Verse Lens · Context pointer
Genesis 39:16 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 16. 16And she laid up his garment by her, until his lord came home.
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Role in This Section
Potiphar's wife keeps Joseph's garment beside her until his master returns. The retained object becomes the evidence used in the second accusation.
Read It With
- Genesis 39:1–23
Read verses 12–18. The garment is seized during Joseph's escape, used before the household, stored, and then presented with the accusation to Potiphar.
Why It Needs Context
The verse shows custody of an object but not a truthful chain of interpretation. Evidence must be preserved and evaluated alongside how it was obtained and narrated.
Read Genesis 39:16–20 together
Why these verses belong together: The garment is stored, the accusation is retold to Potiphar, anger follows, and Joseph is confined among the king's prisoners.
Verse 16. 16 And she laid up his garment by her, until his lord came home.
Verse 17. 17 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:
Verse 18. 18 And it came to pass, as I lifted up my voice and cried, that he left his garment with me, and fled out.
Verse 19. 19 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.
Verse 20. 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.
Continue in Context
The full thought-unit study remains the final contextual authority for this Verse Lens.
Read Genesis 39:1–23 — The LORD Is With Joseph in Slavery and PrisonSources used for this context pointer
How certain is this explanation? strong
These are the sources used directly for this lens. Language, grammar, disagreements, and the complete source shelf remain attached to the full thought-unit research record.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Displayed text, garment and enslavement context, prison continuation, and later providence.
Exact location: Genesis 39:1–23; 37:23–36; 40:1–23; 45:5–8; 50:20 in the pinned standardized 1769 KJV
Open source ↗hebrew text morphology and lemma data
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible — Genesis
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible Project
Open Scriptures, Version 2.2 released 2021; repository inspected 2026
Supports: Success, hand, sexual commands, seizure and flight, Hebrew and slave labels, prison terminology, hesed, and repeated divine-presence wording.
Exact location: WLC Genesis 39:1–23, especially vv. 2–6, 7–12, 14, 17, 20–23
Open source ↗