Genesis 41:2

And, behold, there came up out of the river seven well favoured kine and fatfleshed; and they fed in a meadow.

King James Version · Read in your translation · Open the Explore console

Word by word — the Hebrew

Word	Hebrew	Strong’s	Meaning
up	עֹלֹת֙ 'o.Lot	H5927	to ascend · verb, qal active participle, feminine plural absolute
river	הַיְאֹ֗ר hay.'Or	H2975	a channel · definite article + proper noun, a place name
seven	שֶׁ֣בַע She.va'	H7651	seven (as the sacred full one) · cardinal number, both genders singular absolute
well	יְפ֥וֹת ye.Fot	H3303	beautiful (literally or figuratively) · adjective, feminine plural construct
favoured	מַרְאֶ֖ה mar.'Eh	H4758	a view (the act of seeing) · noun, common masculine singular absolute
kine	פָּר֔וֹת pa.Rot	H6510	a heifer · noun, common feminine plural absolute
fatfleshed	וּבְרִיאֹ֣ת u.ve.ri.'Ot	H1277	fatted or plump · conjunction + adjective, feminine plural construct
fed	וַתִּרְעֶ֖ינָה va.tir.'Ei.nah	H7462	to tend a flock · conjunction + verb, qal sequential imperfect, 3rd person feminine plural
meadow	בָּאָֽחוּ ba.'A.chu	H260	a bulrush or any marshy grass (particularly that along… · preposition with the article + noun, common masculine singular absolute

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).

Cross-references

Isaiah 19:6 And they shall turn the rivers far away; and the brooks of defence shall be emptied and dried up: the reeds and flags shall wither.

Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Genesis 41:1-8

Observe, 1. The delay of Joseph's enlargement. It was not till the end of two full years (Gen 41:1); so long he waited after he had entrusted the chief butler with his case and began to have some prospect of relief. Note, We have need of patience, not only bearing, but waiting, patience. Joseph lay in prison until the time that his word came, Psa 105:19. There is a time set for the deliverance of God's people; that time will come, though it seem to tarry; and, when it comes, it will appear to have been the best time, and therefore we ought to wait for it (Hab 2:3), and not think two full years too long to continue waiting. 2. The means of Joseph's enlargement, which were Pharaoh's dreams, he…

Read the whole note in the console

Adam Clarke on Genesis 41:2

There came up out of the river seven well-favored 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.

John Gill on Genesis 41:2

And, behold, there came up out of the river seven well favoured kine, and fatfleshed,.... Seven cows or heifers, sleek, fat, and plump, goodly to look at; these seemed in the dream, as if they came out of the river, because they were fed with the fruits of the earth, which the overflowing of the river Nile, and its canals, produced: and they fed in a meadow; adjoining to the river, where there was good pasture for them, and gives a reason of their being in so good a condition.

John Calvin on Genesis 41:1-7

At the end of two full years [154] What anxiety oppressed the mind of the holy man during this time, each of us may conjecture from his own feeling; for we are so tender and effeminate, that we can scarcely bear to be put off for a short time. The Lord exercised his servant not only by a delay of long continuance, but also by another kind of temptation, because he took all human grounds of hope away from him: therefore Moses puts "years of days" for complete and full years. That we may better understand the invincible nature of his fortitude, we must also notice that winding course of divine providence, of which I have spoken, and by which Joseph was led about, till he rose into notice with…

The Church Fathers

(Chapter 41, Verse 2) And behold, seven cows were coming up from the river, attractive to look at, well-fed and well-built, and they were grazing in the meadow. In Genesis it is written as Achi (Ἄχα), which is neither a Greek nor Latin word. Even in Hebrew it is corrupted: it is said to be Ahu (אָחוּ), which means 'in the marsh'. But because the Hebrew letters Vau and Yod are similar and only differ in size, the Seventy Interpreters translated Ahu as Achi and, according to their custom of expressing double aspiration, they joined the Hebrew letter Heth with the Greek letter Chi (χ).
— Jerome, Hebrew Questions on Genesis

The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).

Dictionary and topics

Famine — The first mentioned in Scripture was so grievous as to compel Abraham to go down to the land of Egypt (Gen. 26:1). Another is mentioned as having occurred in the days of Isaac, causing him to go to…
Flag — (Heb., or rather Egyptian, ahu, Job 8:11), rendered “meadow” in Gen. 41:2, 18; probably the Cyperus esculentus, a species of rush eaten by cattle, the Nile reed. It also grows in Palestine. In Ex.…
Flesh — In the Old Testament denotes (1) a particular part of the body of man and animals (Gen. 2:21; 41:2; Ps. 102:5, marg.); (2) the whole body (Ps. 16:9); (3) all living things having flesh, and…
Heifer — Heb. ‘eglah, (Deut. 21:4, 6; Jer. 46:20). Untrained to the yoke (Hos. 10:11); giving milk (Isa. 7:21); ploughing (Judg. 14:18); treading out grain (Jer. 50:11); unsubdued to the yoke an emblem of…
Kine — (Heb. sing. parah, i.e., “fruitful”), mentioned in Pharaoh’s dream (Gen. 41: 18). Here the word denotes “buffaloes,” which fed on the reeds and sedge by the river’s brink.
Meadow — (1.) Heb. ha’ahu (Gen. 41:2, 18), probably an Egyptain word transferred to the Hebrew; some kind of reed or water-plant. In the Revised Version it is rendered “reed-grass”, i.e., the sedge or rank…
Pharaoh — The official title borne by the Egyptian kings down to the time when that country was conquered by the Greeks. (See EGYPT.) The name is a compound, as some think, of the words Ra, the “sun” or…
River — (1.) Heb. ‘aphik, properly the channel or ravine that holds water (2 Sam. 22:16), translated “brook,” “river,” “stream,” but not necessarily a perennial stream (Ezek. 6:3; 31:12; 32:6; 34:13). (2.)…
Dreams · Mentioned in scripture of: Pharaoh — Mentioned in scripture of: Pharaoh
Egypt · Watered by the Nile — Watered by the Nile
Heathen · .Pharaoh

Word by word — the Hebrew

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Genesis 41:1-8

Adam Clarke on Genesis 41:2

John Gill on Genesis 41:2

John Calvin on Genesis 41:1-7

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

Word by word — the Hebrew

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Genesis 41:1-8

Adam Clarke on Genesis 41:2

John Gill on Genesis 41:2

John Calvin on Genesis 41:1-7

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

Tyndale Open Study Notes on Genesis 41:1-46