We are going to begin studying the life of Joseph in the book of Genesis. Beginning in Genesis 39, we read in the first seven verses:
And Joseph was brought down to Egypt; and Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, captain of the guard, an Egyptian, bought him of the hands of the Ishmeelites, which had brought him down thither. And the LORD was with Joseph, and he was a prosperous man; and he was in the house of his master the Egyptian. And his master saw that the LORD was with him, and that the LORD made all that he did to prosper in his hand. And Joseph found grace in his sight, and he served him: and he made him overseer over his house, and all that he had he put into his hand. And it came to pass from the time that he had made him overseer in his house, and over all that he had, that the LORD blessed the Egyptian's house for Joseph's sake; and the blessing of the LORD was upon all that he had in the house, and in the field. And he left all that he had in Joseph's hand; and he knew not ought he had, save the bread which he did eat. And Joseph was a goodly person, and well favoured. And it came to pass after these things, that his master's wife cast her eyes upon Joseph; and she said, Lie with me.
The historical situation is that Joseph has just been sold into Egypt. He was sold by his brothers, and he is now a slave in the house of Potiphar, the Egyptian. Let us turn back to Genesis 37, and we will see how this came to be. In Genesis 37:3, we read:
Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age: and he made him a coat of many colours.
A lot of people are familiar with this “coat of many colors.” Even children are typically familiar with the Biblical story of Joseph’s coat of many colors. It is a common children’s story that a father named Jacob made his son a coat of many colors. But what does this coat represent? If we could understand what this coat represents, it would give us an idea of who Joseph is a picture of, and that will help us as we study Genesis 39.
The only other help that I have been able to find in the Bible regarding this coat is found in 2 Samuel 13:18. We read there, where it is speaking of Tamar:
And she had a garment of divers colours upon her: for with such robes were the king's daughters that were virgins apparelled…
“Divers colours” would be many colors. She had a garment of many colors, just as Joseph had a coat of many colors. It is significant that it says, “With such robes were the king’s daughters that were virgins apparelled,” because this coat of many colors, this coat of divers colors, signifies the righteousness or the purity or the holiness of the king’s daughters. They were virgins, which is the same terminology that God uses when He speaks of the body of believers. One example of this is the ten virgins in Matthew 25. We are “virgins,” because we have been cleansed by the blood of Christ.
So, Tamar, whose names means “palm trees”—and palm trees likewise point to believers—wore a coat of many colors. Tamar is a daughter of David, and David is a type of Christ. Therefore, Tamar is a picture of believers who are clothed with the righteousness of Christ. So, too, when we read that Joseph had a coat of many colors, he is a picture of Jesus who is without sin and without spot, indicating that He is totally pure and perfect and righteous, because there is no spot within Him. That is why, a few verses later, it is significant to learn about what happened to Joseph’s coat of many colors. In Genesis 37:23-24, we read:
And it came to pass, when Joseph was come unto his brethren, that they stripped Joseph out of his coat, his coat of many colours that was on him; And they took him, and cast him into a pit: and the pit was empty, there was no water in it.
This is a type or a picture of the judgment of Christ when He comes to His brethren, to Israel. These are the sons of Jacob; they would later head the tribes of Israel. Joseph came to his brethren, as Jesus came to Israel, and they stripped him of his coat. This is because Christ became sin for us and then was cast into a “pit,” and that pit is a picture of Hell. This is the same as Jesus going into the heart of the earth for three days and three nights—He went down into Hell.
Because Reuben was mainly against killing Joseph, the brothers decided that they should not spill their brother’s blood. They then see a company of Ishmeelite traders coming along, who are also called Midianites, and they say in verse 27, “Let not our hand be upon him;” so they sell Joseph to the Ishmeelites, and the Ishmeelites, in turn, sell him into Egypt to a man called Potiphar. This is what we read about in Genesis 39:1.
Concerning these Ishmeelites, we need to ask why God refers to them, on one hand, as Ishmeelites, and then a few verses later, refers to them as Midianites. We know that Ishmael was a son of Abraham and Hagar (Genesis 16:15), and Midian was also a son of Abraham, but his mother was Keturah (Genesis 25:1-2). They were both sons of Abraham, and we have to assume that over the course of time, these two groups of people became closely related to and associated with one another. For whatever reason, God speaks of them as if they are one and the same. They were sons of Abraham; they were Ishmeelites, or God refers to them as Midianites, and they sold Joseph into Egypt as a slave.
I want to point out that in Acts 7:9, it does not say that the Ishmeelites sold Joseph into Egypt. It states there that the patriarchs sold him into Egypt, because, in reality, they did. The Ishmeelites were a vehicle that God used; but, in reality, it was his brethren that sold him into Egypt, so that he ends up in Potiphar’s house. This was a horrible thing for Joseph’s brethren to do to him, but they did it because they hated him so much. They despised their brother Joseph.
If you want to review Genesis 37, you will see how they envied him and grew to hate him and his dreams, to the point that they were ready to actually kill him. We know that it was the hand of God that prevented this; but in the historical setting, only Reuben wanted to stop his brethren from killing Joseph whom they despised so much.
We are not going to have the time to get into this topic, but this is actually how the world views Christ Himself. They hate the Lord Jesus Christ. The Gospel of John states that the Light came into the world, but men hated the Light and loved the darkness (John 3:19). The world despises Christ; they despise the truth of the Gospel.
We know that, in the historical setting, Joseph’s brethren could not stand to hear his dreams. In Genesis 37, we read about Joseph’s dreams—where the sheaves bowed down to him, and the sun, moon, and stars made obeisance to Joseph. His brethren called him a dreamer, and they hated him for his dreams. However, those dreams came directly from God; they were the Word of God. His brethren hated Joseph because of the Word of God that he brought.
In Genesis 39:1, Joseph was brought down to Egypt. We read that Potiphar was “an officer of Pharaoh, captain of the guard, an Egyptian.”
We know that Joseph is a type of Christ; and most theologians, regardless of their denomination, are aware of the fact that Joseph is a type of Christ. If we carry this picture over to Genesis 39, we then have to ask, “Who is Potiphar?” This is the exact point where most theologians abandon the spiritual understanding, even though they began to spiritualize by agreeing that Joseph was a picture of the Lord Jesus Christ. They stop and say that we cannot go any further than that in a spiritual understanding of these verses. They forget that this is how God wrote the Bible. Without a parable, Jesus tells us, He did not speak to us (Mark 4:34). They forget that in the Psalms, when God gives Israel’s history of sojourning in the wilderness, He refers to it as the opening up of a parable (Psalm 78).
These theologians think that Genesis must be treated as a purely historical account, and that one must not look for spiritual meanings. Then, we have to ask, “What about Galatians 4?” Let us look at Galatians 4:21-24, which says:
Tell me, ye that desire to be under the law, do ye not hear the law? For it is written, that Abraham had two sons, the one by a bondmaid, the other by a freewoman. But he who was of the bondwoman was born after the flesh; but he of the freewoman was by promise. Which things are an allegory: for these are the two covenants…
If we go back into the book of Genesis and look up Hagar and Sarah and their children, we will learn that this topic spans several chapters containing history. From Genesis 16 to Genesis 21 or 22 we find history, yet when God refers to them, He says, “Which things are an allegory.” In other words, this “history” is an historical parable.
From this, we know that it is valid to look for spiritual meanings with many statements in the New Testament. We can go back to the book of Genesis, where we will find large sections that we have Biblical justification for understanding the historical parables as having spiritual meanings.
Actually, if you follow the methodology of the seminary professors and the theologians today, then you could validly spiritualize Genesis 16 through 21 or 22, but when you get to Genesis 23, you would not be allowed to do this. Then, you could go on and spiritualize, perhaps, Genesis 25 and 26, but when you get to the next chapter, you would have to stop. But, this method makes no sense. God is teaching us in Galatians 4 how He wrote the Bible. He states, “Which things are an allegory,” as He talks about the two children of Hagar and Sarah.
We understand that Joseph is a picture of Christ, so who does Potiphar represent? The answer might surprise us, but Potiphar is a picture of God Himself. I realize that the Bible says that Potiphar was “an officer of Pharaoh, captain of the guard, an Egyptian.” We must understand that God does use heathen rulers from time to time to represent Himself. He used Cyrus, king of the Medes and the Persians, to be a great type of the Lord Jesus Christ. He used king Ahasuerus in the book of Esther, who ruled over 127 provinces, to picture Himself. The fact that someone is not an Israelite does not mean that God cannot use him as a type and a picture of something. Here, we will see as we continue, Potiphar is a clear representation of God Himself.
The most difficult thing about this spiritual picture, however, is verse 1 of Genesis 39. We read there:
And Joseph was brought down to Egypt; and Potiphar...bought him of the hands of the Ishmeelites...
Now, if we are understanding Joseph to be a picture of Christ and Potiphar to be a type of God, we have to ask, “Did God ever buy Christ? Has God ever bought the Lord Jesus Christ?”
Let us turn to Proverbs 8. In Proverbs 8:22, we read, “The Lord possessed me.” That word “possessed” is the same word as “bought” back in Genesis 39:1. So, we can read, “The Lord bought me in the beginning of His way.” Proverbs 8 is a chapter dealing with wisdom. It is the personification of wisdom because wisdom is the Lord Jesus. 1 Corinthians 1:30 tells us that Christ is wisdom. So, in Proverbs 8:22-23, we read:
The LORD possessed me [or bought me] in the beginning of his way, before his works of old. I was set up from everlasting, from the beginning, or ever the earth was.
Now, it makes sense that that word “bought” should be translated as “possessed,” because when you buy something, you possess it; it becomes yours and it is your possession. So, God is using this kind of language to indicate that the Lord Jesus Christ has always been His possession—that the wisdom, which is Christ, has always been a possession of God. “The Lord bought Me in the beginning of His way…I was set up from everlasting.”
Potiphar bought Joseph. He possesses Joseph, just as the Lord possesses wisdom. That is why God can write that Potiphar bought Joseph.
As we continue, Joseph ends up entering into Potiphar’s house. In Genesis 39:2, we read:
And the LORD was with Joseph, and he was a prosperous man; and he was in the house of his master the Egyptian.
I want to emphasize that this verse refers to “his master, the Egyptian.” Remember how God speaks of Himself in Malachi 1. Malachi is the last book of the Old Testament. In Malachi 1:6, we read:
A son honoureth his father, and a servant his master: if then I be a father, where is mine honour? and if I be a master, where is my fear?...
In this passage, God likens Himself to a master. Also, let us go to Ephesians 6:9. We read there:
And, ye masters, do the same things unto them, forbearing threatening: knowing that your Master also is in heaven…
Do we have a Master in Heaven? Potiphar was a master over Joseph and over his house, and Joseph was prosperous in the house of his master, the Egyptian. Now, in Genesis 39:3-4, we read:
And his master saw that the LORD was with him, and that the LORD made all that he did to prosper in his hand. And Joseph found grace in his sight, and he served him: and he made him overseer over his house, and all that he had he put into his hand.
Let us remember what we read of Jesus in the Gospel of Luke. We read in Luke 2:52:
And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.
Just like Joseph found grace in the sight of his master, the Egyptian, the Lord Jesus Christ grew, or increased, in stature and in wisdom with God and man. This is what the Bible tells us about the Son of God, Jesus. Plus, Christ was made overseer over His house. Let us turn to Hebrews 3:1-6, where we read:
Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus; Who was faithful to him that appointed him, as also Moses was faithful in all his house. For this man was counted worthy of more glory than Moses, inasmuch as he who hath builded the house hath more honour than the house. For every house is builded by some man; but he that built all things is God. And Moses verily was faithful in all his house, as a servant, for a testimony of those things which were to be spoken after; But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end.
So, the Lord Jesus Christ was an overseer. He was over His own house, just as Joseph was assigned that responsibility from his master, the Egyptian, from Potiphar. Joseph was to run that household and organize Potiphar’s house. Everything that went on in that house was to be Joseph’s doing. God is using this to really let us know, very definitely, that this is the spiritual picture: Potiphar is a type of God, and Joseph is a picture of Christ, as He is in the house of God.
Let us continue on in Genesis 39:5-6. We read there:
And it came to pass from the time that he had made him overseer in his house, and over all that he had, that the LORD blessed the Egyptian's house for Joseph's sake; and the blessing of the LORD was upon all that he had in the house, and in the field. And he left all that he had in Joseph's hand; and he knew not ought he had, save the bread which he did eat. And Joseph was a goodly person, and well favoured.
All of these statements fit right into the spiritual understanding that we are coming to—that Joseph was over the house of his master, the Egyptian, as Christ was over the house of God. Joseph was also finding grace and being well-favored—everything was going along beautifully. Joseph and Potiphar had a wonderful relationship. We do not read of any dissension between Joseph and his master. There were no problems. His master trusted him implicitly. Potiphar put everything in Joseph’s hand, and the idea is that Potiphar just kind of walked out of the house and went about his business of being captain of the guard under Pharaoh. Potiphar had no worries or concerns about what was going on in his household because Joseph was there—just as God and the Lord Jesus Christ have that perfect relationship, whereby they have a complete union with one another, as they are One. Then, however, a problem arises in verse 7. We read there:
And it came to pass after these things, that his master's wife cast her eyes upon Joseph; and she said, Lie with me.
Now we have to follow this through. We started out saying that Potiphar was a picture of God, and that Joseph was a type of Christ. Well then, we cannot just cut it off there. Who does Potiphar’s wife represent? Who is his master’s wife?
We know this. We know that Potiphar’s wife was an unfaithful wife. She was an adulterous wife. You can read the account—day after day, continually, she set her eyes on Joseph. She was tempting him constantly. She wanted him to lie with her. This was, it seems, her constant and only thought in mind. She was obsessed, in a way, with this young man that came into her house, who, it was obvious, God was blessing, and she wanted to do something sinful and wicked. However, Joseph goes on to say in verses 8-12:
But he refused, and said unto his master's wife, Behold, my master wotteth not what is with me in the house, and he hath committed all that he hath to my hand; There is none greater in this house than I; neither hath he kept back any thing from me but thee, because thou art his wife: how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God? And it came to pass, as she spake to Joseph day by day, that he hearkened not unto her, to lie by her, or to be with her. And it came to pass about this time, that Joseph went into the house to do his business; and there was none of the men of the house there within. 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.
You can see that she was a very unfaithful wife. But, it seems that her husband, Potiphar, the Egyptian, at least on the human level, did not suspect any of this. He did not know that any of this was going on, and so it continued day after day. He thought that his house was in perfect order and in a perfect situation with Joseph overseeing it; and it was—except for the wife. The only problem with Potiphar’s house was the wife—that she was an unfaithful wife. She badly wanted to commit adultery with Joseph.
This is where many pastors, when they teach through these verses, start to lay out the moral teaching. In the moral teaching, it is easy to see that it is against the commandment of God to commit adultery, and that it is immoral.
These pastors show the wonderful character of Joseph—that he was a faithful man—then they instruct the children that this is how they are to behave when they grow up, and all of this is true. It is true that we ought to be obedient to the Law of God, and we ought not to commit adultery. After this moral teaching, they might lay out the sins of this woman and how wicked she was.
However, if we leave the teaching at that level, then we fail to understand the Gospel meaning. God has written these things down to give us more information than just a moral teaching. He wants us to learn something about the Gospel. So, we have to ask the question, “Who is this woman?” Who qualifies to be this kind of woman?
First of all, it would have to be someone who was married to God, because we understood Potiphar to be a type of God. Secondly, it would have to be someone who was married to God and who was extremely unfaithful.
As we look at the possibilities of who was married to God, we know, for one, that God tells us that all of the human race is married to Him through the Law of God. We can read about this in Romans 7. Every single human being is bound to keep the Law, and whenever we sin and break the Law, we have transgressed and are spiritual adulterers.
More than this, God also speaks of another marriage relationship. One thing that we can most definitely rule out is that she is not a picture of the Bride of Christ. She is not the Bride of Christ; she is not the eternal Church; she is not the spiritual Bride of Christ, because Joseph says that God had kept her back from him. We know that Joseph is a picture of Christ; he was not permitted to touch this woman. This woman was not his bride, as we look at it spiritually.
The only other possibility is that she represents national Israel. If we turn to Jeremiah 3, I think we will be able to see how this fits with the wife of Potiphar. We read in Jeremiah 3:6-9:
The LORD said also unto me in the days of Josiah the king, Hast thou seen that which backsliding Israel hath done? she is gone up upon every high mountain and under every green tree, and there hath played the harlot. And I said after she had done all these things, Turn thou unto me. But she returned not. And her treacherous sister Judah saw it. And I saw, when for all the causes whereby backsliding Israel committed adultery I had put her away, and given her a bill of divorce; yet her treacherous sister Judah feared not, but went and played the harlot also. And it came to pass through the lightness of her whoredom, that she defiled the land, and committed adultery with stones and with stocks.
And in verse 14:
Turn, O backsliding children, saith the LORD; for I am married unto you…
God says, “I am married unto you.” God was married to national Israel. It was not the same type of marriage as when Jesus purchased His Bride, because that marriage will continue on forever. However, God was married, for a period of time, to Israel, until He gave her a bill of divorcement. That divorce came at the Cross when the veil of the temple was rent in twain. That is when God divorced national Israel and put her away. Also, at that point, God rescinded the law of divorce and told us, “What, therefore, God hath joined together, let not man put asunder” (Mark 10:4-9). Therefore, there is no longer any allowance for divorce in the Bible for anyone.
Potiphar’s wife is married to her husband, Potiphar. This is a spiritual picture of Israel being married to God. So, we find Joseph in Potiphar’s house, and the woman is continually coming to him and tempting him.
What do we read again and again and again in the Gospel accounts of when Jesus came to Israel? Let us turn to Matthew 16:1, which says:
The Pharisees also with the Sadducees came, and tempting desired him that he would show them a sign from heaven.
Matthew 19:3 also says:
The Pharisees also came unto him, tempting him, and saying unto him, Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife for every cause?
And in Matthew 22:15-18, we read:
Then went the Pharisees, and took counsel how they might entangle him in his talk. And they sent out unto him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, Master, we know that thou art true, and teachest the way of God in truth, neither carest thou for any man: for thou regardest not the person of men. Tell us therefore, What thinkest thou? Is it lawful to give tribute unto Caesar, or not? But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, Why tempt ye me, ye hypocrites?
I could go to many other verses where Israel constantly came to Christ, tempting Him. What did they want Christ to do? Did they want Him to say the wrong thing?
As far as the tribute money was concerned in the above verses, they believed that if they could get Christ to answer one way, they could get Him in trouble with the Roman authorities, and if He answered another way, they could get Him in trouble with the Jewish people. They wanted Christ to sin. They wanted Him to fail. They wanted Him to be involved in their own wickedness. Spiritually, this is adultery. They wanted Him to, somehow, spiritually, make a mistake or transgress the Law of God so that He would be an adulterer along with them, because if He sinned (and remember, Jesus was perfect and without sin), He would no longer be qualified to be the Savior. Of course, we are aware of the fact that Satan was behind all of these temptations, as he stirred up these people to come against Christ.
This is the picture in Genesis 39. This is the picture in verse 10 as Potiphar’s wife tempted Joseph “day by day,” and “he hearkened not unto her, to lie by her, or to be with her.” This is how it continued. Then, we go on to learn in verse 12 that she caught him by his garment, and Joseph “left his garment in her hand, and fled, and got him out.”
Then, in verses 13-16, we read:
And it came to pass, when she saw that he had left his garment in her hand, and was fled forth, That she called unto the men of her house, and spake unto them, saying, See, he hath brought in an Hebrew unto us to mock us; he came in unto me to lie with me, and I cried with a loud voice: And it came to pass, when he heard that I lifted up my voice and cried, that he left his garment with me, and fled, and got him out. And she laid up his garment by her, until his lord came home.
What did Potiphar’s wife do? What did she do? She lied. She lied to her master. Do you remember when they wanted to crucify Christ, and false witnesses rose up against Him to testify against Him? (Matthew 26:59-61) These were false witnesses who misunderstood Christ’s statement when He said that He would destroy the temple in three days, and when He made other statements that they believed were not true. Just as these people were testifying against Christ, Potiphar’s wife was unfaithful and a liar; and with her lies, she was going to have Joseph delivered into prison. This is the same as Israel, as they brought lies against the Lord Jesus Christ, had Him delivered unto the Roman authorities to be crucified.
As we continue, we read in Genesis 39:17-19:
And she spake unto him according to these words, saying, The Hebrew servant, which thou hast brought unto us, came in unto me to mock me: And it came to pass, as I lifted up my voice and cried, that he left his garment with me, and fled out. And it came to pass, when his master heard the words of his wife, which she spake unto him, saying, After this manner did thy servant to me; that his wrath was kindled.
We can see that at this point in time, even though we know through the Gospels that this was all part of God’s overall plan, Jesus was delivered unto the Roman authorities to be crucified and placed under the wrath of God. He was under the wrath of God, just as Joseph comes under the wrath of Potiphar.
We need to consider the wonderful, ongoing relationship that existed between Potiphar and Joseph in the house right before this time, when Potiphar dearly trusted Joseph. We have to wonder how Potiphar could even begin to think that Joseph was capable of committing this act that he was accused of. Historically, we are unsure of Potiphar’s reasoning, except that we know that a man loves his wife, and if his wife tells him something as awful as this, then, most likely, he reacts with jealous rage.
Historically, Potiphar delivers Joseph into prison. However, spiritually, we can see that Christ was delivered unto the Romans by the Jews—that unfaithful wife of God, that unfaithful woman of God who lied in order to get Christ delivered unto the Roman authorities. Jesus coming under the wrath of God is the same as Potiphar’s wrath being kindled against Joseph.
Then, we read in verse 20:
And Joseph's master took him, and put him into the prison, a place where the king's prisoners were bound: and he was there in the prison.
Let us turn to Matthew 5:25-26:
Agree with thine adversary quickly, whiles thou art in the way with him; lest at any time the adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into prison. Verily I say unto thee, Thou shalt by no means come out thence, till thou hast paid the uttermost farthing.
God uses the terminology of being thrown into prison as a reference to Hell itself. That is what it means when He says, “Thou shalt by no means come out thence, till thou hast paid the uttermost farthing.” This is because we owe a great debt, as God tells us in another parable. We owe a huge debt that we can never pay. If we are thrown into prison in order for that debt to be collected, then we will never get out of prison, because we will never be able to pay that debt. We can not pay the debt of eternal damnation. Therefore, the prison is a picture of Hell itself.
Notice that it says here in Matthew 5, “The judge deliver thee to the officer.” Potiphar was a captain of the guard, an officer of Pharaoh. Historically, the “officer” delivered Joseph into the prison, in order that Joseph pay the penalty for committing adultery with his wife, as the officer so believed. Spiritually, it is pointing to the fact that God poured out His wrath upon Christ, because Christ became sin for His people and had to be delivered to prison to pay the uttermost farthing.
This is where this account ends in Genesis 39. I would also like to point out that what God did with Joseph in Genesis 39, He also did with him back in Genesis 37. There he was cast into the pit, which is also a picture of Hell. In Genesis 39, he was delivered into the prison, which is another picture of Hell.
This is really the main thrust of what God is saying here spiritually, and I hope that everyone can see that there is much more information in these passages than just a moral teaching. There is a lot more information that points right to the Gospel itself. It points right to the atoning death of the Lord Jesus Christ. Following this, as we move into Genesis 40, there is an ongoing picture, which is a different spiritual picture that God is going to paint.
This is how God wrote the Bible. This is why Jesus said to the two disciples on the road to Emmaus that He opened up “in all the scriptures the things concerning Himself” (Luke 24:13-27). This is what we want to look for. As we turn to Genesis 39, or anywhere else in the Bible, we want to find the Gospel meaning.