Word Live: The Lord Was With Him
‘Be still, and know that I am God’ (Psalm 46:10). Recognise the presence of God. Thank him for Jesus, Immanuel. Welcome the Holy Spirit.
Bible passage
Genesis 39:1–23
Joseph and Potiphar’s wife
39 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 so that 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 favour 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 Potiphar left everything he had in Joseph’s care; 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 to 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 favour in the eyes of the prison warder. 22 So the warder put Joseph in charge of all those held in the prison, and he was made responsible for all that was done there. 23 The warder paid no attention to anything under Joseph’s care, because the Lord was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did.
Holy Bible, New International Version® Anglicized, NIV® Copyright © 1979, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Explore
This story is reminiscent of chapter 3 of Genesis, which we know as the story of the fall. Unlike Adam and Eve, Joseph did not fall, even though he was faced with a temptress who tried to persuade him to take the one thing that his master has prohibited (v 9; see Genesis 3:2,3) and he ended up naked and then excluded from the house of his master.
Maybe we read the opening of Genesis through the wrong lens. Could it be not so much the story of fall and punishment, as the story of the thwarting of God’s desire to bless?
Here in chapter 39, God’s desire to bless is fulfilled. His blessing is poured out on Joseph when he served Potiphar, and through him to the whole of the household and all Potiphar’s business (v 5). The flow of God’s blessing is made so much easier when we honour him, even when no one else is looking (v 11). And even when Joseph ends up in prison, God’s desire to bless is not thwarted (vs 21–23). The Lord was with Joseph, and that is what really mattered.
Author
Steve Silvester
Respond
The presence of God brings blessing. As you have recognised his presence, now receive his blessing. Pray that his blessing will flow through you to others.
Deeper Bible study
‘To humans belong the plans of the heart, but from the Lord comes the proper answer of the tongue.’1
It was not the future Joseph had been expecting, but it was better than he might have hoped for, having been sold into slavery by his brothers. His story is typical of many of our lives – full of ups and downs.
Initially, Joseph unexpectedly prospers (vs 1–6). Purchased by Potiphar, a senior imperial servant who needs someone reliable to run his affairs, Joseph proves equal to the task. While his own abilities contributed, the real cause of his success is God’s blessing (vs 3,5). However, Joseph then walks into a major problem (vs 6–18): Potiphar’s wife tries to seduce her husband’s trusted but handsome steward. What a model he is when facing such a situation – not of his own making. Joseph refused to compromise one inch, valuing his integrity. He wisely tried to avoid her, at which point she changed tactics, became contemptuous of him and accusatory (v 17). Accusations have tremendous and destructive power, whether there’s any basis to them or not, and Joseph was in no position to defend himself or pursue justice. Today, as then, powerful people either get their way or silence their victims or plot revenge. This resulted in Joseph’s punishment (vs 19,20). The form of his incarceration leaves a doubt as to whether Potiphar believed his wife. Whether he did or not, Joseph’s confinement led to his renewed prosperity (vs 20–23). It teaches a powerful lesson: who we are is always more important than where we are or what we face.
How Joseph has grown in character! He is now consistently exemplary. Yet, through it all, the key message is not about him but that ‘The Lord was with Joseph …’ (vs 2,21,23) even when the reverse seemed to be the case. Believers can look to the Lord for the same providential care, no matter what their circumstances might be.
As you look back on life, can you testify, ‘The Lord was with me’, even in the difficulties?
1Prov 16:1
Author
Derek Tidball
