Today's Bible Verse for Study

Genesis 40:1-23

Joseph

The Cupbearer and the Baker have a Dream

 

40:1 Some time later, the cupbearer and the baker of the king of Egypt offended their master, the king of Egypt.

 

2 Pharaoh was angry with his two officials, the chief cupbearer and the chief baker,

 

3 and put them in custody in the house of the captain of the guard, in the same prison where Joseph was confined.

 

4 The captain of the guard assigned them to Joseph, and he attended them.

 

After they had been in custody for some time,

 

5 each of the two men—the cupbearer and the baker of the king of Egypt, who were being held in prison—had a dream the same night, and each dream had a meaning of its own.

 

6 When Joseph came to them the next morning, he saw that they were dejected.

 

7 So he asked Pharaoh's officials who were in custody with him in his master's house, "Why are your faces so sad today?"

 

8 "We both had dreams," they answered, "but there is no one to interpret them."

 

Then Joseph said to them, "Do not interpretations belong to God? Tell me your dreams."

 

9 So the chief cupbearer told Joseph his dream. He said to him, "In my dream I saw a vine in front of me,

 

10 and on the vine were three branches.

 

As soon as it budded, it blossomed, and its clusters ripened into grapes.

 

11 Pharaoh's cup was in my hand, and I took the grapes, squeezed them into Pharaoh's cup and put the cup in his hand."

 

12 "This is what it means," Joseph said to him. "The three branches are three days.

 

13 Within three days Pharaoh will lift up your head and restore you to your position, and you will put Pharaoh's cup in his hand, just as you used to do when you were his cupbearer.

 

14 But when all goes well with you, remember me and show me kindness; mention me to Pharaoh and get me out of this prison.

 

15 For I was forcibly carried off from the land of the Hebrews, and even here I have done nothing to deserve being put in a dungeon."

 

16 When the chief baker saw that Joseph had given a favorable interpretation, he said to Joseph, "I too had a dream: On my head were three baskets of bread.

 

17 In the top basket were all kinds of baked goods for Pharaoh, but the birds were eating them out of the basket on my head."

 

18 "This is what it means," Joseph said. "The three baskets are three days.

 

19 Within three days Pharaoh will lift off your head and hang you on a tree. And the birds will eat away your flesh."

 

20 Now the third day was Pharaoh's birthday, and he gave a feast for all his officials.

 

He lifted up the heads of the chief cupbearer and the chief baker in the presence of his officials:

 

21 He restored the chief cupbearer to his position, so that he once again put the cup into Pharaoh's hand,

 

22 but he hanged the chief baker, just as Joseph had said to them in his interpretation.

 

23 The chief cupbearer, however, did not remember Joseph; he forgot him.

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This is the Word of the Lord ... It is meant to change the way that we think, and the way that we live.

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Commentary by Bob Pardue

Joseph and the baker and the cupbearer

How soon we forget!!

Joseph interpreted each of the men's dreams but did not hesitate to give the credit to God.

If Joseph had predicted these things on his own and they came true, it would have been a mere coincidence. But, with God involved, Joseph could interpret with the confidence that what he saw in the dreams was absolute.

Something just came to mind when I read this passage again. Interpreting the cupholder's dream was easy for Joseph because the cupholder would be restored to his high position in the king's court.

However, it was a bold move for Joseph to tell the baker the meaning of his dream. What if the baker were not executed and instead the king put him back into a position of power? There is a good chance that Joseph would have lost his life in that situation.

It took a deep faith for Joseph to make the decision to interpret the baker's dream just the way God explained it to him.

How about us? Would we be willing to share and do what God told us to do even if it meant a possibility of losing our lives?

Many people in the world today are doing just that. There are Christians in certain parts of the world such as China and Afghanistan who risk their lives to share the faith of Jesus Christ.

Now, back to us. Sometimes we're afraid even to mention Christ to a friend or someone we know needs His message of salvation and there is not a remote chance of our being hurt or abused by telling them. All we have to risk is a little rejection.

Let's pray that God will make us bolder in our commitment to share the word of Christ to those who need it.

Wouldn't it be wonderful if some stranger (or even a friend or family member) came up to us in heaven and said; "It was that day you shared Jesus Christ with me that I made a decision to have my life changed."?

Love in Christ

- Bob

Bob Pardue is a member of First Baptist Church in Lancaster, SC. He was ordained as deacon at Rich Hill Baptist in Lancaster.

Comments are welcome. Please email me with any questions or comments you may have.

One reason to start a routine of Baptist Bible study is to understand more about Jesus Christ and develop a more personal relationship with Him.

Study Tips

Don't just read through chapter after chapter. Take time to dig in, study, and try to understand the true meaning and how you can apply the verses to your daily life.

How to Study the Bible

When learning about the Scripture and the teachings of Christ, there are a few guidelines to help you better understand.

1. Know What -- Read the story and find other information about the verses.

2. So What -- What does the story mean? Study the Scripture passages and ask yourself this question. Pray about it and ask God for understanding.

3. Now What -- How does this Bible study apply to me and others? What do we do about it? Start using the lessons in your daily life and use God's Word as your guide. You'll be amazed at the "coincidence" of these verses to events happening in your life.

Studying Scripture for Daily Living

When you take on this challenge of studying Scripture for daily living you'll find it's not such a chore to read chapters. You'll discover insight you never knew existed and, if you are like me, you'll find answers to most situations in your daily living. Try it out and see for yourself.

Studying will Help You Discover Who Christ Is

 I hope these Bible study lessons will start you on the right path to answering the question; "Who is Jesus Christ?".

What are You Going to Receive from Your Bible Study Today?

When you read the Scripture daily, what lesson will you receive to get the true benefits from God's Word? Each person will learn something different and feel a different effect from Bible study lessons.

Set Up Your Own Group

If you do choose to run any type of Bible study, no matter if you are Baptist or of another Christian church, don’t worry, you are not alone. You might even want to talk with your own clergy person to see what they would recommend to get you started.

Once you are moving along, you may have no trouble deciding where to go next. Even better, you can always take what you have studied in church that week, and then expand on that subject during your weekly Bible study sessions.

You Should Go to Church but Scripture Reading Shouldn't Stop There

There is only so much time in church each week, and that means something has been left out. This is the perfect time to get more information and do more talking.

Study the Bible Online

You can also look online for resources to help you with your daily reading. Some resources are free for the taking, and some have a price tag. However, you probably will be happy no matter which way you go.

You can usually get more direction when you take something for a fee, and that is simply because that information is usually more in-depth and useful. Either will work though, and that depends on you.

Ideas for Daily Lessons

A good idea is to get ideas from your fellow students, and you may find that everyone is willing to pitch in to get what you need for your Bible study lessons. Hope you keep Making Christ Known .Com in mind when looking for Christian tutorials. Learning is an ongoing project and reading about the prophets and disciples is no different.

If you are a novice, a good place to start is in Mark or Matthew (leaning toward the former) but you can also learn about the Savior through John or Luke.

The Old Testament

To further your knowledge and get foreshadowing about Christ, you might decide to take on the Old Testament with Genesis or even Judges. I like to think of these chapters and verses as the "history of God" as He related to His people, the Israelites.

I love studying this book and you will too but, as stated above, if you are new to Scripture the New Testament is most likely a better place to begin your education.

Bible Commentaries

You may not realize it or realize enough to think about it until you are old enough to make advanced inferences and engage in challenges of the intellect, but the first Bible commentaries shape you, condition you for future references if not future faiths.

Having faith is a continuos journey and, through commentaries and lessons from the Bible you can develop more knowledge about who Christ is and feel a closeness to God you never knew was possible no matter if you are Baptist, Methodist or Catholic. So, don't give in to the "no time" excuse and engage yourself in a good study program, or at least a daily reading of verses with a commentary.