And to all the animals of the earth, and to every bird of the air, and to all the creatures that move on the ground -- everything that has the breath of life in it -- I give every green plant for food." It was so.

Now no shrub of the field had yet grown on the earth, and no plant of the field had yet sprouted, for the Lord God had not caused it to rain on the earth, and there was no man to cultivate the ground.

It will produce thorns and thistles for you, but you will eat the grain of the field.

You may eat any moving thing that lives. As I gave you the green plants, I now give you everything.

May God give you the dew of the sky and the richness of the earth, and plenty of grain and new wine.

Isaac replied to Esau, "Look! I have made him lord over you. I have made all his relatives his servants and provided him with grain and new wine. What is left that I can do for you, my son?"

These were the sons of Dishon: Hemdan, Eshban, Ithran, and Keran.

There we were, binding sheaves of grain in the middle of the field. Suddenly my sheaf rose up and stood upright and your sheaves surrounded my sheaf and bowed down to it!"

So she removed her widow's clothes and covered herself with a veil. She wrapped herself and sat at the entrance to Enaim which is on the way to Timnah. (She did this because she saw that she had not been given to Shelah as a wife, even though he had now grown up.)

Then he fell asleep again and had a second dream: There were seven heads of grain growing on one stalk, healthy and good.

Then seven heads of grain, thin and burned by the east wind, were sprouting up after them.

I also saw in my dream seven heads of grain growing on one stalk, full and good.

Then seven heads of grain, withered and thin and burned with the east wind, were sprouting up after them.

The thin heads of grain swallowed up the seven good heads of grain. So I told all this to the diviner-priests, but no one could tell me its meaning."

The seven good cows represent seven years, and the seven good heads of grain represent seven years. Both dreams have the same meaning.

The seven lean, bad-looking cows that came up after them represent seven years, as do the seven empty heads of grain burned with the east wind. They represent seven years of famine.

They should gather all the excess food during these good years that are coming. By Pharaoh's authority they should store up grain so the cities will have food, and they should preserve it.

Joseph stored up a vast amount of grain, like the sand of the sea, until he stopped measuring it because it was impossible to measure.

While the famine was over all the earth, Joseph opened the storehouses and sold grain to the Egyptians. The famine was severe throughout the land of Egypt.

People from every country came to Joseph in Egypt to buy grain because the famine was severe throughout the earth.

When Jacob heard there was grain in Egypt, he said to his sons, "Why are you looking at each other?"

He then said, "Look, I hear that there is grain in Egypt. Go down there and buy grain for us so that we may live and not die."

So ten of Joseph's brothers went down to buy grain from Egypt.

So Israel's sons came to buy grain among the other travelers, for the famine was severe in the land of Canaan.

Now Joseph was the ruler of the country, the one who sold grain to all the people of the country. Joseph's brothers came and bowed down before him with their faces to the ground.

When Joseph saw his brothers, he recognized them, but he pretended to be a stranger to them and spoke to them harshly. He asked, "Where do you come from?" They answered, "From the land of Canaan, to buy grain for food."

But they exclaimed, "No, my lord! Your servants have come to buy grain for food!

If you are honest men, leave one of your brothers confined here in prison while the rest of you go and take grain back for your hungry families.

Then Joseph gave orders to fill their bags with grain, to return each man's money to his sack, and to give them provisions for the journey. His orders were carried out.

So they loaded their grain on their donkeys and left.

"Then the man, the lord of the land, said to us, 'This is how I will find out if you are honest men. Leave one of your brothers with me, and take grain for your hungry households and go.

When they finished eating the grain they had brought from Egypt, their father said to them, "Return, buy us a little more food."

Then put my cup -- the silver cup -- in the mouth of the youngest one's sack, along with the money for his grain." He did as Joseph instructed.

To his father he sent the following: ten donkeys loaded with the best products of Egypt and ten female donkeys loaded with grain, food, and provisions for his father's journey.

Joseph collected all the money that could be found in the land of Egypt and in the land of Canaan as payment for the grain they were buying. Then Joseph brought the money into Pharaoh's palace.