Bible Strands
Genesis 39:2
And the LORD was with Joseph, and he became a successful man, serving in the household of his Egyptian master.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The narrator, not a character, reports Joseph's condition immediately after Potiphar buys him from the Ishmaelites (39:1). The moment is the opening of Joseph's Egyptian sojourn.
The words — מַצְלִיחַ (maṣliach), a participle from the rare root צלח, means "successful, prospering"; it is not a title or status but an ongoing state of going through well. The verse's three consecutive wayyiqtol clauses (וַיְהִי… וַיְהִי… וַיְהִי) stack presence, success, and service as one continuous fact.
The thread — The formula "the LORD was with him" plus resulting prosperity recurs in 1 Samuel 18:14 (David) and Psalms 91:15 (deliverance and honor); Jeremiah 15:20 inverts the pattern by promising protection against opposition rather than material success.
Why it lands — The verse attributes Joseph's competence to a personal claim by Yahweh, not to his own skill or Potiphar's training; it forces the reader to decide whether such a claim is testable or merely narrative convention.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And the Lord was with Joseph, and he was a prosperous man; and he was in the house of his master the Egyptian.
Cross-references
- 1 Samuel 18:14 and he continued to prosper in all his ways, because the LORD was with him.
- Psalms 91:15 When he calls out to Me, I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble. I will deliver him and honor him.
- Jeremiah 15:20 Then I will make you a wall to this people, a fortified wall of bronze; they will fight against you but will not overcome you, for I am with you to save and deliver you, declares the LORD.
- Genesis 26:28 “We can plainly see that the LORD has been with you,” they replied. “We recommend that there should now be an oath between us and you. Let us make a covenant with you
- Acts 7:9 Because the patriarchs were jealous of Joseph, they sold him as a slave into Egypt. But God was with him
- Genesis 21:22 At that time Abimelech and Phicol the commander of his army said to Abraham, “God is with you in all that you do.
- Genesis 26:24 and that night the LORD appeared to him and said, “I am the God of your father Abraham. Do not be afraid, for I am with you. I will bless you and multiply your descendants for the sake of My servant Abraham.”
- Isaiah 43:2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you go through the rivers, they will not overwhelm you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched; the flames will not set you ablaze.
- Genesis 39:21 the LORD was with him and extended kindness to him, granting him favor in the eyes of the prison warden.
- Genesis 28:15 Look, I am with you, and I will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”