Thursday, September 13, 2018


Genesis 40:1-23 (NKJV)
1  It came to pass after these things that the butler and the baker of the king of Egypt offended their lord, the king of Egypt.
2  And Pharaoh was angry with his two officers, the chief butler and the chief baker.
3  So he put them in custody in the house of the captain of the guard, in the prison, the place where Joseph was confined.
4  And the captain of the guard charged Joseph with them, and he served them; so they were in custody for a while.
Note:  For Joseph to be prepared for his exalted position of leadership, he needed to learn a servant's heart.

5  Then the butler and the baker of the king of Egypt, who were confined in the prison, had a dream, both of them, each man's dream in one night and each man's dream with its own interpretation.
6  And Joseph came in to them in the morning and looked at them, and saw that they were sad.
7  So he asked Pharaoh's officers who were with him in the custody of his lord's house, saying, "Why do you look so sad today?"
8  And they said to him, "We each have had a dream, and there is no interpreter of it." So Joseph said to them, "Do not interpretations belong to God? Tell them to me, please."
9  Then the chief butler told his dream to Joseph, and said to him, "Behold, in my dream a vine was before me,
10  and in the vine were three branches; it was as though it budded, its blossoms shot forth, and its clusters brought forth ripe grapes.
11  Then 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  And Joseph said to him, "This is the interpretation of it: The three branches are three days.
13  Now within three days Pharaoh will lift up your head and restore you to your place, and you will put Pharaoh's cup in his hand according to the former manner, when you were his butler.
14  But remember me when it is well with you, and please show kindness to me; make mention of me to Pharaoh, and get me out of this house.
15  For indeed I was stolen away from the land of the Hebrews; and also I have done nothing here that they should put me into the dungeon."
16  When the chief baker saw that the interpretation was good, he said to Joseph, "I also was in my dream, and there were three white baskets on my head.
17  In the uppermost basket were all kinds of baked goods for Pharaoh, and the birds ate them out of the basket on my head."

18  So Joseph answered and said, "This is the interpretation of it: The three baskets are three days.
19  Within three days Pharaoh will lift off your head from you and hang you on a tree; and the birds will eat your flesh from you."

Thursday, September 13, 2018  Note:  I feel sorry for the baker, who may have had hopes that his dream revealed a similar restoration as the butler, but it was just the opposite.  In three days he was to be beheaded on the king's birthday and his body hung on a tree in disgrace, left for the birds to eat.  Why would the Lord reveal such grim new to him?  What crime, if any, did he commit?
I know that the ghost of Samuel (or Satan or a demon impersonating Samuel-it depends upon who you ask) appeared to Saul and told him that he had less than 24 hours to live. 1 Samuel 28  Furthermore, Peter is told by Jesus that he will die a martyr's death, though He does not reveal a time frame, other than it will be when Peter is old.  John 21:18-19  Is it done as judgment or punishment? Is it warning?
How must it feel for people who listen to a doctor tell them that they have only eight or nine months to live?  I've heard it said that people, and I suspect my father was one of them, who face a potentially deadly disease sometimes realize that they will not survive before anyone else.  Does that help them live out the rest of their days in a better fashion?  Does it help them prepare to die?

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