Potiphar's wife is a figure in the Hebrew Bible and the Quran. She was the wife of Potiphar, the captain of Pharaoh's guard in the time of
Genesis (39:7–20) tells how Joseph, sold into slavery by his jealous brothers, was bought by Potiphar, captain of Pharaoh's guard. Potiphar's wife (who is not named in the Bible) took a liking to the young man and made several failed attempts to seduce him.
And she caught him by his garment, saying, Lie with me: and he left his garment in her hand, and fled, and got him out" (Genesis 39: 11–12). Citing his garment as evidence, Potiphar's wife falsely accused Joseph of having assaulted her, and he was sent to prison.
According to the Legends of the Jews, since Zuleika did not have a son, she pretended she wanted to adopt Joseph as her son and she was demonstrating her affection by going to Joseph at night trying to persuade him. When Joseph eventually knew her trick, he prayed to God to divert her attention from him.
After a time, Potiphar's wife took a sexual interest in Joseph (Gen. 39:7). Joseph's refusal of the wife's advances was articulate and reasonable. He reminded her of the broad trust that Potiphar had placed in him and described the relationship she sought in the moral/religious terms “wickedness” and "sin" (Gen.
Scripture's Command: Flee!
Ultimately, Potiphar's wife became so aggressive in her advances that Joseph had to run! “One day he went into the house to attend to his duties, and none of the household servants was inside. She caught him by his cloak and said, 'Come to bed with me!
In the book of Genesis and Jewish traditions, exemplified in Midrashic texts and the Aggadah, the wife of Potiphar (or Zuleika as named in the Jewish Aggadah) is firmly established in her representation of the wiliness of women which men are urged to avert in fear that it would threaten their righteousness (Amos 242; ...
In Genesis 37 Joseph is seventeen years of age; when he gets out of prison in 41,30 he is thirty years old. Did Potiphar's wife not only try to seduce him “day by day”, but perhaps even “year by year”? Why was there, in other words, no earlier accusation?
In The Divine Comedy, Dante sees the shade of Potiphar's wife in the eighth circle of Hell. She does not speak, but Dante is told by another spirit that, along with other perjurers, she is condemned to suffer a burning fever for all eternity.
Potiphar's wife frames Joseph, saying he made improper advances toward her. Potiphar believes his high-pedigree wife and throws Joseph in prison. God's plan for Joseph continues during Joseph's prison stay. He oversees other prisoners and interprets their dreams and the prophetic dream of the king of Egypt.
Potiphar's wife Henet is strongly attracted to Joseph and tries to seduce him. When he refuses, she falsely accuses him of attempting to rape her, and Joseph is thrown into prison. Later, when Potiphar learns what Henet has done, he kills her and then himself.
Joseph's mistake was in bragging about his dreams. Little good can come from making other people envious of oneself. if no person is watching and there is no way of getting caught. Joseph proved that he had matured and now had the moral character to become a leader.
But, Reuben stepped in on Joseph's behalf and convinced his brothers to throw Joseph in the pit instead. Secretly, Reuben planned to come back and save him. The brothers listened to Reuben and did not kill Joseph, but when Reuben returned to rescue Joseph, he was gone!
The blessing of the LORD was on everything Potiphar had, both in the house and in the field. and after a while his master's wife took notice of Joseph and said, "Come to bed with me!"
But God sent an angel to tell Joseph that Mary was with child by the Holy Spirit and would give birth to a son whose name would be Jesus. So instead of sending Mary away, Joseph married her.
In the Bible, Pharaoh honors Joseph by giving him as a wife Asenath, “the daughter of Potiphera, priest from the city of On” (LXX: Heliopolis; Gen 41:45).
Joseph, who had been sold to Potiphar, an officer of the pharaoh, came to be trusted and honored in Potiphar's household. He was, however, falsely accused by Potiphar's wife, Iempsar, of trying to violate her, after her attempts at seduction had failed.
According to the Midrash, Joseph would have been immediately executed by the sexual assault charge against him by Potiphar's wife. Abravanel explains that she had accused other servants of the same crime in the past. Potiphar believed that Joseph was incapable of such an act and petitioned Pharaoh to spare his life.
But Joseph refused, saying that he couldn't betray God by doing evil (verses 7-9). Yet, Potiphar's wife was persistent enough to entice him day after day but Joseph still refused. Until one time, she grabbed him by his cloak and insisted on her request. But Joseph ran away and left her his cloak (verses 10-12).
The story of Zuleika, wife of Potiphar (q.v.), and Joseph (q.v.) appears in the Judaeo-Christian Old Testament and in the Koran. In the Old Testament she is described simply as Potiphar's wife, her name being given only in the Koran.
Agreeing with Mary's continued virginity, the text proclaims that Joseph had four sons (Judas, Justus, James, and Simon) and two daughters (Assia and Lydia) by a previous marriage. After this basic background, the text proceeds to paraphrase the Gospel of James, stopping at the point of Jesus' birth.
He was sold into slavery when he was about seventeen (see Genesis 37:2), and he was thirty years of age when he became vice-regent to the pharaoh (see Genesis 41:46). Altogether he served thirteen years with Potiphar and in prison.
7. Potiphar's wife was tempting Joseph to sin as well. Do you ever tempt others to sin? Maybe in gossip, or participating in something they shouldn't, or pursuing something they shouldn't? (Remember Eve's sin tempted Adam as well…)
Tamar is a Canaanite widow, banished to obscurity until she plays the harlot and pulls one over on her father-in-law. Potiphar's wife doesn't even get her own name, but she's got a house full of servants in Egypt–including a very handsome Joseph.
and Potiphar's wife soon began to look at him lustfully. “Come and sleep with me,” she demanded. But Joseph refused. “Look,” he told her, “my master trusts me with everything in his entire household.