Genesis 39:1-6

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 from ³  the Ishmaelites who had brought him there. 39:2 The Lord was with Joseph. He was successful ⁴  and lived ⁵  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 Joseph ⁸  overseer of his household and put him in charge ⁹  of everything he owned. 39:5 From the time ¹⁰  Potiphar ¹¹  appointed him over his household and over all that he owned, the Lord blessed ¹²  the Egyptian’s household for Joseph’s sake. The blessing of the Lord was on everything that he had, both ¹³  in his house and in his fields. ¹⁴  39:6 So Potiphar ¹⁵  left ¹⁶  everything he had in Joseph’s care; ¹⁷  he gave no thought ¹⁸  to anything except the food he ate. ¹⁹ 

Now Joseph was well built and good-looking. ²⁰ 

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

[39:1]  ³ tn Heb “from the hand of.”

[39:2]  ⁴ tn 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]  ⁵ tn Heb “and he was.”

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

[39:4]  ⁷ sn 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]  ⁸ tn Heb “him”; the referent (Joseph) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[39:4]  ⁹ tn Heb “put into his hand.”

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

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

[39:5]  ¹² sn 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]  ¹³ tn Heb “in the house and in the field.” The word “both” has been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[39:5]  ¹⁴ sn 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]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Potiphar) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[39:6]  ¹⁶ sn 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]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “hand.” This is a metonymy for being under the control or care of Joseph.

[39:6]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “did not know.”

[39:6]  ¹⁹ sn 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]  ²⁰ tn Heb “handsome of form and handsome of appearance.” The same Hebrew expressions were used in Gen 29:17 for Rachel.