Story 61 Joseph and Potiphar’s Wife
Joseph was living in Egypt as a slave in the house of Potiphar. The Bible says that God was with Joseph, which means he was present with him to bless him. Even though he was a slave and far from the Land of Promise, God’s protection and care had not changed. Everything Joseph did went very well for him. God was moving in all of his circumstances.
Remember that we are meant to contrast the life of Joseph with Judah, who had left the family of God and married a Canaanite. He intentionally moved away from God and his people! How did that work out for Judah? His two sons grew up to be so wicked that God judged them with death to keep them from committing more sin!
Meanwhile, Potiphar was watching Joseph. The God of Joseph seemed to bless his slave in special ways, and it was a great witness to the Egyptian ruler. Over time, Potiphar saw that Joseph was honorable and hard working in all he did.
Potiphar came to favor Joseph over all his other servants. He raised Joseph up to be his personal servant. God continued to bless Joseph with skill and ability. So Potiphar learned to trust Joseph even more. He ended up putting Joseph in charge of his whole household. It was Joseph’s job to care for everything in Potiphar’s estate, from his grand home to his fields and farms. Potiphar was so confident of Joseph’s loyalty and work that he handed all his responsibilities over to him. His only worry was what he was going to eat each day. The Lord continued to bless Joseph, and everything in Potiphar’s household continued to prosper under his care.
Joseph grew to become a very handsome man. Potiphar’s wife began to notice the brilliant, good looking young slave her husband trusted so completely. Then she began to throw herself at him, begging him to be with her as a man should only be with his very own wife. She tried to cheat on her husband with her husband’s own slave! How degrading! How trashy! Where was her respect and honor for her husband? Where was her dignity?
Joseph was a very righteous man. He refused. Day after day, the woman pursued Joseph and pleaded, but Joseph was strong. He told her, “‘With me in charge…my master does not concern himself with anything in the house; everything he owns he has entrusted to my care. No 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?’” Joseph understood the honor and privilege it was to have such an important role in the household. It had been given to him by his Lord, and he did not want to dishonor his true Master. It would also be a terrible sin against Potiphar, and Joseph was righteously loyal to both.
One day, Joseph went into the house to do some work. None of the other servants were there. Potiphar’s wife came up to him and grabbed his cloak. She demanded that he give her what she wanted. Once again, honorable Joseph refused and ran from the horrible temptress. He ran so quickly out of the house that he left the cloak he was wearing in the hands of Potiphar’s wife! In her anger and rejection, the terrible woman cried out to her servants. When they answered her call, she accused Joseph of attacking her. She declared that her cry made him run away. She sat there with Joseph’s cloak as proof until Potiphar came home. Then she repeated the lie to her husband. He was enraged.
The Bible does not make it clear who Potiphar was angry with. The proof was against Joseph, so he had to be punished. Potiphar threw Joseph in the jail where the king’s prisoners were kept. Yet the true punishment for that kind of crime was death, and Potiphar was a powerful man. He could have had Joseph killed. Perhaps he put Joseph in the king’s prison as an act of mercy. Perhaps Potiphar understood the wretched character of his wife and protected Joseph from full punishment! But even so, it was a terrible injustice. Joseph did not belong in prison.
What would happen to him there? Would he languish away in a cell? Would he be stuck there forever?
Joseph was in jail, but he persevered, making the best of a hard situation. God continued to show his kindness to his servant. He gave him favor with the warden of the prison. The warden put Joseph in charge of all the other prisoners. Just like with Potiphar, the warden didn’t have to worry about anything that was under Joseph’s care. God blessed Joseph in every way, so that Joseph’s work was absolutely excellent.
In the great risks of life, Joseph trusted in God’s sovereign care. He truly believed that God was in charge of history. He truly believed that God was guiding and guarding his life. It made him strong and bold to serve with excellence, even when all seemed lost. In his humble obedience, Joseph was growing the powerful internal qualities of a mighty leader!
Many hundreds of years after Joseph, a beautiful poem was written about this kind of strength by faith. It is the very first Psalm. This is what it says;
Psalm 1
Blessed is the man
who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked
or stand in the way of sinners
or sit in the seat of mockers.
But his delight is in the law of the LORD,
and on his law he meditates day and night.
He is like a tree planted by streams of water,
which yields fruit in season
and whose leaf does not whither.
Whatever he does prospers.
Not so the wicked!
They are like chaff that the wind blows away.
Therefore the wicked will not stand in judgment,
nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.
For the LORD watches over the way of the righteous,
but the way of the wicked will perish.