Genesis 39
39
Joseph and Potiphar’s Wife
1Meanwhile, Joseph had been taken down to Egypt, where an Egyptian named Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh and captain of the guard, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had taken him there. 2And the Lord was with Joseph, and he became a successful man, serving in the household of his Egyptian master.
3When his master saw that the Lord was with him and made him prosper in all he did, 4Joseph found favor in his sight and became his personal attendant.
Potiphar put him in charge of his household and entrusted him with everything he owned. 5From the time that he put Joseph in charge of his household and all he owned, the Lord blessed the Egyptian’s household on account of him. The Lord’s blessing was on everything he owned, both in his house and in his field. 6So Potiphar left all that he owned in Joseph’s care; he did not concern himself with anything except the food he ate.
Now Joseph was well-built and handsome, 7and after some time his master’s wife cast her eyes upon Joseph and said, “Sleep with me.”
8But he refused. “Look,” he said to his master’s wife, “with me here, my master does not concern himself with anything in his house, and he has entrusted everything he owns to my care. 9No one in this house is greater than I am. He has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. So how could I do such a great evil and sin against God?”
10Although Potiphar’s wife spoke to Joseph day after day, he refused to go to bed with her or even be near her. 11One day, however, Joseph went into the house to attend to his work, and not a single household servant was inside. 12She grabbed Joseph by his cloak and said, “Sleep with me!” But leaving his cloak in her hand, he escaped and ran outside.
Joseph Falsely Imprisoned
13When she saw that he had left his cloak in her hand and had run out of the house, 14she called her household servants. “Look,” she said, “this Hebrew has been brought to us to make sport of us. He came to me so he could sleep with me, but I screamed as loud as I could. 15When he heard me scream for help, he left his cloak beside me and ran out of the house.”
16So Potiphar’s wife kept Joseph’s cloak beside her until his master came home. 17Then she told him the same story: “The Hebrew slave you brought us came to me to make sport of me, 18but when I screamed for help, he left his cloak beside me and ran out of the house.”
19When his master heard the story his wife told him, saying, “This is what your slave did to me,” he burned with anger. 20So Joseph’s master took him and had him thrown into the prison where the king’s prisoners were confined.
While Joseph was there in the prison, 21the Lord was with him and extended kindness to him, granting him favor in the eyes of the prison warden. 22And the warden put all the prisoners under Joseph’s care, so that he was responsible for all that was done in the prison. 23The warden did not concern himself with anything under Joseph’s care, because the Lord was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did.
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Genesis 39
39
1After Joseph had been taken to Egypt by the Ishmaelites, Potiphar an Egyptian, one of Pharaoh’s officials and the manager of his household, bought him from them.
2-6a As it turned out, God was with Joseph and things went very well with him. He ended up living in the home of his Egyptian master. His master recognized that God was with him, saw that God was working for good in everything he did. He became very fond of Joseph and made him his personal aide. He put him in charge of all his personal affairs, turning everything over to him. From that moment on, God blessed the home of the Egyptian—all because of Joseph. The blessing of God spread over everything he owned, at home and in the fields, and all Potiphar had to concern himself with was eating three meals a day.
6b-7 Joseph was a strikingly handsome man. As time went on, his master’s wife became infatuated with Joseph and one day said, “Sleep with me.”
8-9He wouldn’t do it. He said to his master’s wife, “Look, with me here, my master doesn’t give a second thought to anything that goes on here—he’s put me in charge of everything he owns. He treats me as an equal. The only thing he hasn’t turned over to me is you. You’re his wife, after all! How could I violate his trust and sin against God?”
10She pestered him day after day after day, but he stood his ground. He refused to go to bed with her.
11-15On one of these days he came to the house to do his work and none of the household servants happened to be there. She grabbed him by his cloak, saying, “Sleep with me!” He left his coat in her hand and ran out of the house. When she realized that he had left his coat in her hand and run outside, she called to her house servants: “Look—this Hebrew shows up and before you know it he’s trying to seduce us. He tried to make love to me but I yelled as loud as I could. With all my yelling and screaming, he left his coat beside me here and ran outside.”
16-18She kept his coat right there until his master came home. She told him the same story. She said, “The Hebrew slave, the one you brought to us, came after me and tried to use me for his plaything. When I yelled and screamed, he left his coat with me and ran outside.”
19-23When his master heard his wife’s story, telling him, “These are the things your slave did to me,” he was furious. Joseph’s master took him and threw him into the jail where the king’s prisoners were locked up. But there in jail God was still with Joseph: He reached out in kindness to him; he put him on good terms with the head jailer. The head jailer put Joseph in charge of all the prisoners—he ended up managing the whole operation. The head jailer gave Joseph free rein, never even checked on him, because God was with him; whatever he did God made sure it worked out for the best.
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THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved. Used by permission of NavPress. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers.