BIBLE STORIES

  Two years went by and the King of Egypt began to have bad dreams. He didn’t know what they meant, and he asked his wise men and magicians. They couldn’t help him. They just didn’t know what the dreams meant. A servant came forward. “I know!” he said to the King, and he told him about when he was in prison. “While I was in prison, I met a man called Joseph. He can tell you what your dreams mean.”

 

  So the King sent for Joseph to come to him and explain the dreams. He told Joseph what had happened. “I was standing on the banks of the River Nile, and seven fat cows came out of the water. They were followed by seven thin cows. The thin cows then ate the fat cows, but you wouldn’t have known it, because they stayed thin. What does it mean?”

 

  Joseph told him. “The seven fat cows are seven good years when there will be plenty to eat. The seven thin cows represent seven bad years when there will be no food. So you need to do this. In the seven good years, store up as much food as you can for the seven bad years, then you will have food when there is none.”

 

  The king was amazed at what Joseph was saying. “You are a very wise man, Joseph. I shall put you in charge of the whole of Egypt.” So Joseph began working for the king. He told the people to collect lots of food and store it. Seven years went by, and as Joseph had said, there was no food in the eighth year. The fields didn’t grow any food and neither did the trees. The whole world was short of food. There was a famine.

 

  Quite quickly people began to hear that there was food in Egypt. Joseph’s father, Jacob, heard the news and sent his sons, apart from the youngest, Benjamin, to buy some grain. When they bowed down in front of the governor of Egypt, they didn’t recognise Joseph. He knew who they were, but didn’t tell them that he was their brother! He said they were spies! He was testing them. He told them that they could take the grain, but they need to bring Benjamin to him. Joseph held Simeon as a prisoner while the others went back to collect Benjamin. Just before they left, Joseph took the money they had spent on the grain and put it in the grain sacks so that they would take it home again with them. They were getting the grain for free!

 

  It wasn’t long before the brothers all ran out of food. Jacob had no choice but to send the brothers all back to Egypt to buy some more food. He gave them Benjamin and twice the amount of money. When they got to Egypt, they stood in front of Joseph. He told them that God must have put the money back into their sacks. Joseph was very upset when he saw his favourite brother, Benjamin, but still he didn’t say who he was.

 

  That night, Joseph held a party at his house for all his brothers. The next morning they were given their grain again and sent away. Joseph had once again put the money back in the sacks. Joseph’s silver cup was hidden in Benjamin’s sack. When they had gone, Joseph sent his servant out after them, telling him to look for the cup. The servant found it in Benjamin’s sack. The brothers were very upset. They knew that if they had to leave Benjamin behind as a prisoner then their father would be very upset. So they went back to Joseph's house and begged him to let Benjamin go free. They told him about all the horrible things that they did to their brother Joseph many years ago. They told him that if their brother Benjamin had to be left behind as well then their poor father would die of a broken heart.

 

Joseph couldn’t take it any longer! He cried and cried, and then told them “I am Joseph! God has made me ruler over all of Egypt. Go and fetch our father and we can all live together in this wonderful land!”

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JOSEPH IN EGYPT