12:99 Yusuf (Joseph)

أي: { فَلَمَّا } تجهز يعقوب وأولاده وأهلهم أجمعون، وارتحلوا من بلادهم قاصدين الوصول إلى يوسف في مصر وسكناها، فلما وصلوا إليه، و { دَخَلُوا عَلَى يُوسُفَ آوَى إِلَيْهِ أَبَوَيْهِ } أي: ضمهما إليه، واختصهما بقربه، وأبدى لهما من البر والإكرام والتبجيل والإعظام شيئا عظيما، { وَقَالَ } لجميع أهله: { ادْخُلُوا مِصْرَ إِنْ شَاءَ اللَّهُ آمِنِينَ } من جميع المكاره والمخاوف، فدخلوا في هذه الحال السارة، وزال عنهم النصب ونكد المعيشة، وحصل السرور والبهجة.

يخبر تعالى عن ورود يعقوب عليه السلام على يوسف عليه السلام وقدومه بلاد مصر لما كان يوسف قد تقدم لأخوته أن يأتوه بأهلهم أجمعين فتحملوا عن آخرهم وترحلوا من بلاد كنعان قاصدين بلاد مصر فلما أخبر يوسف عليه السلام باقترابهم خرج لتلقيهم وأمر الملك أمراءه وأكابر الناس بالخروج مع يوسف لتلقي نبي الله يعقوب عليه السلام ويقال إن الملك خرج أيضا لتلقيه وهو الأشبه وقد أشكل قوله " آوى إليه أبويه وقال ادخلوا مصر " على كثير من المفسرين فقال بعضهم هذا من المقدم والمؤخر ومعنى الكلام " وقال ادخلوا مصر إن شاء الله أمنين " وأوى إليه أبويه ورفعهما على العرش ورد ابن جرير هذا وأجاد في ذلك ثم اختار ما حكاه عن السدي أن يوسف آوى إليه أبويه لما تلقاهما ثم لما وصلوا باب البلد قال " ادخلوا مصر إن شاء الله آمنين " وفى هذا نظر أيضا لأن الإيواء إنما يكون في المنزل كقوله " آوى إليه أخاه " وفي الحديث من أوى محدثا وما المانع أن يكون قال لهم بعد ما دخلوا عليه وآواهم إليهادخلوا مصر وضمنه اسكنوا مصر إن شاء الله آمنين أي مما كنتم فيه من الجهد والقحط ؟ ويقال والله أعلم إن الله تعالى رفع عن أهل مصر بقية السنين المجدبة ببركة قدوم يعقوب عليهم كما رفع بقية السنين التي دعا بها رسول الله صلي الله عليه وسلم على أهل مكة حين قال اللهم أعني عليهم بسبع كسبع يوسف ثم لما تضرعوا إليه واستشفعوا لديه وأرسلوا أبا سفيان في ذلك فدعا لهم فرفع عنهم بقية ذلك ببركة دعائه عليه السلام وقوله " أوى إليه أبويه " قال السدي وعبد الرحمن بن زيد بن أسلم إنما كان أبوه وخالته وكانت أمه قد ماتت قديما وقال محمد بن إسحاق وابن جرير كان أبوه وأمه يعيشان قال ابن جرير ولم يقم دليل على موت أمه وظاهر القرآن يدل على حياتها وهذا الذي نصره هو المنصور الذي يدل عليه السياق.

Yusuf welcomes His Parents - His Dream comes True

Allah states that Ya`qub went to Yusuf in Egypt. Yusuf had asked his brothers to bring all of their family, and they all departed their area and left Kana`an to Egypt. When Yusuf received news of their approach to Egypt, he went out to receive them. The king ordered the princes and notable people to go out in the receiving party with Yusuf to meet Allah's Prophet Ya`qub, peace be upon him. It is said that the king also went out with them to meet Ya`qub. Yusuf said to his family, after they entered unto him and he took them to himself,

وَقَالَ ادْخُلُواْ مِصْرَ إِن شَآءَ اللَّهُ ءَامِنِينَ

(and said: "Enter Egypt, if Allah wills, in security.") He said to them, `enter Egypt', meaning, `reside in Egypt', and added, `if Allah wills, in security', in reference to the hardship and famine that they suffered. Allah said next,

ءَاوَى إِلَيْهِ أَبَوَيْهِ

(and he took his parents to himself) As-Suddi and `Abdur-Rahman bin Zayd bin Aslam said that his parents were his father and maternal aunt, as his mother had died long ago. Muhammad bin Ishaq and Ibn Jarir At-Tabari said, "His father and mother were both alive." Ibn Jarir added, "There is no evidence that his mother had died before then. Rather, the apparent words of the Qur'an testify that she was alive." This opinion has the apparent and suitable meaning that this story testifies to. Allah said next,

وَرَفَعَ أَبَوَيْهِ عَلَى الْعَرْشِ

(And he raised his parents to Al-'Arsh) he raised them to his bedstead where he sat, according to Ibn `Abbas, Mujahid and several others. Allah said,

وَخَرُّواْ لَهُ سُجَّدَا

(and they fell down before him prostrate.) Yusuf's parents and brothers prostrated before him, and they were eleven men,

وَقَالَ يأَبَتِ هَـذَا تَأْوِيلُ رُؤْيَـى مِن قَبْلُ

(And he said: "O my father! This is the Ta'wil (interpretation) of my dream aforetime..."), in reference to the dream that he narrated to his father before,

إِنِّى رَأَيْتُ أَحَدَ عَشَرَ كَوْكَبًا

(I saw (in a dream) eleven stars...) In the laws of these and previous Prophets, it was allowed for the people to prostrate before the men of authority, when they met them. This practice was allowed in the law of Adam until the law of `Isa, peace be upon them, but was later prohibited in our law. Islam made prostration exclusively for Allah Alone, the Exalted and Most Honored. The implication of this statement was collected from Qatadah and other scholars. When Mu`adh bin Jabal visited the Sham area, he found them prostrating before their priests. When he returned (to Al-Madinah), he prostrated before the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, who asked him,

«مَا هَذَا يَا مُعَاذُ؟»

(What is this, O, Mu`adh) Mu`adh said, "I saw that they prostrate before their priests. However, you, O Messenger of Allah, deserve more to be prostrated before." The Messenger ﷺ said,

«لَوْ كُنْتُ آمِرًا أَحَدًا أَنْ يَسْجُدَ لِأَحَدٍ، لَأَمَرْتُ الْمَرْأَةَ أَنْ تَسْجُدَ لِزَوْجِهَا لِعِظَمِ حَقِّهِ عَلَيْهَا»

(If I were to order anyone to prostrate before anyone else (among the creation), I would have ordered the wife to prostrate before her husband because of the enormity of his right on her.) Therefore, this practice was allowed in previous laws, as we stated. This is why they (Ya`qub and his wife and eleven sons) prostrated before Yusuf, who said at that time,

يأَبَتِ هَـذَا تَأْوِيلُ رُؤْيَـى مِن قَبْلُ قَدْ جَعَلَهَا رَبِّى حَقًّا

(O my father! This is the Ta'wil of my dream aforetime! My Lord has made it come true!) using the word, `Ta'wil', to describe what became of the matter, later on. Allah said in another Ayah,

هَلْ يَنظُرُونَ إِلاَّ تَأْوِيلَهُ يَوْمَ يَأْتِى تَأْوِيلُهُ

(Await they just for its Ta'wil On the Day the event is finally fulfilled...), meaning, on the Day of Judgement what they were promised of good or evil will surely come to them. Yusuf said,

قَدْ جَعَلَهَا رَبِّى حَقًّا

(My Lord has made it come true!) mentioning that Allah blessed him by making his dream come true,

وَقَدْ أَحْسَنَ بَى إِذْ أَخْرَجَنِى مِنَ السِّجْنِ وَجَآءَ بِكُمْ مِّنَ الْبَدْوِ

(He was indeed good to me, when He took me out of the prison, and brought you (all here) out of the bedouin life,) out of the desert, for they lived a bedouin life and raised cattle, according to Ibn Jurayj and others. He also said that they used to live in the Arava, Ghur area of Palestine, in Greater Syria. Yusuf said next,

مِن بَعْدِ أَن نَّزغَ الشَّيْطَـنُ بَيْنِى وَبَيْنَ إِخْوَتِى إِنَّ رَبِّى لَطِيفٌ لِّمَا يَشَآءُ

(after Shaytan had sown enmity between me and my brothers. Certainly, my Lord is the Most Courteous and Kind unto whom He wills.) for when Allah wills something, He brings forth its reasons and elements of existence, then wills it into existence and makes it easy to attain,

إِنَّهُ هُوَ الْعَلِيمُ

(Truly, He! Only He is the All-Knowing.) what benefits His servants,

الْحَكِيمُ

(the All-Wise.) in His statements, actions, decrees, preordain- ment and what He chooses and wills.

And when they entered to Joseph in his tent he took his parents his father and his mother — or and his maternal aunt — into his arms and said to them ‘Enter into Egypt if God will in safety’ and they entered and Joseph sat down on his throne.

About what has been said in the next verse: فَلَمَّا دَخَلُوا عَلَيْهِ (Later, when they came to Yusuf ... - 88), it appears in some narrations that Sayyidna Yusuf (علیہ السلام) had sent with his brothers this time a large supply of clothes and other articles of need all loaded on some two hundred camels, so that the whole family could make good preparations in anticipation of their visit to Egypt. Thus, all set for the trip, when Sayyidna Ya` qub (علیہ السلام) and his entire family set out for Egypt, their number, according to one narration, was seventy two and, according to the other, it was comprised of ninety three men and women.

On the other side, when came the time for their arrival in Egypt, Sayyidna Yusuf (علیہ السلام) and the people of Egypt came out of the city to receive them. With them came four thousand soldiers to present a guard of honour. When these guests reached Egypt and entered the home of Sayyidna Yusuf (علیہ السلام) he lodged his parents with him.

Here, the text refers to ` parents.' - though, the mother of Sayyidna Yusuf (علیہ السلام) had died during his childhood, but after her death, Sayyidna Ya` qub (علیہ السلام) had married Layya, the sister of his late wife. She was, in her capacity as the maternal aunt of Sayyidna Yusuf (علیہ السلام) ، almost like his own mother, and also as the married wife of his father, was deserv-ing of being called as nothing but his mother.

. This interpretation is according to the riwayah where it has been said that the mother of Sayyidna Yusuf (علیہ السلام) had died at the time of Benyamin's birth. It is on this basis that the present text of the respected author, may the mercy of Allah be upon him, appears to be contradictory to the relevant text on page 38 of Volume V where the name of Sayyidna Yusuf s mother (علیہا السلام) has been given as Rabil. But, in reality, there is no authentic riway.ah in this connection. Isra'ili riwayat do exist, but they too are contradictory. The author of Ruh al-Ma` ni has himself said that the Jewish chroniclers do not subscribe to the view that the mother of Sayyidna Yusuf (علیہا السلام) had died at the time of Benyamin's birth. If this riwayah is given credence, no doubt remains. Then, in this situation, by the words: وَرَ‌فَعَ أَبَوَيْهِ (And he raised his parents up on the throne - 100), the reference would be to the real mother of Sayyidna Yusuf ill . Ibn Jarir and Ibn Kathir have opted for this as the weightier view. So, commenting on this, Ibn Kathir has said: قال ابن جریر ولم یقم دلیل علی موت امہ (ای ام یوسف علیہ السلام) وظایر القرآن یدل علی حیا تھا - Muhammad Taqi Usmani.

At the end of verse 99, the statement: وَقَالَ ادْخُلُوا مِصْرَ‌ إِن شَاءَ اللَّـهُ آمِنِينَ (he said, 'Enter Egypt, God willing, in peace' ) means that Sayyidna Yusuf (علیہ السلام) asked all his family members to enter Egypt by the will of Allah and without any fear or restriction, the sense being that they were free from usual restrictions placed on travellers who enter another country.

So, when they entered in upon Joseph, he embraced his parents.... And he lifted his parents to the throne, and they fell prostrate before him.... " He acted beautifully toward me when He brought me out of prison and brought you from the desert after Satan had sowed dis- sension between me and my brothers. Surely my Lord is gentle toward what He will. " In going to Egypt, all were the same. But at the time of proximity and caresses, they were differ- ent, for he put his father and maternal aunt on the throne of generosity and singled them out for the companionship, nearness, and embrace, as the Exalted Lord says: " And he lifted his parents to the throne. " But he brought his brothers down to the place of service: " And they fell prostrate before him. " This is an allusion that tomorrow at the resurrection, all the faithful will be brought into paradise, both the disobedient who have been forgiven and the obedient who have been approved. Then those who were the folk of disobedience, the ones received by the Real's forgiveness, will be set down in paradise, and the folk of recognition will be singled out for the special favor of proxim- ity and nearness. They will be brought to the Presence of At-ness: at an Omnipotent King [54:55]. The Pir of the Tariqah said, " The folk of service are one thing, the folk of companionship something else. The folk of service are prisoners of paradise, the folk of companionship com- manders of paradise. The prisoners are in joy and bliss, and the commanders dwell in secret whis- pering with the Beneficent. " He acted beautifully toward me when He brought me out of prison. The beautiful-doer is not he who acts beautifully at the beginning. The beautiful-doer is he who acts beautifully after your disloyalty. Joseph saw the disloyalty of his own soul at first, when he sought refuge with the cup- bearer in prison and said, " Remember me to your lord " [12:42]. Then he saw that his deliverance from the prison was through the Real's bounty and generosity, and he counted that as beautiful doing. He said, " He acted beautifully toward me when He brought me out of prison.