Genesis 39:1-14

Context

Joseph and Potiphar’s Wife

39:1 Now Joseph had been brought down to Egypt.¹ An Egyptian named Potiphar, an official of Pharaoh and the captain of the guard,² purchased him from³ the Ishmaelites who had brought him there. 39:2 The Lord was with Joseph. He was successful⁴ and lived⁵ in the household of his Egyptian master. 39:3 His master observed that the Lord was with him and that the Lord made everything he was doing successful.⁶ 39:4 So Joseph found favor in his sight and became his personal attendant.⁷ Potiphar appointed Joseph⁸ overseer of his household and put him in charge⁹ of everything he owned. 39:5 From the time¹⁰ Potiphar¹¹ appointed him over his household and over all that he owned, the Lord blessed¹² the Egyptian’s household for Joseph’s sake. The blessing of the Lord was on everything that he had, both¹³ in his house and in his fields.¹⁴ 39:6 So Potiphar¹⁵ left¹⁶ everything he had in Joseph’s care;¹⁷ he gave no thought¹⁸ to anything except the food he ate.¹⁹

Now Joseph was well built and good-looking.²⁰ 39:7 Soon after these things, his master’s wife took notice of²¹ Joseph and said, “Have sex with me.”²² 39:8 But he refused, saying²³ to his master’s wife, “Look, my master does not give any thought²⁴ to his household with me here,²⁵ and everything that he owns he has put into my care.²⁶ 39:9 There is no one greater in this household than I am. He has withheld nothing from me except you because you are his wife. So how could I do²⁷ such a great evil and sin against God?” 39:10 Even though she continued to speak²⁸ to Joseph day after day, he did not respond²⁹ to her invitation to have sex with her.³⁰

39:11 One day³¹ he went into the house to do his work when none of the household servants³² were there in the house. 39:12 She grabbed him by his outer garment, saying, “Have sex with me!” But he left his outer garment in her hand and ran³³ outside.³⁴ 39:13 When she saw that he had left his outer garment in her hand and had run outside, 39:14 she called for her household servants and said to them, “See, my husband brought³⁵ in a Hebrew man³⁶ to us to humiliate us.³⁷ He tried to have sex with me,³⁸ but I screamed loudly.³⁹

[39:1] ¹tn The disjunctive clause resumes the earlier narrative pertaining to Joseph by recapitulating the event described in 37:36. The perfect verbal form is given a past perfect translation to restore the sequence of the narrative for the reader.

[39:1] ²sn Captain of the guard. See the note on this phrase in Gen 37:36.

[39:1] ³tn Heb “from the hand of.”

[39:2] ⁴tn Heb “and he was a prosperous man.” This does not mean that Joseph became wealthy, but that he was successful in what he was doing, or making progress in his situation (see 24:21).

[39:2] ⁵tn Heb “and he was.”

[39:3] ⁶tn The Hebrew text adds “in his hand,” a phrase not included in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[39:4] ⁷sn The Hebrew verb translated became his personal attendant refers to higher domestic service, usually along the lines of a personal attendant. Here Joseph is made the household steward, a position well-attested in Egyptian literature.

[39:4] ⁸tn Heb “him”; the referent (Joseph) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[39:4] ⁹tn Heb “put into his hand.”

[39:5] ¹⁰tn Heb “and it was from then.”

[39:5] ¹¹tn Heb “he”; the referent (Potiphar) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[39:5] ¹²sn The Hebrew word translated blessed carries the idea of enrichment, prosperity, success. It is the way believers describe success at the hand of God. The text illustrates the promise made to Abraham that whoever blesses his descendants will be blessed (Gen 12:1-3).

[39:5] ¹³tn Heb “in the house and in the field.” The word “both” has been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[39:5] ¹⁴sn The passage gives us a good picture of Joseph as a young man who was responsible and faithful, both to his master and to his God. This happened within a very short time of his being sold into Egypt. It undermines the view that Joseph was a liar, a tattletale, and an arrogant adolescent.

[39:6] ¹⁵tn Heb “he”; the referent (Potiphar) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[39:6] ¹⁶sn The Hebrew verb translated left indicates he relinquished the care of it to Joseph. This is stronger than what was said earlier. Apparently Potiphar had come to trust Joseph so much that he knew it was in better care with Joseph than with anyone else.

[39:6] ¹⁷tn Heb “hand.” This is a metonymy for being under the control or care of Joseph.

[39:6] ¹⁸tn Heb “did not know.”

[39:6] ¹⁹sn The expression except the food he ate probably refers to Potiphar’s private affairs and should not be limited literally to what he ate.

[39:6] ²⁰tn Heb “handsome of form and handsome of appearance.” The same Hebrew expressions were used in Gen 29:17 for Rachel.

[39:7] ²¹tn Heb “she lifted up her eyes toward,” an expression that emphasizes her deliberate and careful scrutiny of him.

[39:7] ²²tn Heb “lie with me.” Here the expression “lie with” is a euphemism for sexual intercourse.

[39:8] ²³tn Heb “and he said.”

[39:8] ²⁴tn Heb “know.”

[39:8] ²⁵tn The word “here” has been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[39:8] ²⁶tn Heb “hand.” This is a metonymy for being under the control or care of Joseph.

[39:9] ²⁷tn The nuance of potential imperfect fits this context.

[39:10] ²⁸tn The verse begins with the temporal indicator, followed by the infinitive construct with the preposition כְּ (kÿ). This clause could therefore be taken as temporal.

[39:10] ²⁹tn Heb “listen to.”

[39:10] ³⁰tn Heb “to lie beside her to be with her.” Here the expression “to lie beside” is a euphemism for sexual intercourse.

[39:11] ³¹tn Heb “and it was about this day.”

[39:11] ³²tn Heb “the men of the house.”

[39:12] ³³tn Heb “he fled and he went out.” The construction emphasizes the point that Joseph got out of there quickly.

[39:12] ³⁴sn For discussion of this episode, see A. M. Honeyman, “The Occasion of Joseph’s Temptation,” VT 2 (1952): 85-87.

[39:14] ³⁵tn 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).

[39:14] ³⁶sn A Hebrew man. Potiphar’s wife raises the ethnic issue when talking to her servants about what their boss had done.

[39:14] ³⁷tn 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.

[39:14] ³⁸tn Heb “he came to me to lie with me.” Here the expression “lie with” is a euphemism for sexual intercourse.

[39:14] ³⁹tn Heb “and I cried out with a loud voice.”