Genesis 41:1

1 And it cometh to pass, at the end of two years of days that Pharaoh is dreaming, and lo, he is standing by the River,

Genesis 41:1 Meaning and Commentary

Genesis 41:1

And it came to pass at the end of two full years
It is not a clear case, as Aben Ezra observes, from whence these years are to be reckoned, whether from the time of Joseph's being put into prison, or from the time that the chief butler was taken out of it; the latter seems more probable, and better connects this and the preceding chapter: that Pharaoh dreamed, and, behold, he stood by the river;
it seemed to him, in his dream, as if he stood near the river Nile, or some canal or flow of water cut out of that river.

Genesis 41:1 In-Context

1 And it cometh to pass, at the end of two years of days that Pharaoh is dreaming, and lo, he is standing by the River,

2 and lo, from the River coming up are seven kine, of fair appearance, and fat [in] flesh, and they feed among the reeds;

3 and lo, seven other kine are coming up after them out of the River, of bad appearance, and lean [in] flesh, and they stand near the kine on the edge of the River,

4 and the kine of bad appearance and lean [in] flesh eat up the seven kine of fair appearance, and fat -- and Pharaoh awaketh.

5 And he sleepeth, and dreameth a second time, and lo, seven ears are coming up on one stalk, fat and good,