CHAPTER 39
Meanwhile, 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.
And the LORD
was
with
Joseph,
and he became
a successful
man,
serving
in the household
of his Egyptian
master.
Joseph
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.
From 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.
So 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,
But 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.
No
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?”
Although
Potiphar’s wife spoke
to
Joseph
day
after day,
he refused
to go to bed
with her
or be
with her.
One day,
however,
Joseph went
into the house
to attend to
his work,
and not
a single
household
servant
was
inside.
She grabbed Joseph
by his cloak
and said,
“Sleep
with me!”
But leaving
his garment
in her hand,
he escaped
and ran
outside.
she 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.
Then she told
him the same
story:
“The Hebrew
slave
you brought
us
came
to me
to make sport
of me,
When
his master
heard
the story
his wife
told
him,
saying,
“This
is what
your slave
did
to me,”
he burned
with anger.
So 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,
the LORD
was
with
him
and extended
kindness
to him.
He granted
him favor
in the eyes
of the prison
warden,
who
put
all
those held
in the prison
under Joseph’s
authority,
so that he
was
responsible
for all
that
was done
there.
The warden
did not
concern himself
with anything
under Joseph’s authority,
because
the LORD
was with him
and gave him success
in whatever
he
did.