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While in the house of
Potiphar in Egypt, Joseph is faced with the
temptation of adultery from the Egyptian's wife.
She is very convincing and forward so let's see how
this turns out and how we can apply the lesson to
our lives.
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Genesis 39:1-23
Joseph is Tempted with
Adultery in Egypt
-
- 39:1
Now Joseph had been taken down to Egypt.
Potiphar, an Egyptian who was one of Pharaoh's
officials, the captain of the guard, bought him
from the Ishmaelites who had taken him there.
-
- 2 The LORD was with
Joseph and he prospered, and he lived in the
house of his Egyptian master.
-
- 3 When his master saw
that the LORD was with him and that the LORD
gave him success in everything he did,
-
- 4 Joseph found favor
in his eyes and became his attendant.
-
- Potiphar put him in
charge of his household, and he entrusted to his
care everything he owned.
-
- 5 From the time he put
him in charge of his household and of all that
he owned, the LORD blessed the household of the
Egyptian because of Joseph.
-
- The blessing of the
LORD was on everything Potiphar had, both in the
house and in the field.
-
- 6 So he left in
Joseph's care everything he had; with Joseph in
charge, he did not concern himself with anything
except the food he ate.
-
- Now Joseph was
well-built and handsome,
-
- 7 and after a while
his master's wife took notice of Joseph and
said, "Come to bed with me!"
-
- 8 But he refused.
"With me in charge," he told her, "my master
does not concern himself with anything in the
house; everything he owns he has entrusted to my
care.
-
- 9 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?"
-
- 10 And though she
spoke to Joseph day after day, he refused to go
to bed with her or even be with her.
-
- 11 One day he went
into the house to attend to his duties, and none
of the household servants was inside.
-
- 12 She caught him by
his cloak and said, "Come to bed with me!" But
he left his cloak in her hand and ran out of the
house.
-
- 13 When she saw that
he had left his cloak in her hand and had run
out of the house,
-
- 14 she called her
household servants. "Look," she said to them,
"this Hebrew has been brought to us to make
sport of us! He came in here to sleep with me,
but I screamed.
-
- 15 When he heard me
scream for help, he left his cloak beside me and
ran out of the house."
-
- 16 She kept his cloak
beside her until his master came home.
-
- 17 Then she told him
this story: "That Hebrew slave you brought us
came to me to make sport of me.
-
- 18 But as soon as I
screamed for help, he left his cloak beside me
and ran out of the house."
-
- 19 When his master
heard the story his wife told him, saying, "This
is how your slave treated me," he burned with
anger.
-
- 20 Joseph's master
took him and put him in prison, the place where
the king's prisoners were confined.
-
- But while Joseph was
there in the prison,
-
- 21 the LORD was with
him; he showed him kindness and granted him
favor in the eyes of the prison warden.
-
- 22 So the warden put
Joseph in charge of all those held in the
prison, and he was made responsible for all that
was done there.
-
- 23 The warden paid no
attention to anything under Joseph's care,
because the LORD was with Joseph and gave him
success in whatever he did.
-
This
is the Word of the Lord ... It is meant to
change the way that we think, and the way that
we live.
Commentary
by Bob Pardue
Joseph and Potiphar's
Wife - Overcoming the Temptation of
Adultery
Joseph was a strong-willed
man but Potiphar's wife was relentless in pursuing
him. She seduced Joseph with her actions and mouth
almost every day and I'm sure that Joseph was
tempted as a man by this beautiful
woman.
But, Joseph had something
that she did not understand-- a strong relationship
with God.
Without God, Joseph may have
given in to these moments of pleasure but his faith
kept him strong.
When Potiphar's wife asked
him to sleep with her (very subtle) he refused but
she persisted. Finally Joseph said that he could
not go to bed with her because it would be a sin
against God.
He did not simply say that
sleeping with her was wrong. His answer was not
that she might get hurt or Potiphar may find out
and be hurt himself. He said that it would
displease God. The other "human" answers above
sound solid but all those reasons could fail when a
weak moment comes.
We have all been tempted and
done things that are sins against God. But, if we
trust Him and rely on His strength and not just our
own, we can overcome many of the temptations of
life just as Joseph did.
The hymn says, "be strong in
the Lord". This is always the best course of action
when temptation comes our way. Let's pray for that
strength from God when we are tempted. He can
overcome anything.
Love in Christ
- Bob
If you have never made the
commitment to receive the love and life-changing
experience of Jesus Christ, please take a moment to
go
here and take the
first
steps to salvation.
Verses and Baptist lessons about Joseph and
his temptation of adultery are from Life
Application Study Bible: New International
Version
Comments are welcome. Please email
me with any questions or comments you
may have.
Another Study Lesson from Genesis
Genesis
37:12-36
- The
Brothers Sell
Joseph
- This lesson is about Joseph and his brothers
but it is also about controlling anger. If you have
siblings you'll understand this
situation.
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