There are three phases in Joseph's sexual temptation: he refuses, endures, and flees. In part two of our lesson, we look at his endurance and fleeing. What does Joseph have to endure day after day? He has to listen to Potiphar's wife. An incessant, persistent flood of words. She reminds us of the Proverbs 7 woman, who seduced the naïve with insinuations, enticements, and flattery. No matter what she said, they were lies. Temptation is a lie. It promises one thing but never delivers. When she talks, she is messing with his mind. Her goal is that her words will find a home in his heart and bear fruit. James warns us, "every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed." The word "enticed" means bait. Potiphar's wife has set the bait. Will Joseph swallow the hook? Only if he is hungry—if his desires draw him away. After his blunt refusals, she takes a different tact. She suggests something seemingly innocent: "to lie by her" or "to be with her." She wants him to compromise. But he did not take the bait, which meant that he was guarding his mind and eyes. Like Job, he had "made a covenant with my eyes" to not look lustfully upon a woman. But she does not give up. She springs her final trap. Potiphar's wife adds force to her words. She takes matters – or, more pointedly – the man into her own hands and repeats her command, "Lie with me!" He is prepared, and he physically runs away. The big question is: where does he run? The right question is: to whom does he flee? The answer is Jesus Christ. This is the key reason why Joseph does not sin: God is with him; he is with God.
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Kurt Snow serves as a ruling elder at Covenant Reformed Church of Sacramento (RCUS). He served as a member of the Board of Governors of City Seminary of Sacramento from 2000 to 2020.
