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Genesis chapter 39

English Standard Version

1Now Joseph had been brought down to Egypt, and Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, the captain of the guard, an Egyptian, had bought him from the Ishmaelites who had brought him down there. 2The Lord was with Joseph, and he became a successful man, and he was in the house of his Egyptian master. 3His master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord caused all that he did to succeed in his hands. 4So Joseph found favor in his sight and attended him, and he made him overseer of his house and put him in charge of all that he had. 5From the time that he made him overseer in his house and over all that he had, the Lord blessed the Egyptian 's house for Joseph 's sake; the blessing of the Lord was on all that he had, in house and field. 6So he left all that he had in Joseph 's charge, and because of him he had no concern about anything but the food he ate. Now Joseph was handsome in form and appearance.
7And after a time his master 's wife cast her eyes on Joseph and said, "Lie with me." 8But he refused and said to his master 's wife, "Behold, because of me my master has no concern about anything in the house, and he has put everything that he has in my charge. 9He is not greater in this house than I am, nor has he kept back anything from me except you, because you are his wife. How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?" 10And as she spoke to Joseph day after day, he would not listen to her, to lie beside her or to be with her.
11But one day, when he went into the house to do his work and none of the men of the house was there in the house, 12she caught him by his garment, saying, "Lie with me." But he left his garment in her hand and fled and got out of the house. 13And as soon as she saw that he had left his garment in her hand and had fled out of the house, 14she called to the men of her household and said to them, "See, he has brought among us a Hebrew to laugh at us. He came in to me to lie with me, and I cried out with a loud voice. 15And as soon as he heard that I lifted up my voice and cried out, he left his garment beside me and fled and got out of the house." 16Then she laid up his garment by her until his master came home, 17and she told him the same story, saying, "The Hebrew servant, whom you have brought among us, came in to me to laugh at me. 18But as soon as I lifted up my voice and cried, he left his garment beside me and fled out of the house."
19As soon as his master heard the words that his wife spoke to him, "This is the way your servant treated me," his anger was kindled. 20And Joseph 's master took him and put him into the prison, the place where the king 's prisoners were confined, and he was there in prison. 21But the Lord was with Joseph and showed him steadfast love and gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison. 22And the keeper of the prison put Joseph in charge of all the prisoners who were in the prison. Whatever was done there, he was the one who did it. 23The keeper of the prison paid no attention to anything that was in Joseph 's charge, because the Lord was with him. And whatever he did, the Lord made it succeed.
New International Version

1Now Joseph had been taken down to Egypt. Potiphar, an Egyptian who was one of Pharaoh’s officials, the captain of the guard, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had taken him there.
2The Lord was with Joseph so that he prospered, and he lived in the house of his Egyptian master. 3When his master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord gave him success in everything he did, 4Joseph found favor in his eyes and became his attendant. Potiphar put him in charge of his household, and he entrusted to his care everything he owned. 5From the time he put him in charge of his household and of all that he owned, the Lord blessed the household of the Egyptian because of Joseph. The blessing of the Lord was on everything Potiphar had, both in the house and in the field.
6So Potiphar left everything he had in Joseph’s care; with Joseph in charge, he did not concern himself with anything except the food he ate. Now Joseph was well-built and handsome, 7and after a while his master’s wife took notice of Joseph and said, "Come to bed with me!"
8But he refused. "With me in charge," he told her, "my master does not concern himself with anything in the house; everything he owns he has entrusted to my care. 9No one is greater in this house than I am. My master has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?" 10And though she spoke to Joseph day after day, he refused to go to bed with her or even be with her.
11One day he went into the house to attend to his duties, and none of the household servants was inside. 12She 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.
13When she saw that he had left his cloak in her hand and had run out of the house, 14she called her household servants. "Look," she said to them, "this Hebrew has been brought to us to make sport of us! He came in here to sleep with me, but I screamed. 15When he heard me scream for help, he left his cloak beside me and ran out of the house."
16She kept his cloak beside her until his master came home. 17Then she told him this story: "That Hebrew slave you brought us came to me to make sport of me. 18But as soon as I screamed for help, he left his cloak beside me and ran out of the house."
19When his master heard the story his wife told him, saying, "This is how your slave treated me," he burned with anger.
20Joseph’s master took him and put him in prison, the place where the king’s prisoners were confined. But while Joseph was there in the prison, 21the Lord was with him; he showed him kindness and granted him favor in the eyes of the prison warden. 22So the warden put Joseph in charge of all those held in the prison, and he was made responsible for all that was done there. 23The warden paid no attention to anything under Joseph’s care, because the Lord was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did.
New American Standard Bible

1Now Joseph had been taken down to Egypt; and Potiphar, an Egyptian officer of Pharaoh, the captain of the bodyguard, bought him from the Ishmaelites, who had taken him down there. 2And the Lord was with Joseph, so he became a successful man. And he was in the house of his master, the Egyptian. 3Now his master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord made all that he did prosper in his hand. 4So Joseph found favor in his sight and became his personal servant; and he made him overseer over his house, and put him in charge of all that he owned. 5It came about that from the time he made him overseer in his house and over all that he owned, the Lord blessed the Egyptian’s house on account of Joseph; so the Lord’s blessing was upon all that he owned, in the house and in the field.
6So he left Joseph in charge of everything that he owned; and with him there he did not concern himself with anything except the food which he ate. Now Joseph was handsome in form and appearance. 7And it came about after these events that his master’s wife had her eyes on Joseph, and she said, 'Sleep with me.' 8But he refused and said to his master’s wife, 'Look, with me here, my master does not concern himself with anything in the house, and he has put me in charge of all that he owns. 9There is no one greater in this house than I, and he has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do this great evil, and sin against God?' 10Though she spoke to Joseph day after day, he did not listen to her to lie beside her or be with her. 11Now it happened one day that he went into the house to do his work, and none of the people of the household was there inside. 12So she grabbed him by his garment, saying, 'Sleep with me!' But he left his garment in her hand and fled, and went outside. 13When she saw that he had left his garment in her hand and had fled outside, 14she called to the men of her household and said to them, 'See, he has brought in a Hebrew to us to make fun of us; he came in to me to sleep with me, and I screamed. 15When he heard that I raised my voice and screamed, he left his garment beside me and fled and went outside.' 16So she left his garment beside her until his master came home. 17Then she spoke to him with these words: 'The Hebrew slave, whom you brought to us, came in to me to make fun of me; 18but when I raised my voice and screamed, he left his garment beside me and fled outside.'
19Now when his master heard the words of his wife which she spoke to him, saying, 'This is what your slave did to me,' his anger burned. 20So Joseph’s master took him and put him into the prison, the place where the king’s prisoners were confined; and he was there in the prison. 21But the Lord was with Joseph and extended kindness to him, and gave him favor in the sight of the warden of the prison. 22And the warden of the prison put Joseph in charge of all the prisoners who were in the prison; so that whatever was done there, he was responsible for it. 23The warden of the prison did not supervise anything under Joseph’s authority, because the Lord was with him; and, the Lord made whatever he did prosper.
Christian Standard Bible

1Now Joseph had been taken to Egypt. An Egyptian named Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh and the captain of the guards, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had brought him there. 2The Lord was with Joseph, and he became a successful man, serving in the household of his Egyptian master. 3When his master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord made everything he did successful, 4Joseph found favor with his master and became his personal attendant. Potiphar also put him in charge of his household and placed all that he owned under his authority. 5From the time that he put him in charge of his household and of all that he owned, the Lord blessed the Egyptian’s house because of Joseph. The Lord’s blessing was on all that he owned, in his house and in his fields.
6He left all that he owned under Joseph’s authority; he did not concern himself with anything except the food he ate. Now Joseph was well-built and handsome. 7After some time his master’s wife looked longingly at Joseph and said, "Sleep with me."
8But 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 put all that he owns under my authority. 9No 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 this immense evil, and how could I sin against God?"
10Although she spoke to Joseph day after day, he refused to go to bed with her. 11Now one day he went into the house to do his work, and none of the household servants were there. 12She grabbed him by his garment and said, "Sleep with me!" But leaving his garment in her hand, he escaped and ran outside. 13When she saw that he had left his garment with her and had run outside, 14she called her household servants. "Look," she said to them, "my husband brought a Hebrew man to make fools of us. He came to me so he could sleep with me, and I screamed as loud as I could. 15When he heard me screaming for help, he left his garment beside me and ran outside."
16She put Joseph’s garment beside her until his master came home. 17Then she told him the same story: "The Hebrew slave you brought to us came to make a fool of me, 18but when I screamed for help, he left his garment beside me and ran outside."
19When his master heard the story his wife told him—"These are the things your slave did to me"—he was furious 20and had him thrown into prison, where the king’s prisoners were confined. So Joseph was there in prison.
21But the Lord was with Joseph and extended kindness to him. He granted him favor with the prison warden. 22The warden put all the prisoners who were in the prison under Joseph’s authority, and he was responsible for everything that was done there. 23The warden did not bother with anything under Joseph’s authority, because the Lord was with him, and the Lord made everything that he did successful.
New Living Translation

1When Joseph was taken to Egypt by the Ishmaelite traders, he was purchased by Potiphar, an Egyptian officer. Potiphar was captain of the guard for Pharaoh, the king of Egypt.
2The Lord was with Joseph, so he succeeded in everything he did as he served in the home of his Egyptian master. 3Potiphar noticed this and realized that the Lord was with Joseph, giving him success in everything he did. 4This pleased Potiphar, so he soon made Joseph his personal attendant. He put him in charge of his entire household and everything he owned. 5From the day Joseph was put in charge of his master’s household and property, the Lord began to bless Potiphar’s household for Joseph’s sake. All his household affairs ran smoothly, and his crops and livestock flourished.
6So Potiphar gave Joseph complete administrative responsibility over everything he owned. With Joseph there, he didn’t worry about a thing — except what kind of food to eat! Joseph was a very handsome and well-built young man, 7and Potiphar’s wife soon began to look at him lustfully. 'Come and sleep with me,' she demanded.
8But Joseph refused. 'Look,' he told her, 'my master trusts me with everything in his entire household. 9No one here has more authority than I do. He has held back nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How could I do such a wicked thing? It would be a great sin against God.'
10She kept putting pressure on Joseph day after day, but he refused to sleep with her, and he kept out of her way as much as possible. 11One day, however, no one else was around when he went in to do his work. 12She came and grabbed him by his cloak, demanding, 'Come on, sleep with me!' Joseph tore himself away, but he left his cloak in her hand as he ran from the house.
13When she saw that she was holding his cloak and he had fled, 14she called out to her servants. Soon all the men came running. 'Look!' she said. 'My husband has brought this Hebrew slave here to make fools of us! He came into my room to rape me, but I screamed. 15When he heard me scream, he ran outside and got away, but he left his cloak behind with me.'
16She kept the cloak with her until her husband came home. 17Then she told him her story. 'That Hebrew slave you’ve brought into our house tried to come in and fool around with me,' she said. 18But when I screamed, he ran outside, leaving his cloak with me!'
19Potiphar was furious when he heard his wife’s story about how Joseph had treated her. 20So he took Joseph and threw him into the prison where the king’s prisoners were held, and there he remained. 21But the Lord was with Joseph in the prison and showed him his faithful love. And the Lord made Joseph a favorite with the prison warden. 22Before long, the warden put Joseph in charge of all the other prisoners and over everything that happened in the prison. 23The warden had no more worries, because Joseph took care of everything. The Lord was with him and caused everything he did to succeed.
King James Version

1And Joseph was brought down to Egypt; and Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, captain of the guard, an Egyptian, bought him of the hands of the Ishmaelites, which had brought him down thither. 2And the Lord was with Joseph, and he was a prosperous man; and he was in the house of his master the Egyptian. 3And his master saw that the Lord was with him, and that the Lord made all that he did to prosper in his hand. 4And Joseph found grace in his sight, and he served him: and he made him overseer over his house, and all that he had he put into his hand. 5And it came to pass from the time that he had made him overseer in his house, and over all that he had, that the Lord blessed the Egyptian's house for Joseph's sake; and the blessing of the Lord was upon all that he had in the house, and in the field. 6And he left all that he had in Joseph's hand; and he knew not aught he had, save the bread which he did eat. And Joseph was a goodly person, and well favored. 7And it came to pass after these things, that his master's wife cast her eyes upon Joseph; and she said, Lie with me. 8But he refused, and said unto his master's wife, Behold, my master knoweth not what is with me in the house, and he hath committed all that he hath to my hand; 9There is none greater in this house than I; neither hath he kept back any thing from me but thee, because thou art his wife: how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God? 10And it came to pass, as she spoke to Joseph day by day, that he hearkened not unto her, to lie by her, or to be with her.
11And it came to pass about this time, that Joseph went into the house to do his business; and there was none of the men of the house there within. 12And she caught him by his garment, saying, Lie with me: and he left his garment in her hand, and fled, and got him out. 13And it came to pass, when she saw that he had left his garment in her hand, and was fled forth, 14That she called unto the men of her house, and spoke unto them, saying, See, he hath brought in a Hebrew unto us to mock us; he came in unto me to lie with me, and I cried with a loud voice: 15And it came to pass, when he heard that I lifted up my voice and cried, that he left his garment with me, and fled, and got him out.
16And she laid up his garment by her, until his lord came home. 17And she spoke unto him according to these words, saying, The Hebrew servant, which thou hast brought unto us, came in unto me to mock me: 18And it came to pass, as I lifted up my voice and cried, that he left his garment with me, and fled out.
19And it came to pass, when his master heard the words of his wife, which she spoke unto him, saying, After this manner did thy servant to me; that his wrath was kindled. 20And Joseph's master took him, and put him into the prison, a place where the king's prisoners were bound: and he was there in the prison.
21But the Lord was with Joseph, and showed him mercy, and gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison. 22And the keeper of the prison committed to Joseph's hand all the prisoners that were in the prison; and whatsoever they did there, he was the doer of it. 23The keeper of the prison looked not to any thing that was under his hand; because the Lord was with him, and that which he did, the Lord made it to prosper.
New King James Version

1Now Joseph had been taken down to Egypt. And Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, captain of the guard, an Egyptian, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had taken him down there. 2The Lord was with Joseph, and he was a successful man; and he was in the house of his master the Egyptian. 3And his master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord made all he did to prosper in his hand. 4So Joseph found favor in his sight, and served him. Then he made him overseer of his house, and all that he had he put under his authority. 5So it was, from the time that he had made him overseer of his house and all that he had, that the Lord blessed the Egyptian’s house for Joseph’s sake; and the blessing of the Lord was on all that he had in the house and in the field.
6Thus he left all that he had in Joseph’s hand, and he did not know what he had except for the bread which he ate. Now Joseph was handsome in form and appearance.
7And it came to pass after these things that his master’s wife cast longing eyes on Joseph, and she said, “Lie with me.”
8But he refused and said to his master’s wife, “Look, my master does not know what is with me in the house, and he has committed all that he has to my hand. 9There is no one greater in this house than I, nor has he kept back anything from me but you, because you are his wife. How then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?”
10So it was, as she spoke to Joseph day by day, that he did not heed her, to lie with her or to be with her.
11But it happened about this time, when Joseph went into the house to do his work, and none of the men of the house was inside, 12that she caught him by his garment, saying, “Lie with me.” But he left his garment in her hand, and fled and ran outside. 13And so it was, when she saw that he had left his garment in her hand and fled outside, 14that she called to the men of her house and spoke to them, saying, “See, he has brought in to us a Hebrew to mock us. He came in to me to lie with me, and I cried out with a loud voice. 15And it happened, when he heard that I lifted my voice and cried out, that he left his garment with me, and fled and went outside.”
16So she kept his garment with her until his master came home. 17Then she spoke to him with words like these, saying, “The Hebrew servant whom you brought to us came in to me to mock me; 18so it happened, as I lifted my voice and cried out, that he left his garment with me and fled outside.”
19So it was, when his master heard the words which his wife spoke to him, saying, “Your servant did to me after this manner,” that his anger was aroused. 20Then Joseph’s master took him and put him into the prison, a place where the king’s prisoners were confined. And he was there in the prison. 21But the Lord was with Joseph and showed him mercy, and He gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison. 22And the keeper of the prison committed to Joseph’s hand all the prisoners who were in the prison; whatever they did there, it was his doing. 23The keeper of the prison did not look into anything that was under Joseph’s authority, because the Lord was with him; and whatever he did, the Lord made it prosper.

What does Genesis chapter 39 mean?

Genesis returns from describing the scandalous family history of Judah in chapter 38. Here, Scripture resumes a focus on Joseph, sold by his brothers into slavery in Egypt (Genesis 37:26–28). Joseph is purchased by a powerful Egyptian official, the captain of the guard. Though Joseph is no longer in the land of promise or with his family, the Lord is still with him. Joseph has not been abandoned.

Potiphar, Joseph's master, soon sees that Joseph is successful in all he does. Not only is the Hebrew slave a hard worker and man of integrity, but he is also blessed by his Hebrew God. Before long, Potiphar installs Joseph as the head of his entire household. As a result, everything Joseph is responsible for thrives. Potiphar's household apparently grows in wealth and wellbeing, and Joseph's God is given the credit. This is about the best outcome Joseph could have hoped for as a slave in Egypt (Genesis 39:1–6).

A complication arises, however. Like his mother Rachel, Joseph is blessed with exceptional good looks: he is extremely attractive. Soon, Potiphar's wife notices him and decides she will seduce him. Or, rather, she will try. One day she commands him, "lie with me." Perhaps she made a regular practice of sleeping with her husband's slaves (Genesis 39:7).

Joseph knows he is in a terrible position. Given any other command, he would be compelled to obey his master's wife. Yet he knows that sleeping with her would be a clear betrayal of the extraordinary trust Potiphar has put in Joseph. Joseph refuses his master's wife, carefully explaining that he cannot betray Potiphar. More importantly, he will not sin against his God (Genesis 39:8–10).

Potiphar's wife will not take no for an answer. She continues to attempt to seduce and coerce Joseph into bed with her. He continues to refuse. One day, when no other men are in the household, she grabs him by the cloak and demands once more that he sleep with her. Whether this is a trap, or coincidence, the moment is extremely compromising. Instead of arguing, Joseph twists out of his cloak and escapes outside to safety. It's the only way he can avoid both the temptation and the appearance of immorality. He literally runs away rather than be accused of something improper (Genesis 39:11–12).

Left holding Joseph's cloak, Potiphar's wife is furious. Her lust is converted into rage, and a quest for revenge. She calls to the other male servants for assistance and tells them Joseph attempted to rape her, running away when she screamed. The lie fits. They likely saw Joseph running from the house without his cloak. Her clever lies play on the other servant's resentment of Joseph's success, as well as his race (Genesis 39:13–15).

Potiphar, as his wife hoped, is enraged by her story. In his anger, he has Joseph thrown into the jail for the king's prisoners. This reaction is strangely subdued; Potiphar likely had the right to kill Joseph outright, and the charge is extremely serious. It's possible that Joseph's reputation for honesty, and a potentially unfaithful history in Potiphar's wife, softened his reaction just enough to keep from having Joseph killed (Genesis 39:16–20).

It's not fair, of course. Joseph has been falsely accused. It would be natural to expect him to think he had lost God's blessing. However, Scripture is quick to assure us that the Lord was still with Joseph. Even more, God showed Joseph His steadfast love. Though Joseph languished in an Egyptian prison for a crime he didn't commit, he had not been abandoned. As evidence of this fact, God causes the king's jailer to be impressed with Joseph's work ethic, integrity, and success. Soon, Joseph is given charge of nearly all the duties in the prison, much as he had been in Potiphar's house. Because of the Lord's blessing, everything Joseph does continues to succeed (Genesis 39:21–24).

Soon, this combination of divine blessing, work ethic, and success will bring Joseph to the attention of Pharaoh, himself (Genesis 40:9–14).
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