Pharaoh sent and called Joseph, and they brought him quickly out of the dungeon; and he shaved, and changed his garment, and came in to Pharaoh.
they brought him quickly – The Hebrew word here is vay’ritzuhu meaning “they hurried him.”
Who hurried him? According to Ibn Ezra it was Pharaoh’s messengers who hurried up Joseph.
and he shaved, and changed his garment – Ibn Ezra explains that a barber shaved him. He didn’t do it himself.
Joseph changed from from prisoner clothes to the clothes of a free man [Daat Mikra].
Radak writes that a person should only come before a king well groomed and wearing respectable clothing.
What did Joseph Know?
Joseph clearly knew that he was being summoned to appear before Pharaoh. What else did he know?
Rabbi Sorotzkin writes that the messengers from Pharaoh told Joseph that they were calling Joseph in the name of Pharaoh to interpret his dream. If they had not told him this, he would have been apprehensive because he was in prison with some condemned criminals.
They told him the purpose of his summons so he would realize he was being brought out for a positive reason, not to be executed.
This sounds reasonable, but it’s not clear to me what Rabbi Sorotzkin sees in the text that leads him to this explanation.
Did Joseph Bow to Pharaoh?
The verse says Joseph “came in to Pharaoh.” As Daat Mikra points out, there is no mention of Joseph bowing or prostrating himself before Pharaoh.
Did he or didn’t he?
After Joseph became viceroy, his brothers bowed and prostrated before him (Genesis 42:6, 43:26, and 44:14). So we see that there is a tradition to bow before a powerful Egyptian ruler.
On the other hand, when Jacob met Pharaoh (Genesis 47:7-10) there is no mention of him bowing.
Did Joseph Hurry to Meet Pharaoh?
As mentioned above, the phrase “and they brought him quickly” is from the Hebrew vay’ritzuhu. This word is plural causative, meaning they caused Joseph to move quickly.
The other verbs in the verse are singular: shaved, changed, came.
Many commentators take the approach that it was one of Pharaoh’s messengers who did these things to Joseph. He was acting for Pharaoh and urging Joseph to keep moving quickly.
Rabbi Hirsch disagrees. He agrees that the messengers sent by Pharaoh rushed Joseph to go to the king.
But Joseph did not hurry. He shaved. He changed his clothes. Even after this he did not rush. As the verse says, he came to Pharaoh.
Joseph moved with calm confidence as he prepared himself to meet Pharaoh.
Genesis 41:15 – Pharaoh’s Desire
And Pharaoh said to Joseph, I have dreamed a dream, and there is none who can interpret it; and I have heard (Hebrew: shamati) say of you, that you can understand (Hebrew: tishma) a dream to interpret it.
The Hebrew words shamati and tishma are from the 3-letter root shin-mem-ayin. The Vilna Gaon (GRA) explains that this root has 3 meanings:
- the physical sensation of sound on the ear
- acceptance of something
- understanding a matter
In this verse, the first time it’s translated as “heard,” the GRA’s first meaning. The second time it’s translated “understand” which is the third meaning.
As we will see, not everyone agrees with these translations.
I have dreamed a dream, and there is none who can interpret it – Malbim explains according to Jewish tradition the sorcerers and wise men of Egypt did offer interpretations. They thought that Pharaoh had dreamed two separate dreams. But Pharaoh thought it was only one dream, so their explanations didn’t seem correct to him.
Hence the phrase “there is none who can interpret it” means there is no one who can interpret it as one dream.
and I have heard say of you – Netziv in HaEmek Davar writes that Pharaoh is telling Joseph that not only has he heard about what Joseph can do, but he believes the report is true. Netziv interprets “heard” in the second sense on the GRA’s list.
that you can understand (Hebrew: tishma) – Most commentators explain tishma to mean “understand,” the 3rd meaning listed above.
Sforno adds that Pharaoh is praising Joseph that he interprets dreams wisely without guessing and being correct just by chance.
Tzror Hamor writes that Joseph can understand a dream and interpret it without needing any other information.
Malbim writes that Pharaoh is pleased that Joseph does not rely on astrology to interpret dreams. Using astrology would require many calculations and knowledge of the stars and their arrangements. Pharaoh is sure that Joseph only needs to know the dream and then he will be able to interpret it immediately.
Netziv in HaEmek Davar takes a different approach. He writes that Pharaoh is saying to Joseph that he listens to a dream not to form a story without any practical result, rather he listens to interpret.
According to the Netziv, Pharaoh is using the word tishma in the simple of listening with the ears. Also, Pharaoh thought that his dream contained a practical message that no one else was comprehending.
Genesis 41:16 – Joseph Explains
And Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, It is not in me; God shall give Pharaoh a favorable answer.
Imagine being in a job interview. Your potential boss asks you about the skill needed for the position. Would your answer be: I don’t know much about that, but, God willing, I’ll learn quickly?!?
Joseph’s statement sounds a lot like that.
What is Joseph actually telling Pharaoh?
Rashi explains that Joseph means that the wisdom is not from him. God will place the matter in his mouth for the good of Pharaoh.
Tzror Hamor writes that Joseph is telling Pharaoh that he should not consider Joseph’s wisdom to be like that of the wise men of Egypt. If Joseph is able to interpret Pharaoh’s dream, it’s not because he is wiser than the others.
Rather, God will make it known to Pharaoh. God is telling Pharaoh significant things and these are things that cannot be grasped by people. Rather, the One who puts things in a person’s mouth, He will answer Pharaoh with an answer that is fitting for Pharaoh.
Malbim understands Joseph this way: This dream is a message about God’s oversight of the world. God Who sent you the message to inform you of your peace, He will make known its interpretation to the interpreter, whoever that may be. If it’s not me, then it will be another person.
As Rabbi Steinsaltz summarizes, Joseph is telling Pharaoh that he doesn’t need Joseph or any skills he has. Joseph is not the interpreter, at most He can serve as an intermediary.
Salvation Comes Quickly
Sforno teaches an important principle based on Genesis 41:14 and the word vay’ritzuhu – they hurried him. What happened to Joseph is a model that the salvation of God always comes quickly in a moment.
He mentions some other verses that illustrate this idea. For example, Exodus 12:33-34,39 that the Jews were thrust out of Egypt quickly and their dough had no time to rise.
He also notes that this will be the case in the future, as taught by the prophet Malachi:
1. … and the Lord, whom you seek, shall suddenly come to His temple …
Rabbi Dessler (Michtav MiEliyahu Vol. 5 page 14) adds an important point.
There are two aspects to the eventual redemption of the world: our acts and God’s acts when the end arrives.
Our acts and service add merits to our account bit by bit. But, when the end arrives, God will bring the final redemption in an instant.