Wherein we witness the Bible's first account of sexual harassment in the workplace
The Ishmaelites who captured Joseph take him to Egypt where he is sold as a servant to Potiphar, the captain of the guard for Pharaoh. Though now a lowly servant, God is still with Joseph, blessing everything he does. Because of this he exceeds at his job and becomes Potiphar's most favored and trusted servant.
"Joseph was well-built and handsome" the Good Book tells us, and so he quickly catches the eye of Potiphar's wife, who tries to get Joseph to sleep with her. Joe, being the stand-up guy he is, refuses. The wife gets more aggressive, grabbing Joe by the cloak. Joe (in not exactly the most manliest of moves in the Bible) runs away from her, leaving the cloak in her hands.
The wife later shows the cloak to Potiphar, claiming that it is evidence that Joe tried to seduce her. Furious, the captain throws poor Joe into jail. While in jail, Joe is treated well because God is still with him.
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I suppose there's a lesson to be gleaned from this chapter - be righteous and God will stay with you. But most of all it's just a good story.
Chapters like Gen 39 reinforce my growing belief that the Bible is not a rule book - not entirely, anyway. Sometimes it just wants to entertain.
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