John Calvin 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)

And it came to pass after these things. We have already seen that when Joseph was in bonds, God cared for him. For how did the relief afforded him arise, but from the divine favor? Therefore, God, before he opened the door for his servant’s deliverance, entered into the very prison to sustain him with his strength.

But a far more illustrious benefit follows; for he is not only liberated from prison but exalted to the highest degree of honor. In the meantime, the providence of God led the holy man through wonderful and most intricate paths. The butler and baker of the king are cast into the prison; Joseph expounds to them their dreams.

Restoration to his office having been promised to the butler, some light of hope beamed upon the holy captive; for the butler agreed that, after he returned to his post, he would become the advocate for Joseph’s pardon. But, again, that hope was speedily cut off when the butler failed to speak a word to the king on behalf of the miserable captive.

Joseph, therefore, seemed to himself to be buried in perpetual oblivion, until the Lord again suddenly rekindled the light which had been smothered and almost extinguished. Thus, although he could have delivered the holy man directly from prison, he chose to lead him around by circuitous paths, the better to prove his patience, and to manifest, by the mode of his deliverance, that he has wonderful methods of working, hidden from our view.

He does this so that we may learn not to measure, by our own sense, the salvation which he has promised us; but that we may instead allow ourselves to be turned this way or that way by his hand, until he has performed his work. By the butler and the baker, we are not to understand any common person of each rank, but those who presided over the rest; for, soon afterwards, they are called eunuchs or nobles.

Ridiculous is the fiction of the trifler Gerundensis, who, according to his manner, asserts that they were made eunuchs as a mark of infamy, because Pharaoh had been enraged against them. They were, in short, two of the chief men of the court. Moses now more clearly declares that the prison was under the authority of Potiphar.

From this we learn what I have said before: that his anger had been mitigated, since without his consent, the jailer could not have acted with such clemency towards Joseph. Even Moses ascribes such a measure of humanity to Potiphar that he committed the butler and baker to the charge of Joseph.

Unless, perhaps, a new successor had then been appointed in Potiphar’s place; which, however, is easily refuted from the context, because a little afterwards Moses says that the master of Joseph was the captain of the guard (Genesis 40:3). When Moses says they were kept in prison a season, some understand by the word, a whole year; but in my judgment, they are mistaken. It rather denotes a long but uncertain time, as appears from other places.