The Cupbearer and the Baker
Text: Genesis 40
Core Idea: Even when God’s promises seem delayed, the future feels uncertain, and His timing appears slow, He remains worthy of our trust. So, let’s fix our eyes on Jesus Christ – the One who trusted the Father perfectly in our place – and find the strength to trust Him as we walk through the unfinished chapters of our lives.
INTRODUCTION
We’re continuing our journey through the Book of Genesis – tracing how God’s promises moved forward. And last week, we saw Joseph remain faithful in the face of tremendous temptation. Though he was blessed in Potiphar’s house and entrusted with great responsibility, everything changed when he was falsely accused by Potiphar’s wife. Now, he did the right thing by resisting temptation – but instead of being rewarded, he was thrown into prison. So, humanly speaking, his obedience seemed to make his situation worse. But the repeated message of Genesis 39 was this: “The LORD was with Joseph.” The Lord was with him in Potiphar’s house – and the Lord was with him in prison. But that creates a tension in the story – because if God was truly with Joseph, why did his life seem to move in the wrong direction? The dreams God gave him in Genesis 37 appear farther away than ever. Yes, he was no longer in the pit – but he was now sitting in a prison cell, wondering what’s going to happen next. And that’s the context in which our passage begins. Joseph’s circumstances haven’t changed. He’s still in prison. He’s still waiting. But in this chapter, we’ll discover that even though prison had changed many things about Joseph’s life, it had not changed his view of God. So, with that in mind, please turn with me to Genesis 40. And Alisia will come up to read the passage for us.
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 do you look 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 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 impale your body on a pole. 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 impaled 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.
Thank you, Alisia, for reading the passage for us. And children, I hope you enjoyed that video. Let me share three things from this passage:
· TRUSTING GOD’S PROMISES
· TRUSTING GOD’S AUTHORITY
· TRUSTING GOD’S TIMING
1) TRUSTING GOD’S PROMISES
Verse 1 tells us that some time has passed since Joseph was thrown into prison. We’re not told exactly how long Joseph had been in prison, but from the timeline given in Genesis, we know that he had been suffering for approximately eleven years – eleven years of slavery, injustice, disappointment, and waiting. Whatever hopes Joseph had when God first gave him those dreams, they must have felt very distant by now. Now, as the story unfolds, we’re introduced to two characters: Pharaoh’s cupbearer and baker. One thing we need to note is that even though their titles may not sound impressive, these were highly trusted officials who enjoyed direct access to Pharaoh. And yet they found themselves in prison alongside Joseph. Why? We’re told that they had “offended” Pharaoh. This is interesting because the word literally means “to sin.” They had sinned against their king and were therefore imprisoned. This highlights a striking contrast. These men were in prison because they were guilty – but Joseph was in prison even though he was innocent. In fact, this is the same word Joseph used in Genesis 39:9 when he said to Potiphar’s wife, “How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?” Unlike these officials who sinned, Joseph refused to sin – and yet he still ended up in prison. Verse 4: “The captain of the guard assigned them to Joseph, and he attended them.” The captain of the guard was likely Potiphar himself – considering that he had been described by that title twice already in Chapters 37 and 39. Despite the accusations against Joseph, he must have still recognized Joseph’s competence and trustworthiness – which is why Joseph was assigned to care for these high-ranking prisoners. At first glance, this appears to be an ordinary administrative decision. But as we’ve seen throughout Genesis, God was quietly arranging circumstances behind the scenes. What seemed ordinary was actually providential. In fact, this becomes clear in verse 5 – where we’re told that both men had dreams on the same night, and each dream carried its own meaning. In ancient Egypt, dreams were taken very seriously because Egyptians believed that the gods communicated through dreams. No wonder there were professional dream interpreters who helped people understand divine messages and discern the will of the gods. But these men were in prison. They had no access to interpreters – which means that they had no way of understanding what their dreams meant. So, when Joseph arrived the next morning and saw that they were troubled, he asked, “Why do you look so sad today?” They replied in verse 8, “We both had dreams, but there is no one to interpret them.” And Joseph answered, “Do not interpretations belong to God? Tell me your dreams.” Those words reveal something remarkable about Joseph’s heart – considering that dreams weren’t a neutral subject for Joseph. In many ways, dreams were the very reason he was sitting in prison. Think about it. The dreams God gave him in Genesis 37 set everything in motion. They led to jealousy, betrayal, slavery, and ultimately prison. In fact, more than a decade had passed, and every turn in his life appeared to move him further away from what God had promised in those dreams. After all, how was his family going to bow down before him while he sat in an Egyptian prison cell? All that to say, if anyone had reason to question God’s promises, it was Joseph – which means that he could’ve concluded the dreams were just wishful thinking. He could’ve decided that God had forgotten him. He could’ve become cynical, bitter, and disillusioned. So, when the cupbearer and baker spoke about their dreams, Joseph could’ve said, “Don’t trust dreams. They’ll only disappoint you.” But that’s not what he said. He said, “Do not interpretations belong to God?” Despite eleven years of suffering, Joseph still believed that God speaks, God knows, and God reveals truth. His circumstances had changed dramatically – but his confidence in God had not. His suffering did not distort his theology – his understanding of God.
Let me ask you: Have your circumstances this year changed the way you think about God? One of the greatest dangers of suffering is not that it just causes pain. It’s that pain can quietly become the lens through which we interpret God. We may begin by trusting His promises – but when hardship comes, when the waiting becomes longer than expected, when life doesn’t unfold the way we imagined, we may slowly begin to think this way: “If God loved me, this shouldn’t be happening. If God were faithful, things would be different.” Now, it’s true that we may never say those words out loud – but deep down in our hearts, we begin to question God’s character because we cannot understand His providence. But Joseph shows us a different way: Joseph refused to interpret God through his circumstances – instead, he interpreted his circumstances through God. Even when he couldn’t see what God was doing, he trusted what God had said. Even when the promises seemed distant, he continued to believe that God was faithful. And that’s much harder than it sounds. It’s easy to say, “God is good” when life is going according to plan. It’s much harder to say, “God is good” when you’re sitting in a prison cell, wondering what happened to His promises. So, let me ask you: What circumstance is testing your confidence in God right now? Where are you tempted to doubt His goodness, wisdom, or faithfulness? Are you interpreting God through your circumstances, or your circumstances through God? What promise of God do you need to cling to today, even when you cannot yet see its fulfillment? One of the clearest signs of spiritual maturity is not that we understand what God is doing – it’s that we continue trusting who God is when we don’t understand what He is doing.
2) TRUSTING GOD’S AUTHORITY
Let’s go back to verse 8. When Joseph asked the cupbearer and baker why they looked so troubled, they said, “We both had dreams, but there is no one to interpret them.” Remember that the Egyptians believed that the gods communicated through dreams. So, dreams were thought to reveal the future, provide guidance, and offer insight into what lay ahead – which implies that their anxiety wasn’t ultimately about the dreams themselves. Their anxiety came from not knowing what their future held. Think about their situation. They had sinned against Pharaoh. They were sitting in prison. They didn’t know whether they would be pardoned or executed. Their fate was uncertain. And now they had dreams that seemed significant – but they had no way of understanding them. No wonder they were dejected. But Joseph recognized that the answers they were seeking belonged to God – which is why he said in verse 8, “Do not interpretations belong to God?” In other words, Joseph wanted them to know that the meaning of their lives, their futures, and their destinies ultimately rested in God’s hands. So, the cupbearer shared his dream, and Joseph interpreted it to mean that within three days he would be restored to Pharaoh’s service again. And encouraged by this favorable interpretation, the baker shared his dream as well. But this time Joseph’s message was far different: Within three days, the baker would be executed. Now, what I want you to notice is that Joseph didn’t change the message. Knowing that it would offend the baker, he could’ve softened the truth. He could’ve changed the meaning and shared what the baker wanted to hear. But he didn’t. He just faithfully delivered God’s interpretation – God’s authority over their future. And three days later, on Pharaoh’s birthday, everything unfolded exactly as Joseph had said – or rather, exactly as God had said.
What does this mean for us? The cupbearer and baker desperately wanted someone to interpret their dreams because they wanted answers about their future. They wanted to know what was going to happen to them. Would they be pardoned or punished? Restored or condemned? Their lives were on the line – and they desperately wanted certainty in the midst of uncertainty. And if we’re honest, we’re not all that different. We may not be looking for dream interpretations, but we’re constantly trying to gain control over the future. We want to know what’s going to happen. “Will my health improve? Will my children be okay? Will I find a job? Will I get married? Will things ever get better?” The truth is that uncertainty makes us uncomfortable – which is why we spend so much time worrying, planning, obsessing, and trying to control outcomes that ultimately lie beyond our control. But Joseph reminds us of something important: The future belongs to God. “Do not interpretations belong to God?” In other words, the answers the cupbearer and baker were seeking could only be found in the One who knows the end from the beginning. Brothers and sisters, the same is true for us. We do not know what tomorrow holds. We cannot control every outcome. We cannot guarantee how our stories will unfold. But we know the God who holds the future in His hands. And for those who belong to Christ, there’s even greater comfort. While we may not know all the details of our future, we do know how our story ends. Because of Christ, our future has already been secured. Our sins have been forgiven. Our salvation has been accomplished. Our inheritance is being kept in heaven. And one day we will be with the Lord forever. That means we don’t have to live in constant fear of the future. We don’t have to desperately grasp for control. We don’t have to know everything that is coming because we already know the most important thing: Christ has secured our eternal future. And that future hope should free us to live faithfully in the present. Instead of being consumed by what might happen tomorrow, we can focus on obeying God today. Instead of trying to control the future, we can entrust ourselves to the One who already holds it. So, let me ask you: What future uncertainty is causing you anxiety today? What outcome are you trying to control? What fear keeps you awake at night? Are you trusting in your ability to secure the future, or are you trusting the God who has already secured your future in Christ? Because one of the greatest acts of faith is not knowing what tomorrow holds and yet confidently placing tomorrow into the hands of God.
3) TRUSTING GOD’S TIMING
Look back to verse 14 – after interpreting the cupbearer’s dream, Joseph made a simple request: “But when all goes well with you, remember me and show me kindness; mention me to Pharaoh and get me out of this prison. 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.” This is one of the few places where Joseph speaks openly about his suffering. Throughout the narrative, he has endured betrayal, slavery, false accusation, and imprisonment with incredible restraint. But we never heard from him – until now. Here, we finally get a glimpse into his heart – and we find out that Joseph longed to be vindicated and freed from prison. And honestly, who can blame him? He had done nothing deserving of prison. So, when the cupbearer received good news, Joseph saw it as a God-given opportunity – and he said, “Remember me.” It’s a very human request. And as readers, we can’t help but think that this might finally be the turning point for Joseph. The cupbearer will be restored. He’ll speak to Pharaoh. And Joseph will be released. At last, everything will begin to fall into place. But then the chapter ended with one of the most heartbreaking verses in Joseph’s story – verse 23: “The chief cupbearer, however, did not remember Joseph; he forgot him.” Joseph said, “Remember me” – but the cupbearer forgot him. In fact, the author repeats the idea twice to emphasize the disappointment. “He did not remember Joseph – he forgot him.” Can you imagine how crushing that must have been for Joseph? Day after day, he waited. “Maybe today would be the day. Maybe Pharaoh had heard. Maybe someone was coming.” But no one came. Nothing changed. And the chapter ended exactly where it began – Joseph in prison. Circumstantially, nothing changed.
Now, this may be the reason why this chapter feels so relatable – because many of us know what it feels like to be forgotten, overlooked, or disappointed by people we trusted. Maybe someone promised to help and never did. Maybe someone said they would be there and disappeared. Maybe you did the right thing, but nothing seemed to come from it. The truth is that people will disappoint us. Our cries of “Remember me” will often go unanswered. And honestly, some become bitter. Some become cynical. Some take matters into their own hands. And some simply give up. But this passage reminds us that while people forget, God never does. The cupbearer forgot Joseph – but God did not. In fact, what Joseph could not see was that God was still working – He was accomplishing His purposes according to His perfect timing. And that’s something we need to remember as well – because God’s timing often feels slower than we would like. And if we’re not careful, we can begin to assume that God’s delay means God has forgotten us. But the Bible tells us that God’s delays are not God’s denials. Sometimes, God works in ways we cannot yet see. Sometimes, God accomplishes things we do not yet understand. And sometimes, the very delay that frustrates us is part of the plan that will ultimately bless us. So, let me ask you: Where are you tempted to believe that God has forgotten you? What prayer have you almost stopped praying? What disappointment are you still carrying? Where has God’s timing become difficult for you to trust? Brothers and sisters, faith is not just trusting God when His timing makes sense – faith is continuing to trust Him when it doesn’t.
Now, before we conclude, let me share one thing. As we’ve walked through this passage, I’m sure many of you were thinking, “I want to trust God’s promises. I want to trust God’s authority. I want to trust God’s timing. But it’s not that easy. I keep letting God down.” And I think that’s true of most believers. The problem isn’t that we don’t want to trust God – the problem is that we often find ourselves struggling to do so. We trust God’s promises – until life becomes painful. We trust God’s authority – until the future becomes uncertain. We trust God’s timing – until the waiting becomes too long. And before long, we find ourselves doubting, worrying, grasping for control, or growing discouraged – which is why if the message of this sermon was simply, “Be more like Joseph,” then we’ve missed the point because no matter how hard we try, we will never trust perfectly as Joseph did. More importantly, Joseph himself was never meant to be the hero of the story because he’s meant to point us to someone greater. Joseph’s faithfulness is meant to make us long for the One who trusted God’s promises perfectly, submitted to God’s will perfectly, and rested in God’s timing perfectly. That person, of course, is Jesus Christ. Like Joseph, Jesus was rejected, betrayed, falsely accused, and suffered, even though He was innocent. But unlike Joseph, He didn’t simply give us an example to follow – He came to be our Savior. Where we have doubted God’s promises, tried to control our future, and questioned His timing, Jesus remained perfectly faithful. He then went to the cross for our unbelief, rose from the grave, and secured our future forever. That’s why our hope today is not ultimately found in our ability to trust God – our hope is found in Christ, who trusted perfectly in our place and now gives us grace to trust Him. And because Christ died and rose again, we know something Joseph didn’t yet fully know. We know how the story ends. We know that our sins are forgiven, that death has been defeated, that Christ is reigning, and that one day every promise of God will be fulfilled when we are with Him forever. And because we know how the story ends, we can trust God in the middle chapters. So, if you’re struggling to trust God’s promises today, look to Christ. If you’re anxious about the future today, look to Christ. If you’re weary from waiting today, look to Christ – because the God who didn’t abandon His Son in the grave will not abandon His people now. The cupbearer forgot Joseph – but God did not. And Christians, whatever you’re facing today, whatever burdens you’re carrying, whatever prayers remain unanswered, whatever disappointments you’re enduring, remember this: Your God hasn’t forgotten you – and He never will.
CONCLUSION
Lighthouse family, in all circumstances, the Lord remains worthy of our trust. So, today, let’s fix our eyes on Jesus Christ – and find the strength to trust Him as we walk through the unfinished chapters of our lives.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1) What does Joseph’s response, “Do not interpretations belong to God?” reveal about his view of God after eleven years of suffering? Why do you think suffering often causes us to question God’s character? What is the difference between interpreting God through our circumstances and interpreting our circumstances through God? What circumstance in your life right now is most testing your confidence in God’s goodness, wisdom, or faithfulness?
2) What were the cupbearer and baker ultimately seeking when they wanted their dreams interpreted? Why are people naturally uncomfortable with uncertainty? How do people today try to gain control over the future? What future uncertainty causes you the most anxiety? How does knowing that our future is secure in Christ change the way we face uncertainty today?
3) How do you think Joseph felt when the cupbearer forgot him? When God’s timing feels slow, what are some common sinful responses people have? Is there a prayer, burden, or disappointment that has made you wonder whether God has forgotten you?
