Genesis 39:6-20
New English Translation
6 So Potiphar[a] left[b] everything he had in Joseph’s care;[c] he gave no thought[d] to anything except the food he ate.[e]
Now Joseph was well built and good-looking.[f] 7 Soon after these things, his master’s wife took notice of[g] Joseph and said, “Come to bed with me.”[h] 8 But he refused, saying[i] to his master’s wife, “Look, my master does not give any thought[j] to his household with me here,[k] and everything that he owns he has put into my care.[l] 9 There is no one greater in this household than I am. He has withheld nothing from me except you because you are his wife. So how could I do[m] such a great evil and sin against God?” 10 Even though she continued to speak[n] to Joseph day after day, he did not respond[o] to her invitation to go to bed with her.[p]
11 One day[q] he went into the house to do his work when none of the household servants[r] were there in the house. 12 She grabbed him by his outer garment, saying, “Come to bed[s] with me!” But he left his outer garment in her hand and ran[t] outside.[u] 13 When she saw that he had left his outer garment in her hand and had run outside, 14 she called for her household servants and said to them, “See, my husband brought[v] in a Hebrew man[w] to us to humiliate us.[x] He tried to go to bed with me,[y] but I screamed loudly.[z] 15 When he heard me raise[aa] my voice and scream, he left his outer garment beside me and ran outside.”
16 So she laid his outer garment beside her until his master came home. 17 This is what she said to him:[ab] “That Hebrew slave[ac] you brought to us tried to humiliate me,[ad] 18 but when I raised my voice and screamed, he left his outer garment and ran outside.”
19 When his master heard his wife say,[ae] “This is the way[af] your slave treated me,”[ag] he became furious.[ah] 20 Joseph’s master took him and threw him into the prison,[ai] the place where the king’s prisoners were confined. So he was there in the prison.[aj]
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Genesis 39:6 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Potiphar) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- Genesis 39:6 sn The Hebrew verb translated left indicates he relinquished the care of it to Joseph. This is stronger than what was said earlier. Apparently Potiphar had come to trust Joseph so much that he knew it was in better care with Joseph than with anyone else.
- Genesis 39:6 tn Heb “hand.” This is a metonymy for being under the control or care of Joseph.
- Genesis 39:6 tn Heb “did not know.”
- Genesis 39:6 sn The expression except the food he ate probably refers to Potiphar’s private affairs and should not be limited literally to what he ate.
- Genesis 39:6 tn Heb “handsome of form and handsome of appearance.” The same Hebrew expressions were used in Gen 29:17 for Rachel.
- Genesis 39:7 tn Heb “she lifted up her eyes toward,” an expression that emphasizes her deliberate and careful scrutiny of him.
- Genesis 39:7 tn Heb “lie down with.” The verb שָׁכַב (shakhav) “to lie down” can be a euphemism for going to bed for sexual relations.sn The story of Joseph and Potiphar’s wife has long been connected with the wisdom warnings about the strange woman who tries to seduce the young man with her boldness and directness (see Prov 5-7, especially 7:6-27). This is part of the literary background of the story of Joseph that gives it a wisdom flavor. See G. von Rad, God at Work in Israel, 19-35; and G. W. Coats, “The Joseph Story and Ancient Wisdom: A Reappraisal,” CBQ 35 (1973): 285-97.
- Genesis 39:8 tn Heb “and he said.”
- Genesis 39:8 tn Heb “know.”
- Genesis 39:8 tn The word “here” has been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
- Genesis 39:8 tn Heb “hand.” This is a metonymy for being under the control or care of Joseph.
- Genesis 39:9 tn The nuance of potential imperfect fits this context.
- Genesis 39:10 tn The verse begins with the temporal indicator, followed by the infinitive construct with the preposition כ (kaf). This clause could therefore be taken as temporal.
- Genesis 39:10 tn Heb “listen to.”
- Genesis 39:10 tn Heb “lie down with her to be with her.” See note at v. 7.
- Genesis 39:11 tn Heb “and it was about this day.”
- Genesis 39:11 tn Heb “the men of the house.”
- Genesis 39:12 tn Heb “lie down with.” See note at v. 7.
- Genesis 39:12 tn Heb “he fled and he went out.” The construction emphasizes the point that Joseph got out of there quickly.
- Genesis 39:12 sn For discussion of this episode, see A. M. Honeyman, “The Occasion of Joseph’s Temptation,” VT 2 (1952): 85-87.
- Genesis 39:14 tn The verb has no expressed subject, and so it could be treated as a passive (“a Hebrew man was brought in”; cf. NIV). But it is clear from the context that her husband brought Joseph into the household, so Potiphar is the apparent referent here. Thus the translation supplies “my husband” as the referent of the unspecified pronominal subject of the verb (cf. NEB, NRSV).
- Genesis 39:14 sn A Hebrew man. Potiphar’s wife raises the ethnic issue when talking to her servants about what their boss had done.
- Genesis 39:14 tn Heb “to make fun of us.” The verb translated “to humiliate us” here means to hold something up for ridicule, or to toy with something harmfully. Attempted rape would be such an activity, for it would hold the victim in contempt.
- Genesis 39:14 tn Heb “He approached me to lie down with me.” Both expressions can be a euphemism for sexual relations. See the note at 2 Sam 12:24.
- Genesis 39:14 tn Heb “and I cried out with a loud voice.”
- Genesis 39:15 tn Heb “that I raised.”
- Genesis 39:17 tn Heb “and she spoke to him according to these words, saying.”
- Genesis 39:17 sn That Hebrew slave. Now, when speaking to her husband, Potiphar’s wife refers to Joseph as a Hebrew slave, a very demeaning description.
- Genesis 39:17 tn Heb “came to me to make fun of me.” The statement needs no explanation because of the connotations of “came to me” and “to make fun of me.” See the note on the expression “humiliate us” in v. 14.
- Genesis 39:19 tn Heb “and when his master heard the words of his wife which she spoke to him, saying.”
- Genesis 39:19 tn Heb “according to these words.”
- Genesis 39:19 tn Heb “did to me.”
- Genesis 39:19 tn Heb “his anger burned.”
- Genesis 39:20 tn Heb “the house of roundness,” suggesting that the prison might have been a fortress or citadel.
- Genesis 39:20 sn The story of Joseph is filled with cycles and repetition: He has two dreams (chap. 37), he interprets two dreams in prison (chap. 40) and the two dreams of Pharaoh (chap. 41), his brothers make two trips to see him (chaps. 42-43), and here, for the second time (see 37:24), he is imprisoned for no good reason, with only his coat being used as evidence. For further discussion see H. Jacobsen, “A Legal Note on Potiphar’s Wife,” HTR 69 (1976): 177.
Genesis 39:6-20
Expanded Bible
6 So 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 [L pleasing in figure/form] and ·handsome [L pleasing in appearance]. 7 After ·some time [L these things] the wife of Joseph’s master ·began to desire [cast her eyes on; L lifted her eyes to] Joseph, and one day she said to him, “·Have sexual relations [L Lie] with me.”
8 But Joseph refused and said to ·her [L his master’s wife], “My master ·trusts me with [L has no concern with me about] everything in his house. He has put me in charge of everything he owns. 9 There 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 [Ex. 20:14; Prov. 5–7].”
10 The woman talked to Joseph every day, but he ·refused [L did not listen to/obey her] to ·have sexual relations with [L lie beside] her or even spend time with her.
11 One day Joseph went into the house to do his work as usual and was the only man in the house at that time. 12 His master’s wife grabbed his coat and said to him, “Come and ·have sexual relations [L lie] with me.” But Joseph left his coat in her hand and ran ·out of the house [L outside].
13 When she saw that Joseph had left his coat in her hands and had run outside, 14 she called to the ·servants in [L the men of] her house and said, “Look! This Hebrew slave was brought here to ·shame [insult; sport with] us. He came in and tried to ·have sexual relations [L lie] with me, but I screamed. 15 ·My scream scared him and [L When he heard me raise my voice and call out] he ran away, but he left his coat with me.” 16 She kept his coat until her ·husband [master] came home, 17 and she told him the same story. She said, “This Hebrew slave you brought here came in to ·shame [insult; make sport of] me! 18 When he came near me, I ·screamed [L raised my voice]. He ·ran away [fled], but he left his coat.”
19 When Joseph’s master heard what his wife said Joseph had done, he became very angry. 20 So Potiphar arrested Joseph and put him into the ·prison [L round house] where the king’s prisoners were ·put [L confined]. And Joseph stayed there in the ·prison [L round house].
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