Although Potiphar’s wife spoke to Joseph day after day, he refused to go to bed with her or even be near her.
Parallel translations
- WEB As she spoke to Joseph day by day, he didn’t listen to her, to lie by her, or to be with her.
- KJV And it came to pass, as she spake to Joseph day by day, that he hearkened not unto her, to lie by her, or to be with her.
- NKJV So it was, as she spoke to Joseph day by day, that he did not heed her, to lie with her or to be with her.
- NASB Though she spoke to Joseph day after day, he did not listen to her to lie beside her or be with her.
- NLT She kept putting pressure on Joseph day after day, but he refused to sleep with her, and he kept out of her way as much as possible.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Though tempted day after day, Joseph consistently refuses to give in.
Overview
Temptation is persistent, but Joseph's resistance is equally steadfast over time. He avoids not only the act but even being alone with her, showing wise self-protection. His daily faithfulness models endurance against ongoing pressure to sin.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 18
- 1 Pet 2:11Beloved, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from the desires of the flesh, which war against your soul.
- 1 Th 5:22Abstain from every form of evil.
- 1 Cor 6:18Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a man can commit is outside his body, but he who sins sexually sins against his own body.
- 1 Cor 15:33Do not be deceived: “Bad company corrupts good character.”
- 2 Tim 2:22Flee from youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, together with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.
- Prov 2:16It will rescue you from the forbidden woman, from the stranger with seductive words
- Gen 39:8But 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.
- Prov 5:8Keep your path far from her; do not go near the door of her house,
- Prov 6:25–26Do not lust in your heart for her beauty or let her captivate you with her eyes.
- Prov 9:14She sits at the door of her house, on a seat in the heights of the city,
- Prov 7:5that they may keep you from the adulteress, from the stranger with seductive words.
- Prov 1:15my son, do not walk the road with them or set foot upon their path.
- Prov 22:14The mouth of an adulteress is a deep pit; he who is under the wrath of the LORD will fall into it.
- Prov 7:13She seizes him and kisses him; she brazenly says to him:
- Prov 5:3Though the lips of the forbidden woman drip honey and her speech is smoother than oil,
- Prov 23:27For a prostitute is a deep pit, and an adulteress is a narrow well.
- Prov 9:16“Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!” she says to him who lacks judgment.
- 1 Tim 5:14So I advise the younger widows to marry, have children, and manage their households, denying the adversary occasion for slander.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
From the first promise that the seed of the woman would crush the serpent (3:15), through Abraham's blessing to all nations and Judah's coming ruler, Genesis sows every seed that flowers in Christ — the true offspring, the better Adam, the ram caught for Isaac.
How Genesis 39:10 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.