76 | Genesis 38:30
out !” And he was named Pe rez . a 30 Then his brother , who had the scar let thread on his wrist , came out . And he was named Ze rah . b
Joseph and Potiphar ’ s Wife
Now Jo seph had been tak en down to
39 Egypt . Pot i phar , an Egyp tian who was one of Phar aoh ’ s of fi cials , the cap tain of the guard , bought him from the Ish ma el ites who had tak en him there .
2
The Lord was with Jo seph so that he pros pered , and he lived in the house of his Egyp tian mas ter .
3
When his mas ter saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord gave him suc cess in ev ery thing he did , 4 Jo seph found fa vor in his eyes and be came his at ten dant . Pot i phar put him in charge of his house hold , and he en trust ed to his care ev ery thing he owned . 5 From the time he put him in charge of his house hold and of all that he owned , the Lord blessed the house hold of the Egyp tian be cause of Jo seph . The bless ing of the Lord was on ev ery thing Pot i phar had , both in the house and in the field .
6
So Pot i phar left ev ery thing he had in Jo seph ’ s care ; with Jo seph in charge , he did not con cern him self with any thing ex cept the food he ate .
Now Jo seph was well built and hand some , 7 and af ter a while his mas ter ’ s wife took no tice of Joseph and said , “ Come to bed with me !”
8
But he re fused . “ With me in charge ,” he told her , “ my mas ter does not con cern him self with any thing in the house ; ev ery thing he owns he has en trust ed to my care . 9 No one is great er in this house than I am . My mas ter has with held noth ing from me ex cept you , be cause you are his wife . How then could I do such a wick ed thing and sin against God ?”
10
And though she spoke to Jo seph day af ter day , he re fused to go to bed with her or even be with her .
11
One day he went into the house to at tend to his du ties , and none of the house hold ser vants was in side . 12 She caught him by his cloak and said , “ Come to bed with me !” But he left his cloak in her hand and ran out of the house .
13
When she saw that he had left his cloak in her hand and had run out of the house , 14 she called her house hold ser vants . “ Look ,” she said to them , “ this He brew has been brought to us to make sport of us ! He came in here to sleep with me , but I screamed . 15 When he heard me scream for help , he left his cloak be side me and ran out of the house .”
16
She kept his cloak be side her un til his master came home . 17 Then she told him this sto ry : “ That He brew slave you brought us came to me to make sport of me . 18 But as soon as I screamed for help , he left his cloak be side me and ran out of the house .”
19
When his mas ter heard the sto ry his wife told him , say ing , “ This is how your slave treat ed me ,” he burned with an ger . 20 Jo seph ’ s mas ter took him and put him in pris on , the place where the king ’ s pris on ers were con fined .
a
29 Perez means breaking out . or brightness . b
30 Zerah can mean scarlet
38:30 Zerah This name means “ shining ” or “ brightness ,” which is probably an association with the crimson ( or scarlet ) thread tied to his wrist .
39:1 – 23 The narrative transitions from the Judah and Tamar episode ( ch . 38 ) back into the account of Joseph . The opening verse repeats information from where the Joseph story left off ( compare Ge 37:36 ; 39:1 ). This chapter describes how Yahweh protects and blesses Joseph in Potiphar ’ s house and in prison ( see note on 39:2 ), and it hints at Joseph ’ s future in Pharaoh ’ s court .
39:1 Potiphar See note on 37:36 . 39:2 Lord was with Joseph This phrase occurs four times in this chapter ( vv . 2,3,21,23 ). The repetition reinforces the providential storyline . he lived in the house Joseph was not made to labor in the fields , which suggests that Potiphar discerned abilities that made him more suitable for household management . 39:4 put him in charge of his household The Hebrew phrase used here , al betho — which may be literally rendered “ over his house ” — and the remainder of the verse indicates that Joseph oversaw everything owned by Potiphar . Slaves in Egypt commonly held occupations of high responsibility within households . For example , the Egyptian document Papyrus Brooklyn ( ca . 1800 BC ) lists nearly 80 male and female slaves in an Egyptian household by name with their occupations . Many are described as Asiatic , which is an Egyptian term that included Semites like Joseph . However this does not mean that foreigners from Canaan were viewed positively by Egyptians ( see note on 46:34 ; compare 43:32 ). 39:6 except the food he ate This phrase can be understood literally ; the reasoning could be that Joseph is not Egyptian ( 43:32 ). It is also possible that this phrase is a euphemism for Potiphar ’ s wife or a figure of speech for Potiphar ’ s private affairs . 39:7 Come to bed with me In addition to the issue of adultery , having sexual relations with the wife or concubine of one ’ s superior was viewed as a usurpation of power ( see note on 2Sa 3:7 ). Sex with Potiphar ’ s wife would constitute an attempt to gain control over his master ’ s property and would likely have led to Joseph ’ s execution . 39:8 he refused Joseph ’ s refusal is immediate and direct . He does not react angrily , knowing his place , but he allows for no flirtatious conversation . 39:10 even be with her This detail probably indicates that Joseph not only refuses to have sex with Potiphar ’ s wife , but also refuses even to be in her presence . 39:16 his master This phrase reveals the loyalties of both the accused and the accuser . Joseph has had Potiphar ’ s best interests in mind for roughly 11 years ( see note on Ge 40:1 ), but Potiphar ’ s wife views her husband as no more than the master of slaves like Joseph . 39:19 he burned with anger The text does not state the object of Potiphar ’ s anger , perhaps suggesting that Potiphar may have been suspicious of his wife . 39:20 prison Joseph ’ s punishment is distinctly Egyptian ; incarceration is attested to in Egyptian documents , but does not appear in other ancient Near Eastern law codes .