Literally, “the cup-bearer,” an important court official. He was responsible personally for tasting everything the king drank, as a guarantee that it was free from poison and other harmful ingredients.
The baker.
The officer who supervised (v. 2) the preparation of the king’s food and was responsible for the purity of everything that came to the royal table.
Had offended.
Some incident, apparently, had aroused Pharaoh’s suspicion that either or both of the two high officials were involved in an attempt to poison him. That one of the two was later restored to office and the other executed indicates that investigation had convinced the king of the innocence of the one and the guilt of the other.
The Judicial Papyrus of Turin offers a most interesting parallel to the story of the butler and the baker who had fallen from royal favor. It contains the record of the trial of a number of high-ranking officials accused of conspiracy against the life of Ramses III, and is dated about 1164 B.C. Unfortunately, the papyrus is not complete, and we do not know the means employed by the conspirators against the life of the king, nor do we know whether the plot was successful. The parts of the document that have been preserved, however, provide information on how such cases were handled in ancient Egypt. The defendants in this trial were several butlers, scribes, and other high officials. Some were sentenced to be executed, others were found guilty but were allowed to take their own life, some were punished by cutting off their noses, and ears, and one was only rebuked and received no punishment. A number of judicial officers also were prosecuted for carousing with some of the defendants during the period of investigation.