Genesis 39
39
Joseph and Potiphar’s Wife
1#Ge 37:25; 37:36Now Joseph was brought down to Egypt, and Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, captain of the guard, an Egyptian, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had brought him down there.
2#Ge 21:22; 26:24The Lord was with Joseph, so that he became a prosperous man. He was in the house of his master, the Egyptian. 3#Ps 1:3; Ge 21:22His master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord made all that he did to prosper. 4#Ge 19:19; 24:2Joseph found favor in his sight and served him. So he made him overseer over his house, and all that he had he put under his charge. 5#Ge 30:27From the time that he had made him overseer in his house and over all that he had, the Lord blessed the Egyptian’s house on account of Joseph. So the blessing of the Lord was on all that he had in the house and in the field. 6#1Sa 16:12; Ge 29:17So he left all that he had in Joseph’s charge, and he had no concerns regarding anything except the food he ate.
Now Joseph was handsome and well-built. 7#2Sa 13:11After a time, his master’s wife took notice of Joseph and said, “Lie with me.”
8But he refused and said to his master’s wife, “My master does not concern himself with anything concerning me in the house, and he has committed all that he has to my charge. 9#2Sa 12:13; Ge 20:6There is none greater in this house than I. He has kept nothing back from me but you, because you are his wife. How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?” 10She spoke to Joseph every day, but he did not listen to her about lying with her or being with her.
11But it happened one day that Joseph went into the house to do his work, and none of the men of the house was there. 12#Ecc 7:26She caught him by his clothing, saying, “Lie with me.” But he left his clothing in her hand and fled and got outside.
13When she saw that he had left his clothing in her hand and had fled outside, 14she called to the men of her house and spoke to them, saying, “See, he has brought in a Hebrew among us to humiliate us. He came in to me to lie with me, and I cried out with a loud voice. 15When he heard that I lifted up my voice and cried out, he left his clothing with me, fled, and got outside.”
16She laid up his clothing next to her until his master came home. 17#Ex 23:1She spoke to him using these words, saying, “The Hebrew servant, whom you have brought to us, came in to me to mock me. 18When I lifted up my voice and cried out, he left his clothing with me and fled outside.”
19When his master heard the words of his wife, which she spoke to him, saying, “This is what your servant did to me,” he became enraged. 20#Ge 40:15Joseph’s master took him and put him into the prison, a place where the king’s prisoners were confined.
So he was there in the prison. 21#Ex 3:21; Ge 39:2But the Lord was with Joseph and showed him mercy and gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison. 22#Ge 39:4; 40:3–4The keeper of the prison committed all the prisoners that were in the prison to the charge of Joseph. So whatever they did there, he was the one responsible for it. 23#Ge 39:2–3The keeper of the prison did not concern himself with anything that was under Joseph’s charge because the Lord was with him. And whatever he did, the Lord made it to prosper.
Military Bible Association
Genesis 39
39
1Joseph had been taken to Egypt by the Ishmaelites, who had sold him to Potiphar, an Egyptian who was one of Pharaoh's officers, the commander of the royal guard.
2The Lord was with Joseph and made him successful. He lived in his Egyptian master's house. 3His master noticed that the Lord was with him and made him successful in everything he did. 4Potiphar appreciated Joseph and his service, and put him in charge of his household and made him responsible for everything he owned. 5From the time he put Joseph in charge and trusted him with all he had, the Lord blessed Potiphar's household because of Joseph. The Lord blessed everything he had, whether in his house or in his fields. 6So Potiphar left Joseph to care for everything he owned. He didn't bother with anything except to decide what food he was going to eat.
Now Joseph was handsome, having a good physique, 7so some time later he caught the eye of his master's wife. She propositioned him, saying, “Come here! Sleep with me!”
8But he turned her down, telling his master's wife, “Look, my master trusts me so much#39:8. “Trusts me so much”: supplied for clarity. he doesn't even bother to find out how his household is running. He's put me in charge of everything he owns— 9no one in this house has more authority than me! He hasn't held back anything from me except you, because you are his wife. So how could I do such an evil thing as this, and sin against God?”
10Day after day she persisted in asking him, but he refused to sleep with her and tried to avoid her. 11But one day he went into the house to do his work and none of the other servants were there. 12She grabbed him by his clothing,#39:12. “Clothing”: the Hebrew word is a general word for clothing and is not specific. However, ancient Egyptian art depicts servants as wearing only a loincloth, and it is likely this what was Joseph was wearing. It also fits the story in that this piece of cloth could easily have been torn off. However, since nothing specific is mentioned, the general term is used here. and demanded, “Sleep with me!” But leaving his clothing in her hand, he ran out of the house.
13Seeing that he'd left his clothing in her hand, and had run out of the house, 14she shouted out to her servants, “Look at this! He#39:14. Referring to her husband. It's interesting that she simply refers to him as “he,” an indication of her lack of respect for him, also evidenced by her willingness to commit adultery. brought this Hebrew slave here to dishonor us! This man came to try and rape me, but I screamed at the top of my voice. 15When he heard me scream for help, he left his clothing beside me and ran outside.”
16She kept his clothing with her until her husband came home. 17Then she told him her story. It went like this: “That Hebrew slave you brought here tried to come and dishonor me. 18But as soon as I screamed and called for help, he left his clothing beside me and ran outside.”
19When Potiphar heard the story his wife told him, saying, “This is what your servant did to me,” he became angry. 20He took Joseph and put him in the prison where the king's prisoners were kept, and there he stayed. 21But the Lord was with Joseph, showing him trustworthy love, and made the chief jailer pleased with him. 22So the chief jailer put Joseph in charge of all the prisoners there and gave him the responsibility for running the prison. 23The chief jailer didn't bother with anything for Joseph took care of it all for the Lord was with him and made him successful.
Dr. Jonathan Gallagher. Released under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 Unported License. Version 4.3. For corrections send email to jonathangallagherfbv@gmail.com