Genesis 41:21
in Genesis 41When they had devoured them, however, no one could tell that they had done so; their appearance was as ugly as it had been before. Then I awoke.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
and when they had eaten them up, it could not be known that they had eaten them; but they were still ill-favored, as at the beginning. So I awoke.
KJV
And when they had eaten them up, it could not be known that they had eaten them; but they were still ill favoured, as at the beginning. So I awoke.
⋯
This verse in Genesis 41
Commentary
4 notes on this verseAnd when they had eaten them up, etc. - Nothing can more powerfully mark the excess and severity of the famine than creatures of the beeve or of the hippopotamus kind eating each other, and yet without any effect; remaining as lean and as wretched as they were before.
This site's exposition
I was standing on the bank of the Nile
on Genesis 41:17-21
Pharaoh tells the first dream again, and the retelling runs longer than the telling. He adds that he never saw cows so ugly in all the land of Egypt, and that after the thin ones had devoured the well-fed ones no one could tell they had. Genesis prints both accounts in full. The detail the king adds is the one that makes the famine terrible, that the abundance will leave no mark behind.
This site's exposition
no one could tell that they had done so
The Hebrew says the fat cows went into their bellies, and the thin ones stayed as ugly as before. Eating without being filled is the covenant curse of Leviticus 26:26 and the complaint of Haggai 1:6. Hunger on that scale swallows whatever it is fed.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
And when they had eaten them up,....
The words behind it
14 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַתָּבֹ֣אנָה | vatavonah | and they went | H935 → | 2568 times |
| אֶל־ | ʾel- | into | H413 → | 5510 times |
| קִרְבֶּ֗נָה | kirbenah | inward part[s] their | H7130 → | 227 times |
| וְלֹ֤א | velo' | and not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| נוֹדַע֙ | noda' | it was known | H3045 → | 945 times |
| כִּי־ | ki- | that | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| בָ֣אוּ | vau | they had gone | H935 → | 2568 times |
| אֶל־ | ʾel- | into | H413 → | 5510 times |
| קִרְבֶּ֔נָה | kirbenah | inward part[s] their | H7130 → | 227 times |
| וּמַרְאֵיהֶ֣ן | umareihen | and appearance their | H4758 → | 103 times |
| רַ֔ע | ra' | [was] displeasing | H7451 → | 662 times |
| כַּאֲשֶׁ֖ר | kaasher | just as | H834 → | 5497 times |
| בַּתְּחִלָּ֑ה | batechilah | at the beginning | H8462 → | 22 times |
| וָאִיקָֽץ׃ | vaikatz | and I awoke | H3364 → | 11 times |
וַתָּבֹ֣אנָהand they went
vatavonahH935 →2568 times
אֶל־into
ʾel-H413 →5510 times
קִרְבֶּ֗נָהinward part[s] their
kirbenahH7130 →227 times
וְלֹ֤אand not
velo'H3808 →5168 times
נוֹדַע֙it was known
noda'H3045 →945 times
כִּי־that
ki-H3588 →4482 times
בָ֣אוּthey had gone
vauH935 →2568 times
אֶל־into
ʾel-H413 →5510 times
קִרְבֶּ֔נָהinward part[s] their
kirbenahH7130 →227 times
וּמַרְאֵיהֶ֣ןand appearance their
umareihenH4758 →103 times
רַ֔ע[was] displeasing
ra'H7451 →662 times
כַּאֲשֶׁ֖רjust as
kaasherH834 →5497 times
בַּתְּחִלָּ֑הat the beginning
batechilahH8462 →22 times
וָאִיקָֽץ׃and I awoke
vaikatzH3364 →11 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Psalms 37:19In the time of evil they will not be ashamed, and in the days of famine they will be satisfied.
it leads to
- Proverbs 10:3
The LORD does not let the righteous go hungry, but He denies the craving of the wicked.
- Psalms 33:19
to deliver them from death and keep them alive in famine.
- Job 5:20–22
In famine He will redeem you from death, and in battle from the stroke of the sword.
- Isaiah 33:16
he will dwell on the heights; the mountain fortress will be his refuge; his food will be provided and his water assured.
- Amos 5:13
Therefore, the prudent keep silent in such times, for the days are evil.
- Proverbs 10:3
Through
Ezekiel 3:3“Son of man,” He said to me, “eat and fill your stomach with this scroll I am giving you.” So I ate, and it was as sweet as honey in my mouth.
it leads to
- Jeremiah 15:16
Your words were found, and I ate them. Your words became my joy and my heart’s delight. For I bear Your name, O LORD God of Hosts.
- Revelation 10:9–10
And I went to the angel and said, “Give me the small scroll.” “Take it and eat it,” he said. “It will make your stomach bitter, but in your mouth it will be as…
- Psalms 19:10
They are more precious than gold, than much pure gold; they are sweeter than honey, than honey from the comb.
- Jeremiah 15:16
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies1
About Genesis
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament and John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763).