r Pharaoh saw in his sleep a dream. Him thought he stood
upon the river, from which he saw seven oxen ascend to the land which
were fair and right fat, and were fed in a fat pasture; he saw other
seven come out of the river, poor and lean, and were fed in places
plenteous and burgeoning. These devoured the other that were so fat and
fair. Herewith he started out of his sleep, and after slept again, and
saw another dream. He saw seven ears of corn standing on one stalk, full
and fair of corns, and as many other ears void and smitten with drought,
which devoured the beauty of the first seven. In the morning Pharaoh
awoke and was greatly afeard of these dreams, and sent for all
conjectors and diviners of Egypt, and wise men; and when they were
gathered he told to them his dream, and there was none that could
interpret it. Then at last the master butler, remembering Joseph, said:
I knowledge my sin, on a time the king being wroth with his servants,
sent me and the master of the bakers into prison, where we in one night
dreamed both prodigies of things coming. And there was a child of the
Hebrews, servant to the jailer, to whom we told our dreams and he
expounded them to us and said what should happen; I am restored to mine
office and that other is hanged on the cross.

Anon, by the king's commandment, Joseph was taken out of prison and
shaved, bathed, and changed his clothes, and brought tofore Pharaoh, to
whom he said: I saw a dream which I have showed unto wise men, and there
is none that can tell me the interpretation thereof. To whom Joseph
answered: God shall answer by me things prosperous to Pharaoh. Then
Pharaoh told to him his dreams, like as is tofore written, of the seven
fat oxen and seven lean, and how the lean devoured the fat, and in
likewise of the ears. Joseph answered: The king's dreams are one thing
which God hath showed to Pharaoh. The seven fat oxen and the seven ears
full, betoken seven years to come of great plenty and commodious, and
the seven lean oxen, and the seven void ears smitten with drought,
betoken seven years after them of great hunger and scarcity. Lo! there
shall come first seven years of great fertility and plenty in all the
land of Egypt, after whom shall follow other seven years of so great
sterility, barrenness, and scarcity, that the abundance of the first
shall be all forgotten. The great hunger of these latter years shall
consume all the plenty of the first years. The latter dream pe