Genesis 39

Joseph Works for Potiphar

1 Joseph got taken down to Egypt, where Potiphar, one of Pharaoh’s officials and captain of the guard, bought him from the Ishmaelites.

2 But God was with Joseph, so he succeeded in everything he did while working in Potiphar’s crib.

3 Potiphar noticed that God was blessing everything Joseph touched, so he liked having him around.

4 Joseph earned Potiphar’s trust, and Potiphar put him in charge of everything, his house and all his business.

5 From the moment Joseph took over, God blessed Potiphar’s crib and everything he had, both in the house and in the fields.

6 Potiphar did not worry about anything except what he was going to eat. Meanwhile, Joseph was a fine dude, built and handsome.

Potiphar’s Wife Tempts Joseph

7 After a while, Potiphar’s wife started checking out Joseph and said, ‘Listen, come sleep with me.’

8 But Joseph turned her down and said, ‘Nah, my master trusts me with everything in this house.’

9 ‘He has not held anything back from me except you, because you are his wife. How could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God,’

10 Day after day, she kept trying to get at him, but Joseph was not having it. He would not even hang around her.

Joseph Is Falsely Accused

11 One day, Joseph went into the house to handle his business, and none of the other servants were around.

12 She grabbed his cloak and said, ‘Come on, sleep with me!’ But Joseph left his cloak in her hand and ran out of the house.

13 When she saw he left his cloak and dipped, she came up with a plan.

14 She called the other servants and said, ‘Look, this Hebrew my husband brought here tried to mess with me!’

15 ‘But when I screamed, he ran out and left his cloak behind.’

16 She kept Joseph’s cloak until her husband got home.

17 Then she told Potiphar, ‘That Hebrew slave you brought here tried to humiliate me.’

18 ‘But as soon as I screamed, he ran off and left his cloak.’

Joseph Is Thrown in Prison

19 When Potiphar heard his wife’s story, he was furious.

20 So he had Joseph thrown into the king’s prison. But even in prison, God was still with Joseph.

21 God showed Joseph favor, and the prison warden liked him.

22 The warden put Joseph in charge of all the prisoners and trusted him to handle everything.

23 The warden did not worry about anything Joseph was in charge of because God was with him, and everything Joseph did turned out great.