۞ Women in the town began to gossip, "The nobleman's wife is trying to seduce her slave! Love for him consumes her heart! Indeed! We see her in manifest error." 30 When she heard of their intrigues, she sent for them and prepared a party for them. She gave a knife to each of them [to cut fruits, etc.] and then asked Joseph to appear before them. When the women saw him, they were greatly amazed [at his beauty], and they cut their hands, exclaiming, "God preserve us! This is no human being but a noble angel!" 31 Whereupon she said: 'Now you see, this is he on whose account you blamed me. Yes, I sought to seduce him, but he was unyielding. If he declines to do what I command, he shall be imprisoned and be one of the humiliated' 32 Joseph said, "O my Lord! I would prefer prison to what these women are inviting me to do. And if You do not avert their guile from me, I may yield to them and so become one of the ignorant." 33 So his Lord heard his prayer and repelled the women’s deceit away from him; indeed He only is the All Hearing, the All Knowing. 34 For, presently it occurred to the nobleman and his household - [even] after they had seen all the signs [of Joseph's innocence] - that they might as well imprison him for a time. 35