The LORD told him, "This won't happen, because whoever kills you will suffer seven times the vengeance." Then the LORD placed a sign on Cain so that no one finding him would kill him.

For if Cain is being avenged seven times, then Lamech will be avenged 77 times."

You are to take with you seven pairs of every clean animal, a male and its mate, and two of the unclean animals, a male and its mate;

along with seven pairs of the flying birds, male and female, in order to keep their offspring alive on the surface of all the earth.

Seven days from now I'll send rain on the earth for 40 days and 40 nights, and I'll destroy every living creature that I've made."

Seven days later, the flooding started.

Noah waited another seven days and sent the dove out from the ark again.

He waited seven more days and sent the dove out again, but it did not return to him anymore.

Then Abraham set aside seven ewe lambs,

so Abimelech asked Abraham, "What is the meaning of these seven ewe lambs that you have set aside?"

He replied, "You are to accept from me these seven ewe lambs as a witness that I have dug this well."

Jacob loved Rachel, so he made this offer to Laban: "I'll serve you for seven years for Rachel, your younger daughter."

Jacob served seven years for Rachel, but it seemed like only a few days because of his love for her.

The next morning, Jacob realized that it was Leah! "What have you done to me?" he demanded of Laban. "Didn't I serve you for seven years in order to marry Rachel? Why did you deceive me?"

Fulfill the week for this daughter, then we'll give you the other one in exchange for serving me another seven years."

So Jacob completed another seven years' work, and then Laban gave him his daughter Rachel to be his wife.

Jacob also married Rachel, since he loved her. He served Laban another full seven years' work for Rachel.

so he took his relatives with him and pursued Jacob. Laban was on the road for seven days when he finally caught up with Jacob in the hill country of Gilead.

Then he went out to meet Esau, passing in front of all of them, and bowed low to the ground seven times as he approached his brother.

when all of a sudden seven healthy, plump cows emerged from the Nile to graze in the grass that grew in the reeds that lined the bank.

Right after that, seven more cows came up out of the Nile. Ugly and gaunt, they stood next to the other cows on the bank of the Nile River.

But all of a sudden they ate up the seven healthy, plump cows! Then Pharaoh woke up.

After he had fallen back to sleep, he had a second dream, in which seven ears of plump, fruit-filled grain grew up on a single stalk.

Suddenly seven thin ears of grain that had been scorched by an east wind sprouted up right after them

and ate up the seven plump, fruit-filled ears. Then Pharaoh woke up a second time, and it had been a very vivid dream!

and all of a sudden seven healthy, plump, beautiful cows emerged from the Nile and began to graze among the reeds that line the bank.

Just then, seven other cows emerged after them, poor, ugly, and appearing very gaunt in their flesh. I've never seen anything as ugly as those cows anywhere in the entire land of Egypt!

But those thin, gaunt cows gobbled up the first seven healthy cows!

Later, I also dreamed about seven plump, fruit-filled ears of grain that grew up out of a single stalk.

All of a sudden, seven thin, withered ears of grain, scorched by the east wind, sprouted up after them.

But the thin ears gobbled up the seven good ears. I told all this to my advisors, but nobody was able to explain it to me."

The seven healthy cows represent seven years, as do the seven healthy ears. The dreams are identical.

The seven gaunt cows that arose after the healthy cows are seven years, as are the seven gaunt ears scorched by the east wind. There will be seven years of famine.

Be advised that seven years of phenomenal abundance are coming throughout all the land of Egypt,

but after them seven years of famine are ahead, during which all of the abundance will be forgotten throughout the land of Egypt. The famine will ravage the land so severely that

Also, let Pharaoh immediately proceed to appoint supervisors over the land of Egypt, who will collect one fifth of its agricultural production during the coming seven years of abundance.

Let the food be kept in reserve to feed the land for the seven years of famine that will occur throughout Egypt, so the people don't die during the famine."

While bumper crops grew during the seven abundant years,

As soon as the seven years of abundance throughout the land of Egypt ended,

the seven years of famine started, just as Joseph had predicted. It was an international famine, but there was food everywhere throughout the land of Egypt.

These were sons of Bilhah, whom Laban had given to his daughter Rachel. She bore these children for Jacob seven in all.

When they arrived at Atad's threshing floor, which is located beyond the Jordan River, they held a great and mournful memorial service, during which Joseph spent seven days mourning for his father.