A modern English translation drawn directly from the original Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek texts. Translated word-for-word where possible, by a committee with scholarly oversight.
Uses the same source texts as the ESV, NASB, and most academic Bibles, including the Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia and the Nestle-Aland critical edition.
Genesis 39
Genesis 39 is the thirty-ninth chapter of the book of Genesis and the chapter in which Joseph rises in Potiphar's household, is falsely accused by Potiphar's wife, and ends in prison. The 23-verse chapter is bracketed by a repeated refrain that the LORD is with Joseph, both at the top of his master's house and at the bottom of an Egyptian dungeon.
The chapter opens with Joseph in Egypt, sold to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh and the captain of the guard. The LORD is with Joseph, and he becomes a successful man in the house of his Egyptian master. Potiphar sees that the LORD is with him and that the LORD makes everything he does prosper. He puts Joseph in charge of his house and entrusts everything he owns to him. The LORD blesses the Egyptian's household on Joseph's account; his blessing is on everything Potiphar owns, both in the house and in the field.
Joseph is handsome and well-built. After a time, Potiphar's wife casts longing eyes on him and says, "Sleep with me." Joseph refuses. He explains that his master has held back nothing from him except her, his wife, and asks, "How then could I do such a great evil and sin against God?" She speaks to him day after day; he will not listen.
One day Joseph goes into the house to do his work, and no one else is inside. She grabs his cloak and says, "Sleep with me." He leaves the cloak in her hand and runs outside. She then calls her household servants and shows them the cloak. She tells them that the Hebrew slave came to her to make sport of her, and that when she screamed he ran out and left the cloak behind. She keeps the cloak until Potiphar comes home and repeats the same accusation to him.
Potiphar burns with anger. He puts Joseph in the prison where the king's prisoners are confined. There Joseph stays.
But the chapter closes by repeating itself. The LORD is with Joseph in prison and shows him kindness, giving him favor with the chief jailer. The jailer puts every prisoner in Joseph's charge, and whatever Joseph does, the LORD makes succeed.
Verse 1. Meanwhile, Joseph had been taken down to Egypt, where an Egyptian named Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh and captain of the guard, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had taken him there.
Verse 2. And the LORD was with Joseph, and he became a successful man, serving in the household of his Egyptian master.
Verse 3. When his master saw that the LORD was with him and made him prosper in all he did,
Verse 4. Joseph found favor in his sight and became his personal attendant. Potiphar put him in charge of his household and entrusted him with everything he owned.
Verse 5. From the time that he put Joseph in charge of his household and all he owned, the LORD blessed the Egyptian’s household on account of him. The LORD’s blessing was on everything he owned, both in his house and in his field.
Verse 6. So Potiphar left all that he owned in Joseph’s care; he did not concern himself with anything except the food he ate. Now Joseph was well-built and handsome,
Verse 7. and after some time his master’s wife cast her eyes upon Joseph and said, “Sleep with me.”
Verse 8. But he refused. “Look,” he said to his master’s wife, “with me here, my master does not concern himself with anything in his house, and he has entrusted everything he owns to my care.
Verse 9. No one in this house is greater than I am. He has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. So how could I do such a great evil and sin against God?”
Verse 10. Although Potiphar’s wife spoke to Joseph day after day, he refused to go to bed with her or even be near her.
Verse 11. One day, however, Joseph went into the house to attend to his work, and not a single household servant was inside.
Verse 12. She grabbed Joseph by his cloak and said, “Sleep with me!” But leaving his cloak in her hand, he escaped and ran outside.
Verse 13. When she saw that he had left his cloak in her hand and had run out of the house,
Verse 14. she called her household servants. “Look,” she said, “this Hebrew has been brought to us to make sport of us. He came to me so he could sleep with me, but I screamed as loud as I could.
Verse 15. When he heard me scream for help, he left his cloak beside me and ran out of the house.”
Verse 16. So Potiphar’s wife kept Joseph’s cloak beside her until his master came home.
Verse 17. Then she told him the same story: “The Hebrew slave you brought us came to me to make sport of me,
Verse 18. but when I screamed for help, he left his cloak beside me and ran out of the house.”
Verse 19. When his master heard the story his wife told him, saying, “This is what your slave did to me,” he burned with anger.
Verse 20. So Joseph’s master took him and had him thrown into the prison where the king’s prisoners were confined. While Joseph was there in the prison,
Verse 21. the LORD was with him and extended kindness to him, granting him favor in the eyes of the prison warden.
Verse 22. And the warden put all the prisoners under Joseph’s care, so that he was responsible for all that was done in the prison.
Verse 23. The warden did not concern himself with anything under Joseph’s care, because the LORD was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did.
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