And it came to pass after these things, that his master's wife cast her eyes upon Joseph; and she said, Lie with me.
His master's wife cast her eyes upon Joseph. Egyptian women were not kept in the same secluded manner as females are in most Oriental countries now. They were treated in a manner more worthy of a civilized people-in fact, enjoyed as much freedom both at home and abroad as ladies do in Britain. Hence, Potiphar's wife had constant opportunity of meeting Joseph. But the ancient women of Egypt were very loose in their morals. Intrigues and intemperance were vices very prevalent among the sex, as the monuments too plainly attest.
Wilkinson, 'Herodotus,' b. 2:, ch. 3; 'Cambridge Essays,' 1858, pp. 234, 235, give instances of the general dissoluteness of the women, and their unfaithfulness to the nuptial bond. Potiphar's wife was probably not worse than many of the same rank; and her infamous advances made to Joseph arose from her superiority of station. She verified the quaint though striking solecism of the poet:
`A shameless woman is the worst of men.'