Genesis 39

39 ¹ Joseph had been brought down to Egypt. Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, captain of the guard, an Egyptian, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had brought him down there. ² Our Father was with Joseph, and he became a successful man, serving in the house of his Egyptian master. ³ His master saw that our Father was with him and that our Father caused everything he did to succeed. ⁴ So Joseph found favor with him and served him personally. Potiphar made him overseer of his house and put everything he owned in his charge. ⁵ From the time Potiphar put him in charge of his house and of all he owned, our Father blessed the Egyptian's house for Joseph's sake. The blessing of our Father was on everything he had, in house and field. ⁶ So Potiphar left everything he had in Joseph's care and, with Joseph in charge, gave no thought to anything except the food he ate. Now Joseph was handsome in form and appearance.

⁷ After these things, his master's wife cast her eyes on Joseph and said, "Sleep with me."

⁸ But he refused. He said to his master's wife, "Look — with me here, my master gives no thought to anything in the house, and he has put everything he owns in my charge. ⁹ He is no greater in this house than I am, and he has held back nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do this great evil and sin against our Father?" ^a a v9 Joseph names sin for what it is — not breaking a rule but wounding the heart of a Father who has loved him into this very moment.

¹⁰ Day after day she spoke to Joseph, but he would not listen to her — would not sleep with her, would not even be near her. ¹¹ Then one such day, when Joseph went into the house to do his work and none of the men of the household were inside, ¹² she caught him by his garment and said, "Sleep with me!" But he left his garment in her hand and fled outside.

¹³ When she saw that he had left his garment in her hand and fled outside, ¹⁴ she called the men of her household and said to them, "Look! He has brought us a Hebrew to mock us! He came in to me to sleep with me, and I cried out loudly!" ¹⁵ When he heard me cry out, he left his garment beside me and fled outside." ¹⁶ She kept his garment beside her until his master came home. ¹⁷ Then she told him the same story: "The Hebrew servant you brought us came in to me to mock me. ¹⁸ But when I cried out, he left his garment beside me and fled outside."

¹⁹ When his master heard the words his wife spoke to him — "This is how your servant treated me" — his anger burned.

²⁰ Joseph's master took him and put him into the prison, the place where the king's prisoners were confined. And there he remained in the prison. ²¹ But our Father was with Joseph. He showed him covenant love and gave him favor with the warden of the prison. ²² The warden put Joseph in charge of all the prisoners in the prison, and whatever was done there, Joseph did it. ²³ The warden paid no attention to anything under Joseph's charge, because our Father was with him; and whatever Joseph did, our Father caused it to succeed.