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The Chief Baker Responds to Joseph
“And Joseph answered and said, This is the interpretation
thereof: The three baskets are three days: Yet within three days
shall Pharaoh lift up thy head from off thee, and shall hang thee
on a tree; and the birds shall eat thy flesh from off thee.”
—Genesis 40:18–19
Joseph, I do appreciate
Your take on things, which is first rate—
If I were you and finally free,
I’d get myself a PhD.
Is it correct, though? You’ll reply,
“Yes; it’s from God.” Well, I don’t buy
There’s only one, so who’s to say
He’s right? Some other god, by way
Of any mouth, could say my dream
Points to Pharaoh’s high esteem
For me and that the butler’s points
To Pharaoh’s treading his old joints.
Which god should we believe? It’s hard
To say. It’s best, then, to regard
All readings with suspicion. Please
Don’t get me wrong—I love to tease
Out parables and such: the mind
Craves diversion from this grind.
But let’s just treat it as good fun,
Not deem a view the only one.
.
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David Culwell holds a bachelor of journalism from the University of Texas at Austin and an MFA in fiction from Bowling Green State University. His fiction and poetry have appeared in, among other journals, Wisconsin Review, The MacGuffin, Think, The Merton Seasonal, Anglican Theological Review, The Road Not Taken, The Carolina Quarterly, and Blue Unicorn. He lives in College Station, Texas, where he works as a senior technical editor.
David, I love your humorous take on this Genesis story. As many times as I’d read it, it hadn’t ever occurred to me that the baker and butler may have doubted Joseph’s dream interpretation. But of course, the Egyptians weren’t monotheists. And after all, they had three days to think about it. “I’d get myself a PhD.” is very funny! Thanks for the morning laugh!
Hi Cynthia,
Thank you for your comments. Glad you enjoyed the poem!
Alas, for the self-deceived baker! How many of his points can be heard from happy secularists and amused pluralists (by which I mean those who hold many philosophies and religions to be of equal worth). These include adherents of religion who choose for themselves whether or not to practice the tenets of the creed they claim. “The mind craves diversion,” not discipline. Good work, David, in creating this character who missed three days of opportunity to prepare for discovering which god is the true one.
Thank you, Margaret!