Episode 310 - "Joseph interprets dreams of Pharaoh's servants" - Genesis 40

Gen. 40:1 Some time after this, the cupbearer of the king of Egypt and his baker committed an offense against their lord the king of Egypt. 2 And Pharaoh was angry with his two officers, the chief cupbearer and the chief baker, 3 and he put them in custody in the house of the captain of the guard, in the prison where Joseph was confined. 4 The captain of the guard appointed Joseph to be with them, and he attended them. They continued for some time in custody.

Gen. 40:5 And one night they both dreamed—the cupbearer and the baker of the king of Egypt, who were confined in the prison—each his own dream, and each dream with its own interpretation. 6 When Joseph came to them in the morning, he saw that they were troubled. 7 So he asked Pharaoh’s officers who were with him in custody in his master’s house, “Why are your faces downcast today?” 8 They said to him, “We have had dreams, and there is no one to interpret them.” And Joseph said to them, “Do not interpretations belong to God? Please tell them to me.”

Gen. 40:9 So the chief cupbearer told his dream to Joseph and said to him, “In my dream there was a vine before me, 10 and on the vine there were three branches. As soon as it budded, its blossoms shot forth, and the clusters ripened into grapes. 11 Pharaoh’s cup was in my hand, and I took the grapes and pressed them into Pharaoh’s cup and placed the cup in Pharaoh’s hand.” 12 Then Joseph said to him, “This is its interpretation: the three branches are three days. 13 In three days Pharaoh will lift up your head and restore you to your office, and you shall place Pharaoh’s cup in his hand as formerly, when you were his cupbearer. 14 Only remember me, when it is well with you, and please do me the kindness to mention me to Pharaoh, and so get me out of this house. 15 For I was indeed stolen out of the land of the Hebrews, and here also I have done nothing that they should put me into the pit.”

Gen. 40:16 When the chief baker saw that the interpretation was favorable, he said to Joseph, “I also had a dream: there were three cake baskets on my head, 17 and in the uppermost basket there were all sorts of baked food for Pharaoh, but the birds were eating it out of the basket on my head.” 18 And Joseph answered and said, “This is its interpretation: the three baskets are three days. 19 In three days Pharaoh will lift up your head—from you!—and hang you on a tree. And the birds will eat the flesh from you.”

Gen. 40:20 On the third day, which was Pharaoh’s birthday, he made a feast for all his servants and lifted up the head of the chief cupbearer and the head of the chief baker among his servants. 21 He restored the chief cupbearer to his position, and he placed the cup in Pharaoh’s hand. 22 But he hanged the chief baker, as Joseph had interpreted to them. 23 Yet the chief cupbearer did not remember Joseph, but forgot him.

It would seem that there is very little mystery to this story. Two of Pharaoh’s employees upset their boss and were both thrown in prison along with Joseph. They each have a dream and are concerned about the meaning of the dreams. At Joseph’s request, they tell their dreams to Joseph, who interprets them. When Joseph gives the cupbearer a favorable interpretation, telling him that he will be released from prison and restored to his former position, Joseph instructs him to give Pharaoh a good word for him. The baker, hoping to receive a favorable interpretation as well, tells Joseph his dream, but is informed that he will be executed. Joseph correctly interprets both dreams. However, the cupbearer failed to put in a good word for Joseph as Joseph had requested.

So, what do we do with this? Is there something we can learn? Let me suggest that we consider this story in the context of the broader narrative. The first thing that catches my attention is another occurrence of dreams related to Joseph. Joseph had two dreams that both he and his family had agreed upon the interpretation. The only thing was that his brothers outright refused to accept the meaning of the dream and sold him into slavery to get rid of him. Even Jacob had a problem with the second dream, but did not entirely dismiss it. Jacob had had his own crazy dream in which the LORD made him promises and had fulfilled them. In this prison, Joseph is sensitive to what the LORD is doing. So, when these two men reveal they’ve both had a dream on the same night, Joseph responds, “Do not interpretations belong to God?” Joseph can invite them to tell him their dreams because he knows the LORD is with him. This is important to remember because Joseph is about to experience another injustice when the cupbearer fails to inform Pharaoh about Joseph, and Joseph remains in prison.

One might wonder why Pharaoh freed one offender and executed the other. The text doesn’t tell us. However, I suspect it was a means to communicate to others that he can be merciful or harsh, and there is no telling which treatment they will receive if they commit an offense. In other words, I think it was to instill fear in his subjects. Therefore, we should not read too much into the dreams or try to guess the nature of their respective offenses.

I’ve known many people who’ve had dreams and tell me what they think those dreams mean. I would never say, “God doesn’t do that today.” However, in the opening verses of the New Testament book Hebrews, the author writes that in former times God spoke to the prophets in many ways. However, he continues, “in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son” (Heb. 1:2). What this means is that if we believe a dream has some particular meaning intended by the LORD, we must consider it in the light of what Jesus teaches. Does our interpretation of the dream contradict Scripture at all? Joseph pointed out to these men that God makes the interpretation known, just as he had made the interpretation of Joseph’s dreams known to his father and brothers. They just chose not to accept it. All we need to do now is wait to see if those dreams come true. The dreams of the cupbearer and the chief baker both worked out exactly as Joseph had interpreted. This story should give us a hint that, somehow, Joseph is going to get out of prison and have a position of power sometime in the future because God is with Joseph and will see to it that what he has said would happen, will happen. God is faithful to his word.