Genesis 40:18
ESV
And Joseph answered and said, "This is its interpretation: the three baskets are three days.
NIV
"This is what it means," Joseph said. "The three baskets are three days.
NASB
Then Joseph answered and said, 'This is its interpretation: the three baskets are three days;
CSB
"This is its interpretation," Joseph replied. "The three baskets are three days.
NLT
This is what the dream means,' Joseph told him. 'The three baskets also represent three days.
KJV
And Joseph answered and said, This is the interpretation thereof: The three baskets are three days:
NKJV
So Joseph answered and said, “This is the interpretation of it: The three baskets are three days.
What does Genesis 40:18 mean?
Joseph has interpreted the cupbearer's dream: he would be restored to his position in three days (Genesis 40:9–13). Now Joseph interprets the baker's dream (Genesis 40:16–17). Unlike the cupbearer, whose future involves restoration, the outcome is far less favorable for the baker.Numbers seen in Biblical dreams often carry deep significance (Genesis 37:9; 41:1–8). Joseph begins by noting that the three baskets the baker carried on his head represent three days. This is just as the three branches in the cupbearer's dream represented three days. Both men will see their fates revealed in that time, but the baker's will be an unhappy one (Genesis 40:19).
