Joseph Interprets Two Prisoners' Dreams

40 Some time after this, the ^(A)cupbearer of the king of Egypt and his baker committed an offense against their lord the king of Egypt. ² And Pharaoh was angry with his two officers, the chief cupbearer and the chief baker, ^3 (B)and he put them in custody in the house of the captain of the guard, in the prison where Joseph was confined. ⁴ The captain of the guard appointed Joseph to be with them, and he attended them. They continued for some time in custody.

⁵ And one night they both dreamed—the cupbearer and the baker of the king of Egypt, who were confined in the prison—each his own dream, and each dream with its own interpretation. ⁶ When Joseph came to them in the morning, he saw that they were troubled. ⁷ So he asked Pharaoh's officers who were with him in custody in his master's house, ^(C)“Why are your faces downcast today?” ⁸ They said to him, ^(D)“We have had dreams, and there is no one to interpret them.” And Joseph said to them, ^(E)“Do not interpretations belong to God? Please tell them to me.”

⁹ So the chief cupbearer told his dream to Joseph and said to him, “In my dream there was a vine before me, ¹⁰ and on the vine there were three branches. As soon as it budded, its blossoms shot forth, and the clusters ripened into grapes. ¹¹ 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 Then Joseph said to him, ^(F)“This is its interpretation: ^(G)the three branches are three days. ¹³ In three days Pharaoh will ^(H)lift up your head and restore you to your office, and you shall place Pharaoh's cup in his hand as formerly, when you were his cupbearer. ¹⁴ Only remember me, when it is well with you, and please do me the kindness to mention me to Pharaoh, and so get me out of this house. ¹⁵ For ^(I)I was indeed stolen out of the land of the Hebrews, and ^(J)here also I have done nothing that they should put me into the pit.”

¹⁶ When the chief baker saw that the interpretation was favorable, he said to Joseph, “I also had a dream: there were three cake baskets on my head, ¹⁷ and in the uppermost basket there were all sorts of baked food for Pharaoh, but the birds were eating it out of the basket on my head.” ¹⁸ And Joseph answered and said, ^(K)“This is its interpretation: the three baskets are three days. ^19 (L)In three days Pharaoh will lift up your head—from you!—and ^(M)hang you on a tree. And the birds will eat the flesh from you.”

²⁰ On the third day, which was Pharaoh's ^(N)birthday, he made a feast for all his servants and ^(O)lifted up the head of the chief cupbearer and the head of the chief baker among his servants. ^21 (P)He restored the chief cupbearer to his position, and ^(Q)he placed the cup in Pharaoh's hand. ²² But he ^(R)hanged the chief baker, as Joseph had interpreted to them. ²³ Yet the chief cupbearer did not remember Joseph, but forgot him.

Joseph Interprets Pharaoh's Dreams

41 After two whole years, Pharaoh dreamed that he was standing by the Nile, ² and behold, there came up out of the Nile seven cows, attractive and plump, and they fed in the reed grass. ³ And behold, seven other cows, ugly and thin, came up out of the Nile after them, and stood by the other cows on the bank of the Nile. ⁴ And the ugly, thin cows ate up the seven attractive, plump cows. And Pharaoh awoke. ⁵ And he fell asleep and dreamed a second time. And behold, seven ears of grain, plump and good, were growing on one stalk. ⁶ And behold, after them sprouted seven ears, thin and ^(A)blighted by the east wind. ⁷ And the thin ears swallowed up the seven plump, full ears. And Pharaoh awoke, and behold, it was a dream. ⁸ So in the morning ^(B)his spirit was troubled, and he sent and called for all the ^(C)magicians of Egypt and all its wise men. Pharaoh told them his dreams, but there was none who could interpret them to Pharaoh.

⁹ Then the chief cupbearer said to Pharaoh, “I remember my offenses today. ¹⁰ When Pharaoh was ^(D)angry with his servants ^(E)and put me and the chief baker in custody in the house of the captain of the guard, ^11 (F)we dreamed on the same night, he and I, each having a dream with its own interpretation. ¹² A young Hebrew was there with us, a servant of the captain of the guard. When we told him, ^(G)he interpreted our dreams to us, giving an interpretation to each man according to his dream. ¹³ And ^(H)as he interpreted to us, so it came about. I was restored to my office, and the baker was hanged.”

^14 (I)Then Pharaoh sent and called Joseph, and they ^(J)quickly brought him ^(K)out of the pit. And when he had shaved himself and changed his clothes, he came in before Pharaoh. ¹⁵ And Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I have had a dream, and there is no one who can interpret it. ^(L)I have heard it said of you that when you hear a dream you can interpret it.” ¹⁶ Joseph answered Pharaoh, ^(M)“It is not in me; ^(N)God will give Pharaoh a favorable answer.”^{[a] 17} Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Behold, ^(O)in my dream I was standing on the banks of the Nile. ¹⁸ Seven cows, plump and attractive, came up out of the Nile and fed in the reed grass. ¹⁹ Seven other cows came up after them, poor and very ugly and thin, such as I had never seen in all the land of Egypt. ²⁰ And the thin, ugly cows ate up the first seven plump cows, ²¹ but when they had eaten them no one would have known that they had eaten them, for they were still as ugly as at the beginning. Then I awoke. ²² I also saw in my dream seven ears growing on one stalk, full and good. ²³ Seven ears, withered, thin, and blighted by the east wind, sprouted after them, ²⁴ and the thin ears swallowed up the seven good ears. And ^(P)I told it to the magicians, but there was no one who could explain it to me.”

²⁵ Then Joseph said to Pharaoh, “The dreams of Pharaoh are one; ^(Q)God has revealed to Pharaoh what he is about to do. ²⁶ The seven good cows are seven years, and the seven good ears are seven years; the dreams are one. ²⁷ The seven lean and ugly cows that came up after them are seven years, and the seven empty ears blighted by the east wind are also ^(R)seven years of famine. ²⁸ It is as I told Pharaoh; ^(S)God has shown to Pharaoh what he is about to do. ²⁹ There will come ^(T)seven years of great plenty throughout all the land of Egypt, ³⁰ but after them there will arise ^(U)seven years of famine, and all the plenty will be forgotten in the land of Egypt. ^(V)The famine will consume the land, ³¹ and the plenty will be unknown in the land by reason of the famine that will follow, for it will be very severe. ³² And the doubling of Pharaoh's dream means that the ^(W)thing is fixed by God, and God will shortly bring it about. ³³ Now therefore let Pharaoh select a discerning and wise man, and set him over the land of Egypt. ³⁴ Let Pharaoh proceed to appoint overseers over the land and take one-fifth of the produce of the land^[b] of Egypt during the seven plentiful years. ³⁵ And ^(X)let them gather all the food of these good years that are coming and store up grain under the authority of Pharaoh for food in the cities, and let them keep it. ³⁶ That food shall be a reserve for the land against the seven years of famine that are to occur in the land of Egypt, so that the land may not perish through the famine.”

Joseph Rises to Power

³⁷ This proposal pleased Pharaoh and all his servants. ³⁸ And Pharaoh said to his servants, “Can we find a man like this, ^(Y)in whom is the Spirit of God?”^{[c] 39} Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Since God has shown you all this, there is none so discerning and wise as you are. ^40 (Z)You shall be over my house, and all my people shall order themselves as you command.^[d] Only as regards the throne will I be greater than you.” ⁴¹ And Pharaoh said to Joseph, “See, ^(AA)I have set you over all the land of Egypt.” ⁴² Then Pharaoh ^(AB)took his signet ring from his hand and put it on Joseph's hand, and ^(AC)clothed him in garments of fine linen ^(AD)and put a gold chain about his neck. ⁴³ And he made him ride in his second chariot. ^(AE)And they called out before him, “Bow the knee!”^[e] Thus he set him ^(AF)over all the land of Egypt. ⁴⁴ Moreover, Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I am Pharaoh, and ^(AG)without your consent no one shall lift up hand or foot in all the land of Egypt.” ⁴⁵ And Pharaoh called Joseph's name Zaphenath-paneah. And he gave him in marriage Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera priest of On. So Joseph went out over the land of Egypt.

⁴⁶ Joseph was thirty years old when he ^(AH)entered the service of Pharaoh king of Egypt. And Joseph went out from the presence of Pharaoh and went through all the land of Egypt. ⁴⁷ During the seven plentiful years the earth produced abundantly, ⁴⁸ and he gathered up all the food of these seven years, which occurred in the land of Egypt, and put the food in the cities. He put in every city the food from the fields around it. ⁴⁹ And Joseph stored up grain in great abundance, ^(AI)like the sand of the sea, until he ceased to measure it, for it could not be measured.

⁵⁰ Before the year of famine came, ^(AJ)two sons were born to Joseph. Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera priest of On, bore them to him. ⁵¹ Joseph called the name of the firstborn Manasseh. “For,” he said, “God has made me forget all my hardship and all my father's house.”^{[f] 52} The name of the second he called Ephraim, “For God has ^(AK)made me fruitful in the land of my affliction.”^[g]

⁵³ The seven years of plenty that occurred in the land of Egypt came to an end, ⁵⁴ and ^(AL)the seven years of famine began to come, ^(AM)as Joseph had said. There was famine in all lands, but in all the land of Egypt there was bread. ⁵⁵ When all the land of Egypt was famished, the people cried to Pharaoh for bread. Pharaoh said to all the Egyptians, “Go to Joseph. What he says to you, do.”

⁵⁶ So when the famine had spread over all the land, Joseph opened all the storehouses^[h] and ^(AN)sold to the Egyptians, for the famine was severe in the land of Egypt. ⁵⁷ Moreover, all the earth came to Egypt to Joseph to buy grain, because the famine was severe ^(AO)over all the earth.

The Transfiguration

17 ^(A)And after six days Jesus took with him ^(B)Peter and James, and John his brother, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. ² And he was ^(C)transfigured before them, and ^(D)his face shone like the sun, and ^(E)his clothes became white as light. ³ And behold, there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. ⁴ And Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good that we are here. If you wish, I will make three tents here, one for you and one for Moses and one for ^(F)Elijah.” ⁵ He was still speaking when, behold, ^(G)a bright cloud overshadowed them, and ^(H)a voice from the cloud said, ^(I)“This is my beloved Son,^[a] with whom I am well pleased; ^(J)listen to him.” ⁶ When ^(K)the disciples heard this, ^(L)they fell on their faces and were terrified. ⁷ But Jesus came and ^(M)touched them, saying, “Rise, and ^(N)have no fear.” ⁸ And when they lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only.

^9 (O)And as they were coming down the mountain, Jesus commanded them, ^(P)“Tell no one the vision, until the Son of Man is raised from the dead.” ¹⁰ And the disciples asked him, “Then why do the scribes say ^(Q)that first Elijah must come?” ¹¹ He answered, “Elijah does come, and ^(R)he will restore all things. ¹² But I tell you that Elijah has already come, and they did not recognize him, but ^(S)did to him whatever they pleased. ^(T)So also the Son of Man will certainly suffer at their hands.” ^13 (U)Then the disciples understood that he was speaking to them of John the Baptist.

Jesus Heals a Boy with a Demon

^14 (V)And when they came to the crowd, a man came up to him and, kneeling before him, ¹⁵ said, “Lord, have mercy on my son, for he has ^(W)seizures and he suffers terribly. For often he falls into the fire, and often into the water. ¹⁶ And I brought him to your disciples, and ^(X)they could not heal him.” ¹⁷ And Jesus answered, “O faithless and ^(Y)twisted generation, how long am I to be with you? ^(Z)How long am I to bear with you? Bring him here to me.” ¹⁸ And Jesus ^(AA)rebuked the demon,^[b] and it^[c] came out of him, and ^(AB)the boy was healed instantly.^{[d] 19} Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why could we not cast it out?” ²⁰ He said to them, ^(AC)“Because of your little faith. For ^(AD)truly, I say to you, ^(AE)if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, ^(AF)you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move, and ^(AG)nothing will be impossible for you.”^[e]

Jesus Again Foretells Death, Resurrection

^22 (AH)As they were gathering^[f] in Galilee, Jesus said to them, “The Son of Man is about to be delivered into the hands of men, ²³ and they will kill him, and he will be raised on ^(AI)the third day.” And they were greatly distressed.

The Temple Tax

^24 (AJ)When they came to Capernaum, the collectors of ^(AK)the two-drachma tax went up to Peter and said, “Does your teacher not pay the tax?” ²⁵ He said, “Yes.” And when he came into the house, Jesus spoke to him first, saying, ^(AL)“What do you think, Simon? From whom do kings of the earth take toll or ^(AM)tax? From their sons or from others?” ²⁶ And when he said, “From others,” Jesus said to him, “Then the sons are free. ²⁷ However, not to give offense to them, go to the sea and cast a hook and take the first fish that comes up, and when you open its mouth you will find a shekel.^[g] Take that and give it to them for me and for yourself.”

9 And he said to them, “Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not ^(A)taste death ^(B)until they see the kingdom of God after it has come ^(C)with power.”

The Transfiguration

^2 (D)And after six days Jesus took with him ^(E)Peter and James and John, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. And he was ^(F)transfigured before them, ³ and ^(G)his clothes became radiant, intensely white, as no one^[a] on earth could bleach them. ⁴ And there appeared to them Elijah with Moses, and they were talking with Jesus. ⁵ And Peter said to Jesus, ^(H)“Rabbi,^[b] it is good that we are here. Let us make three ^(I)tents, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah.” ⁶ For ^(J)he did not know what to say, for they were terrified. ⁷ And ^(K)a cloud overshadowed them, and ^(L)a voice came out of the cloud, ^(M)“This is my beloved Son;^{[c] (N)}listen to him.” ⁸ And suddenly, looking around, they no longer saw anyone with them but Jesus only.

^9 (O)And as they were coming down the mountain, ^(P)he charged them to tell no one what they had seen, ^(Q)until the Son of Man had risen from the dead. ^10 (R)So they kept the matter to themselves, ^(S)questioning what this rising from the dead might mean. ¹¹ And they asked him, “Why do the scribes say ^(T)that first Elijah must come?” ¹² And he said to them, “Elijah does come first ^(U)to restore all things. And ^(V)how is it written of the Son of Man that he should ^(W)suffer many things and ^(X)be treated with contempt? ¹³ But I tell you that Elijah has come, and ^(Y)they did to him whatever they pleased, as it is written of him.”

Jesus Heals a Boy with an Unclean Spirit

^14 (Z)And when they came to the disciples, they saw a great crowd around them, and scribes arguing with them. ¹⁵ And immediately all the crowd, when they saw him, ^(AA)were greatly amazed and ran up to him and greeted him. ¹⁶ And he asked them, “What are you arguing about with them?” ¹⁷ And someone from the crowd answered him, “Teacher, I brought my son to you, for he has ^(AB)a spirit that makes him mute. ¹⁸ And whenever it seizes him, it throws him down, and he foams and grinds his teeth and becomes rigid. So I asked your disciples to cast it out, and ^(AC)they were not able.” ¹⁹ And he answered them, “O ^(AD)faithless generation, ^(AE)how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him to me.” ²⁰ And they brought the boy to him. And when the spirit saw him, immediately it ^(AF)convulsed the boy, and he fell on the ground and rolled about, foaming at the mouth. ²¹ And Jesus asked his father, “How long has this been happening to him?” And he said, “From childhood. ²² And it has often cast him into fire and into water, to destroy him. But ^(AG)if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.” ²³ And Jesus said to him, ^(AH)“‘If you can’! ^(AI)All things are possible for one who believes.” ²⁴ Immediately the father of the child cried out^[d] and said, “I believe; ^(AJ)help my unbelief!” ²⁵ And when Jesus saw that ^(AK)a crowd came running together, he rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, ^(AL)“You mute and deaf spirit, I command you, come out of him and never enter him again.” ²⁶ And after crying out and ^(AM)convulsing him terribly, it came out, and the boy was like a corpse, so that most of them said, “He is dead.” ²⁷ But Jesus ^(AN)took him by the hand and lifted him up, and he arose. ²⁸ And when he had ^(AO)entered the house, his disciples asked him privately, “Why could we not cast it out?” ²⁹ And he said to them, “This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer.”^[e]

Jesus Again Foretells Death, Resurrection

^30 (AP)They went on from there and passed through Galilee. And he did not want anyone to know, ³¹ for he was teaching his disciples, saying to them, “The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him. And when he is killed, ^(AQ)after three days he will rise.” ^32 (AR)But they did not understand the saying, and were afraid to ask him.

Who Is the Greatest?

³³ And ^(AS)they came to Capernaum. And when he was in the house ^(AT)he asked them, “What were you discussing on the way?” ³⁴ But they kept silent, for on the way ^(AU)they had argued with one another about who was the greatest. ³⁵ And he sat down and called the twelve. And he said to them, ^(AV)“If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all.” ³⁶ And he took a child and put him in the midst of them, and ^(AW)taking him in his arms, he said to them, ^37 (AX)“Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, and ^(AY)whoever receives me, receives not me but him who sent me.”

Anyone Not Against Us Is for Us

^38 (AZ)John said to him, “Teacher, we saw someone ^(BA)casting out demons in your name,^[f] and ^(BB)we tried to stop him, because he was not following us.” ³⁹ But Jesus said, “Do not stop him, for no one who does a mighty work in my name will be able soon afterward to speak evil of me. ^40 (BC)For the one who is not against us is for us. ⁴¹ For truly, I say to you, ^(BD)whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you belong to Christ will by no means lose his reward.

Temptations to Sin

^42 (BE)“Whoever causes one of ^(BF)these little ones who believe in me to sin,^{[g] (BG)}it would be better for him if a great millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea. ^43 (BH)And if your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than with two hands to go to ^(BI)hell,^[h] to ^(BJ)the unquenchable fire.^{[i] 45 (BK)}And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life lame than with two feet to be thrown into ^(BL)hell. ^47 (BM)And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into ^(BN)hell, ⁴⁸ ‘where ^(BO)their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.’ ⁴⁹ For everyone will be salted with fire.^{[j] 50 (BP)}Salt is good, ^(BQ)but if the salt has lost its saltiness, how will you make it salty again? ^(BR)Have salt in yourselves, and ^(BS)be at peace with one another.”