Genesis 39:12

39:12 She grabbed him by his outer garment, saying, “Have sex with me!” But he left his outer garment in her hand and ran¹ outside.²

Genesis 19:38

19:38 The younger daughter also gave birth to a son and named him Ben-Ammi.³ He is the ancestor of the Ammonites of today.

Genesis 23:11

23:11 “No, my lord! Hear me out. I sell⁴ you both the field and the cave that is in it.⁵ In the presence of my people⁶ I sell it to you. Bury your dead.”

Genesis 39:7

39:7 Soon after these things, his master’s wife took notice of⁷ Joseph and said, “Have sex with me.”⁸

Genesis 41:40

41:40 You will oversee my household, and all my people will submit to your commands.⁹ Only I, the king, will be greater than you.¹⁰

Genesis 49:29

49:29 Then he instructed them,¹¹ “I am about to go¹² to my people. Bury me with my fathers in the cave in the field of Ephron the Hittite.

Genesis 39:14

39:14 she called for her household servants and said to them, “See, my husband brought¹³ in a Hebrew man¹⁴ to us to humiliate us.¹⁵ He tried to have sex with me,¹⁶ but I screamed loudly.¹⁷

¹tn Heb “he fled and he went out.” The construction emphasizes the point that Joseph got out of there quickly.

²sn For discussion of this episode, see A. M. Honeyman, “The Occasion of Joseph’s Temptation,” VT 2 (1952): 85-87.

³sn The name Ben-Ammi means “son of my people.” Like the account of Moab’s birth, this story is probably included in the narrative to portray the Ammonites, another perennial enemy of Israel, in a negative light.

⁵tn Heb “give.” The perfect tense has here a present nuance; this is a formal, legally binding declaration. Abraham asked only for a burial site/cave within the field; Ephron agrees to sell him the entire field.

⁶tn The Hebrew text adds “to you I give [i.e., sell] it.” This is redundant in English and has not been translated for stylistic reasons.

⁷tn Heb “in the presence of the sons of my people.”

⁷tn Heb “she lifted up her eyes toward,” an expression that emphasizes her deliberate and careful scrutiny of him.

⁸tn Heb “lie with me.” Here the expression “lie with” is a euphemism for sexual intercourse.

⁹tn Heb “and at your mouth (i.e., instructions) all my people will kiss.” G. J. Wenham translates this “shall kowtow to your instruction” (Genesis [WBC], 2:395). Although there is some textual support for reading “will be judged, ruled by you,” this is probably an attempt to capture the significance of this word. Wenham lists a number of references where individuals have tried to make connections with other words or expressions – such as a root meaning “order themselves” lying behind “kiss,” or an idiomatic idea of “kiss” meaning “seal the mouth,” and so “be silent and submit to.” See K. A. Kitchen, “The Term Nsq in Genesis 41:40,” ExpTim 69 (1957): 30; D. S. Sperling, “Genesis 41:40: A New Interpretation,” JANESCU 10 (1978): 113-19.

¹⁰tn Heb “only the throne, I will be greater than you.”

¹¹tn The Hebrew text adds “and he said to them,” which is not included in the translation because it is redundant in English.

¹²tn Heb “I am about to be gathered” The participle is used here to describe what is imminent.

¹³tn The verb has no expressed subject, and so it could be treated as a passive (“a Hebrew man was brought in”; cf. NIV). But it is clear from the context that her husband brought Joseph into the household, so Potiphar is the apparent referent here. Thus the translation supplies “my husband” as the referent of the unspecified pronominal subject of the verb (cf. NEB, NRSV).

¹⁴sn A Hebrew man. Potiphar’s wife raises the ethnic issue when talking to her servants about what their boss had done.

¹⁵tn Heb “to make fun of us.” The verb translated “to humiliate us” here means to hold something up for ridicule, or to toy with something harmfully. Attempted rape would be such an activity, for it would hold the victim in contempt.

¹⁶tn Heb “he came to me to lie with me.” Here the expression “lie with” is a euphemism for sexual intercourse.

¹⁷tn Heb “and I cried out with a loud voice.”