Genesis 40: Joseph Interprets the Dreams of Two Prisoners
Joseph's Trials and Divine Favor: A Journey Through Injustice and Hope.
In Genesis 39, we saw how Joseph was sold to Potiphar, a high-ranking Egyptian official. The Lord was with Joseph, found favour in him, and made him successful, which resulted in him being in charge of many things at Potiphar's house. Then Potiphar's wife tried to seduce him. Joseph ran away in fear and did not sin. Still, he was wrongly blamed and put in prison, and the Lord was with Joseph there, too.
Joseph Interprets the Dreams of Two Prisoners
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As Joseph was the favourite son of his father Jacob, who later became Israel and later sold into slavery by his brothers due to jealousy as we read in Genesis 37, we see this situation as his hope was raised and then dashed by human experience. However, there was a particular poignancy about Joseph's situation as both his sale into slavery and his imprisonment were quite unjust (Genesis 40:15).
Genesis 40:15 CSB: For I was kidnapped from the land of the Hebrews, and even here I have done nothing that they should put me in the dungeon.
Joseph’s Disappointment: Delayed but Not Denied
After having given the interpretation of the dream of the royal cupbearer, Joseph thought that he might have been rewarded with the release, but again he was disappointed. Once again, his experience reflects those in Potiphar's house. He was rapidly promoted and became the personal attendant of the royal cupbearer and baker. These men were not just in charge of the royal cellar and baker but were also the advisers to Pharaoh.
Forgotten but Not Forsaken: Joseph’s Unshaken Faith
Joseph had a hope that the cupbearer would recognise the injustice done to him, but once he was released, he forgot Joseph. Here, we see the discrepancy with the author of the Book of Genesis's observations that 'the LORD was with Joseph' (Genesis 39:23) and Joseph was left in prison.
Genesis 39:23 CSB: The warden did not bother with anything under Joseph’s authority, because the Lord was with him, and the Lord made everything that he did successful.
Application
Joseph's skill in interpreting dreams was one indication that God was still with him (Genesis 40:8), but deliverance was the ultimate proof of God's support and presence with Joseph in prison. The suffering was the pathway to God's glory through Joseph, which was yet to be revealed (Philippines 2: 5-11).
Genesis 40:8 CSB: “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.”
Philippians 2:5-11 CSB: [5] Adopt the same attitude as that of Christ Jesus, [6] who, existing in the form of God, did not consider equality with God as something to be exploited. [7] Instead he emptied himself by assuming the form of a servant, taking on the likeness of humanity. And when he had come as a man, [8] he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death — even to death on a cross. [9] For this reason God highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, [10] so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow — in heaven and on earth and under the earth — [11] and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Key Note
Genesis 40:19 - Hang you on a tree is more exactly 'impale you on a pole'. Joseph was expecting an aggravated form of the death penalty for the baker, execution followed by exposure. Exposure was designed to prevent the soul from resting in the afterlife (Deuteronomy 21: 22-23).
Genesis 40:19 CSB: In just three days Pharaoh will lift up your head — from off you — and hang you on a tree. Then the birds will eat the flesh from your body.
Deuteronomy 21:22-23 CSB: [22] “If anyone is found guilty of an offense deserving the death penalty and is executed, and you hang his body on a tree, [23] you are not to leave his corpse on the tree overnight but are to bury him that day, for anyone hung on a tree is under God’s curse. You must not defile the land the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance.