"But Potiphar's wife didn't like Joseph, and told her husband that Joseph had been rude to her."So says a children's version of the Bible Story of Joseph, that Jacob has. I usually try to read Jacob's Bible Story books as he gets them so that any corrections need made to help them in their accurate teachings of God's Word, are done before reading them to him. I feel this is especially important as he gets older, learns to read & so as 'head' I want the truths of God's Word to be just that - Truth!
Shielding Tiny Ears
Often, and as with the above reference I completely understand that there needs to be a change of how certain issues are presented to children, we're hardly going to read infants & toddlers Bible stories that say "Potiphar's wife wanted Joseph to have sex with her".
So how far do we go in this area of presenting Bible stories to kids, I agree that they do need toned down at times, but really, to say that Mrs. Potiphar didn't like Joseph is quite the opposite of what really happened. On the contrary she liked him too much & in sinful ways.
My thoughts on this One
Perhaps we should remain closer to what Scripture teaches, and we as Fathers take responsibility to not only read these stories but also to apply them to our children's lives, as every good daddy should. After all 'Thou shalt not commit adultery' is great news for tiny ears in our culture of divorce, separation & adultery, it means that mum & dad are going to stay together & neither of them will leave!
What Do You Think?
How far should we go in toning down the more difficult stories from Scripture, and do you think we could present even these texts in a toned down way, with application that is good for our kids to learn?
