Poor, poor Joseph

Genesis Chapter 39

After a slightly confusing interlude the story returns to our young hero Joseph.

As time goes on his owner, Potiphar, a military man, commander of the palace guard, begins to realise that he has bought a bit of a bargain with Joseph. 

And young Joseph winds up in charge of everything – apparently Potiphar only had to worry about he  was going to be for dinner.

Mrs Potiphar decided to take a fancy to the handsome young slave running everything and she decides that she wants a bit of fun. 

However Joseph refuses all her advances until eventually she managed to corner Joseph who leaves his clothes behind in the struggle. 

At which point the woman scorned accuses Joseph of attempted rape.

I’m not sure about whether Potiphar believes his wife as he does not summarily kill Joseph (Which I’m sure a palace guard official was entitled and capable of doing). Instead he throws him into prison. There are accounts from Rome of careless slaves being killed for dropping dishes, and I'm sure others did the same.

If it had been me, I would wonder what God thought he was playing at given this set of circumstances, however the Bible tells us that God was with Joseph in prison , and eventually Joseph becomes a trustee and takes care of the other prisoners.

You know what, I can only wonder at the faith of Joseph. If I had been through what he went through, sold into slavery, in all likelihood he probably only escaped summary execution in a probably quite gruesome manner by the skin of his teeth and winds up in a dark dank prison cell in irons, yet in all this God did not leave him,