Génesis 41:45 Midrash: Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, Aggadat Bereshit, Bereshit Rabbah & Midrash Tehillim

What did (Jacob) do? He wrote the Holy Name upon a golden plate, and suspended it about her neck and sent her away. She went her way. Everything is revealed before the Holy One, blessed be He, and Michael the angel descended and took her, and brought her down to Egypt to the house of Potiphera; because Asenath was destined to become the wife of Joseph. Now the wife of Potiphera was barren, and (Asenath) grew up with her as a daughter. When Joseph came down to Egypt he married her, as it is said, "And he gave him to wife Asenath the daughter of Potiphera priest of On" (Gen. 41:45).

[3] Another interpretation:"And El Shaddai did not need to say 'grant you mercy' but rather 'grant you mercy before the king,' or 'before the ruler,' just as it is written, 'and Joseph was the ruler, etc.'" (Genesis 42:6) Why does it say "before the man"? It could have just said to give you mercy before the king, or before the ruler, as it is written "and Joseph was the ruler, etc." (Genesis 42:6). And why did his mother call him by his name Joseph, as it is written "And she called his name Joseph" (Genesis 30:24), while Pharaoh called him Zaphenath-paneah ["treasury of the glorious rest"] (Genesis 41:45) and the Egyptians called him Avrech [father in wisdom.] (Genesis 41:43)? Jacob omitted all of these names and only said "And El Shaddai, etc." before the man. Why, when his father sent him to his brothers, did the angel who was assigned by God to watch over him find him wandering and ask him what he was looking for? As it is written "And a man found him, and behold he was wandering in the field" (Genesis 37:15), and he said to him "What are you looking for?" and he answered "I am looking for my brothers." Once he arrived there, they threw him into a pit, then took off his coat, and then sold him four times, as it is written "Thus says the Lord: For three transgressions of Israel, and for four, I will not turn away" (Amos 2:6). And when the tribes went down to Egypt, as soon as he saw them, he had compassion on them." As it is written, "And Joseph recognized them" (Genesis 42:8). "And he turned himself away from them and wept" (Genesis 42:24). Immediately, the angel descended and appeared to Joseph in the form of a man, and he said to him, "Why do you have mercy on these people? Don't you know how much they have troubled you? They threw you into a pit and sold you four times. He began to accuse them and said to Joseph, "Immediately he revealed himself to them" (Genesis 45:1). He said to them, "Don't you know that I am a magician? I take the cup, smell it, and make myself a magician. He said to them, "I know that you are spies, but if you are honest, then you are finished." (Genesis 42:19). When they came to Jacob and said to him, "What do you think the king of Egypt said to us? He is not merciful to us." Only one person knows where he sent us from, and he stands and accuses us before him, as it is written, "The man said, 'Your servant, our lord, has asked us about our family'" (Genesis 43:7). For the man said, "You are spies" (Genesis 42:14). He said to them, "There is a man who accuses you, so be kind to him, as it is written, 'And Almighty God will give you mercy before the man' (Genesis 43:14), and not only before this man, but before all nations, as it is written, 'give them compassion before those who carried them captive.' (I Kings 8:50)"

“[Potiphar...an Egyptian man,] purchased him [from the Ishmaelites]” – those who were acquired were acquiring.⁸The Ishmaelites descend from Hagar, Sarah’s maidservant, and the Egyptians descend from Ḥam, of whom it is stated: “A slave of slaves he shall be to his brothers” (Genesis 9:25), and they were the ones purchasing and selling Joseph. All slaves damage the household of their masters. But this one – “the Lord blessed the house of the Egyptian for Joseph’s sake” (Genesis 39:5). All slaves are suspected of robbery, but this one: “Joseph collected all the silver…[Joseph brought the silver to Pharoah’s house]” (Genesis 47:14). All slaves are suspected of licentiousness, but this one: “But he did not heed her” (Genesis 39:10). Rabbi Yehoshua of Sikhnin said in the name of Rabbi Levi: All slaves, their master feeds teruma to their slaves, but this one fed his master teruma, as Rabbi Yehoshua ben Korḥa said: Elazar took a wife from the daughters of Joseph.⁹Joseph was married to Potiphar’s daughter, so Potiphar’s granddaughter married Elazar, the son of Aaron, and ate teruma.
Potiphar is “Potifera” (Genesis 41:45). Potiphar – because he would fatten [mefatem] calves for idol worship. Potifera – because he would defecate [pore’a atzmo] for idol worship.¹⁰Defacation in front of the idol of Baal Peor was a form of its worship (see Sanhedrin 60b). When the bull [par]¹¹Joseph, who was likened to a bull; see Deuteronomy 33:17. descended there, [Potiphar] became wealthy.¹²Translation follows Matnot Kehuna. Alternatively, he became an officer, or a eunuch.
“The official of [seris] Pharaoh” – he was castrated [nistares]. This teaches that [Potiphar] purchased [Joseph] only for intercourse, but the Holy One blessed be He castrated him. This is analogous to a she-bear that was killing its master’s children. He said: ‘Break its teeth.’ So, it teaches that [Potiphar] purchased him only for intercourse, and the Holy One blessed be He castrated him. That is what is written: “For the Lord loves justice [and does not forsake] His pious ones [ḥasidav]” (Psalms 37:28). Ḥasido is written.¹³The word ḥasidav is written with only one vav, such that it can be read ḥasido, “His pious one,” in singular. It should be noted however that the Masoretic text of Psalms actually has the word ḥasidav with two vavs. The midrash here cites a different tradition. Alternatively, in Midrash Shmuel the version of the text cites I Samuel 2:9 rather than Psalms, and in that verse the word in fact appears as ḥasido, with one vav (Etz Yosef). Who is that? It is Joseph. “They are guarded forever, while the seed of the wicked is cut off” (Psalms 37:28) – this teaches that [Potiphar] purchased him only for intercourse, and the Holy One blessed be He castrated him.
“Potiphar…an Egyptian man, purchased him [from [miyad] the Ishmaelites]” – a clever man. What was his cleverness? He said: In every place, a German sells a Cushite,¹⁴A white man sells a man of dark complexion (Matnot Kehuna). but here, a Cushite is selling a German? This is no slave. He said to them: ‘Bring me a guarantor,’ as the term “from [miyad]” is nothing other than a guarantor, just as it says: “I will guarantee him, [from me [miyadi] you can demand him]” (Genesis 43:9). That is why it says: “From [miyad] the Ishmaelites.”
Rabbi Levi said: A slave purchased, the son of a maidservant sold, and a free man was a slave to both of them.¹⁵Potiphar, the Egyptian, was a descendant of Canaan, who was cursed by Noah to be a slave (see Genesis 9:25). The Ishmaelites were sons of Hagar, described as a maidservant to Sarah (see Genesis 16:2). Joseph was, by birth, a free man.