Free Bible lesson for kids · Joseph
The Butler and the Baker
In prison Joseph looked after Pharaoh’s chief butler and chief baker, and one morning they were sad because each had dreamed a dream. Joseph said, “Do not interpretations belong to God?” and God showed him what the dreams meant, and both came true just as Joseph said: in three days the butler was serving Pharaoh again. Joseph asked the butler to remember him, but the butler forgot him.
- Bible passage
- Genesis 40:1–23
- Big idea
- People may forget us, but God never does, so we can wait on Him.
- Memory verse
Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD.
Psalm 27:14 (KJV)- Ages
- Preschool to preteen (3 to 12), with tips for each age
- Time
- About 45 minutes
- Included, free
- Animated story film, coloring page, class sheet, teacher guide, questions and answers, a game
The story
Pharaoh was angry with his chief butler and chief baker and put them in the prison with Joseph (Genesis 40:1–3). One night each dreamed a dream, and in the morning they were sad (Genesis 40:5–6). They said no one could tell them what their dreams meant, but Joseph said, “Do not interpretations belong to God? tell me them, I pray you” (Genesis 40:8).
The butler dreamed of a vine with three branches, and Joseph said in three days he would get his place back (Genesis 40:9–13). Joseph asked the butler to “think on me when it shall be well with thee” (Genesis 40:14). The baker dreamed of three baskets, and Joseph told him that in three days Pharaoh would put him to death (Genesis 40:16–19). On Pharaoh’s birthday it happened just as Joseph said (Genesis 40:20–22). “Yet did not the chief butler remember Joseph, but forgat him” (Genesis 40:23).
Read it in the Bible: Genesis 40:1–23 (KJV)
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. 2And Pharaoh was wroth against two of his officers, against the chief of the butlers, and against the chief of the bakers. 3And he put them in ward in the house of the captain of the guard, into the prison, the place where Joseph was bound. 4And the captain of the guard charged Joseph with them, and he served them: and they continued a season in ward. 5And they dreamed a dream both of them, each man his dream in one night, each man according to the interpretation of his dream, the butler and the baker of the king of Egypt, which were bound in the prison. 6And Joseph came in unto them in the morning, and looked upon them, and, behold, they were sad. 7And he asked Pharaoh’s officers that were with him in the ward of his lord’s house, saying, Wherefore look ye so sadly to day? 8And they said unto him, We have dreamed a dream, and there is no interpreter of it. And Joseph said unto them, Do not interpretations belong to God? tell me them, I pray you. 9And the chief butler told his dream to Joseph, and said to him, In my dream, behold, a vine was before me; 10And in the vine were three branches: and it was as though it budded, and her blossoms shot forth; and the clusters thereof brought forth ripe grapes: 11And Pharaoh’s cup was in my hand: and I took the grapes, and pressed them into Pharaoh’s cup, and I gave the cup into Pharaoh’s hand. 12And Joseph said unto him, This is the interpretation of it: The three branches are three days: 13Yet within three days shall Pharaoh lift up thine head, and restore thee unto thy place: and thou shalt deliver Pharaoh’s cup into his hand, after the former manner when thou wast his butler. 14But think on me when it shall be well with thee, and shew kindness, I pray thee, unto me, and make mention of me unto Pharaoh, and bring me out of this house: 15For indeed I was stolen away out of the land of the Hebrews: and here also have I done nothing that they should put me into the dungeon. 16When the chief baker saw that the interpretation was good, he said unto Joseph, I also was in my dream, and, behold, I had three white baskets on my head: 17And in the uppermost basket there was of all manner of bakemeats for Pharaoh; and the birds did eat them out of the basket upon my head. 18And Joseph answered and said, This is the interpretation thereof: The three baskets are three days: 19Yet 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. 20And it came to pass the third day, which was Pharaoh’s birthday, that he made a feast unto all his servants: and he lifted up the head of the chief butler and of the chief baker among his servants. 21And he restored the chief butler unto his butlership again; and he gave the cup into Pharaoh’s hand: 22But he hanged the chief baker: as Joseph had interpreted to them. 23Yet did not the chief butler remember Joseph, but forgat him.
Questions to ask
Why were the butler and the baker sad?
They had dreamed dreams, and there was no interpreter (Genesis 40:8).
What did Joseph say about the meaning of dreams?
“Do not interpretations belong to God?” (Genesis 40:8).
What did the butler do after he was given his place again?
He did not remember Joseph, but forgat him (Genesis 40:23).
What this story teaches
- Only God can make known what is hidden (Genesis 40:8).
- Even in hard times, we can care for sad people (Genesis 40:6–7).
- God’s word always comes true, just as He says (Genesis 40:22).
- People may forget us, but God never forgets His own (Isaiah 49:15).
- We can wait on the LORD, and He will strengthen us (Psalm 27:14).
Jesus Remembers Us
The butler forgot Joseph. But when a man on a cross beside Jesus asked to be remembered, Jesus said, “To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.”
Luke 23:42–43
A 45-minute lesson plan
| 5 min | Welcome and pray. Greet each child by name and pray: Ask God to help us be patient and keep trusting Him while we wait. |
|---|---|
| 10 min | The story. Play the story film: each verse appears on screen in the King James Version while the scene plays. Pause to ask what happens next. |
| 10 min | Talk about it. Ask the three questions below. Then ask: “People may forget us, but God never does, so we can wait on Him.” What does that mean for us? |
| 5 min | Memory verse. Say Psalm 27:14 together, covering one word at a time until the children can say it alone. |
| 10 min | Activity. Younger children color the coloring page while you retell the story; older children do the class sheet (memory-verse fill-in, word search and questions). |
| 5 min | Pray and send home. Pray together and send the sheet home so families can talk about the first question this week. |
- Preschool: keep it short and physical. Act out the story, use a simple prop, and repeat the big idea in one sentence.
- Elementary: let children find the passage in their own Bibles. Ask “who, what, where” questions first, then “why.”
- Preteens: read the verses before and after the passage, and ask how this story fits the whole story of the Bible.
Game time
For kids · game · indoors · about 10 minutes
Don’t Forget!
You need: A tray with twelve small objects, a cloth
- Show the tray for thirty seconds, then cover it.
- Kids try to remember and name every object.
- Take one away secretly and see who can tell what’s missing.
The butler forgot Joseph, but God never forgot him. God never forgets you.
For youth group · activity · indoors · about 30 minutes
Remember Them
You need: Cards, the names of shut-ins or nursing home residents from your church
- Talk about people who feel forgotten.
- Write cards or record short video greetings for church members who can’t get out.
- Plan a visit if you can.
The butler forgot Joseph for two years. Let’s be people who remember.
Pray
Ask God to help us be patient and keep trusting Him while we wait.