Genesis Chapter 39

GENESIS

 CHAPTER

 39

1. Now Joseph was taken down to Egypt, and Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, the captain of the guard, an Egyptian, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had brought him down there.

(Genesis chapter 39 verse 1)

After being deceived by his brothers Jacob was taken to Egypt were he was sold to an officer of the pharaoh. During such critical moments when we are suffering any form of injustice we are not to place ourselves in a circle of negativity by focusing on the person or on the negative act itself. The consequence of such a negative attitude is that when being in such a state we open ourselves to the Devil who uses our emotions in order to compel us to do even more sinful acts that may end up harming both ourselves and even significant others. Therefore during such moments, we are to turn to God in a spirit of humble prayer and pray that we are given His light to guide us out of the paths of darkness we end up in or to give us the correct skills attitude, motivation and positive spirit of love and faith in order to cope with the given situation. 

2. The LORD was with Joseph, and he became a successful man; he was in the house of his Egyptian master.

(Genesis chapter 39 verse 2)

After being sold to the officer of the pharaoh God was still taking care of Joseph. This is reflected by the fact that Joseph was successful in all that was asked of him by his Egyptian master. For some reason God permitted Joseph to achieve this end that resulted in his growing in prestige in the eyes of his master.

God helps us not only during our good times but also during our bad times. He has promised us that He will be our God and loving father forever. God loves us so much that He never breaks his promises and is always faithful to us. God has the power to change a negative situation into positive one on our behalf, so we are to rest assured that He permits anything to happen for our own good. Like and more than any loving father, God has our greatest interest as his main concern, so long as our wishes intentions or interests do not cause harm to those of others. As in the case of Joseph God changed Joseph's negative situation that of being sold as a slave to the Egyptian officer, to a positive one meaning that of success  in his master house.

3. His master saw that the LORD was with him, and that the LORD caused all that he did to prosper in his hands.

(Genesis chapter 39)

God made his presence felt in the person of Joseph who was the result of prosperity in his master's house. God gave Joseph all the necessary skills in order for him to achieve more status of popularity which was to be an asset for him in the future. He starts preparing the way for our liberation from our selves and from our sins and sinful situations by adopting a stagiest approach, that sequentially unfolds in our life, one stage after another, however if we spoil God's plan by means of our own intervention (which God permits us to do without inhibiting even our sinful efforts and attempts) this process may take longer than planned to unfold, or it may even not unfold at all.  During such moments of stress, God did not permit Joseph's faith in him to be destroyed. On the contrary by means of the circumstances that God permitted to take place Joseph grew in both faith character and personality.  As in the case of Joseph God is always with us. He permits us to experience stressful situations in order to continue the process of our formation and to confirm if we are still faithful in our commitment to him.

4. So Joseph found favour in his sight and attended him; he made him overseer of his house and put him in charge of all that he had.  5. From the time that he made him overseer in his house and over all that he had, the LORD blessed the Egyptians house for Joseph's sake; the blessing of the LORD was on all that he had, in house and field.

(Genesis chapter 39 verses 4 to 5)

As a consequence of God's presence with Joseph, he achieved a further increase of power and authority over his master's property so much that he became a leader or manager in the premises. God's presence was so strong that all who lived in the household benefited from the grace of God in one way or another. As children of God treats us equally in love and graces and does, not make positive and or negative discrimination amongst his sheep, even though they may be of different, nationality, cast culture, creed and values. Even though we constantly sin and go against His will God is always there ready to welcome back home, like a loving father who loves his children with an everlasting love, that can never come to an end or be exhausted. 

6. So he left all that he had in Joseph's charge; and, with him there, he had no concern for anything but the food that he ate. Now Joseph was handsome and good-looking.

(Genesis chapter 39 verse 6)

The Egyptian officer had  completely trusted Joseph who was a stranger to him. Moreover he had put him in charge of everything that he had and did not care, for anything except the food he ate. As humans we may at times not find it difficult to place our trust in fellow humans. However for some reason when it comes to placing our trust in God in whom we can totally trust, we tend to hesitate and have second thoughts.

7. And after a time his master's wife cast her eyes on Joseph and said, "Lie with me."

(Genesis chapter 39 verse 7)

In order for God's purpose to unfold God gifted Joseph with not only intelligence but also with good looks. However this particular quality was not given to Joseph for his own pleasure and satisfaction but in order to be an aid so that the process of the plan of our salvation could continue to unfold. If Joseph's stay at the household of his master, continued without any problems, God's plan would have experienced a terrible end, therefore there was a need for Joseph to move on, even if this meant that Joseph was to experience more trials and tribulation. As found in verse 7 of the 39th chapter of the book of Genesis, the change in circumstances was brought about by means of the wife of Joseph's own master, who had placed his whole trust in Joseph. 

As already mentioned God gave very good looks, so much that his master' wife was attracted to him. Her intentions were that of encouraging Joseph to have intercourse with her. She was aware that if the deception was discovered she had the upper hand due to her marital status, meaning that of her being the wife of the Egyptian master. On the other hand Joseph was still basically a foreign slave even though he had grown in both power and prestige. At times people of power tend to abuse of the power entrusted to them as in the given scenario. Appearances are deceptive. As humans we are prone to being misled by appearances. Since the time of our beginning in the garden of Eden, we have not stopped being tempted by this psychological means.  We have a tendency to judge each other from the outside, as is found in the saying 'never judge a book by its cover, meaning on the bases of appearances and not on a bases of relationship. In contrast to humans God never judges us by our looks but by our innocence, love and faith in Him even though at times these are questionable and unpredictable. 

8. But he refused and said to his master's wife, "Look, with me here, my master has no concern about anything in the house, and he has put everything that he has in my hand. 9. He is not greater in this house than I am, nor has he kept back anything from me except yourself, because you are his wife. How then could I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?"

(Genesis chapter 39 verses 8 to 9)

Even though the temptation was strong and attractive, Joseph refused the offer, saying that her husband had trusted him by giving him full authority over the household and therefore in turn Joseph was not to repay acts of trust and kindness by committing the mentioned  act of wickedness and sin against both God  and his master by sleeping with his master's wife. 

As sons and daughters of God he has placed his thrust in us. Everyday He shows us how much he loves us. However as humans we break our commitment of trust with God by accepting the temptations of the Devil. However as in the case of Joseph, we are to be aware of our selves, our strengths and weaknesses and help us to take the necessary positive action at the given time temptation. In time as we grow in self knowledge we become accustomed with our strengths and weaknesses and become more skilled in dealing with them if we are determined to stop falling in the same temptations. On seeing our motivation, God is sure to help us by enriching us with the power of his grace and mercy. 

10. And although she spoke to Joseph day after day, he would not consent to lie beside her or to be with her.

(Genesis chapter 39 verse 10)

Even though Jacob declined the offer of his master's wife, she kept on tempting him day after day, however each time Joseph would refuse her offer.  Even though  we decline the temptations of the Devil he always continues to tempt us again and again until we can bear it no longer and we end up ceasing to resist the Devil's request. However if we have a strong relationship with God He will give us the needed strength in order to cope and master the temptations of our adversary. 

11. One day, however, when he went into the house to do his work, and while no one else was in the house, 12 she caught hold of his garment, saying, "Lie with me!" But he left his garment in her hand, and fled and ran outside.

(Genesis chapter 39 verses 11 to 12)

When there was no one else in his master's house apart from his master's wife, Joseph went for work as he usually did. However his master's wife cunningly caught hold of Joseph's garments and ordered him to lie with her. However Joseph fled away thus resisting temptation. As a consequence he left his garments in the hands of his master's wife who, had had a strong grip on them, with the intention of undressing him so that he could lie in bed with her.

13. When she saw that he had left his garment in her hand and had fled outside, 14 she called out to the members of her household and said to them, "See, my husband has brought among us a Hebrew to insult us! He came in to me to lie with me, and I cried out with a loud voice; 15 and when he heard me raise my voice and cry out, he left his garment beside me, and fled outside."

(Genesis chapter 39 verses 13 to 15)

When the woman realised that Joseph had ran away and left his garments, she maliciously called all other members of the household and told them that her husband had brought a Hebrew to live amongst them in order to insult them by trying to sleep with her. While still holding what might be easily considered as being the evidence that would easily incriminate Joseph as being the guilty party she, added fuel to the flame by adding that when she had shouted Joseph had, ran away leaving his garments behind him.

When the devil realises that it is of no use to try and convince a good and God fearing person such as Joseph in order to sin against God, the Devil tries to take revenge by means of other means in order to make the good person's live miserable. 

16. Then she kept his garment by her until his master came home, 17 and she told him the same story, saying, "The Hebrew servant, whom you have brought among us, came in to me to insult me; 18 but as soon as I raised my voice and cried out, he left his garment beside me, and fled outside."

(Genesis chapter 39 verses 16 to 18)

The deceitful lady kept Joseph's garments as a evidence in order, to show to her husband and to convince him that her twisted version of what had actually taken place was true. On reflecting even though we may try to deceive other people, we can never deceive God. He knows everything and anything and it is impossible for us, to hide anything from Him. The author of this chapter Mr. Deevain Ajit Pawar strongly stresses that all though as humans we all lie in some way or other to each other, no matter how much lies we say or how many people we deceive, we can never deceive God for he is always watching us all time.

19. When his master heard the words that his wife spoke to him, saying, "This is the way your servant treated me," he became enraged. 20 And Joseph's master took him and put him into the prison, the place where the king's prisoners were confined; he remained there in prison.   

(Genesis chapter 39 verses 19 to 20)

                 

       

Upon hearing his wife's accusation, Joseph's master, without stopping to consider if he was hearing the truth or not, became so enraged. He could not believe how a person whom he totally trusted could have betrayed his trust and committed such an  immoral sin.

Today as also in the past, the world's judgement is simply based on scientific theory based on evidence and proof that is interpreted accepted or refuted by means of scientific and logical enquiry. At times these tools when applied on such criteria at times can result in leading to fallacious judgement. The author of this chapter refers to a circumstance when a persons commits a crime but someone else who is rich and powerful may influence the judicial system by incriminating or framing somebody else who is condemned for a crime that he did not commit, while the guilty person  is set free. Therefore in such cases such judgements are wrong. On the other hand the judgement given by God is always absolutely correct because God  is omnipresent thus having the faculty of knowing everything that is going on in the world, and therefore it is practically  impossible to hide anything from Him. God is aware of the magnitude of our sin and has the means of passing judgement on us that is totally just and meritorious in relation to the sins that we may have committed. 

21. But the LORD was with Joseph and showed him steadfast love; he gave him favour in the sight of the chief jailer.

(Genesis chapter 39 verse 21)

Although Joseph's condition seems to have become pathetic, due to the fact that, he was now locked in prison by his master, God had not given up on him, for He knew that Joseph was innocent. Therefore God blessed Joseph by giving him favour in sight of the chief jailer. God is able to bring good out of evil in order to help us in our moments of trials and tribulations. Therefore we all should trust God and stick up for what is right no matter what the consequences may be. If we side with God's truth and justice there is no force in world that can stop Him from protecting us. As in the case of Joseph he may have aware of the consequences that awaited him if he refused to sleep with his master's wife, however Joseph stood up for the truth and did not disobey God by going against His will.

22. The chief jailer committed to Joseph's care all the prisoners who were in the prison, and whatever was done there, he was the one who did it. 23 The chief jailer paid no heed to anything that was in Joseph's care, because the LORD was with him; and whatever he did, the LORD made it prosper.

(Genesis chapter 39 verses 22 to 23)

It can be noted that God never stops blessing and protecting us from the forces of darkness and evil, both within us and beyond. God is always there for us and his love and understanding is far greater than any love given to us or promised to us by humans. Even during critical situations such as that of Joseph God, never stops working. God's plan for our salvation was continually unfolding, as it is still going on today. God in 2014 is already preparing the world for his second and final visit during which his loving and just judgement will finally take place and the forces of evil including death will be destroyed forever.

  

The author of this chapter chose to end this chapter with the following prayer:

                                                                                      

God you have been there for me throughout my good times as well as the bad times. You have not only helped me, but you have also given me the strength to endure and fight the temptations of the devil.  You have never let anyone shatter my faith in you. Thank you God for blessing and looking after me, my family and my loved ones of my external circles. Thank you God for your love and blessings, they are irreplaceable.

Thank You God