Verse Lens · Concise explanation
Genesis 40:1 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 1. 1And it came to pass after these things, that the butler of the king of Egypt and his baker had offended their lord the king of Egypt.
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
After Joseph's prison responsibility is established, Pharaoh's chief cupbearer and chief baker offend their royal lord. The verse introduces two court officials but does not disclose their offenses or guilt.
Read It With
- Genesis 40:1–23
Read Genesis 39:20–23 and 40:1–4. Joseph is already confined and entrusted with prison care when two officials connected directly to Pharaoh enter the same setting.
Why This Verse Appears Here
The verse introduces the two royal officials whose confinement will connect Joseph's prison service with Pharaoh's court.
Read Genesis 40:1–4 together
Why these verses belong together: The officials' offense, Pharaoh's anger, shared confinement, Joseph's assignment, and elapsed time form one opening movement.
Verse 1. 1 And it came to pass after these things, that the butler of the king of Egypt and his baker had offended their lord the king of Egypt.
Verse 2. 2 And Pharaoh was wroth against two of his officers, against the chief of the butlers, and against the chief of the bakers.
Verse 3. 3 And he put them in ward in the house of the captain of the guard, into the prison, the place where Joseph was bound.
Verse 4. 4 And the captain of the guard charged Joseph with them, and he served them: and they continued a season in ward.
What Remains True
People and events should be described from the evidence given rather than from imaginative reconstructions of hidden wrongdoing.
How It Can Shape Life
- When a person's alleged offense is not known, do not fill the gap with rumor; distinguish accusation, proven fact, and uncertainty.
Continue in Context
The full thought-unit study remains the final contextual authority for this Verse Lens.
Read Genesis 40:1–23 — Joseph Interprets Two Prisoners' Dreams—and Is ForgottenSources used for this Verse Lens
How certain is this explanation? very strong
Where care is needed
The officials' exact offenses, guilt, and names are not supplied.
These are the sources used directly for this lens. Language, grammar, disagreements, and the complete source shelf remain attached to the full thought-unit research record.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Displayed text, prison context, paired dreams, fulfillment, forgetting, and later remembrance.
Exact location: Genesis 40:1–23; 39:20–23; 41:1–16 in the pinned standardized 1769 KJV
Open source ↗hebrew text morphology and lemma data
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible — Genesis
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible Project
Open Scriptures, Version 2.2 released 2021; repository inspected 2026
Supports: Dream and interpretation terms, downcast faces, head idiom, hesed, emphatic kidnapping, basket wording, dungeon, fulfillment, and forgetting.
Exact location: WLC Genesis 40:1–23, especially vv. 5–8, 12–15, 16–20, 23
Open source ↗Translation and textual notes
NET Bible — Genesis with translators' notes
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press, Digital edition accessed 2026
Supports: Court-office limits, service, unspecified custody, downcast faces, interpretation, head idiom and wordplay, hesed, kidnapping, basket proposals, execution wording, birthday, and emphatic forgetting.
Exact location: NET Genesis 40 notes for vv. 1–23, especially court titles, vv. 4–8, 13–16, 19–20, 23
Open NET Genesis 40 ↗