There we were, ¹  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 ²  to it!”

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 ¹  seven years of famine.

They should gather all the excess food ¹  during these good years that are coming. By Pharaoh’s authority ²  they should store up grain so the cities will have food, ³  and they should preserve it. ⁴ 

Now Joseph was the ruler of the country, the one who sold grain to all the people of the country. ¹  Joseph’s brothers came and bowed down ²  before him with ³  their faces to the ground.

Then Joseph gave orders to fill ¹  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. ² 

“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 ¹  for your hungry households and go.

Then put ¹  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. ² 

To his father he sent the following: ¹  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 ¹  for the grain they were buying. Then Joseph brought the money into Pharaoh’s palace. ² 

“‘When a person presents a grain offering ¹  to the Lord, his offering must consist of choice wheat flour, ²  and he must pour olive oil on it and put frankincense ³  on it.

“‘When you present an offering of grain baked in an oven, it must be made of ¹  choice wheat flour baked into unleavened loaves ²  mixed with olive oil or ³  unleavened wafers smeared ⁴  with olive oil.

Then the priest must take up ¹  from the grain offering its memorial portion and offer it up in smoke on the altar – it is ²  a gift of a soothing aroma to the Lord.

“‘No grain offering which you present to the Lord can be made with yeast, ¹  for you must not offer up in smoke any yeast or honey as a gift to the Lord. ² 

It must be made with olive oil on a griddle and you must bring it well soaked, ¹  so you must present a grain offering of broken pieces ²  as a soothing aroma to the Lord.

He must present one of each kind of grain offering ¹  as a contribution offering ²  to the Lord; it belongs to the priest who splashes the blood of the peace offering.

and an ox and a ram for peace offerings to sacrifice before the Lord, and a grain offering mixed with olive oil, for today the Lord is going to appear ¹  to you.’”

Next he presented the grain offering, filled his hand with some of it, and offered it up in smoke on the altar in addition to the morning burnt offering. ¹ 

Then Moses spoke to Aaron and to Eleazar and Ithamar, his remaining sons, “Take the grain offering which remains from the gifts of the Lord and eat it unleavened beside the altar, for it is most holy.

“On the eighth day he ¹  must take two flawless male lambs, one flawless yearling female lamb, three-tenths of an ephah of choice wheat flour as a grain offering mixed with olive oil, ²  and one log of olive oil, ³ 

and the priest is to offer ¹  the burnt offering and the grain offering on the altar. So the priest is to make atonement for him and he will be clean.