Genesis 40
40
Joseph Tells the Meaning of the Prisoners' Dreams
1-3While Joseph was in prison, both the king's#40.1-3 the king's: See the note at 12.15. personal servant#40.1-3 personal servant: The Hebrew text has “cup bearer,” an important and trusted official in the royal court, who personally served wine to the king. and his chief cook made the king angry. So he had them thrown into the same prison with Joseph. 4They spent a long time in prison, and the official in charge of the palace guard,#40.4 the palace guard: Possibly Potiphar (see 39.1). made Joseph their servant.
5One night each of the two men had a dream, but their dreams had different meanings. 6The next morning, when Joseph went to see the men, he could tell they were upset, 7and he asked, “Why are you so worried today?”
8“We each had a dream last night,” they answered, “and there is no one to tell us what they mean.”
Joseph replied, “Doesn't God know the meaning of dreams? Now tell me what you dreamed.”
9The king's personal servant told Joseph, “In my dream I saw a vine 10with three branches. As soon as it budded, it blossomed, and its grapes became ripe. 11I held the king's cup and squeezed the grapes into it, then I gave the cup to the king.”
12Joseph said:
This is the meaning of your dream. The three branches stand for three days, 13and in three days the king will pardon you. He will make you his personal servant again, and you will serve him his wine, just as you used to do. 14But when these good things happen, please don't forget to tell the king about me, so I can get out of this place. 15I was kidnapped from the land of the Hebrews, and here in Egypt I haven't done anything to deserve being thrown in jail.
16When the chief cook saw that Joseph had given a good meaning to the dream, he told Joseph, “I also had a dream. In it I was carrying three breadbaskets stacked on top of my head. 17The top basket was full of all kinds of baked things for the king, but birds were eating them.”
18Joseph said:
This is the meaning of your dream. The three baskets are three days, 19#3 Macc 6.34. and in three days the king will cut off your head. He will hang your body on a pole, and birds will come and peck at it.
20Three days later, while the king was celebrating his birthday with a dinner for his officials, he sent for his personal servant and the chief cook. 21He put the personal servant back in his old job 22and had the cook put to death.
Everything happened just as Joseph had said it would, 23but the king's personal servant completely forgot about Joseph.
Contemporary English Version, Second Edition (CEV®)
© 2006 American Bible Society. All rights reserved.
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.
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