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The First Book of Moses: Genesis

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- Chapter 40 -

1
While these things were going on, it happened that two eunuchs, the cupbearer of the king of Egypt, and the miller of grain, offended their lord.
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And Pharaoh, being angry with them, (now the one was in charge of the cupbearers, the other of the millers of grain)
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sent them to the prison of the leader of the military, in which Joseph also was a prisoner.
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But the keeper of the prison delivered them to Joseph, who ministered to them also. Some little time passed by, while they were held in custody.
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And they both saw a similar dream on one night, whose interpretations should be related to one another.
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And when Joseph had entered to them in the morning, and had seen them sad,
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he consulted them, saying, “Why is your expression sadder today than usual?”
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They responded, “We have seen a dream, and there is no one to interpret it for us.” And Joseph said to them, “Doesn’t interpretation belong to God? Recount for me what you have seen.”(a)
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The chief cupbearer explained his dream first. “I saw before me a vine,
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on which were three shoots, which grew little by little into buds, and, after the flowers, it matured into grapes.
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And the cup of Pharaoh was in my hand. Therefore, I took the grapes, and I pressed them into the cup that I held, and I handed the cup to Pharaoh.”
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Joseph responded: “This is the interpretation of the dream. The three shoots are the next three days,
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after which Pharaoh will remember your service, and he will restore you to your former position. And you will give him the cup according to your office, as you were accustomed to do before.
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Only remember me, when it will be well with you, and do me this mercy, to suggest to Pharaoh to lead me out of this prison.
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For I have been stolen from the land of the Hebrews, and here, innocently, I was cast into the pit.”
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The chief miller of grain, seeing that he had wisely unraveled the dream, said: “I also saw a dream: that I had three baskets of meal above my head,
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and in one basket, which was the highest, I carried all foods that are made by the art of baking, and the birds ate from it.”
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Joseph responded: “This is the interpretation of the dream. The three baskets are the next three days,
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after which Pharaoh will carry away your head, and also suspend you from a cross, and the birds will tear your flesh.”
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The third day thereafter was the birthday of Pharaoh. And making a great feast for his servants, he remembered, during the banquet, the chief cupbearer and the chief miller of grain.
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And he restored the one to his place, to present him the cup;
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the other he hanged on a gallows, and thus the truth of the interpreter of dreams was proven.
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And although he advanced with so much prosperity, the chief cupbearer forgot his interpreter of dreams.

Footnotes

(a)40:8 Doth not interpretation belong to God?:When dreams are from God, as these were, the interpretation of them is a gift of God. But the generality of dreams are not of this sort; but either proceed from the natural complexions and dispositions of persons, or the roving of their imaginations in the day on such objects as they are much affected with, or from their mind being disturbed with cares and troubles, and oppressed with bodily infirmities: or they are suggested by evil spirits, to flatter, or to terrify weak minds, in order to gain belief, and so draw them into error or superstition; or at least to trouble them in their sleep, whom they cannot move when they are awake: so that the general rule, with regard to dreams, is not to observe them, nor to give any credit to them.(Challoner)
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After these things, the butler of the king of Egypt and his baker offended their lord, the king of Egypt.
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Pharaoh was angry with his two officers, the chief cup bearer and the chief baker.
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He put them in custody in the house of the captain of the guard, into the prison, the place where Joseph was bound.
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The captain of the guard assigned them to Joseph, and he took care of them. They stayed in prison many days.
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They both dreamed a dream, each man his dream, in one night, each man according to the interpretation of his dream, the cup bearer and the baker of the king of Egypt, who were bound in the prison.
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Joseph came in to them in the morning, and saw them, and saw that they were sad.
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He asked Pharaoh’s officers who were with him in custody in his master’s house, saying, “Why do you look so sad today?”
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They said to him, “We have dreamed a dream, and there is no one who can interpret it.” Joseph said to them, “Don’t interpretations belong to God? Please tell it to me.”
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The chief cup bearer told his dream to Joseph, and said to him, “In my dream, behold, a vine was in front of me,
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and in the vine were three branches. It was as though it budded, it blossomed, and its clusters produced ripe grapes.
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Pharaoh’s cup was in my hand; and I took the grapes, and pressed them into Pharaoh’s cup, and I gave the cup into Pharaoh’s hand.”
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Joseph said to him, “This is its interpretation: the three branches are three days.
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Within three more days, Pharaoh will lift up your head, and restore you to your office. You will give Pharaoh’s cup into his hand, the way you did when you were his cup bearer.
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But remember me when it is well with you. Please show kindness to me, and make mention of me to Pharaoh, and bring me out of this house.
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For indeed, I was stolen away out of the land of the Hebrews, and here also I have done nothing that they should put me into the dungeon.”
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When the chief baker saw that the interpretation was good, he said to Joseph, “I also was in my dream, and behold, three baskets of white bread were on my head.
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In the uppermost basket there were all kinds of baked food for Pharaoh, and the birds ate them out of the basket on my head.”
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Joseph answered, “This is its interpretation. The three baskets are three days.
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Within three more days, Pharaoh will lift up your head from off you, and will hang you on a tree; and the birds will eat your flesh from off you.”
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On the third day, which was Pharaoh’s birthday, he made a feast for all his servants, and he lifted up the head of the chief cup bearer and the head of the chief baker among his servants.
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He restored the chief cup bearer to his position again, and he gave the cup into Pharaoh’s hand;
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but he hanged the chief baker, as Joseph had interpreted to them.
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Yet the chief cup bearer didn’t remember Joseph, but forgot him.
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