Genesis 40
40
Joseph interprets dreams in prison
1Some time later, both the wine steward and the baker for Egypt’s king offended their master, the king of Egypt. 2Pharaoh was angry with his two officers, the chief wine steward and the chief baker, 3and he put them under arrest with the commander of the royal guard in the same jail where Joseph was imprisoned. 4The commander of the royal guard assigned Joseph to assist them. After they had been under arrest for some time, 5both of them—the wine steward and the baker for Egypt’s king who were imprisoned in the jail—had dreams one night, and each man’s dream had its own meaning. 6When Joseph met them in the morning, he saw that they were upset. 7He asked the officers of Pharaoh who were under arrest with him in his master’s house, “Why do you look so distressed today?”
8They answered, “We’ve both had dreams, but there’s no one to interpret them.”
Joseph said to them, “Don’t interpretations belong to God? Describe your dreams to me.”
9The chief wine steward described his dream to Joseph: “In my dream there was a vine right in front of me, 10and on the vine were three branches. When it budded, its blossoms appeared, and its clusters ripened into grapes. 11Pharaoh’s cup was in my hand, so I took the grapes, crushed them into Pharaoh’s cup, and put the cup in Pharaoh’s hand.”
12Joseph said to him, “This is the dream’s interpretation: The three branches are three days. 13After three days, Pharaoh will give you an audience and return you to your position. You will put Pharaoh’s cup in his hand, just the way things were before when you were his wine steward. 14But please, remember me when you are doing well and be loyal to me. Put in a good word for me to Pharaoh, so he sets me free from this prison. 15I was stolen from the land of the Hebrews, and here too I’ve done nothing to be thrown into this dungeon.”
16When the chief baker saw that the interpretation was favorable, he said to Joseph, “It was the same for me. In my dream, there were three baskets of white bread#40.16 Heb uncertain on my head. 17In the basket on top there were baked goods for Pharaoh’s food, but birds were eating them out of the basket on my head.”
18Joseph responded, “This is the dream’s interpretation: The three baskets are three days. 19After three days, Pharaoh will give you an audience and will hang you from a tree where birds will peck your flesh from you.”
20The third day was Pharaoh’s birthday, and he gave a party for all of his servants. Before all of his servants, he gave an audience to the chief wine steward and the chief baker. 21He returned the chief wine steward to his position, and he placed the cup in Pharaoh’s hand. 22But the chief baker he hanged, just as Joseph had said would happen when he interpreted their dreams for them. 23But the chief wine steward didn’t remember Joseph; he forgot all about him.
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Genesis 40: CEB
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2011 Common English Bible. All rights reserved.
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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