All of us face temptations daily. The story of Joseph and Potiphar’s wife in Genesis 39 contains some obvious lessons about faithfulness in the face of sexual temptation, the unfaithfulness of Potiphar's wife, and the loyal character of God. The story is dramatic: Jacob’s son Joseph is in Egypt, where he is Potiphar’s servant and the most trusted overseer in his household.

She focuses on what she can see instead of the promises and vows made to her husband.

We all must focus our eyes, heart, and will on the Father and not on the temporary pleasures of the world. Where is our focus? What is our passion? How we spend our time, talents, and treasures; illustrates our passions.

C. S. Lewis made an amazing statement that our problem as human beings is not that our desires are too strong, but that our desires are too weak. I thought my desires were the problem. Lewis says:

No matter where we go or what we do, temptations and trials are everywhere.

Potiphar’s wife tries to seduce Joseph, but he staunchly refuses her advances:

Joseph is loyal both to Potiphar and to God. Potiphar’s wife doesn’t give up;

Note the wise course Joseph takes, choosing not to be alone with Potiphar’s wife if he could help it. She placed Joseph in between a rock and a hard place. It would be disastrous to give into Potiphar's wife, but she could make his life difficult. He had to persevere in the face of constant temptation. Joseph learned endurance and fortitude from God.

But then came a turning point in Joseph’s life:

Potiphar’s wife, spurned again, stands there with Joseph’s cloak in her hand, and she chooses an angry, vindictive plan:

We see a faithful servant of God falsely accused. Just because we are Christians does not mean that we will escape injustice. We have the same problems as everyone else, but the King of Kings walks beside us in the midst of them. The Holy Spirit empowers us and the Son intercedes for us. Pray is more for us to have relationship with God than it is for God to get us out of our problems.

There is much in the story of Potiphar’s wife about resisting sexual temptation. The man flees from her so suddenly that he leaves his garment in her hand. Joseph doesn’t stand there, gazing at the woman, considering whether he should sleep with her. He immediately gets out of there (see 1 Corinthians 6:18). The smart way to handle temptation is to run or fight. Thinking it over and weighing our options leads us down a slippery slope.

Potiphar’s wife should have never placed him in that situation. The Bible warns us against causing other people to stumble. King Ahab should not have made foolish choices, and Jezebel should not have tempted him to act foolishly.

Joseph’s wise handling of the situation with Potiphar’s wife directly contrasts the foolhardy actions of the simple man in Proverbs.

One could argue the Joseph, too, paid a high price—his virtue landed him in prison—but one has only to read the rest of Genesis to see the blessings God had in store for Joseph.

It is interesting to note that Genesis 39 does not say anything about Joseph’s feelings for Potiphar’s wife: was he attracted to her? Did he find her beautiful or interesting? How long did they have a perfectly normal and friendly relationship—servant and mistress—before she chose to attempt a seduction?

None of this mattered. The heart of the issue is this: Potiphar’s wife promised happiness and sensual satisfaction, but Joseph saw sin for what it is, refusing to do “this great wickedness”

Joseph feared God, knowing that all sin is ultimately against Him (see Psalm 51:4). In saying “no” to Potiphar’s wife, Joseph showed himself to be wise: “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; all who follow his precepts have good understanding” (Psalm 111:10). Do we have an appropriate reverence and respect for God?

It is just as easy for us to be foolish as it was for Potiphar’s wife.

The incident with Potiphar’s wife is bookended by two passages that speak of God’s love and blessing to Joseph. Joseph found favor in the eyes of the Egyptians among whom he lived and rose to a position of prominence in the house of Potiphar (Genesis 39:1–6). Joseph’s success and position was the direct result of God’s blessing (Genesis 39:2–3).

When Joseph was wrongly accused and sent to prison, God remained faithful. God “showed [Joseph] kindness and granted him favor in the eyes of the prison warden” (Genesis 39:21). Soon, the keeper of the prison had put Joseph in charge of the other prisoners and trusted him so fully that he no longer paid attention to anything that was under Joseph’s control (Genesis 39:22–23). Everything Joseph did succeeded because “the Lord was with Joseph” (Genesis 39:23).

The story of Potiphar’s wife is about loyalty as much as it is about resisting temptation. Potiphar’s wife was disloyal to her husband, but Joseph was loyal both to Potiphar and to God. God shows us amazing loyalty and faithfulness. It is part of His character.

Joseph’s desire to be faithful and loyal to Potiphar was in response to God’s faithfulness to Him; Joseph was reflecting God’s character, which is what the godly do.

When Potiphar’s wife stirred her husband’s jealousy and made him throw Joseph in prison unjustly, God was still there, comforting and blessing Joseph. From this we can learn that, even if we are treated unfairly in this life, God will never forsake His servants (Hebrews 13:5).

1. Are we being desensitized by the present evil world. Do things that once shocked us now pass us by with little notice? Have our ethics slackened?

2.Where do our minds wander when we have no duties to perform? What do we think about when we are alone?

3.What are we reading? Are there books or magazines or files in our libraries that we want no one else to see?

4.How many hours do we spend watching TV or going online? What would Jesus think of what we see?

5.How many chapters of the Bible did we read last week? How much time did we spend in prayer?