12. Sūrat Yūsuf (3/3)

١٢۔ سُورَةُ يُوسُف ص ٣

Qurʾān > Chapter 12
القرآن > كتاب ١٢

Joseph (Meccan)

quran:12:101 –

My Lord, You have given me ˹something˺ of sovereignty and taught me of the interpretation of dreams. Creator of the heavens and earth, You are my protector in this world and in the Hereafter. Cause me to die a Muslim and join me with the righteous."  

When he was nearing his end, realising that he would not remain ˹alive˺ forever, he longed for the everlasting kingdom and said: My Lord, indeed You have given me ˹something˺ of sovereignty and You have taught me the interpretation of events, the ability to explain dreams. Originator, Creator, of the heavens and the earth! You are my Protector, Guardian of my best interests, in this world and the Hereafter. Take me ˹in death˺ to You in submission ˹to You˺ and join me to the righteous’, from among my fathers. He lived after that for another week or more. He died at the age of 120 years. The Egyptians were very covetous with regard to his grave; ˹eventually˺ they placed him in a marble coffin and buried him at the top of the Nile so that both banks would be blessed ˹by his body˺ — Glory be to the One Whose Kingdom never ends.
القرآن:١٢:١٠١ –

رَبِّ قَدْ آتَيْتَنِي مِنَ الْمُلْكِ وَعَلَّمْتَنِي مِنْ تَأْوِيلِ الْأَحَادِيثِ ۚ فَاطِرَ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ أَنْتَ وَلِيِّي فِي الدُّنْيَا وَالْآخِرَةِ ۖ تَوَفَّنِي مُسْلِمًا وَأَلْحِقْنِي بِالصَّالِحِينَ  

{رب قد آتيتني من الملك وعلمتني من تأويل الأحاديث} تعبير الرؤيا {فاطر} خالق {السماوات والأرض أنت وليي} متولي مصالحي {في الدنيا والآخرة توفني مسلما وألحقني بالصالحين} من آبائي فعاش بعد ذلك أسبوعا أو أكثر ومات وله مائة وعشرون سنة وتشاح المصريون في قبره فجعلوه في صندوق من مرمر ودفنوه في أعلى النيل لتعم البركة جانبيه فسبحان من لا انقضاء لملكه.
quran:12:102 –

That is from the news of the unseen which We reveal, ˹O Muhammad˺, to you. And you were not with them when they put together their plan while they conspired.  

That, which is mentioned of the matter of Joseph, is of the tidings, the tales, of the Unseen, what has been hidden from you O Muhammad (s), which We reveal to you; for you were not with them, with Joseph’s brothers, when they agreed upon their plan, to plot against him, that is, ˹when˺ they resolved upon it, and schemed, against him; in other words, you were not present among them to know their story and so tell it to others: knowledge of it has come to you through revelation.
القرآن:١٢:١٠٢ –

ذَٰلِكَ مِنْ أَنْبَاءِ الْغَيْبِ نُوحِيهِ إِلَيْكَ ۖ وَمَا كُنْتَ لَدَيْهِمْ إِذْ أَجْمَعُوا أَمْرَهُمْ وَهُمْ يَمْكُرُونَ  

{ذلك} المذكور من أمر يوسف {من أنباء} أخبار {الغيب} ما غاب عنك يا محمد {نوحيه إليك وما كنت لديهم} لدى إخوة يوسف {إذ أجمعوا أمرهم} في كيده أي عزموا عليه {وهم يمكرون} به أي لم تحضرهم فتعرف قصتهم فتخبر بها وإنما حصل لك علمها من جهة الوحي.
quran:12:103 –

And most of the people, although you strive ˹for it˺, are not believers.  

Yet, most people, that is, the people of Mecca, however eager you might be, that they believe, will not believe.
القرآن:١٢:١٠٣ –

وَمَا أَكْثَرُ النَّاسِ وَلَوْ حَرَصْتَ بِمُؤْمِنِينَ  

{وما أكثر الناس} أي أهل مكة {ولو حرصت} على إيمانهم {بمؤمنين}.
quran:12:104 –

And you do not ask of them for it any payment. It is not except a reminder to the worlds.  

Nor do you ask them any wage, that you should take, for it, that is, ˹for˺ the Qur’ān — it, namely, the Qur’ān, is but a reminder, an admonition, to all the worlds.
القرآن:١٢:١٠٤ –

وَمَا تَسْأَلُهُمْ عَلَيْهِ مِنْ أَجْرٍ ۚ إِنْ هُوَ إِلَّا ذِكْرٌ لِلْعَالَمِينَ  

{وما تسألهم عليه} أي القرآن {من أجر} تأخذه {إن} ما {هو} أي القرآن {إلا ذكر} عظة {للعالمين}.
quran:12:105 –

And how many a sign within the heavens and earth do they pass over while they, therefrom, are turning away.  

And how many a sign, indicating the Oneness of God, is there in the heavens and the earth which they pass by, which they witness, but disregard!, not reflecting upon it.
القرآن:١٢:١٠٥ –

وَكَأَيِّنْ مِنْ آيَةٍ فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ يَمُرُّونَ عَلَيْهَا وَهُمْ عَنْهَا مُعْرِضُونَ  

{وكأين} وكم {من آية} دالة على وحدانية الله {في السماوات والأرض يمرون عليها} يشاهدونها {وهم عنها معرضون} لا يتفكرون بها.
quran:12:106 –

And most of them believe not in Allah except while they associate others with Him.  

And most of them do not believe in God, such that they might affirm that He is the Creator and the Sustainer, without ascribing partners, to Him, by worshipping idols; which is why, when crying their ˹ritual˺ response to God, they used to say: ‘At Your service, no partner have You, save a partner that belongs to You; You possess him and all that he possesses’, meaning it ˹when they said it˺.
القرآن:١٢:١٠٦ –

وَمَا يُؤْمِنُ أَكْثَرُهُمْ بِاللَّهِ إِلَّا وَهُمْ مُشْرِكُونَ  

{وما يؤمن أكثرهم بالله} حيث يقرون بأنه الخالق الرزاق {إلا وهم مشركون} به بعبادة الأصنام ولذا كانوا يقولون في تلبيتهم: لبيك لا شريك لك، إلا شريكا هو لك، تملكه وما ملك يعنونها.
quran:12:107 –

Then do they feel secure that there will not come to them an overwhelming ˹aspect˺ of the punishment of Allah or that the Hour will not come upon them suddenly while they do not perceive?  

Do they deem themselves secure from the coming upon them of a pall, a calamity enveloping them, of God’s chastisement, or the coming of the Hour upon them suddenly, while they are unaware?, of the time of its arrival beforehand?
القرآن:١٢:١٠٧ –

أَفَأَمِنُوا أَنْ تَأْتِيَهُمْ غَاشِيَةٌ مِنْ عَذَابِ اللَّهِ أَوْ تَأْتِيَهُمُ السَّاعَةُ بَغْتَةً وَهُمْ لَا يَشْعُرُونَ  

{أفأمِنوا أن تأتيهم غاشية} نقمة تغشاهم {من عذاب الله أو تأتيهم الساعة بغتة} فجأة {وهم لا يشعرون} بوقت إتيانها قبله.
quran:12:108 –

Say, "This is my way; I invite to Allah with insight, I and those who follow me. And exalted is Allah; and I am not of those who associate others with Him."  

Say, to them: ‘This is my way — which He explains by saying: I call to, the religion of, God, being upon sure knowledge, plain proof, I and whoever follows me, ˹whoever˺ believes in me (man ittaba‘anī is a supplement to anā, ‘I’, the subject, predicated by what preceded ˹sc. ‘being upon sure knowledge’˺). So Glory be to God!, ˹in affirmation˺ of His being exalted high above having partners, and I am not of the idolaters’ — this ˹sentence˺ is also subsumed by the ˹explanation of˺ his statement about ‘his way’.
القرآن:١٢:١٠٨ –

قُلْ هَٰذِهِ سَبِيلِي أَدْعُو إِلَى اللَّهِ ۚ عَلَىٰ بَصِيرَةٍ أَنَا وَمَنِ اتَّبَعَنِي ۖ وَسُبْحَانَ اللَّهِ وَمَا أَنَا مِنَ الْمُشْرِكِينَ  

{قل} لهم {هذه سبيلي} وفسرها بقوله {أدعو إلى} دين {الله على بصيرة} حجة واضحة {أنا ومن أتبعني} آمن بي عطف على أنا المبتدأ المخبر عنه بما قبله {وسبحان الله} تنزيها له عن الشركاء {وما أنا من المشركين} من جملة سبيله أيضا.
quran:12:109 –

And We sent not before you ˹as messengers˺ except men to whom We revealed from among the people of cities. So have they not traveled through the earth and observed how was the end of those before them? And the home of the Hereafter is best for those who fear Allah; then will you not reason?  

And We did not send before you ˹any messengers˺ save men inspired by revelation (yūhā ilayhim: a variant reading has nūhī ilayhim, ‘to whom We revealed’) — and not angels — from among the people of the towns, the principal towns, since they are more knowledgeable and wiser than the people of the desert, who are crude and ignorant. Have they, the people of Mecca, not travelled in the land and seen the nature of the consequence for those who were before them?, that is, how they ended up, when they were destroyed for denying their messengers? And verily the abode of the Hereafter, that is, Paradise, is better for those who are wary, of God. Will they not understand? (read a-fa-lā ya‘qilūn, or a-fa-lā ta‘qilūn. ‘Will you not understand?’), this, O people of Mecca, and so have faith?
القرآن:١٢:١٠٩ –

وَمَا أَرْسَلْنَا مِنْ قَبْلِكَ إِلَّا رِجَالًا نُوحِي إِلَيْهِمْ مِنْ أَهْلِ الْقُرَىٰ ۗ أَفَلَمْ يَسِيرُوا فِي الْأَرْضِ فَيَنْظُرُوا كَيْفَ كَانَ عَاقِبَةُ الَّذِينَ مِنْ قَبْلِهِمْ ۗ وَلَدَارُ الْآخِرَةِ خَيْرٌ لِلَّذِينَ اتَّقَوْا ۗ أَفَلَا تَعْقِلُونَ  

{وما أرسلنا من قبلك إلا رجالا يوحى} وفي قراءة بالنون وكسر الحاء {إليهم} لا ملائكة {من أهل القرى} الأمصار لأنهم أعلم وأحلم بخلاف أهل البوادي لجفائهم وجهلهم {أفلم يسيروا} أهل مكة {في الأرض فينظروا كيف كان عاقبة الذين من قبلهم} أي آخر أمرهم من إهلاكهم بتكذيبهم رسلهم {ولدار الآخرة} أي الجنة {خير للذين اتقوا} الله {أفلا تعقلون} بالياء والتاء يا أهل مكة هذا فتؤمنون.
quran:12:110 –

˹They continued˺ until, when the messengers despaired and were certain that they had been denied, there came to them Our victory, and whoever We willed was saved. And Our punishment cannot be repelled from the people who are criminals.  

Until (hattā indicates the end ˹result˺ indicated by ˹the previous statement˺ wa-mā arsalnā min qablika illā rijālan, And We did not send before you ˹any messengers˺ save men ˹above, Q. 12:109˺), that is, ˹to whom˺ Our support waned until, when the messengers despaired and thought, ˹when˺ the messengers were certain, that they were denied (read kudhdhibū, to mean ˹that they were denied˺ to such an extent that ˹they believed that˺ there would not be any ˹possible acceptance of˺ faith thereafter; or read kudhibū, to mean that the communities thought that their messengers had been lied to concerning the victory which they had been promised), Our help came to them and whomever We willed We delivered (read fa-nunajjī or fa-nunjī; or fa-nujjiya, as past tense, ‘˹whomever We wished˺ was delivered’). And Our wrath, Our chastisement, cannot be averted from the sinning, the idolatrous, folk.
القرآن:١٢:١١٠ –

حَتَّىٰ إِذَا اسْتَيْأَسَ الرُّسُلُ وَظَنُّوا أَنَّهُمْ قَدْ كُذِبُوا جَاءَهُمْ نَصْرُنَا فَنُجِّيَ مَنْ نَشَاءُ ۖ وَلَا يُرَدُّ بَأْسُنَا عَنِ الْقَوْمِ الْمُجْرِمِينَ  

{حتى} غاية لما دل عليه (وما أرسلنا من قبلك إلا رجالا) أي فتراخى نصرهم حتى {إذا استيئس} يئس {الرسل وظنوا} أيقن الرسل {أنهم قد كذِّبوا} بالتشديد تكذيبا لا إيمان بعده والتخفيف أي ظن الأمم أن الرسل أخلفوا ما وعدوا به من النصر {جاءهم نصرنا فَنُنَجِّي} بنونين مشددا ومخففا وبنون مشددا ماض {من نشاء ولا يرد بأسنا} عذابنا {عن القوم المجرمين} المشركين.
quran:12:111 –

There was certainly in their stories a lesson for those of understanding. Never was the Qur'an a narration invented, but a confirmation of what was before it and a detailed explanation of all things and guidance and mercy for a people who believe.  

Verily there is in their stories, that is, the messengers’ ˹stories˺, a lesson for people of pith, possessors of intellect. It, this Qur’ān, is not a fabricated, an invented, discourse but, it is, a confirmation of what was ˹revealed˺ before it, of scriptures, and a detailing, an elucidation, of everything, that one needs for ˹the proper observance of˺ religion, and a guidance, from error, and a mercy for a folk who believe: such ˹folk˺ are singled out for mention because they are the ones to benefit from it, to the exclusion of others. Meccan, except for the verse ˹beginning with˺ ‘Those who disbelieve will continue to …’ ˹second half of 31˺, and the verse ‘And those who disbelieve will say, ‘You are not sent ˹by God˺’. Alternatively, it is Medinese, except for the two verses ˹sc. verse 31˺, ‘If only it were a Qur’ān …’; it consists of 43, 44, 45 or 46 verses.
القرآن:١٢:١١١ –

لَقَدْ كَانَ فِي قَصَصِهِمْ عِبْرَةٌ لِأُولِي الْأَلْبَابِ ۗ مَا كَانَ حَدِيثًا يُفْتَرَىٰ وَلَٰكِنْ تَصْدِيقَ الَّذِي بَيْنَ يَدَيْهِ وَتَفْصِيلَ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ وَهُدًى وَرَحْمَةً لِقَوْمٍ يُؤْمِنُونَ  

{لقد كان في قصصهم} أي الرسل {عبرة لأولي الألباب} أصحاب العقول {ما كان} هذا القرآن {حديثا يفترى} يختلق {ولكن} كان {تصديق الذي بين يديه} قبله من الكتب {وتفصيل} تبيين {كل شيء} يحتاج إليه في الدين {وهدى} من الضلالة {ورحمة لقوم يؤمنون} خصوا بالذكر لانتفاعهم به دون غيرهم.