In the previous study, we learned that Potiphar’s wife was very persistent in her sexual advances toward Joseph (Genesis 39:7, 10), who was, no doubt, in his twenties by this time, considering the time it may have taken for him to advance in authority under his master, Potiphar (Genesis 39:1-6). In her latest efforts, she had sent all the males of the house to work outside, making her free to demand whatever she wished of Joseph, even to the point of forcing herself upon him (Genesis 39:11-12). Nevertheless, after he fled the house, wearing only a loincloth, it became evident to all that something was amiss. Therefore, she had to concoct a story that would blame Joseph and excuse herself. Thus, she called for the male servants to come into the house and told them, Joseph had sought to force himself upon her, adding that he mocked the fact that she couldn’t attain sexual satisfaction with her husband.
As the proprietress of the household, she wouldn’t have owed her servants an explanation for Joseph’s fleeing the house wearing only a loincloth. However, by telling them this story, they were given an explanation of what they had witnessed. So, when she informed her husband of her story about what had occurred earlier in the day, once Potiphar returned in the evening, the servants would be able to support her tale by repeating the interpretation they were given.
After Potiphar learned what had occurred, according to his wife’s tale, he became very angry, but at whom? Over what appears to be several years, Potiphar had learned he could trust Joseph with everything he had. Obviously, he had at least that amount of time, probably more, to know his wife. Was she as faithful to him, a eunuch, as she claimed to be? I don’t take Potiphar as a fool. Nevertheless, something had to be done. His wife was probably Egyptian born, and considering Potiphar’s high rank, she was probably given him from one of the families among Egypt’s nobility. Therefore, he couldn’t simply ignore her accusations without proof to the contrary (Genesis 39:19).
Nevertheless, how he punished Joseph suggests that he had doubts concerning his wife’s tale. According to the Code of Hammurabi, even free men were executed for such a crime that Joseph was accused of committing. Joseph was a mere slave, so how could he escape such a judgment, once accused by Potiphar’s freeborn wife? However, Egypt was not the Land of Canaan, and they had their own laws, which may or may not be similar to the laws of the East. How, then, should we understand Joseph’s predicament?
We can gain some light on this subject from an ancient Egyptian story, somewhat similar to that of Joseph’s, namely, A Tale of Two Brothers. In this ancient tale the younger brother is accused by the wife of the elder brother of unwanted sexual advances. After an investigation, the elder brother slew his wife for infidelity and found his brother innocent. In this context, Joseph’s punishment seems quite mild, indeed, considering what could have occurred, assuming Potiphar believed his wife. Instead of executing Joseph, Potiphar took him and placed him in prison, where the king’s prisoners were kept (Genesis 39:20).[1]
Nevertheless, the Lord was with Joseph in the prison and brought him grace in the sight of the warden (Genesis 39:21). Whether the prison warden was informed by Potiphar of Joseph’s integrity or that he found this out on his own isn’t said in the text, but neither does the text account for a time, when Joseph’s integrity was realized. It is simply stated that the warden placed Joseph in authority over all the prisoners under the warden’s care. Therefore, just as it was in the case of Joseph’s relationship with Potiphar, the warden didn’t need to care about anything under Joseph’s care, because the Lord prospered him and made him successful in all that he did (Genesis 39:22-23). ___________________________________
[1] This might have been an ancient version of our modern “white collar crime” and what happens to them. In other words it wasn’t a place where gross criminals were kept.
Smoodock's Blog 