All the Action Going On Down By the Riverside

I have explored numerous connections between the dreams in Genesis and what happens in Exodus: the dreams of the Butler and Baker showing the future of Israel and Egypt; the dreams of Pharoah being about much more than seven years of plenty and then seven more of famine (the seven alien cows and bad ears of corn are prophecies of what would happen as a result of the seven(ty) Israelites coming into Egypt). There are numerous word and phrase links.

Studying the text, we just found yet another pair of links. Both are connected to the Nile river.

The first is found in the phrase al s’fas ha’y’or, “upon the bank of the Nile.” This phrase only appears four times in the Torah:

וְהִנֵּ֞ה שֶׁ֧בַע פָּר֣וֹת אֲחֵר֗וֹת עֹל֤וֹת אַחֲרֵיהֶן֙ מִן־הַיְאֹ֔ר רָע֥וֹת מַרְאֶ֖ה וְדַקּ֣וֹת בָּשָׂ֑ר וַֽתַּעֲמֹ֛דְנָה אֵ֥צֶל הַפָּר֖וֹת עַל־שְׂפַ֥ת הַיְאֹֽר׃

And, behold, seven other cows came up after them out of the Nile, ill favoured and lean of flesh; and stood by the other cows upon the bank of the Nile.

וַיְדַבֵּ֥ר פַּרְעֹ֖ה אֶל־יוֹסֵ֑ף בַּחֲלֹמִ֕י הִנְנִ֥י עֹמֵ֖ד עַל־שְׂפַ֥ת הַיְאֹֽר׃

And Par῾o said to Yosef, “In my dream, behold, I stood upon the bank of the Nile.”

These are the kickoff events for the rise of Joseph (and the Israelites) in Egypt: the vision of the invading alien and hungry cows, and the connection of Joseph and Pharaoh.

And this phrase only appears two more times in the Torah – marking corresponding events.

The first is when Moses is introduced:

וְלֹא־יָכְלָ֣ה עוֹד֮ הַצְּפִינוֹ֒ וַתִּֽקַּֽח־לוֹ֙ תֵּ֣בַת גֹּ֔מֶא וַתַּחְמְרָ֥ה בַחֵמָ֖ר וּבַזָּ֑פֶת וַתָּ֤שֶׂם בָּהּ֙ אֶת־הַיֶּ֔לֶד וַתָּ֥שֶׂם בַּסּ֖וּף עַל־שְׂפַ֥ת הַיְאֹֽר׃

And when she could not longer hide him, she took for him a box made of papyrus, and daubed it with slime and with pitch, and put the child in it; and she laid it in the rushes on the bank of Nile.

Moses’ arrival marks the very beginning of the Exodus, marking the initiation of the prophecy of Pharaoh’s dream.

And then the last time the phrase is found:

לֵ֣ךְ אֶל־פַּרְעֹ֞ה בַּבֹּ֗קֶר הִנֵּה֙ יֹצֵ֣א הַמַּ֔יְמָה וְנִצַּבְתָּ֥ לִקְרָאת֖וֹ עַל־שְׂפַ֣ת הַיְאֹ֑ר וְהַמַּטֶּ֛ה אֲשֶׁר־נֶהְפַּ֥ךְ לְנָחָ֖שׁ תִּקַּ֥ח בְּיָדֶֽךָ׃

Get thee to Pharaoh in the morning; lo, he goes out to the water; and thou shalt stand on the bank of the Nile to meet him; and the rod which was turned to a snake shalt thou take in thy hand.

Pharaoah and Moses meet – mirroring the meeting of Pharaoh and Joseph.

Note how all the action happens “Down by the Riverside” – these are the milestone events that form bookends for the Children of Israel’s experience in Egypt: our migration into Egypt started with a scene on the bank of the Nile, and our emigration starts where it began, on the same banks of the very same river.

The second newly-discovered link between Pharoah’s dreams and the Exodus is found with the phrase: מִן־הַיְאֹ֗ר, “out of the Nile.”

The phrase is found a total of six times – the first three are the dreams of the cows:

וְהִנֵּ֣ה מִן־הַיְאֹ֗ר עֹלֹת֙ שֶׁ֣בַע פָּר֔וֹת יְפ֥וֹת מַרְאֶ֖ה וּבְרִיאֹ֣ת בָּשָׂ֑ר וַתִּרְעֶ֖ינָה בָּאָֽחוּ׃

And, behold, there came up out of the Nile seven cows, well favoured, and fat of flesh; and they fed in the reed grass.

וְהִנֵּ֞ה שֶׁ֧בַע פָּר֣וֹת אֲחֵר֗וֹת עֹל֤וֹת אַחֲרֵיהֶן֙ מִן־הַיְאֹ֔ר רָע֥וֹת מַרְאֶ֖ה וְדַקּ֣וֹת בָּשָׂ֑ר וַֽתַּעֲמֹ֛דְנָה אֵ֥צֶל הַפָּר֖וֹת עַל־שְׂפַ֥ת הַיְאֹֽר׃

And, behold, seven other cows came up after them out of the Nile, ill favoured and lean of flesh; and stood by the other cows upon the brink of the Nile.

וְהִנֵּ֣ה מִן־הַיְאֹ֗ר עֹלֹת֙ שֶׁ֣בַע פָּר֔וֹת בְּרִיא֥וֹת בָּשָׂ֖ר וִיפֹ֣ת תֹּ֑אַר וַתִּרְעֶ֖ינָה בָּאָֽחוּ׃

and, behold, there came up out of the Nile seven cows, fat of flesh and well favoured; and they fed in the reed grass:

And the corresponding three are all related to the plague of blood, where the Nile was turned into blood.

וְהָיָ֡ה אִם־לֹ֣א יַאֲמִ֡ינוּ גַּם֩ לִשְׁנֵ֨י הָאֹת֜וֹת הָאֵ֗לֶּה וְלֹ֤א יִשְׁמְעוּן֙ לְקֹלֶ֔ךָ וְלָקַחְתָּ֙ מִמֵּימֵ֣י הַיְאֹ֔ר וְשָׁפַכְתָּ֖ הַיַּבָּשָׁ֑ה וְהָי֤וּ הַמַּ֙יִם֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר תִּקַּ֣ח מִן־הַיְאֹ֔ר וְהָי֥וּ לְדָ֖ם בַּיַּבָּֽשֶׁת׃

And it shall come to pass, if they will not believe even these two signs, nor hearken to thy voice, that thou shalt take of the water of the Nile, and pour it upon the dry land: and the water which thou dost take out of the Nile shall become blood on the dry land.

וְהַדָּגָ֧ה אֲשֶׁר־בַּיְאֹ֛ר תָּמ֖וּת וּבָאַ֣שׁ הַיְאֹ֑ר וְנִלְא֣וּ מִצְרַ֔יִם לִשְׁתּ֥וֹת מַ֖יִם מִן־הַיְאֹֽר׃ (ס)

And the fish that is in the Nile shall die, and the river shall stink; and Egyptians shall no longer be able to drink the water out of the Nile.

וְהַדָּגָ֨ה אֲשֶׁר־בַּיְאֹ֥ר מֵ֙תָה֙ וַיִּבְאַ֣שׁ הַיְאֹ֔ר וְלֹא־יָכְל֣וּ מִצְרַ֔יִם לִשְׁתּ֥וֹת מַ֖יִם מִן־הַיְאֹ֑ר וַיְהִ֥י הַדָּ֖ם בְּכָל־אֶ֥רֶץ מִצְרָֽיִם׃

And the fish that was in the Nile died; and the Nile stank, and Egyptians could not drink of the water out of the Nile; and there was blood throughout all the land of Egypt.

The plague of blood was the first of the ten plagues, kicking off the catastrophe for Egypt that was part-and-parcel of the Exodus. Pharoah’s dream, in this way as well, was a warning of what was to come as a result of the Israelites coming into Egypt.

But why blood, specifically? Perhaps it connects to the first time blood is mentioned: when G-d says to Can, “What have you done? Hark, your brother’s blood cries out to Me from the ground!”

In the story of Cain and Hevel, blood is the reminder of iniquity, the calling out for justice and divine intervention in response to someone using violence to harm someone else. So, too, was the plague of blood a signal that the Egyptian oppression and murder of the Children of Israel had reached the point where G-d had to intervene to react to the evil that had been done by the Egyptians?

I am sure there are other explanations as well, and I look forward to your comments and feedback!

[an @iwe, @susanquinn, @blessedblacksmith and @eliyahumasinter work]