So far in our study of Genesis, we have followed a family line from Creation all the way through to the establishment of the Israelites, the nation God chose to deliver a Savior (Messiah) to the world for the salvation of sins. For the remainder of Genesis, we will follow the life of this 11th out of 12 sons of Israel, Joseph. His brothers sold him to some traders as a slave to get rid of him, but God has a purpose for Joseph’s life. God has established Israel and his 12 sons to build a nation for His use and now He has a plan for Joseph to help preserve that nation from extinction. This plan unfolds in the remaining 11 chapters of Genesis.
Verse 1 tells us what we already knew from chapter 37… that Joseph is taken to Egypt by the traders and sold as a slave to Potiphar. Potiphar was a very important official of Pharoah. The Bible tells us this but also, we can find his name mentioned among various archeological finds. His name means “He whom Ra (the sun-god) gave” and he was the ‘chief of the executioners’ or ‘captain of the guard’.
Read verses 2-6. Note how many times the Bible refers here in these verses to ‘the Lord’ and cites what God was doing for Joseph. Often, when we hit a trying situation, we think that God has abandoned us, but we can see from these verses that God was very much with Joseph (Psalm 9:9). Try to identify what God was doing for Joseph each time ‘the Lord’ is mentioned. As a result of God’s constant care, Potiphar trusted Joseph completely and put him in charge of everything he owned (Acts 7:9-10).
Notice in verse 6 the description of Joseph’s appearance. At the point of this story, Joseph was no longer a gangly boy. He had grown into quite an attractive young man. In verses 7-10, we learn that Potiphar’s wife took notice of Joseph and asked him to sleep with her. I imagine that Potiphar’s wife was probably the bored wife of a rich man and used to having whatever she wanted. Joseph not only told her ‘no’ but gave her reasons for his rejection. What were those reasons? Nonetheless, she continued to pester him about it day after day. She was relentless.
Read what the following scriptures have to say about resisting improper sexual advances and sexual sin:
- Proverbs 7:4-23
- Proverbs 6:24-29
- 2 Timothy 2:22
- I Thess 4:1-8
- James 4:7
We can see from this account in Genesis that Joseph resisted the advances of Potiphar’s wife. How do you handle sexual temptations in your life? Are you as strong to resist as Joseph was, not being willing to sin against God? We can turn to God at these times and Satan will flee (I Cor 10:13, Matt 6:13, James 4:7).
Read verses 11-18. Potiphar’s wife has become frustrated. She is not getting what she wants so she waits until she is alone with Joseph in the house. Folks, this is something that Satan (and stalkers) are famous for. Protect yourself from Satan. Don’t ever put yourself in the position of being alone with someone who is a temptation. Don’t allow yourself to be in a place where something can occur. Part of resisting temptation is not allowing yourself to be in vulnerable places and situations. Joseph did not have this luxury, but he did the right thing. He fled the scene.
Potiphar’s wife surely must have been offended at this rejection and we see her revenge. She immediately called the servants and made sure they were aware so that they could be her witnesses. And, because the deed would be well known, it would put pressure on her husband to act in order to uphold the family name. Now we know from verse 12 that she has pulled off part of Joseph’s clothing, but when she retells the story, she always says that his clothing was there next to her, giving the appearance that Joseph himself took off his clothing. And finally, she tries to put the blame on her husband for bringing Joseph into the household to begin with. Notice also how she continually refers to Joseph as ‘that Hebrew’ creating a racial sort of implication about his character. She was thorough and I tend to suspect this was not her first time bringing someone down unfairly. (Ex 23:1, Psalm 101:5)
Verse 19 tells us that Potiphar, when he hears this story, burned with anger. Potiphar knows Joseph’s character and he knows his wife, so I suspect this anger was not necessarily all directed at Joseph. Being a slave, an indiscretion with the master’s wife would have warranted instant death for Joseph, but Potiphar did not put Joseph to death. He put him in prison (verse 20). He didn’t just put him in any prison to be forgotten, but he put him in the king’s prison. A glance ahead at Gen 40:3 will show us that this prison is in the custody (or house) of the captain of the guard (Potiphar).
Read verses 21-23. Joseph is now in round 2 of being sent somewhere dreadful. His life is once again in crisis, but we see in these three verses the same thing we saw at the beginning of the chapter. God is with him there, caring for him and keeping the situation in His Almighty hands. Joseph is once again put in charge of things, even though he is in prison.
What a story! When we are tempted to think our life is hard, we only have to remember Joseph to know that we don’t have it so bad. And yet, we will see as we continue our studies, that Joseph continues to be faithful to his God and obedient. We are never told that he is feeling sorry for himself… only that he is working hard and honoring God. We must try to do the same (Col 3:17, 23).
Responding to God: Praise God and thank Him that he honors and cares for those who love Him. Thank Him for the ways He has been there for you during the hard times in your life. Seek His help in fleeing sexual temptations and avoiding vulnerable situations you should not allow yourself to be in. Ask forgiveness for any times you may have created a crisis in someone else’s life. Commit yourself to doing all things as if you are working for the Lord Himself and without complaint.
Further Research: On the internet, search for archeological information concerning Potiphar.
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