39
Joseph Is Sold to Potiphar
1Now Joseph had been taken down to Egypt. An Egyptian named Potiphar was an officer to the king of Egypt and the captain of the palace guard. He bought Joseph from the Ishmaelites who had brought him down there. 2The Lord was with Joseph, and he became a successful man. He lived in the house of his master, Potiphar the Egyptian.
3Potiphar saw that the Lord was with Joseph and that the Lord made Joseph successful in everything he did. 4So Potiphar was very happy with Joseph and allowed him to be his personal servant. He put Joseph in charge of the house, trusting him with everything he owned. 5When Joseph was put in charge of the house and everything Potiphar owned, the Lord blessed the people in Potiphar’s house because of Joseph. And the Lord blessed everything that belonged to Potiphar, both in the house and in the field. 6So Potiphar left Joseph in charge of everything he owned and was not concerned about anything except the food he ate.
Joseph Is Put into Prison
Now Joseph was well built and handsome. 7After some time the wife of Joseph’s master began to desire Joseph, and one day she said to him, “Have sexual relations with me.”
8But Joseph refused and said to her, “My master trusts me with everything in his house. He has put me in charge of everything he owns. 9There is no one in his house greater than I. He has not kept anything from me except you, because you are his wife. How can I do such an evil thing? It is a sin against God.”
10The woman talked to Joseph every day, but he refused to have sexual relations with her or even spend time with her.
11One day Joseph went into the house to do his work as usual and was the only man in the house at that time. 12His master’s wife grabbed his coat and said to him, “Come and have sexual relations with me.” But Joseph left his coat in her hand and ran out of the house.
13When she saw that Joseph had left his coat in her hands and had run outside, 14she called to the servants in her house and said, “Look! This Hebrew slave was brought here to shame us. He came in and tried to have sexual relations with me, but I screamed. 15My scream scared him and he ran away, but he left his coat with me.” 16She kept his coat until her husband came home, 17and she told him the same story. She said, “This Hebrew slave you brought here came in to shame me! 18When he came near me, I screamed. He ran away, but he left his coat.”
19When Joseph’s master heard what his wife said Joseph had done, he became very angry. 20So Potiphar arrested Joseph and put him into the prison where the king’s prisoners were put. And Joseph stayed there in the prison.
21But the Lord was with Joseph and showed him kindness and caused the prison warden to like Joseph. 22The prison warden chose Joseph to take care of all the prisoners, and he was responsible for whatever was done in the prison. 23The warden paid no attention to anything that was in Joseph’s care because the Lord was with Joseph and made him successful in everything he did.