Or HaChaim HaKadosh: A Short and Sweet Torah Insight on Parshat Vayeshev

'There is none greater in this house than I, nor has he kept anything back from me except you, because you are his wife. How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against Hashem?' (Genesis 39:9).

Or HaChaim HaKadosh addresses here Yosef's words as he explains why he refuses to sin with Potiphar's wife.

1. Why did he need to say 'How can I do' – after all, he already told her that he won't do it 'because you are his wife'?

2. What is meant by the words 'How can I do,' since he has the choice whether to sin?

In his words, he brings several explanations. We will explain one of them:

Potiphar's wife might claim that Yosef has nothing to fear because there is no chance Potiphar will find out. She will hide the matter from her husband, and thus Yosef will be able to maintain his current good standing.

Yosef the Righteous emphasizes a critical point: 'And sin against Hashem.' He acknowledges that the good he is experiencing comes from Hashem and not, heaven forbid, from Potiphar.

Hashem is the one who has placed him in his current position, in honor and a good state. Everything is from Him, blessed be He. And because nothing is hidden from Hashem – even if Potiphar won't know – he will lose his good standing because Hashem will not be with him to continue to make him successful in his deeds. Therefore, he is not willing to risk everything for a fleeting desire.

He refuses not because of fear of people, but out of a deep understanding that everything is revealed before Hashem, and thus such a sin would cause him to lose all the good that Hashem has given him.

Additionally, he wishes to convey that there is no argument that she could hide the matter and his master wouldn't know, and he would remain in his good state without lack, for this he says and sins against Hashem who has made him in this state and from whom nothing is hidden, and he would end up losing his good state".

Yosef the Righteous understands that every sinful act is visible and known before Hashem. The sin harms his relationship with Hashem, which is more important to him than anything else. He sees his position not just as luck or life circumstances, but as a gift that has come directly from Hashem, and therefore he is not willing to harm this connection.

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