Objects of Revelation
From the above it is clear that this Sura was sent down for two objects: The first object
was to give the proof of the Prophethood of Muhammad (Allah's peace be upon him)
and that too
the one demanded by the opponents themselves so as to prove conclusively that his
knowledge was not based on mere hearsay
but was gained through Revelation. This aspect has been stated explicitly in its
introductory verses and explained plainly in its concluding portion. The second object
was to apply it to the Quraish and warn them that ultimately the conflict between them
and the Holy Prophet would end in his victory over them. As they were then persecuting
their brother
the Holy Prophet
in the same way the brothers of Prophet Joseph had treated him. The Quraish were
told indirectly that they would also fail in their evil designs just as the brothers of
Prophet Joseph had failed in his case
even after casting him into the well. This is because none has the power to defeat the
Divine will. And just as the brothers of Prophet Joseph had to humble themselves
before him
so one day the Quraish shall have to beg forgiveness from their brother whom they
were then trying to crush down. This
too
has been made quite plain in v. 7: "Indeed there are signs in this story of Joseph and
his brothers for these inquirers from among the Quraish." The fact is that by applying
this story to the conflict
the Quran had made a bold and clear prophecy
which was fulfilled literally by the events that happened in the succeeding ten years.
Hardly two years had passed after its revelation
when the Quraish conspired to kill the Holy Prophet like the brothers of Prophet Joseph
and he had to emigrate from Makkah to Al-Madlnah
where he gained the same kind of power as Prophet Joseph had gained in Egypt.
Again
in the end the Quraish had to humble themselves before him just like the brothers of
Prophet Joseph
when they humbly requested
Show mercy to us for Allah rewards richly those who show mercy
(V. 88)
and Prophet Joseph generously forgave them
(though he had complete power to wreak vengeance on them
) saying
today no penalty shall be inflicted on you. May Allah forgive you:He is the greatest of all
those who forgive
(V. 92). The same story of mercy was repeated
when after the conquest of Makkah
the crest fallen Quraish stood meekly before the Holy Prophet
who had full power to wreak his vengeance on them for each and every cruelty
committed by them. But instead
he merely asked them
What treatment do you expect from me now?
They replied
You are a generous brother and the son of a generous brother.
At this
he very generously forgave them
saying
I will give the same answer to your request that Joseph gave to his brothers: '. .
. today
no penalty shall be inflicted on you: you are forgiven.
Topics of Discussion
Moreover
the Quran does not relate this story as a mere narrative but uses it
as usual
for the propagation of the Message in the following ways: Throughout the narrative the
Quran has made it clear that the Faith of Prophets Abraham
Isaac
Jacob and Joseph (Allah's peace be upon them all) was the same as that of Prophet
Muhammad (Allah's peace be upon him) and they invited the people to the same
Message to which Muhammad (Allah's peace be upon him) was inviting them. Then it
places the characters of Prophet Jacob and Prophet Joseph side by side with the
characters of the brothers of Joseph
the members of the trade caravan
the court dignitary; Al Aziz of Egypt and his wife
the "ladies" of Egypt and the rulers of Egypt and poses a silent question to the reader
as if to say
Contrast the former characters moulded by Islam on the bedrock of the worship of Allah
and accountability in the Hereafter with the latter moulded by kufr and
ignorance" on the worship of the world and disregard of Allah and the Hereafter
and decide for yourselves which of these two patterns you would choose." The Quran
has used this story to bring forth another truth: whatever Allah wills
He fulfils it anyhow
and man can never defeat His plan with his counterplans nor prevent it from happening
nor change it in any way whatever. Nay
it often so happens that man adopts some measure to fulfil his own design and believes
that he has done that very thing which would fulfil his design
but in the end he finds to his dismay that he had done something which was against his
own and conducive to the Divine purpose. When the brothers of Prophet Joseph cast
him into the well
they believed that they had once for all got rid of the obstacle in their way but in fact
they had paved the way for the Divine purpose of making him the ruler of Egypt
before whom they would have to humble themselves in the end. Likewise
the wife of Aziz had sent Prophet Joseph to the prison
floating over the thought that she had wreaked her vengeance on him
but
in fact
she had provided for him the opportunity for becoming the ruler of Egypt and for putting
herself to the shame of confessing her own sin publicly. And these are not the solitary
instances which prove the truth that even if the whole world united to bring about the
down fall of the one whom Allah willed to raise high
it could not succeed. Nay
the very "sure and effective" measures that were adopted by the brothers to degrade
Joseph were used by Allah for the success of Joseph and for the humiliation and
disgrace of his brothers. On the other hand
if Allah willed the fall of one
no measure
howsoever effective
could raise him high : nay
it helped to bring about his fall and the disgrace of those who adopted them. Moreover
the story contains other lessons for those who intend to follow the way of Allah. The first
lesson it teaches is that one should remain within the limits
prescribed by the Divine Law
in one's aims and objects and measures
for success and failure are entirely in the hands of Allah. Therefore if one adopts pure
aims and lawful measures but fails
at least one will escape ignominy and disgrace. On the other hand
the one who adopts an impure aim and unlawful measures to achieve it
shall not only inevitably meet with ignominy and disgrace in the Hereafter
but also runs the risk of ignominy and disgrace in this world. The second lesson it
teaches is that those who exert for the cause of truth and righteousness and put their
trust in Allah and entrust all their affairs to Him
get consolation and comfort from Him
for this helps them face their opponents with confidence and courage and they do not
]ose heart
when they encounter the apparently terrifying measures of the powerful enemies. They
will persevere in their task without fear and leave the results to Allah. But the greatest
lesson this story teaches is that if the Believer possesses true Islamic character and is
endowed with wisdom
Historical and Geographical Background
The following historical and geographical details will help understand the story: Prophet
Joseph was a son of Prophet Jacob and a grandson of Prophet Isaac and a great
grandson of Prophet Abraham (Allah's peace be upon them all). The Bible says (and
the allusions in the Quran also confirm this) that Prophet Jacob had twelve sons from
four wives. Prophet Joseph and his younger brother Benjamin were from one wife and
the other ten from the other wives. Prophet Jacob had settled at Hebron (Palestine)
where his father Prophet Isaac and before him Prophet Abraham lived and owned a
piece of land at Shechem as well. According to the research scholars of the Bible
Prophet Joseph was born in or about 906 B. C. and the incident with which this story
begins happened in or about 890 B. C. He was seventeen when he saw the dream and
was thrown into the well. This well was near Dothan to the north of Shechem according
to Biblical and Talmudic traditions
and the caravan
which took him out of the well
was coming from Gilead (Trans-Jordan)
and was on its way to Egypt. At that time Fifteenth Dynasty ruled over Egypt
whose rulers are known in history as the Hyksos kings. They belonged to the Arab race
but had migrated from Palestine and Syria to Egypt in or about 2000 B. C. and taken
possession of the country. The Arab historians and the commentators of the Quran
have given them the name of Amaliq (the Amalekites)
and this has been corroborated by the recent researches made by the Egyptologists.
They were foreign invaders who had got the opportunity of establishing their kingdom
because of the internal feuds in the country. That is why there was no prejudice in the
way of Prophet Joseph's ascendancy to power and in the subsequent settlement of the
Children of Israel in the most fertile region of Egypt. They could gain that power and
influence which they did
because they belonged to the same race as the foreign rulers of Egypt. The Hyksos
ruled over Egypt up to the end of the fifteenth century B. C.
and practically all the powers remained in the hands of the Israelites. The Quran has
made a reference to this in v. 20 of Al-Ma'idah: ..... He raised Prophets among you and
made you rulers. . .
Then there arose a great nationalist movement which overthrew the power of this
dynasty and exiled 250
000 or so of the Amalekites. As a result of this
a very bigoted dynasty of Copts came into power and uprooted everything connected
with the Amalekites. Then started that persecution of the Israelites which has been
mentioned in connection with the story of Prophet Moses. We also learn from the
history of Egypt that the "Hyksos kings" did not acknowledge the gods of Egypt and
therefore
had imported their own gods from Syria
with a view to spreading their own religion in Egypt. This is the reason why the Quran
has not called the king who was the contemporary of Prophet Joseph by the title of
"Pharaoh
because this title was associated with the religion of the original people of Egypt and
the Hyksos did not believe in it
but the Bible erroneously calls him
Pharaoh". It appears that the editors of the Bible had the misunderstanding that all the
kings of Egypt were "Pharaohs." The modern research scholars who have made a
comparative study of the Bible and the Egyptian history are generally of the opinion that
Apophis was the Hyksos king
who was the contemporary of Prophet Joseph. At that time Memphis was the capital of
Egypt
whose ruins are still found on the Nile at a distance of 4 miles south of Cairo. When
Prophet Joseph was taken there
he was 17 or 18 years old. He remained in the house of Aziz for three years and spent
nine years in prison
and then became the ruler of the land at the age of thirty and ruled over Egypt
independently for eighty years. In the ninth or tenth year of his rule he sent for his father
Prophet Jacob
to come from Palestine to Egypt with all the members of his family and
according to the Bible
settled them in the land of Goshen, where they lived up to the time of Prophet Moses.
The Bible says that before his death, Prophet Joseph bound his kindred by an oath:
"when you return from this country to the house of your forefathers you must take my
bones out of this country with you. So he died a hundred and ten years old, and they
embalmed him .
Though the story of Prophet Joseph as given in the Quran differs very much in its
details from that given in the Bible and the Talmud, the Three generally agree in regard
to its component parts. We shall explain the differences, when and where necessary, in
our Exp]anatory Notes.
