Forgotten but Remembered

Forgotten but Remembered

Genesis 40: ²⁰ Now it came to pass on the third day, which was Pharaoh’s birthday, that he made a feast for all his servants; and he lifted up the head of the chief butler and of the chief baker among his servants. ²¹ Then he restored the chief butler to his butlership again, and he placed the cup in Pharaoh’s hand. ²² But he hanged the chief baker, as Joseph had interpreted to them. ²³ Yet the chief butler did not remember Joseph, but forgot him.

 

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GOD gave Joseph a dream that caused his brothers to be jealous and want to kill him. Instead they sold him to the Ishmaelites who then sold him to the Egyptians. There he was lied on by Potiphar’s wife and ended up in prison. He interpreted Pharoah’s chief butler and chief baker’s dreams. The butler was set free and the baker was hanged. The butler forgot to tell Pharoah about Joseph.

 

My Observations:

• Joseph did not ask for the dream GOD gave him, yet he seemed to lose his family, friends and was now in prison.
• Joseph asked for one favor from the butler and the butler could not even do that.
• Joseph knew the interpretation came from GOD, yet he remained in prison.

 

What do you do when you’ve done everything right and it still seems like everything is going wrong? Joseph followed GOD and was given dreams and the ability to interpret dreams. But what good was this gift if he remained in prison? It was a lot of good.

 

Joseph did not know that GOD’s plan was still in action. The glimmer of hope that Joseph had by placing faith in a human seemed lost. BUT GOD was still at work and needed Joseph in prison a little longer. GOD’s timing did not feel good but was right and included many factors.

 

Challenge

• Why do you think GOD told Moses about the butler forgetting to tell Pharoah about Joseph?
• Have you ever felt forgotten?
• Can you hold on and allow GOD’s timing to come to fruition for HIS great plan HE has for you?

Misinterpreting the Interpreter

Misinterpreting the Interpreter

Genesis 40: 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.”

 

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Joseph had given the butler an interpretation of his dream that sounded favorable. The baker decided to tell Joseph his dream. Joseph gave him the interpretation that was not favorable.

 

My Observations:

• The baker may have thought that Joseph was there to only spread good news.
• The baker may have thought that he was going to get some good news since he had a dream on the same day and it included similar numbers.
• Birds symbolize predators and prey, but in this instance, it means predator birds will feast on the bakers body that was displayed as a warning to people.

 

Thinking that Joseph was only there for good news made the baker tell Joseph his dream. He misinterpreted Joseph’s role. Joseph was simply the messenger. The baker may have wanted Joseph to be the cause for his escape from Pharoah.

 

We do the same as the Baker. We only want to hear good news from the interpreters of GOD’s word. But there are difficult messages that may cause us to question GOD. In this slice of history, the baker was under a cold and heartless Pharoah. He, and others, were put to death  for even the slightest infraction. GOD gave Joseph the interpretation.

 

Challenge

• Why did GOD tell Moses about the interpretation of the baker?
• Are there some difficult things about GOD’s sovereignty that can cause you to question HIS approach?
• If you have questions about GOD’s approach, are you willing to ask HIM for clarification so you can apply it to your life?

Oh, It’s Going to Happen!

Oh, It’s Going to Happen!

Genesis 40: 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.”

 

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Joseph was given a dream that he told to his brothers. He dreamt that his entire family would one day bow down to him. His brothers became enraged and plotted to kill him. The sold him into slavery, but THE LORD was with him. He was slandered and thrown in prison. Pharoah’s butler was also thrown in prison. He told Joseph about a dream. Joseph interpreted the dream.

 

My Observations:

• Not only did GOD give Joseph a prophetic dream, HE also gave him the gift of being able to spiritually interpret dreams.
• The butler was going to be restored by GOD and there was nothing the butler did differently to earn this restoration.
• Joseph knew this was going to happen, so he asked the butler to put in a good word for him.

 

When GOD says something will happen, it’s going to happen! GOD was working, even in prison. Joseph explained how he did not deserve to be in prison. He was innocent. Potiphar’s wife had lied on him, yet there he was. Little did Joseph know, he was given a gift that needed to be used on a specific person.

 

GOD wanted Joseph to speak to the butler. The entire situation was orchestrated by GOD. HE took Pharoah’s arrogance and mixed it in with an innocent butler and topped it off with an innocent prisoner named Joseph. GOD would later use this interpretation for Joseph’s benefit. Joseph knew this was going to happen so he asked for a good word from the butler.

 

Challenge

• Why do you think GOD told Moses about Joseph interpreting the dream?
• Have you ever been in a situation that you cannot get yourself out of?
• Can you praise GOD for seeing you and for HIS plan to break you out of the prison you may think you are in?

Where Help Comes From

Where Help Comes From

Genesis 40: 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.”

 

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After days, weeks or even months, the butler and the baker had dreams on the same night. Joseph saw they were sad, so he asked both of them “Why?” The both said they had dreams but no one to interpret them. Joseph told them that interpretations of dreams come from GOD.

 

My Observations:

• Both men had significant dreams versus something they could make sense of.
• GOD provided both men their dreams on the same night and HE disturbed them.
• Joseph saw something was wrong with both of them, which shows his character.

 

Seeing the sadness on their face and asking “What’s wrong?’ was probably rare in the Egyptian society. Joseph had walked with the LORD so long that he was concerned about people he barely knew. When they said they had disturbing dreams, Joseph knew that GOD could provide the interpretation.

 

Joseph showed he had a special relationship with GOD. He knew that he could ask GOD what the dreams mean and GOD would not hold back. That’s the kind of relationship I want with GOD, one that HE does not hold back anything I ask that is in alignment with HIS will. Joseph point the butcher and baker to the only solution, namely GOD.

 

Challenge

• Why does GOD tell Moses about the sadness of the butcher and baker?
• Have you ever had significant dreams and needed GOD to tell you the meaning?
• Can you rest assured that GOD is the answer and has the answer to your problem?

Purposeful Custody

Purposeful Custody

Genesis 40: 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.

 

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After Joseph was thrown in prison, Pharoah decided that a couple of his leaders needed to be incarcerated.  He threw the chief butler and the chief baker in jail. They were place in custody under Joseph.

 

My Observations:

• The Egyptian leaders worked together to display their harsh, cruel power over servants.
• Joseph did not expect that he would be placed over the chief butler and the chief baker.
• GOD used Pharoah’s cruelty to set Joseph up for HIS success.

 

Joseph was given a dream by GOD and it seemed to get him in trouble. BUT JESUS was with him. His prison sentence was used by GOD for a better purpose. Eventually we will see that the butler and baker will have dreams given from GOD.

 

Joseph will be in the right place at the right time to interpret the dreams. All three men experienced imprisonment under the Egyptian rule. They could not change their circumstances by any effort of their own. They were trapped without a date for freedom. BUT GOD was there.

 

Challenge

• Why does GOD point out to Moses that shortly after Joseph was put in prison, the butler and baker were placed there as well?
• Do you believe there are no coincidences with GOD?
• Do you believe GOD has you in the situation you are in for HIS supernatural purpose?