Commentary for Genesis 41:3

ודקות בשר THIN-FLESHED in old French tenuis, meaning thin.

AND THEY STOOD BESIDE THE COWS. I.e., by their side and near them. This was a sign that there would be no lapse of time between the years of plenty and the years of famine even though Pharaoh did not relate this to Joseph.²³See Verse 19 here. But perhaps the vision which Pharaoh saw and the relating of the dream to Joseph were really alike, except that Scripture did not concern itself [with mentioning all the details Pharaoh told Joseph], just as it added into the story [details not mentioned in the actual dream, as for example], And it could not be known that they had eaten them up,²⁴Verse 21 here. and also, the ears of corn came up on one stalk,²⁵Verse 5 here. which was a sign that the seven years will occur consecutively.

ותעמודנה אצל הפרות, before they had been devoured by the fat cows. This apparently minor nuance was to tell Joseph that famine and plenty would occur at the same time, would overlap at some stage. [the countries surrounding Egypt not having had the benefit of the seven good years, experienced the famine already when there was still plenty of food in Egypt itself. Ed.] (compare verse 54)

עולות אחריהן מן היאור, rising behind them from the river. This description corresponds to what we explained on the previous verse, that the cows' existence was due to the river. Although in this instance the river is not mentioned first, i.e. מן היאור עולות, the word אחריהן, behind them, makes it plain that both categories of cows had an identical origin.

ותעמדנה, this is the first unusual thing in the dream, that the hungry, lean cows instead of grazing as did the fat, satiated cows, were simply standing around, inactive, as if helpless. Joseph, of course, draws attention to the meaning of this phenomenon in his interpretation.

ותעמודנה אצל הפרות, “they were standing next to, etc.” They stood right next to one another, as a sign that there would be not much interval between the seven good years and the famine following. Although Pharaoh had not even bothered to tell Joseph this detail (compare verses 18-20) There were sufficient hints in the story (his dream) as Pharaoh related it to Joseph to convince Joseph that the years of plenty would be immediately followed by the years of famine. The way the starved looking cows swallowed the fat cows leaving no trace of even having ingested them, alerted Joseph to the detail hinted at by the Torah’s report of the dream.

Meaning thin. Rashi is answering the question: How could an animal and its flesh be described as דק [literally: “fine”]? It should have said כיחוש בשר (“lean”). Thus Rashi explains: “Tenves in Old French.” Rashi is saying that in O.F., a lean animal is called tenves, even though tenves means דק. Thus in Hebrew, too, a lean animal is called דקות בשר. Rashi is explaining the word tenves when he says, “Meaning thin.”

שבע פרות, “seven cows;” an allusion to the seven years of plenty and the seven years of famine to occur. Cows are relevant animals as they do the ploughing in order for crops to grow.

They stood next to the cows. They were so weak that they could stand only by leaning upon the healthy ones. This indicated that the populous would only survive the years of famine by consuming what they saved during the years of plenty.

ותאכלנה הפרות, “the cows devoured, etc.;” this was an indication that the years of famine would completely neutralize the blessing of the seven good years; it alerted Joseph to the need to forestall this disaster by collecting non perishable food and storing it so it could be easily accessed when the time came. He impressed upon Pharaoh the need for draconian measures in order to ensure that the years of drought would not destabilize the country and his rule on the throne. Joseph’s advice to Pharaoh does not commence until when he suggests collecting and storing the surplus food of the seven good years. Rashi (verse 30) is not correct when he explains the manner in which the good years will be forgotten as part of Joseph’s advice. Joseph, concluding from the unchanged appearance of the starved looking cows that the impact of the seven good years would be forgotten, makes this part of this explanation to Pharaoh.

ותעמודנה אצל הפרות, “they were standing alongside the other cows;” the reason they are described as standing, is that they did not immediately consume the seven fat cows. It was a signal that the famine would not immediately destroy the existing crops, as Joseph told Pharaoh in verse 54: ובכל ארץ מצרים היה לחם, “whereas in the whole land of Egypt there was bread.”