Genesis 40
40
The Cupbearer and the Baker
1Some time later, the cupbearer and the baker of the king of Egypt offended their master, the king of Egypt. 2Pharaoh was angry with his two officials, the chief cupbearer and the chief baker, 3and put them in custody in the house of the captain of the guard, in the same prison where Joseph was confined. 4The captain of the guard assigned them to Joseph, and he attended them.
After they had been in custody for some time, 5each of the two men—the cupbearer and the baker of the king of Egypt, who were being held in prison—had a dream the same night, and each dream had a meaning of its own.
6When Joseph came to them the next morning, he saw that they were dejected. 7So he asked Pharaoh’s officials who were in custody with him in his master’s house, “Why do you look so sad today?”
8“We both had dreams,” they answered, “but there is no one to interpret them.”
Then Joseph said to them, “Do not interpretations belong to God? Tell me your dreams.”
9So the chief cupbearer told Joseph his dream. He said to him, “In my dream I saw a vine in front of me, 10and on the vine were three branches. As soon as it budded, it blossomed, and its clusters ripened into grapes. 11Pharaoh’s cup was in my hand, and I took the grapes, squeezed them into Pharaoh’s cup and put the cup in his hand.”
12“This is what it means,” Joseph said to him. “The three branches are three days. 13Within three days Pharaoh will lift up your head and restore you to your position, and you will put Pharaoh’s cup in his hand, just as you used to do when you were his cupbearer. 14But when all goes well with you, remember me and show me kindness; mention me to Pharaoh and get me out of this prison. 15I was forcibly carried off from the land of the Hebrews, and even here I have done nothing to deserve being put in a dungeon.”
16When the chief baker saw that Joseph had given a favorable interpretation, he said to Joseph, “I too had a dream: On my head were three baskets of bread.#40:16 Or three wicker baskets 17In the top basket were all kinds of baked goods for Pharaoh, but the birds were eating them out of the basket on my head.”
18“This is what it means,” Joseph said. “The three baskets are three days. 19Within three days Pharaoh will lift off your head and impale your body on a pole. And the birds will eat away your flesh.”
20Now the third day was Pharaoh’s birthday, and he gave a feast for all his officials. He lifted up the heads of the chief cupbearer and the chief baker in the presence of his officials: 21He restored the chief cupbearer to his position, so that he once again put the cup into Pharaoh’s hand— 22but he impaled the chief baker, just as Joseph had said to them in his interpretation.
23The chief cupbearer, however, did not remember Joseph; he forgot him.
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Genesis 40
40
Joseph Explains Two Dreams
1Later, two of Pharaoh’s servants did something wrong to Pharaoh. These servants were the baker and the man who served wine to Pharaoh. 2Pharaoh became angry with his baker and wine server, 3so he put them in the same prison as Joseph. Potiphar, the commander of Pharaoh’s guards, was in charge of this prison. 4The commander put the two prisoners under Joseph’s care. The two men continued to stay in prison for some time. 5One night both of the prisoners had a dream. The baker and the wine server each had his own dream, and each dream had its own meaning. 6Joseph went to them the next morning and saw that the two men were worried. 7He asked them, “Why do you look so worried today?”
8The two men answered, “We both had dreams last night, but we don’t understand what we dreamed. There is no one to explain the dreams to us.”
Joseph said to them, “God is the only one who can understand and explain dreams. So I beg you, tell me your dreams.”
The Wine Server’s Dream
9So the wine server told Joseph his dream. The server said, “I dreamed I saw a vine. 10On the vine there were three branches. I watched the branches grow flowers and then become grapes. 11I was holding Pharaoh’s cup, so I took the grapes and squeezed the juice into the cup. Then I gave the cup to Pharaoh.”
12Then Joseph said, “I will explain the dream to you. The three branches mean three days. 13Before the end of three days, Pharaoh will forgive you and allow you to go back to your work. You will do the same work for Pharaoh as you did before. 14But when you are free, remember me. Be good to me and help me. Tell Pharaoh about me so that I can get out of this prison. 15I was kidnapped and taken from the land of my people, the Hebrews. I have done nothing wrong! I should not be in prison.”
The Baker’s Dream
16The baker saw that the other servant’s dream was good, so he said to Joseph, “I also had a dream. I dreamed there were three baskets of bread on my head. 17In the top basket there were all kinds of baked food for the king, but birds were eating this food.”
18Joseph answered, “I will tell you what the dream means. The three baskets mean three days. 19Before the end of three days, the king will take you out of this prison and cut off your head! He will hang your body on a pole, and the birds will eat it.”
Joseph Is Forgotten
20Three days later it was Pharaoh’s birthday. He gave a party for all his servants. At the party Pharaoh allowed the wine server and the baker to leave the prison. 21He freed the wine server and gave him his job back, and once again the wine server put a cup of wine in Pharaoh’s hand. 22But Pharaoh hanged the baker, and everything happened the way Joseph said it would. 23But the wine server did not remember to help Joseph. He said nothing about him to Pharaoh. The wine server forgot about Joseph.
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