sovereign · noun, common masculine plural construct
took
וַיִּקַּח֩vai.yi.Kach
H3947
to take (in the widest variety of applications) · conjunction + verb, qal sequential imperfect, 3rd person masculine singular
him
וַֽיִּתְּנֵ֙הוּ֙vai.yi.te.Ne.hu
H5414
to give · conjunction + verb, qal sequential imperfect, 3rd person masculine singular + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine singular
prison
בֵּ֣יתbeit
H1004
a house (in the greatest variation of applications · noun, common masculine singular construct
place
מְק֕וֹםme.Kom
H4725
properly · noun, common masculine singular construct
king’s
הַמֶּ֖לֶךְha.Me.lekh
H4428
a king · definite article + noun, common masculine singular absolute
prisoners
אֲסִירֵ֥י'a.su.rei
H615
bound · noun, common masculine plural construct
bound
אֲסוּרִ֑ים'a.su.Rim
H631
to yoke or hitch · verb, qal passive participle, masculine plural absolute
prison
בְּבֵ֥יתbe.Veit
H1004
a house (in the greatest variation of applications · preposition + noun, common masculine singular construct
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
Genesis 40:15 For indeed I was stolen away out of the land of the Hebrews: and here also have I done nothing that they should put me into the dungeon.
Genesis 40:1-3 And it came to pass after these things, that the butler of the king of Egypt and his baker had offended their lord the king of Egypt.
Genesis 41:9-14 Then spake the chief butler unto Pharaoh, saying, I do remember my faults this day:
Psalms 105:18-19 Whose feet they hurt with fetters: he was laid in iron:
Isaiah 53:8 He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the…
Daniel 3:21-22 Then these men were bound in their coats, their hosen, and their hats, and their other garments, and were cast into the midst of the burning…
2 Timothy 2:9 Where in I suffer trouble, as an evil doer, even unto bonds; but the word of God is not bound.
1 Peter 2:19 For this is thankworthy, if a man for conscience toward God endure grief, suffering wrongfully.
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Genesis 39:19–end
Here is, 1. Joseph wronged by his master. He believed the accusation, and either Joseph durst not make his defence by telling the truth, as it would reflect too much upon his mistress, or his master would not hear it, or would not believe it, and there is no remedy, he is condemned to perpetual imprisonment, Gen 39:19, Gen 39:20. God restrained his wrath, else he had put him to death; and that wrath which imprisoned him God made to turn to his praise, in order to which Providence so disposed that he should be shut up among the king's prisoners, the state-prisoners. Potiphar, it is likely, chose that prison because it was the worst; for there the iron entered into the soul (Psa 105:18), but G…
Joseph's master took him, and put him into the prison--the roundhouse, from the form of its construction, usually attached to the dwelling of such an officer as Potiphar. It was partly a subterranean dungeon (Gen 41:14), though the brick-built walls rose considerably above the surface of the ground, and were surmounted by a vaulted roof somewhat in the form of an inverted bowl. Into such a dungeon Potiphar, in the first ebullition of rage, threw Joseph and ordered him to be subjected further to as great harshness of treatment (Psa 105:18) as he dared; for the power of masters over their slaves was very properly restrained by law, and the murder of a slave was a capital crime.
a place wher…
Put him into the prison - בית סהר beith sohar, literally the round house; in such a form the prison was probably built.
John Gill on Genesis 39:20
And Joseph's master took him, and put him into the prison,.... Which was in or adjoining to his house, Genesis 40:3; of himself he had power to do this, as the captain of the guard; and as he was the chief of the executioners, as some take his office to be, it is much he did not in his passion deliver him up into their hands to put him to death at once; but it may be through the great respect he had had for Joseph, which was not wholly extinguished by this impeachment of him; and especially if he heard Joseph's apology for himself before he committed him, his passion might subside a little, though for the credit of his wife he might take this step; or however things were so overruled by the…
The Church Fathers
But the holy man considered that prison to be a palace; and Joseph himself was a palace in his prison, because where faith, chastity and modesty are, there the palace of Christ is, the temple of God, the dwelling of the Holy Spirit.… In the church there are three models of chastity that everybody must imitate: Joseph, Susanna and Mary. May men imitate Joseph, women Susanna and the virgin Mary.
Therefore I might say Joseph was happier when he was put into prison, because he was giving witness on behalf of chastity. For modesty is a good gift but one of lesser merit when it involves no risk. Where, however, it is maintained at the risk of one's safety, there it wins a more abundant crown. With his case unheard, his truthfulness unexamined, Joseph is sent into prison as if guilty of a crime. But the Lord did not abandon him even in prison. The innocent should not be troubled when they are attacked on false charges, when justice is overcome and they are shoved into prison. God visits his own even in prison, and so there is more help for them there, where there is more danger.
Now when Joseph was accused by his mistress, he refused to say that she was guilty, because as a just man he did not know how to accuse anyone; for this reason the unchaste woman acted with impunity. Therefore I might say that she was truly stripped even though she held the skirt of his garment in her hand, for she had lost all the adornments of purity and the covering of chastity. I might say further that he was sufficiently adorned and clothed even though his voice was not heard, for his innocence spoke. In this way, Susanna later spoke better than the prophet even though she was silent at her trial; since she did not seek the help of her own voice she thus merited the defense of the prophet. I might have said Joseph was more blessed when he was cast into prison, for he endured martyrdom in defense of chastity. The gift of purity is a great thing, even when it is preserved without danger, but when it is defended, although at the risk of personal safety, then it is crowned still more fully.
The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).
Dictionary and topics
Dungeon — Different from the ordinary prison in being more severe as a place of punishment. Like the Roman inner prison (Acts 16:24), it consisted of a deep cell or cistern (Jer. 38:6). To be shut up in, a…
Potiphar — Dedicated to Ra; i.e., to the sun-god, the Egyptian to whom the Ishmaelites sold Joseph (Gen. 39:1). He was “captain of the guard”, i.e., chief, probably, of the state police, who, while they formed…
Prison — The first occasion on which we read of a prison is in the history of Joseph in Egypt. Then Potiphar, “Joseph’s master, took him, and put him into the prison, a place where the king’s prisoners were…
Temptation — (1.) Trial; a being put to the test. Thus God “tempted [Gen. 22: 1; R.V., ‘did prove’] Abraham;” and afflictions are said to tempt, i.e., to try, men (James 1:2, 12; comp. Deut. 8:2), putting their…
Accusation, False · .Against Joseph by Potiphar’s wife — .Against Joseph by Potiphar’s wife
Afflicted Saints · Examples of afflicted Saints:: Joseph — Examples of afflicted Saints:: Joseph
Chastity · .Joseph — .Joseph
Criminals · Confined in pri — Confined in pri
Decision · .JOSEPH — .JOSEPH
Egypt · History of Israel in: Joseph unjustly cast into prison — History of Israel in: Joseph unjustly cast into prison
And put him into the prison. Though Moses does not state with what degree of severity Joseph was afflicted at the beginning of his imprisonment, yet we readily gather that he was not allowed any liberty, but was thrust into some obscure dungeon. The authority of Potiphar was paramount; he had the keeper of the prison under his power, and at his disposal. What clemency could be hoped for from a man who was jealous and carried away with the vehemence of his anger? There is no doubt that what is related of Joseph in Psalm 105:18,
"His feet were made fast in fetters, and the iron entered into his soul,"
had been handed down by tradition from the fathers. What a reward of innocence! For, accord…
Joseph in Prison. - Potiphar was enraged at what he heard, and put Joseph into the prison where (אשׁר for שׁם אשׁר, Gen 40:3 like Gen 35:13) the king's prisoners (state-prisoners) were confined. הסּהר בּית: lit., the house of enclosure, from סהר, to surround or enclose (ὀχύρωμα, lxx); the state-prison surrounded by a wall. This was a very moderate punishment. For according to Diod. Sic. (i. 78) the laws of the Egyptians were πικροὶ περὶ τῶν γυναιῶν νόμοι. An attempt at adultery was to be punished with 1000 blows, and rape upon a free woman still more severely. It is possible that Potiphar was not fully convinced of his wife's chastity, and therefore did not place unlimited credence in…
This was the second time that Joseph, while faithfully doing the right thing, was thrown into bondage with his clothing used deceptively as evidence (cp. 37:23-24, 31-33).
Rashi on Genesis 39:19
ויהי כשמע אדניו AND IT CAME TO PASS WHEN HIS LORD HEARD etc. — She said this when he was alone with her, caressing her. This is what she meant by כדברים האלה “things like these did thy servant do to me” — caresses such as these.
Master · .Potiphar’s wife to Joseph — .Potiphar’s wife to Joseph
Prison · General scriptures concerning — General scriptures concerning
Prisoners · Joseph — Joseph
Prisons · Antiquity of — Antiquity of
Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).
