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But Yahweh was with Joseph, and showed kindness to him, and gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison.
Genesis 39:21 · World English Bible
Parallel translations
  • KJV But the LORD was with Joseph, and shewed him mercy, and gave him favour in the sight of the keeper of the prison.
  • BSB the LORD was with him and extended kindness to him, granting him favor in the eyes of the prison warden.
  • NKJV But the Lord was with Joseph and showed him mercy, and He gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison.
  • NASB But the Lord was with Joseph and extended kindness to him, and gave him favor in the sight of the warden of the prison.
  • NLT But the Lord was with Joseph in the prison and showed him his faithful love. And the Lord made Joseph a favorite with the prison warden.

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

Even in prison the LORD is with Joseph and grants him favor with the warden.

Overview

God's covenant faithfulness follows Joseph into the lowest place, again granting him favor. The same divine presence that blessed him in Potiphar's house sustains him now. No circumstance can separate Joseph from the LORD's steadfast love.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 21

  • Isa 41:10Don’t you be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you. Yes, I will help you. Yes, I will uphold you with the right hand of my righteousness.
  • Exod 3:21I will give this people favor in the sight of the Egyptians, and it will happen that when you go, you shall not go empty-handed.
  • Acts 7:9–10“The patriarchs, moved with jealousy against Joseph, sold him into Egypt. God was with him,
  • 1 Pet 3:17For it is better, if it is God’s will, that you suffer for doing well than for doing evil.
  • Isa 43:2When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they will not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned, and flame will not scorch you.
  • Exod 11:3Yahweh gave the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians. Moreover the man Moses was very great in the land of Egypt, in the sight of Pharaoh’s servants, and in the sight of the people.
  • Ps 105:19until the time that his word happened, and Yahweh’s word proved him true.
  • 1 Pet 4:14–16If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed; because the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you. On their part he is blasphemed, but on your part he is glorified.
  • Rom 8:31–32What then shall we say about these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?
  • Gen 39:2Yahweh was with Joseph, and he was a prosperous man. He was in the house of his master the Egyptian.
  • Gen 21:22At that time, Abimelech and Phicol the captain of his army spoke to Abraham, saying, “God is with you in all that you do.
  • Dan 1:9Now God made Daniel to find kindness and compassion in the sight of the prince of the eunuchs.
  • Exod 12:36Yahweh gave the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they let them have what they asked. They plundered the Egyptians.
  • 1 Pet 3:13–14Now who is he who will harm you, if you become imitators of that which is good?
  • Gen 40:3He put them in custody in the house of the captain of the guard, into the prison, the place where Joseph was bound.
  • Prov 16:7When a man’s ways please Yahweh, he makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.
  • Rom 8:37No, in all these things, we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.
  • Gen 49:23–24The archers have severely grieved him, shot at him, and persecute him:
  • Ps 106:46He made them also to be pitied by all those who carried them captive.
  • Dan 6:22My God has sent his angel, and has shut the lions’ mouths, and they have not hurt me; because as before him innocence was found in me; and also before you, O king, I have done no hurt.
  • Ps 105:22to discipline his princes at his pleasure, and to teach his elders wisdom.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (4)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Genesis videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Genesis 39:21YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on GenesisMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    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 39:21 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.