A. M. cir. 2287. 5 And they dreamed a dream, B. C. cir. 1717. both of them, each man his dream in one night, each man according to the interpretation of his dream; the butler and the baker of the king of Egypt, which were bound in the prison.

6 And Joseph came in unto them in the morning, and looked upon them, and, behold, they were sad.

7 And he asked Pharaoh's officers that were with him in the ward of his lord's house, saying, Wherefore a look ye so sadly to-day?

Joseph's interpretation of them.

12 And Joseph said unto him, A. M. cir. 2287. This is the interpretation of it: B. C. cir. 1717. The three branches are three days:

13 Yet within three days shall Pharaoh i lift * up thine head, and restore thee unto thy place. and thou shalt deliver Pharaoh's cup into his hand, after the former manner when thou was: his butler.

14 But think m on me when it shall be well with thee, and show kindness, I pray thee unto me, and make mention of me unto Pha raoh, and bring me out of this house:

15 For indeed I was stolen away out of the land of the Hebrews: and here also have I done nothing that they should put me into

8 And they said unto him, We have dreamed a dream, and there is no interpreter of it. And Joseph said unto them, Do not interpretations belong to God? tell me them, I the dungeon. pray you.

9 And the chief butler told his dream to Joseph, and said to him, In my dream, behold, a vine was before me;

10 And in the vine were three branches : and it was as though it budded, and her blossoms shot forth; and the clusters thereof brought forth ripe grapes:

11 And Pharaoh's cup was in my hand: and I took the grapes, and pressed them into Pharaoh's cup, and I gave the cup into Pharaoh's hand.

Heb. are your faces evil? Neh. ii. 2.—e Chap. xli. 15. See chap. xli. 16; Dan. ii. 11, 28, 47.- Ver. 18, chap. xli. 12, 25; Judg. vii. 14; Dan. ii. 36; iv. 19.- -h Chap. xli. 26. 12 Kings xxv. 27; Psa. iii. 3; Jer. lii. 31.- k Or, reckon.

suppose the word signifies a complete year; and as Pharaoh called them to an account on his birthday, verse 20, Calmet supposes they had offended on the preceding birthday, and thus had been one whole year in prison.

Verse 5. Each man according to the interpretation] Not like dreams in general, the disordered workings of the mind, the consequence of disease or repletion; these were dreams that had an interpretation, that is, that were prophetic.

Verse 6. They were sad.] They concluded that their dreams portended something of great importance, but they could not tell what.

Verse 8. There is no interpreter] They either had access to none, or those to whom they applied could give them no consistent, satisfactory meaning.

Do not interpretations belong to God?] God alone, the Supreme Being, knows what is in futurity; and if he have sent a significant dream, he alone can give the solution.

Verse 11. And I took the grapes and pressed them into Pharaoh's cup] From this we find that wine anciently was the mere expressed juice of the grape, without fermentation. The saky, or cup-bearer, took the

16 When the chief baker saw that the interpretation was good, he said unto Joseph, I also was in my dream, and, behold, I had three white baskets on my head:

17 And in the uppermost basket there was of all manner of a bakemeats for Pharaoh; and the birds did eat them out of the basket upon my head.

18 And Joseph answered and said, This is the interpretation thereof: The three baskets are three days:

19 Yet within three days shall Pharaoh

bunch, pressed the juice into the cup, and instantly de-
livered it into the hands of his master.
This was
anciently the " yayin of the Hebrews, the ovos of the
Greeks, and the mustum of the ancient Latins.

Verse 12. The three branches are three days]. That is, The three branches signify three days; so, this is my body, that is, this bread signifies or représents my body; this cup is my blood, REPRESENTS my blood; a form of speech frequently used in the sacred writings, for the Hebrew has no proper word by which our terms signifies, represents, &c., are expressed; therefore it says such a thing is, for represents, points out, &c. And because several of our ancestors would understand such words in their true, genuine, critical, and sole meaning, Queen Mary, Bishops Gardiner, Bonner, and the rest of that demoniacal crew, reduced them to`ashes in Smithfield and elsewhere!

Verse 14. Make mention of me unto Pharaoh] One would have supposed that the very circumstance of his restoration, according to the prediction of Joseph, would have almost necessarily prevented him from forgetting so extraordinary a person. But what have mere courtiers to do either with gratitude or kindness? Verse 15. For indeed I was stolen]

IIl gunnob

The butler is restored.

B. C. cir. 1717.

the A. M. cir. 2287 B. C. cir. 1717.

A. M. cir. 2287. lift up thy head from off thee, 21 And he y restored and shall hang thee on a tree; chief butler unto his butlership and the birds shall eat thy flesh from off thee. again; and he gave the cup into Pharaoh's 20 And it came to pass the third day, which hand: was Pharaoh's "birthday, that he made a feast unto all his servants: and he lifted up the head of the chief butler and of the chief baker among his servants.

t Or, reckon thee, and take thy office from thee.-
▾ Mark vi. 21.————— Ver. 13, 19; Matt. xxv. 19.—

22 But he hanged the chief baker, as Joseph had interpreted to them.

23 Yet did not the chief butler remember Joseph, but forgat him.

Matt. xiv. 6. 7 Ver. 13.-
Or, reckoned.

gunnabti, stolen, I have been stolen-most assuredly I
was
stolen ;
and here also have I done nothing. These
were simple assertions, into the proof of which he was
ready to enter if called on.

Verse 19. Lift up thy head from off thee] Thus we find that beheading, hanging, and gibbeting, were modes of punishment among the ancient Egyptians; but the criminal was beheaded before he was hanged, and then either hanged on hooks, or by the hands. See Lam. v.. 12.

Verse 20. Pharaoh's birthday] The distinguishing a birthday by a feast appears from this place to have been a very ancient custom.. It probably had its origin from a correct notion of the immortality of the soul, as the commencement of life must appear of great consequence to that person who believed he was to live for ever. St. Matthew, xiv. 6, mentions Herod's keeping his birthday; and examples of this kind are frequent to the present time in most nations...

b

Neh. ii. 1. Ver. 19.- b Job xix. 14; Psa. xxxi. 12; Eccles. ix. 15, 16; Amos vi. 6.

been restored to his liberty; but, owing to the ingratitude of the chief butler, he was left two years longer in prison.

MANY commentators have seen in every circumstance in the history of Joseph a parallel between him and our blessed Lord. So, “Joseph in prison represents Christ in the custody of the Jews; the chief butler and the chief baker represent the two thieves which were crucified with our Lord; and as one thief was pardoned, and the other left to perish, so the chief butler was restored to his office, and the chief baker hanged." I believe God never designed such parallels; and I am astonished to find comparatively grave and judicious men trifling in this way, and forcing the features of truth into the most distorted anamorphosis, so that even her friends blush to acknowledge her. This is not a light matter; we should beware how we attribute designs to God that he never had, and employ the Lifted up the head of the chief butler, &c.] By Holy Spirit in forming trifling and unimportant simililifting up the head, probably no more is meant than tudes. Of plain, direct truth we shall find as much bringing them to trial, tantamount to what was done in the sacred writings as we can receive and compreby Jezebel and the nobles of Israel to Naboth: Set hend; let us not therefore hew out unto ourselves broken Naboth on high among the people; and set two men, cisterns that can hold no water. Interpretations of sons of Belial, to bear witness against him, &c.; 1 this kind only tend to render the sacred writings unKings xxi. 9, &c. The issue of the trial was, the certain; to expose to ridicule all the solemn types and baker alone was found guilty and hanged; and the figures which it really contains; and to furnish pretexts butler, being acquitted, was restored to his office. to infidels and irreligious people to scoff at all spirituality, and lead them to reject the word of God entirely, as incapable of being interpreted on any fixed or rational plan. The mischief done by this system is really incalculable. See the observations on chap. xxxvii.

Verse 23. Yet did not the chief butler remember Joseph] Had he mentioned the circumstance to Pharaoh, there is no doubt that Joseph's case would have been examined into, and he would in consequence have

CHAPTER XLI.

Pharaoh's dream of the seven well-favoured and seven ill-favoured kine, 1-4. His dream of the seven full and seven thin ears of corn, 5-7. The magicians and wise men applied to for the interpretation of them, but could give no solution, 8. The chief butler recollects and recommends Joseph, 9-13. Pharaoh commands him to be brought out of prison, 14. Joseph appears before Pharaoh, 15, 16. Pharaoh repeats his dreams, 17-24. Joseph interprets them, 25-32, and gives Pharaoh directions how to provide against the approaching scarcity, 33-36. Pharaoh, pleased with the counsel, appoints Joseph to be superintendent of all his affairs, 37-41. Joseph receives the badges of his new office, 42, 43, and has his powers defined, 44; receives a new name, and marries Asenath, daughter of Poti-Pherah, priest of ON, 45. Joseph's age when brought before Pharaoh, 46. Great fertility of Egypt in the seven plenteous years, 47. Joseph hoards up the grain, 48, 49. Ephraim and Manasseh born, 50–52. The seven years of famine commence with great rigour, 53-55. Joseph opens the storehouses to the Egyptians, 56. People from the neigh bouring countries come to Egypt to buy corn, the famine being in all those lands, 57.

5 And he slept and dreamed the second

of the kine and ears of corn.

B. C. 1715.

time; and, behold, seven ears of A. M. 2289.
corn came up upon one stalk, a rank
d
and good.

6 And, behold, seven thin ears and blasted with the east wind sprung up after them.

e

7 And the seven thin ears devoured the seven rank and full ears. And Pharaoh awoke, and, behold, it was a dream. 8 And 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 the wise men thereof: and Pharaoh told them his dreams; but there was none that could interpret them unto Pharaoh.

9 Then spake the chief butler unto Pharaoh,
Exodus vii. 11, 22; Isa.

Chap. xxxvii. 5-10; xl. 5; Esth. vi. 1; Dan. ii. 1-3; iv. 5; Heb. fat. - Dan. ii. 1; iv. 5, 19.-
Matt. xxvii. 19.b Ezek. xxix. 3, 9.- - See ver. 17-27.

NOTES ON CHAP. XLI.

Verse 1. Two full years] ' ' shenathayim` yamim, two years of days, two complete solar revolutions, after the events mentioned in the preceding chapter.

The river.] The Nile, the cause of the fertility of Egypt.

Verse 2. There came up out of the river seven well-favoured kine] This must certainly refer to the hippopotamus or river horse, as the circumstances of coming up out of the river and feeding in the field characterize that animal alone. The hippopotamus is the well-known inhabitant of the Nile, and frequently by night comes out of the river to feed in the fields, or in the sedge by the river side.

xxix. 14; Dan. i. 20; ii. 2; iv. 7. Matt. ii. 1.

a part of it; nor was I free from an asthmatic sensation till I had been some months in Italy, at the baths. of Poretta, near two years afterwards."-Travels, vol. vi. p. 462. On another occasion the whole company were made ill by one of these pestilential blasts, so that they had scarcely strength to load their camels.--Ibid. p. 484. The action of this destructive wind is referred to by the Prophet Hosea, chap. xiii. 15: Though he be fruitful among his brethren, an EAST WIND shall come, the wind of the Lord shall come up FROM THE WILDERNESS, and his spring shall BECOME DRY, and his fountain shall be DRIED up: he shall spoil the treasure of all pleasant vessels.

with; and D tam, to perfect or accomplish; those who were perfect in drawing their sacred, astrological, and hieroglyphical figures or characters, and who, by means of them, pretended to extraordinary feats, among which was the interpretation of dreams. They seem to have been such persons as Josephus (Ant., lib. ii., c. 9, s. 2) calls 'lepoypaμμaréis, sacred scribes, or professors of sacred learning."

Verse 8. Called for all the magicians] D'Don chartummim. The word here used may probably Verse 6. Blasted with the east wind]. It has been mean no more than interpreters of abstruse and diffivery properly observed that all the mischief done to cult subjects; and especially of the Egyptian hierocorn or fruit, by blasting, smutting, mildews, locusts, glyphics, an art which is now entirely lost. It is most &c., is attributed to the east wind. See Exod. x. 13; likely that the term is Egyptian, and consequently its xiv. 21; Psa. lxxviii. 26; Ezek. xvii. 10; Jonah iv. 8 etymology must remain unknown to us. If Hebrew, In Egypt it is peculiarly destructive, because it comes Mr. Parkhurst's definition may be as good as any: through the parched deserts of Arabia, often destroy-" cheret, a pen or instrument to write or draw ing vast numbers of men and women. The destructive nature of the simoom or smoom is mentioned by almost all travellers. Mr. Bruce speaks of it in his Travels in Egypt. On their way to Syene, Idris their guide, seeing one of these destroying blasts coming, cried out with a loud voice to the company, * Fall upon your faces, for here is the simoom!""" "I saw," says Mr. B., " from the S. E. a haze come, in colour like the purple part of the rainbow, but not so compressed or thick. It did not occupy twenty yards in breadth, and was about twelve feet high from the ground. It was a kind of blush upon the air, and it moved very rapidly, for I scarce could turn to fall upon the ground, with my head northward, when I felt the heat of its current plainly upon my face. We all lay flat upon the ground, as if dead, till Idris told us it was blown over. The meteor or purple haze which I saw, was indeed passed, but the light air that still blew was of a heat to threaten suffocation. For my part, I found distinctly in my breast that I had imbibed

Wise men] chacameyha, the persons who, according to Porphyry, "àddicted themselves to the worship of God and the study of wisdom, passing their whole life in the contemplation of Divine things. Contemplation of the stars, self-purification, arithmetic, and geometry, and singing hymns in honour of their gods, was their continual employment."—See Dodd. It was probably among these that Pythagoras conversed, and from whom he borrowed that modest name by which he wished his countrymen to distinguish him, viz., ohooooos, a philosopher, simply, a lover of wisdom.

Verse 9. I do remember my faults] It is not pos

.

CHAP. XLI.

two dreams of Pharaoh 24 And the thin ears devoured years of famine; and all the plenty the seven good ears and I told shall be forgotten in the land of this unto the magicians; but there was none Egypt; and the famine shall consume the that could declare it to me. land;