Genesis 40

Joseph Interprets Dreams

1Then it came about after these things, that 1the cupbearer and the baker for the king of Egypt offended their lord, the king of Egypt. 2And Pharaoh was 2furious with his two officials, the chief cupbearer and the chief baker. 3So he put them in confinement in the house of the 3captain of the bodyguard, in the prison, the same place where Joseph was imprisoned. 4And the captain of the bodyguard put Joseph in charge of them, and he 4took care of them; and they were in confinement for 5some time. 5Then 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. 66When Joseph came to them in the morning and saw them, 7behold, they were dejected. 7So he asked Pharaoh’s officials who were with him in confinement in his master’s house, “89Why are your faces so sad today?” 8And they said to him, “10We have 11had a dream, and there is no one to interpret it.” Then Joseph said to them, “12Do interpretations not belong to God? Tell it to me, please.”

9So the chief cupbearer told his dream to Joseph, 13saying to him, “In my dream, 14behold, there was a vine in front of me; 10and on the vine were three branches. And as it was budding, its blossoms came out, and its clusters produced ripe grapes. 11Now Pharaoh’s cup was in my hand; so I took the grapes and squeezed them into Pharaoh’s cup, and I put the cup into Pharaoh’s 15hand.” 12Then Joseph said to him, “This is the 16interpretation of it: the three branches are three days; 13within three more days Pharaoh will 17lift up your head and restore you to your office; and you will put Pharaoh’s cup into his hand as in your former practice when you were his cupbearer. 14Only 18keep me in mind when it goes well for you, and please 19do me a kindness 20by mentioning me to Pharaoh, and get me out of this 21prison. 15For 22I was in fact kidnapped from the land of the Hebrews, and even here I have done nothing that they should have put me into the 23dungeon.”

16When the chief baker saw that he had interpreted favorably, he said to Joseph, “I also saw in my dream, and behold, there were three baskets of white bread on my head; 17and in the top basket there were some of all 24kinds of baked food for Pharaoh, and the birds were eating them out of the basket on my head.” 18Then Joseph answered and said, “This is its interpretation: the three baskets are three days; 19within three more days Pharaoh will lift up your head from you and will hang you on a wooden post, and the birds will eat your flesh off you.”

20So it came about on the third day, which was 25Pharaoh’s birthday, that he held a feast for all his servants; 26and he lifted up the head of the chief cupbearer and the head of the chief baker among his servants. 21He restored the chief cupbearer to his 27office, and 28he put the cup into Pharaoh’s 29hand; 22but 30he hanged the chief baker, just as Joseph had interpreted to them. 23Yet the chief cupbearer did not remember Joseph, but 31forgot him.