Genesis 40
40
Joseph Interprets Dreams
1#Ge 40:13Sometime after this, the cupbearer of the king of Egypt and his baker offended their lord, the king of Egypt. 2#Pr 16:14Pharaoh was angry with his two officials, with the chief of the cupbearers and with the chief of the bakers. 3#Ge 39:20So he put them in confinement in the house of the captain of the guard, in the prison, the place where Joseph was confined. 4The captain of the guard charged Joseph with them, and he attended to them.
They continued to be in confinement for some time. 5#Ge 41:11Then the cupbearer and the baker for the king of Egypt, who were confined in the prison, both had a dream the same night, each man with his own dream and each dream with its own interpretation.
6Joseph came in to them in the morning and looked at them and realized they were sad. 7#Ne 2:2So he asked Pharaoh’s officials who were with him in the care of his lord’s house, saying, “Why do you look so sad today?”
8#Ge 41:15–16; Da 2:28And they said to him, “We have dreamed a dream, and there is no interpreter for it.”
Then Joseph said to them, “Do not interpretations belong to God? Please tell them to me.”
9The chief cupbearer told his dream to Joseph and said to him, “In my dream, a vine was in front of me. 10And in the vine there were three branches. As it budded, its blossoms shot forth and its clusters brought forth ripe grapes. 11Pharaoh’s cup was in my hand, and I took the grapes, and pressed them into Pharaoh’s cup, and I put the cup into Pharaoh’s hand.”
12#Ge 41:12; Jdg 7:14Joseph said to him, “This is the interpretation of it. The three branches are three days. 13#2Ki 25:27; Ps 3:3Within three days Pharaoh will lift up your head and restore you to your place, and you will deliver Pharaoh’s cup into his hand in the same way you did before when you were his cupbearer. 14#Jos 2:12; 1Ki 2:7But remember me when it is well with you, and show kindness, I pray you, to me, and make mention of me to Pharaoh, and get me out of this house. 15#Ge 39:20For I was indeed kidnapped out of the land of the Hebrews, and I have done nothing that they should put me in the dungeon.”
16When the chief baker saw that the interpretation was good, he said to Joseph, “I also was in my dream, and I had three white baskets on my head. 17In the uppermost basket there was all manner of baked goods for Pharaoh, and the birds ate them out of the basket on my head.”
18#Ge 40:12Joseph answered and said, “This is the interpretation: The three baskets are three days. 19#Ge 40:22Within three days Pharaoh will lift your head from off you and will hang you on a tree, and the birds will eat your flesh from you.”
20#Ge 40:13; 40:19It happened on the third day, which was Pharaoh’s birthday, that he made a feast for all his servants. He lifted up the heads of the chief cupbearer and the chief baker among his servants. 21#Ge 40:13; Ne 2:1He restored the chief cupbearer to his position again, and he put the cup into Pharaoh’s hand. 22#Ge 40:19However, he hanged the chief baker, just as Joseph had interpreted to them.
23#Job 19:14; Ps 31:12Yet, the chief cupbearer did not remember Joseph, but forgot him.
Military Bible Association
Genesis 40
40
1-4a As time went on, it happened that the cupbearer and the baker of the king of Egypt crossed their master, the king of Egypt. Pharaoh was furious with his two officials, the head cupbearer and the head baker, and put them in custody under the captain of the guard; it was the same jail where Joseph was held. The captain of the guard assigned Joseph to see to their needs.
4b-7 After they had been in custody for a while, the king’s cupbearer and baker, while being held in the jail, both had a dream on the same night, each dream having its own meaning. When Joseph arrived in the morning, he noticed that they were feeling low. So he asked them, the two officials of Pharaoh who had been thrown into jail with him, “What’s wrong? Why the long faces?”
8They said, “We dreamed dreams and there’s no one to interpret them.”
Joseph said, “Don’t interpretations come from God? Tell me the dreams.”
9-11First the head cupbearer told his dream to Joseph: “In my dream there was a vine in front of me with three branches on it: It budded, blossomed, and the clusters ripened into grapes. I was holding Pharaoh’s cup; I took the grapes, squeezed them into Pharaoh’s cup, and gave the cup to Pharaoh.”
12-15Joseph said, “Here’s the meaning. The three branches are three days. Within three days, Pharaoh will get you out of here and put you back to your old work—you’ll be giving Pharaoh his cup just as you used to do when you were his cupbearer. Only remember me when things are going well with you again—tell Pharaoh about me and get me out of this place. I was kidnapped from the land of the Hebrews. And since I’ve been here, I’ve done nothing to deserve being put in this hole.”
16-17When the head baker saw how well Joseph’s interpretation turned out, he spoke up: “My dream went like this: I saw three wicker baskets on my head; the top basket had assorted pastries from the bakery and birds were picking at them from the basket on my head.”
18-19Joseph said, “This is the interpretation: The three baskets are three days; within three days Pharaoh will take off your head, impale you on a post, and the birds will pick your bones clean.”
20-22And sure enough, on the third day it was Pharaoh’s birthday and he threw a feast for all his servants. He set the head cupbearer and the head baker in places of honor in the presence of all the guests. Then he restored the head cupbearer to his cupbearing post; he handed Pharaoh his cup just as before. And then he impaled the head baker on a post, following Joseph’s interpretations exactly.
23But the head cupbearer never gave Joseph another thought; he forgot all about him.
THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved. Used by permission of NavPress. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers.