Genesis 40
40
Joseph Interprets Two Dreams
1Some time later, Pharaoh’s chief cup-bearer and chief baker offended their royal master. 2Pharaoh became angry with these two officials, 3and he put them in the prison where Joseph was, in the palace of the captain of the guard. 4They remained in prison for quite some time, and the captain of the guard assigned them to Joseph, who looked after them.
5While they were in prison, Pharaoh’s cup-bearer and baker each had a dream one night, and each dream had its own meaning. 6When Joseph saw them the next morning, he noticed that they both looked upset. 7“Why do you look so worried today?” he asked them.
8And they replied, “We both had dreams last night, but no one can tell us what they mean.”
“Interpreting dreams is God’s business,” Joseph replied. “Go ahead and tell me your dreams.”
9So the chief cup-bearer told Joseph his dream first. “In my dream,” he said, “I saw a grapevine in front of me. 10The vine had three branches that began to bud and blossom, and soon it produced clusters of ripe grapes. 11I was holding Pharaoh’s wine cup in my hand, so I took a cluster of grapes and squeezed the juice into the cup. Then I placed the cup in Pharaoh’s hand.”
12“This is what the dream means,” Joseph said. “The three branches represent three days. 13Within three days Pharaoh will lift you up and restore you to your position as his chief cup-bearer. 14And please remember me and do me a favor when things go well for you. Mention me to Pharaoh, so he might let me out of this place. 15For I was kidnapped from my homeland, the land of the Hebrews, and now I’m here in prison, but I did nothing to deserve it.”
16When the chief baker saw that Joseph had given the first dream such a positive interpretation, he said to Joseph, “I had a dream, too. In my dream there were three baskets of white pastries stacked on my head. 17The top basket contained all kinds of pastries for Pharaoh, but the birds came and ate them from the basket on my head.”
18“This is what the dream means,” Joseph told him. “The three baskets also represent three days. 19Three days from now Pharaoh will lift you up and impale your body on a pole. Then birds will come and peck away at your flesh.”
20Pharaoh’s birthday came three days later, and he prepared a banquet for all his officials and staff. He summoned#40:20 Hebrew He lifted up the head of. his chief cup-bearer and chief baker to join the other officials. 21He then restored the chief cup-bearer to his former position, so he could again hand Pharaoh his cup. 22But Pharaoh impaled the chief baker, just as Joseph had predicted when he interpreted his dream. 23Pharaoh’s chief cup-bearer, however, forgot all about Joseph, never giving him another thought.
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Genesis 40: NLT
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Holy Bible, New Living Translation copyright 1996, 2004, 2007, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation.
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Genesis 40
40
1Later on the cupbearer and the baker committed some offense against their master, the king of Egypt. 2Pharaoh was angry with these two royal officials—the chief cupbearer and chief baker— 3and imprisoned them in the house of the commander of the guard, the same prison where Joseph was. 4The commander of the guard assigned Joseph to them as their personal attendant. They were kept in prison for some time.
5One night while they were in prison the cupbearer and the baker for the king of Egypt each had a dream. They were different dreams, each with its own meaning. 6When Joseph arrived the next morning he noticed they both looked depressed. 7So he asked Pharaoh's officials who were imprisoned with him in his master's house, “Why are you looking so depressed?”
8“We've both had dreams but can't find anyone to explain what they mean,” they said.
So Joseph told them, “Isn't God the one who can interpret the meaning of dreams? Tell me your dreams.”
9So the chief cupbearer told Joseph his dream. “In my dream there was a vine right in front of me,” he explained. 10“The vine had three branches. As soon as it budded, it flowered, and produced clusters of ripe grapes. 11I was holding Pharaoh's wine cup, so I picked the grapes and squeezed them into the cup and gave it to Pharaoh.”
12“This is the meaning,” Joseph told him. “The three branches represent three days. 13In three days' time Pharaoh will take you out of prison and give you back your job, and you will hand Pharaoh his cup as you used to. 14But when things go well for you, please remember me with kindness and speak to Pharaoh on my behalf, and please get me out of this prison. 15I was cruelly kidnapped from the land of the Hebrews, and now I'm here in this pit even though I've done nothing wrong.”
16When the chief baker saw that the interpretation was positive, he said to Joseph, “I also had a dream. I had three baskets of cakes on my head. 17In the top basket were all the cakes and pastries for Pharaoh to eat, and the birds were eating them from the basket on my head.”
18“This is the meaning,” Joseph told him. “The three baskets represent three days. 19In three days' time Pharaoh will take you out of prison and hang you on a pole, and birds will eat your flesh.”
20Three days later it happened to be Pharaoh's birthday, and he arranged a banquet for all his officials. He had the chief cupbearer and the chief baker released from prison and brought there before his officials. 21He gave the chief cupbearer his job back, and he returned to his duties of handing Pharaoh his cup. 22But he hanged the chief baker just as Joseph had said when he interpreted their dreams. 23But the chief cupbearer didn't remember to say anything about Joseph—in fact he forgot all about him.
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Dr. Jonathan Gallagher. Released under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 Unported License. Version 4.3. For corrections send email to jonathangallagherfbv@gmail.com