Commentary - Genesis 40:9-15

Bird's-eye view

In this section of Genesis, we find Joseph in the pit, the prison, a place of forgetting. But God has not forgotten him. The narrative pivots here through the vehicle of two dreams. Joseph, who was cast into a pit because of his own dreams, will now be raised out of one because of the dreams of others. This passage details the first of those dreams, that of the chief cupbearer, and it serves as a potent display of God's intricate providence. God is working His purposes out, even in the darkness of an Egyptian dungeon, using the gifts He has given to His servant to set the stage for a much larger deliverance. This is not just about a cupbearer getting his job back; it is about the preservation of the covenant line and the foreshadowing of a greater Joseph who would bring salvation to the world.

Outline

Context In Genesis

Following the account of his unjust imprisonment due to the false accusations of Potiphar's wife, Joseph has been languishing in prison. Chapter 40 opens with two of Pharaoh's officials, the chief cupbearer and the chief baker, being thrown into the same prison. Their shared experience of having troubling dreams provides the opportunity for Joseph to exercise his God given gift of interpretation. This event is the crucial link between Joseph's lowest point, the pit, and his eventual exaltation to the second highest position in Egypt. It demonstrates that Joseph's faithfulness in a small thing, interpreting dreams for fellow prisoners, becomes the means by which God will accomplish a great thing, saving a nation and his own family from famine.

Verse by Verse Commentary

Genesis 40:9-11

So the chief cupbearer recounted his dream to Joseph and said to him, “In my dream, behold, there was a vine in front of me; and on the vine were three branches. And as it was budding, its blossoms came out, and its clusters produced ripe grapes. Now 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 hand.”

The cupbearer begins, and we should note that he goes first. He is the one who will be restored, and his story is one of life. The dream is filled with imagery of life and fruitfulness. A vine, a biblical symbol of blessing and of Israel itself, appears before him. The process from bud to blossom to ripe grapes happens with supernatural speed, indicating that the event it signifies will also be swift and decisive. This is a work of God, not a slow crawl of nature. The cupbearer is not a passive observer; he is an active participant. He takes the grapes, he squeezes them, he puts the cup into Pharaoh's hand. This is a picture of restored function. He is doing what he was made to do, what his office required. His identity is restored in the dream, a promise of what is to come. This dream is a mercy from God, a foretaste of deliverance.

Genesis 40:12-13

Then Joseph said to him, “This is the interpretation of it: the three branches are three days; within three more days Pharaoh will lift up your head and restore you to your office; and you will put Pharaoh’s cup into his hand according to your former custom when you were his cupbearer.

Joseph does not offer a tentative guess. He speaks with the authority of one who has received a revelation from God. "This is the interpretation of it." The interpretation is as certain as the dream itself. The symbolism is straightforward: three branches, three days. God is not trying to be cryptic. The central promise is that Pharaoh will "lift up your head." This is a Hebrew idiom that can mean two very different things. It can mean to exalt and honor, or it can mean to execute, as in lifting the head from the body. Here, it is the former. The cupbearer will be counted, pardoned, and honored. He will be restored completely to his office, his "former custom." This is a picture of true restoration. God does not just get us out of trouble; He restores us to our created purpose. The cupbearer will once again stand before the king and serve. This is a gospel announcement in miniature: a sentence of death is overturned, and a servant is restored to fellowship with the king.

Genesis 40:14

Only remember me when it goes well with you, and please show me lovingkindness by remembering me to Pharaoh and getting me out of this house.

Here we see the profound humanity of Joseph. He is a man of God, a prophet, but he is also a prisoner who longs for freedom. He makes a simple, direct appeal. The phrase "show me lovingkindness" uses the Hebrew word hesed, a rich covenantal term implying loyalty, mercy, and faithfulness. Joseph is asking the cupbearer to act out of a deep moral obligation, to remember the one who delivered him a word of life in a place of death. Joseph does what is in his power to do. He interprets the dream faithfully, and he makes a reasonable request. He is not manipulating; he is asking for justice. He trusts in God, but that trust does not lead to passivity. He asks the man he has helped to please, in turn, help him. This is a picture of how we are to live. We trust in God's sovereignty, and we also act, we ask, we seek, we knock.

Genesis 40:15

For I was in fact stolen from the land of the Hebrews, and even here I have done nothing that they should have put me into the pit.”

Joseph concludes his appeal with a defense of his innocence, and he does so without a trace of bitterness or self pity. He states the facts plainly. First, "I was in fact stolen." He was kidnapped, a victim of a great crime. He came from "the land of the Hebrews," identifying himself with God's covenant people, even in a foreign land. Second, concerning his current situation, "I have done nothing that they should have put me into the pit." He is innocent of the charges laid against him by Potiphar's wife. This declaration is crucial. Joseph is a type of Christ, the truly innocent one who suffered unjustly. He was stolen away by his brothers, as Christ was betrayed. He was cast into the pit, as Christ was laid in the tomb. His righteous appeal for deliverance is a foreshadowing of the vindication of Christ in the resurrection. Joseph is not just trying to get out of jail; he is seeking the vindication that righteousness deserves.

Application

This passage is a profound encouragement for the believer who finds himself in the pit. Your circumstances may be unjust, you may feel forgotten, and your deliverance may seem impossible. But God is sovereign over the dreams of pagan cupbearers and the hearts of kings. He has not forgotten you. Joseph's example teaches us to remain faithful in the place God has put us, using the gifts He has given us for the good of others, even when there is no apparent benefit for ourselves. We serve, we love, we speak truth, because that is what God has called us to do.

We also learn that it is right to seek justice. Joseph did not fatalistically accept his lot. He made a righteous appeal to the one man who could help him. We too should work for our deliverance, making our case, trusting that God will use our efforts in His perfect timing. And finally, we must see the greater Joseph here. Christ is the one who was truly innocent, who was stolen away and put into the pit of death for us. And just as the cupbearer was lifted up and restored, we who are in Christ have had our heads lifted up. We have been restored to our office as sons and daughters of the King, and we now serve Him, not out of fear, but with the cup of thanksgiving in our hands.