Charles Ellicott Commentary Genesis 40:1

"And it came to pass after these things, that the butler of the king of Egypt and his baker offended their lord the king of Egypt." — Genesis 40:1 (ASV)

Butler. — Hebrew, one who gives to drink, cupbearer.

As we learn from Genesis 40:11 that it was grape wine which he gave the king to drink, this chapter has been the main reliance of new critics for their argument that the Book of Genesis was not written by Moses. For Herodotus (Book 1, Section 77) states, “The Egyptians make use of wine prepared from barley, because there are no vineyards in their country.” Since Herodotus wrote thirteen centuries after the time of Joseph, these critics contend that not only could the vine not have been introduced into Egypt at such an early date, but also that the records of Joseph’s life could not have been compiled by anyone acquainted with Egypt, despite their otherwise exact knowledge of Egyptian customs.

But when we turn to Herodotus himself, we find the most complete refutation of this statement. For, in Book 2, Section 37, speaking of the generous treatment of the priests, he says that they received an allowance of “grape wine.” Furthermore,Genesis 39:0 tells us that it was the custom to pour wine on a victim about to be sacrificed.

To one accustomed to the extensive vineyards of Greece and Asia Minor, the comparative scarcity of the vine in Egypt, and the use of another common drink in its place, would be striking. However, that Herodotus was guilty of gross exaggeration in his statement is proven by evidence far more trustworthy than his own writings. For, on the tombs at Beni Hassan (which predate the time of Joseph), on those at Thebes, and on the Pyramids, there are representations of vines grown in every way—except the method usual in Italy of festooning them on trees. Every process of the vintage is depicted: grapes in baskets, men trampling them in vats, various forms of presses for squeezing out the juice, jars for storing it, and even various stages of fermentation.

Numerous engravings of the sculptures and paintings on these ancient monuments can be seen in Wilkinson’s Egypt. Furthermore, abundant evidence for the cultivation of the vine in ancient Egypt has been collected, and an account of the vines grown there is provided in Malan’s Philosophy or Truth (pages 31-39). Egypt neither is, nor ever was, a great wine-producing country, but the vine existed from one end of the land to the other, as it does to this day.

Baker. — Wilkinson, in Ancient Egyptians (Volume 2, pages 38-39), provides proof from the monuments that the Egyptians had developed the art of making confectionery to a very high degree of perfection.