Joseph had his mother’s gene.
For like Rachel, he was very good looking. He was extraordinarily handsome. It
was this quality of his that got Potiphar’s wife attracted to him. And again we
see him suffer because of this endowment. We read in verse 7 that “It came about after these events that his master’s wife looked
with desire at Joseph, and she said, ‘Lie with me.’” Lust has been a
part of man since the fall. Both men and women had found it hard to control.
And Mrs. Potiphar was certainly such a person. She couldn’t resist this good
looking Joseph. Being in the habit of insisting on getting what she wanted, she
lusted after Joseph. She was an unconscious slave to her own lust. As far as
she was concerned, Joseph was only one of the slaves in her house. But she failed
to realize that in reality she was more a slave than Joseph was.
Joseph could have easily fallen.
After all he was only about 18 years old, an age where his male hormone was in
full production. At this age anyone would also be more curious about sex, and
the drive to find out would have easily gotten the better of him. Hence it came
as a great surprise that Joseph did not fall for this temptation. He could have
easily rationalized and told himself that no one would know about it. It could
only be a secret kept between them two – Mrs Potiphar and himself. Besides, by
giving in to her could also indirectly contribute to his career advancement. Furthermore,
Potiphar was so busy to pay attention to his wife and was not meeting her need.
Poor thing, she certainly was entitled to some affection. Aren’t these the rationale
people give for a secret tryst?
From the position of his predicament,
Joseph had every reason to go for it. Through no fault of his, he became a victim
for being the father’s favourite. His brothers despised and hated him and betrayed
him by selling him to Egypt. And now he was all alone in a foreign land having no
one to fend for him but himself. In human terms, he had every right to be angry
and bitter. Who could blame him if he had indulged in resentment and self-pity?
It is easy for a person in such a plight to cave in and give in to a little
fling.
Kudos to Joseph, he did not fall for
the ruse. Mrs Potiphar’s blatant invitation was met with a long passionate and
vehement refusal. Joseph’s flat and strongly worded refusal were captured in verses
8-9. He said, “Behold, with me here, my master does not
concern himself with anything in the house, and he has put all that he owns in
my charge. There is no one greater in this house than I, and he has withheld
nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do this
great evil and sin against God?” In refusing to sin, Joseph had
flatly refused to do three things. Firstly, He refused to betray the trust given
to him. Secondly, he refused to betray Potiphar, his master. Thirdly and most
importantly, he refused to betray God Himself. He could resist the temptation instantly
because he was a faithful man and one who was full of integrity. This account
is not about sexual fidelity but moral accountability. Young as he was, Joseph had
a moral made of steel. His faithfulness to himself, his boss and his God, had helped
him to turn away from this enormous temptation.
The one
certainty that kept Joseph from deviating was the fact that he would not sin
against his God. He was consciously aware of the presence of the unseen God in
every situation of his life. Joseph had long been convinced that God could see
everything, even thigs that no one knows about. Yes, God can see any sin
committed behind closed door, even those committed in dark unlit rooms. According
to David in Psalm 139, there can never be a place where God would be absent. And
Hebrews 4:13 has this to say, “And there is no
creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare
to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do.” Nothing can ever be concealed
from the eyes of God.
Verse 10 gives us a hint to the
persistent nature of temptation. It will not only come once or twice, but will
keep coming and with greater intensity. It will seek opportune time and condition.
So we are told that Mrs Potiphar spoke to Joseph day after
day. Glory to God Joseph did not listen to her to lie beside her or be
with her. Like Joseph, our life is also exposed to the luring temptation
of all sorts of shape and form. Magazines, television, movies, computers and
the whole host of modern gadgets that ubiquitously besiege us and asking us to
come “lie down with me.” Let’s take a cue from Joseph. Will we say with him, “How then could I do this great evil and sin against God?!”
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