5And they dream a dream both of them, each his dream in one night, each according to the interpretation of his dream, the butler and the baker whom the king of Egypt hath, who [are] prisoners in the round-house.

6And Joseph cometh in unto them in the morning, and seeth them, and lo, they [are] morose;

7and he asketh Pharaoh's eunuchs who [are] with him in charge in the house of his lord, saying, ‘Wherefore [are] your faces sad to-day?’

8And they say unto him, ‘A dream we have dreamed, and there is no interpreter of it;’ and Joseph saith unto them, ‘Are not interpretations with God? recount, I pray you, to me.’

9And the chief of the butlers recounteth his dream to Joseph, and saith to him, ‘In my dream, then lo, a vine [is] before me!

10and in the vine [are] three branches, and it [is] as it were flourishing; gone up hath its blossom, its clusters have ripened grapes;

11and Pharaoh's cup [is] in my hand, and I take the grapes and press them into the cup of Pharaoh, and I give the cup into the hand of Pharaoh.’

12And Joseph saith to him, ‘This [is] its interpretation: the three branches are three days;

13yet, within three days doth Pharaoh lift up thy head, and hath put thee back on thy station, and thou hast given the cup of Pharaoh into his hand, according to the former custom when thou wast his butler.

14‘Surely if thou hast remembered me with thee, when it is well with thee, and hast done (I pray thee) kindness with me, and hast made mention of me unto Pharaoh, then hast thou brought me out from this house,

15for I was really stolen from the land of the Hebrews; and here also have I done nothing that they have put me in the pit.’

16And the chief of the bakers seeth that he hath interpreted good, and he saith unto Joseph, ‘I also [am] in a dream, and lo, three baskets of white bread [are] on my head,

17and in the uppermost basket [are] of all [kinds] of Pharaoh's food, work of a baker; and the birds are eating them out of the basket, from off my head.’

18And Joseph answereth and saith, ‘This [is] its interpretation: the three baskets are three days;

19yet, within three days doth Pharaoh lift up thy head from off thee, and hath hanged thee on a tree, and the birds have eaten thy flesh from off thee.’

20And it cometh to pass, on the third day, Pharaoh's birthday, that he maketh a banquet to all his servants, and lifteth up the head of the chief of the butlers, and the head of the chief of the bakers among his servants,

21and he putteth back the chief of the butlers to his butlership, and he giveth the cup into the hand of Pharaoh;

22and the chief of the bakers he hath hanged, as Joseph hath interpreted to them;

23and the chief of the butlers hath not remembered Joseph, but forgetteth him.

maintained by the British and Foreign Bible Society

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Genesis 40

Joseph Interprets Two Prisoners’ Dreams

1After this, the king of Egypt’s cupbearer#Neh 1:11 and baker offended their master, the king of Egypt. 2Pharaoh was angry with his two officers, the chief cupbearer and the chief baker, 3and put them in custody in the house of the captain of the guards#Gn 39:20 in the prison where Joseph was confined. 4The captain of the guards assigned Joseph to them as their personal attendant, and they were in custody for some time.#40:4 Lit custody days

5The king of Egypt’s cupbearer and baker, who were confined in the prison, each had a dream. Both had a dream on the same night, and each dream had its own meaning. 6When Joseph came to them in the morning, he saw that they looked distraught. 7So he asked Pharaoh’s officers who were in custody with him in his master’s house, “Why do you look so sad today?” #Neh 2:2

8“We had dreams,” they said to him, “but there is no one to interpret them.”

Then Joseph said to them, “Don’t interpretations belong to God? Tell me your dreams.”#Dn 2:11,20–24

9So the chief cupbearer told his dream to Joseph: “In my dream there was a vine in front of me. 10On the vine were three branches. As soon as it budded, its blossoms came out 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 placed the cup in Pharaoh’s hand.”

12“This is its interpretation,”#Gn 41:12; Dn 2:36 Joseph said to him. “The three branches are three days. 13In just three days Pharaoh will lift up your head#Gn 40:19–22 and restore you to your position. You will put Pharaoh’s cup in his hand the way you used to when you were his cupbearer. 14But when all goes well for you, remember that I was with you. Please show kindness to me by mentioning me to Pharaoh, and get me out of this prison. 15For I was kidnapped from the land of the Hebrews,#Gn 37:28 and even here I have done nothing that they should put me in the dungeon.”#40:15 Or pit, or cistern#Gn 39:20

16When the chief baker saw that the interpretation was positive, he said to Joseph, “I also had a dream. Three baskets of white bread were on my head. 17In the top basket were all sorts of baked goods for Pharaoh, but the birds were eating them out of the basket on my head.”

18“This is its interpretation,” Joseph replied. “The three baskets are three days. 19In just three days Pharaoh will lift up your head — from off you — and hang you on a tree.#40:19 Or and impale you on a pole Then the birds will eat the flesh from your body.”#40:19 Lit eat your flesh from upon you

20On the third day, which was Pharaoh’s birthday, he gave a feast for all his servants. He elevated#40:20 Lit He lifted up the head of the chief cupbearer and the chief baker among his servants.#2Kg 25:27; Jr 52:31; Mt 14:6 21Pharaoh restored the chief cupbearer to his position as cupbearer, and he placed the cup in Pharaoh’s hand. 22But Pharaoh hanged#40:22 Or impaled the chief baker, just as Joseph had explained to them. 23Yet the chief cupbearer did not remember Joseph; he forgot him.#Ec 9:15–16

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Genesis 40

Genesis 40