سُورَةُ يُوسُفَ
Reading Tafsir al-Jalalayn by Jalal al-Din al-Mahalli & Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti
Ayahs 11–20 of 111
قَالُوا۟ يَٰٓأَبَانَا مَا لَكَ لَا تَأْمَ۫نَّا عَلَىٰ يُوسُفَ وَإِنَّا لَهُۥ لَنَٰصِحُونَ
They said, "O our father, why do you not entrust us with Joseph while indeed, we are to him sincere counselors?
They said ‘O father what is wrong with you that you do not trust us with Joseph? We are indeed his well-wishers we are indeed only looking out for his best interests.
أَرْسِلْهُ مَعَنَا غَدًۭا يَرْتَعْ وَيَلْعَبْ وَإِنَّا لَهُۥ لَحَٰفِظُونَ
Send him with us tomorrow that he may eat well and play. And indeed, we will be his guardians.
Send him forth with us tomorrow to the desert to frolic and play read first person plural narta‘ wa-nal‘ab ‘that we might frolic and play’ or third person plural yarta‘ wa-yal‘ab ‘that he might frolic and play’ in other words so that we might be spirited and roam freely. Surely we shall take good care of him’.
قَالَ إِنِّى لَيَحْزُنُنِىٓ أَن تَذْهَبُوا۟ بِهِۦ وَأَخَافُ أَن يَأْكُلَهُ ٱلذِّئْبُ وَأَنتُمْ عَنْهُ غَٰفِلُونَ
[Jacob] said, "Indeed, it saddens me that you should take him, and I fear that a wolf would eat him while you are of him unaware."
He said ‘Lo! It grieves me that you should go with him that is your departure with him grieves me because I would be separated from him and I fear lest the wolf devour him al-dhi’b here represents the genus for their land had many wolves in it while you are heedless of him’ distracted by something else.
قَالُوا۟ لَئِنْ أَكَلَهُ ٱلذِّئْبُ وَنَحْنُ عُصْبَةٌ إِنَّآ إِذًۭا لَّخَٰسِرُونَ
They said, "If a wolf should eat him while we are a [strong] clan, indeed, we would then be losers."
They said ‘Truly if la-in the lām here is for oaths the wolf were to devour him when we are so hardy a band a group then we indeed are losers!’ incapable of anything. Thus he sent him off with them.
فَلَمَّا ذَهَبُوا۟ بِهِۦ وَأَجْمَعُوٓا۟ أَن يَجْعَلُوهُ فِى غَيَٰبَتِ ٱلْجُبِّ ۚ وَأَوْحَيْنَآ إِلَيْهِ لَتُنَبِّئَنَّهُم بِأَمْرِهِمْ هَٰذَا وَهُمْ لَا يَشْعُرُونَ
So when they took him [out] and agreed to put him into the bottom of the well... But We inspired to him, "You will surely inform them [someday] about this affair of theirs while they do not perceive [your identity]."
So when they went off with him and agreed resolved to put him into the bottom of the well the response of lammā ‘when’ has been omitted in other words understand it as being fa‘alū dhālika ‘they did just that’ by taking off his shirt — after having beaten him humiliated him and desiring to kill him — and lowering him in a bucket into the well. When he reached half-way down the well they flung him from the bucket so that he would fall and die but he fell into the water and took refuge near a rock. They then called to him and he responded thinking that they had decided to have mercy on him. They then wanted to smash his head with a rock but Judah prevented them. And We revealed to him in the well through true revelation wahy haqīqa — he was 17 years of age or just under — in order to reassure his heart ‘Truly you shall inform them after this day of this affair this deed of theirs when they are unaware’ of who you are wa-hum lā yash‘urūna is a circumstantial qualifier referring to the action of ‘informing’.
وَجَآءُوٓ أَبَاهُمْ عِشَآءًۭ يَبْكُونَ
And they came to their father at night, weeping.
And they came to their father in the evening weeping.
قَالُوا۟ يَٰٓأَبَانَآ إِنَّا ذَهَبْنَا نَسْتَبِقُ وَتَرَكْنَا يُوسُفَ عِندَ مَتَٰعِنَا فَأَكَلَهُ ٱلذِّئْبُ ۖ وَمَآ أَنتَ بِمُؤْمِنٍۢ لَّنَا وَلَوْ كُنَّا صَٰدِقِينَ
They said, "O our father, indeed we went racing each other and left Joseph with our possessions, and a wolf ate him. But you would not believe us, even if we were truthful."
They said ‘O father we went competing shooting and left Joseph by our things our clothes and the wolf ate him. But you would never believe us even though we speak the truth’ before you you would still have accused us of lying in this story because of your adoration of Joseph so how much more so when you think ill of us?
وَجَآءُو عَلَىٰ قَمِيصِهِۦ بِدَمٍۢ كَذِبٍۢ ۚ قَالَ بَلْ سَوَّلَتْ لَكُمْ أَنفُسُكُمْ أَمْرًۭا ۖ فَصَبْرٌۭ جَمِيلٌۭ ۖ وَٱللَّهُ ٱلْمُسْتَعَانُ عَلَىٰ مَا تَصِفُونَ
And they brought upon his shirt false blood. [Jacob] said, "Rather, your souls have enticed you to something, so patience is most fitting. And Allah is the one sought for help against that which you describe."
And they came with false blood on his shirt ‘alā qamīsihi has the status of an accusative of the verb because it is an adverbial qualifier meaning fawqa qamīsihi they slaughtered a lamb and dabbed it his shirt with its blood — but they forgot to tear it the shirt — and they said that it was his blood. He Jacob said when he saw that it the shirt was undamaged and realised that they were lying ‘Nay but your souls have beguiled you into something and so you did it to him. Yet comely patience! without any anxiety! fa-sabrun jamīlun is the predicate of a missing subject such as amrī ‘my course’. And God is the One Whose succour is sought in that predicament which you describe’ that which you mention of Joseph’s affair.
وَجَآءَتْ سَيَّارَةٌۭ فَأَرْسَلُوا۟ وَارِدَهُمْ فَأَدْلَىٰ دَلْوَهُۥ ۖ قَالَ يَٰبُشْرَىٰ هَٰذَا غُلَٰمٌۭ ۚ وَأَسَرُّوهُ بِضَٰعَةًۭ ۚ وَٱللَّهُ عَلِيمٌۢ بِمَا يَعْمَلُونَ
And there came a company of travelers; then they sent their water drawer, and he let down his bucket. He said, "Good news! Here is a boy." And they concealed him, [taking him] as merchandise; and Allah was knowing of what they did.
And there came a caravan — travellers going from Midian to Egypt who stopped near to Joseph’s well — and they sent their water-drawer the one who goes down to the water source to draw from it and he let down his bucket into the well and Joseph clung to it and he pulled him out and when he saw him he said ‘Good news!’ a variant reading of yā bushrā has yā bushrāya this vocative call is figurative in other words it is to be understood as ‘Come O good news now is your time!’ ‘This is a young boy’. His brothers became aware of this and came to him and they hid him that is they disguised his real status claiming that he was as a piece of merchandise by saying ‘This is a slave of ours he is a runaway’; but Joseph did not say anything fearing that they might kill him. But God knew well what they were doing.
وَشَرَوْهُ بِثَمَنٍۭ بَخْسٍۢ دَرَٰهِمَ مَعْدُودَةٍۢ وَكَانُوا۟ فِيهِ مِنَ ٱلزَّٰهِدِينَ
And they sold him for a reduced price - a few dirhams - and they were, concerning him, of those content with little.
Then they sold him — they the caravan purchased him from them — for a very low a diminished price a handful of dirhams 20 or 22; for they that is his brothers set small store by him. So the caravan brought him to Egypt where the one who had bought him sold him for 20 dinars two pairs of sandals and two robes.
Commentary: Tafsir al-Jalalayn by Jalal al-Din al-Mahalli & Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti. Qur'an text and translation via AlQuran Cloud.
