Surah Yusuf (Joseph) • Ayah 111
BY
There was certainly in their stories a lesson for those of understanding. Never was it [i.e., the Qur’ān] 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.
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A Lesson for Men Who have UnderstandingAllah states here that the stories of the Messengers and their nations and how we saved the believers and destroyed the disbelievers are, عِبْرَةٌ لاوْلِى الأَلْبَـبِ(a lesson for men of understanding), who have sound minds, مَا كَانَ حَدِيثًا يُفْتَرَى(It is not a forged statement.) Allah says here that this Qur'an could not have been forged; it truly came from Allah, وَلَـكِن تَصْدِيقَ الَّذِى بَيْنَ يَدَيْهِ(but a confirmation of that which was before it) in reference to the previously revealed Divine Books, by which this Qur'an testifies to the true parts that remain in them and denies and refutes the forged parts that were added, changed and falsified by people. The Qur'an accepts or abrogates whatever Allah wills of these Books, وَتَفْصِيلَ كُلِّ شَىْءٍ(and a detailed explanation of everything) Meaning the allowed, the prohibited, the preferred and the disliked matters. The Qur'an deals with the acts of worship, the obligatory and recommended matters, forbids the unlawful and discourages from the disliked. The Qur'an contains major facts regarding the existence and about matters of the future in general terms or in detail. The Qur'an tells us about the Lord, the Exalted and Most Honored, and about His Names and Attributes and teaches us that Allah is glorified from being similar in any way to the creation. Hence, the Qur'an is, هُدًى وَرَحْمَةً لِّقَوْمٍ يُؤْمِنُونَ(a guide and a mercy for the people who believe.) with which their hearts are directed from misguidance to guidance and from deviation to conformance, and with which they seek the mercy of the Lord of all creation in this life and on the Day of Return. We ask Allah the Most Great to make us among this group in the life of the present world and in the Hereafter, on the Day when those who are successful will have faces that radiate with light, while those whose faces are dark will end up with the losing deal. This is the end of the Tafsir of Surah Yusuf; and all the thanks and praises are due to Allah, and all our trust and reliance are on Him Alone.
عبرت ونصیحت ٭٭نبیوں کے واقعات، مسلمانوں کی نجات، کافروں کی ہلاکت کے قصے، عقلمندوں کے لیے بڑی عبرت و نصیحت والے ہیں۔ یہ قرآن بناوٹی نہیں بلکہ اگلی آسمانی کتابوں کی سچائی کی دلیل ہے۔ ان میں جو حقیقی باتیں اللہ کی ہیں ان کی تصدیق کرتا ہے۔ اور جو تحریف و تبدیلی ہوئی ہے اسے چھانٹ دیتا ہے ان کی دو باتیں باقی رکھنے کی ہیں انہیں باقی رکھتا ہے۔ اور جو احکام منسوخ ہو گئے انہیں بیان کرتا ہے۔ ہر ایک حلال و حرام، محبوب و مکروہ کو کھول کھول کر بیان کرتا ہے۔ طاعات واجبات، مستحبات، محرمات، مکروہات وغیرہ کو بیان فرماتا ہے اجمالی اور تفصیلی خبریں دیتا ہے۔ اللہ تعالیٰ جل و علا کی صفات بیان فرماتا ہے اور بندوں نے جو غلطیاں اپنے خالق کے بارے میں کی ہیں ان کی اصلاح کرتا ہے۔ مخلوق کو اس سے روکتا ہے کہ وہ اللہ کی کوئی صفت اس کی مخلوق میں ثابت کریں۔ پس یہ قرآن مومنوں کے لیے ہدایت و رحمت ہے، ان کے دل ضلالت سے ہدایت اور جھوٹ سے سچ اور برائی سے بھلائی کی راہ پاتے ہیں اور رب العباد سے دنیا اور آخرت کی بھلائی حاصل کر لیتے ہیں۔ ہماری بھی دعا ہے کہ اللہ تعالیٰ ہمیں بھی دنیا آخرت میں ایسے ہی مومنوں کا ساتھ دے اور قیامت کے دن جب کہ بہت سے چہرے سفید ہوں گے اور بہت سے منہ کالے ہو جائیں گے، ہمیں مومنوں کے ساتھ نورانی چہروں میں شامل رکھے آمین۔ الحمدللہ سورۃ یوسف کی تفسیر ختم ہو گئی۔ اللہ کا شکر ہے وہی تعریفوں کے لائق ہے اور اسی سے ہم مدد چاہتے ہیں۔صفحہ نمبر4110
مَا كَانَ حَدِيْثًا يُّفْتَرٰى وَلٰكِنْ تَصْدِيْقَ الَّذِيْ بَيْنَ يَدَيْهِ یعنی یہ واقعات تورات میں بھی ہیں اور قرآن انہی واقعات کی تصدیق کررہا ہے۔ حضرت یوسف کے قصے کے سلسلے میں مولانا ابوالاعلیٰ مودودی نے بہت عمدگی کے ساتھ تورات اور قرآن کا تقابلی مطالعہ پیش کیا ہے ‘ جس کا خلاصہ یہ ہے کہ قرآن کے حسن بیان اور اس کے حکیمانہ انداز کا معیار اس قدر بلند ہے کہ تورات میں اس کا عشر عشیر بھی نہیں ہے۔ اس کی وجہ یہ ہے کہ اصل تورات تو گم ہوگئی تھی۔ بعد میں حافظے کی مدد سے جو تحریریں مرتب کی گئیں ان میں ظاہر ہے وہ معیار تو پیدا نہیں ہوسکتا تھا جو اللہ تعالیٰ کی طرف سے نازل شدہ تورات میں تھا۔وَتَفْصِيْلَ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ وَّهُدًى وَّرَحْمَةً لِّقَوْمٍ يُّؤْمِنُوْنَ یعنی وہ علم جو اس دنیا میں انسان کے لیے ضروری ہے اور وہ راہنمائی جو دنیوی زندگی میں اسے درکار ہے سب کچھ اس قرآن میں موجود ہے۔
In the opening statement of the last verse of the Surah, it was said:لَقَدْ كَانَ فِي قَصَصِهِمْ عِبْرَةٌ لِّأُولِي الْأَلْبَابِSurely, in the narratives of these, there is lesson for the people of understanding - 111.This statement may be pointing to the stories of all prophets (علیہم السلام) in the Qur'an and also to the particular story of Sayyidna Yusuf (علیہ السلام) which has been narrated in this Surah - because, through this later event, it has become absolutely clear that the obedient servants of Allah are supported and helped in so many ways when they are taken out from a deep well and made to sit on a high throne and are rescued from the threat of disgrace all the way to the zenith of the finest in grace and honour, not to mention the practitioners of ill-will and deception who ultimately end up in sheer shame.Said next is:مَا كَانَ حَدِيثًا يُفْتَرَىٰ وَلَـٰكِن تَصْدِيقَ الَّذِي بَيْنَ يَدَيْهِIt is not an invented story, rather, a confirmation of what has been before it ...,that is, of the books revealed before it - because, this story of Sayyidna Yusuf (Joseph) (علیہ السلام) has been mentioned in the Torah and the Injil as well. And Hadrat Wahb ibn Munabbih says: There is no Scripture which does not have the story of Sayyidna Yusuf (علیہ السلام) in it. (Mazhari)And in the last sentence of the verse, it is said: وَتَفْصِيلَ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ وَهُدًى وَرَحْمَةً لِّقَوْمٍ يُؤْمِنُونَ , that is, this Qur’ an is ` an elaboration of everything' (which means that the Qur’ an has details of everything which human beings need in religion - in fields like ` Ibadat (worship of Allah), dealings, morals, social living, government, politics and many others, including injunctions and instructions about all individual and collective concerns of human life - they are all there).Then, it was said that this Qur'an is ` guidance and mercy for a people who believe.' The restriction of those who have 'Iman or Faith has been placed here because its benefit can be enjoyed by only those who believe. It goes without saying that, though the Qur'an is nothing but mercy and guidance for disbelievers as well, but it is due to their own misconduct and disobedience that this mercy and guidance has become heavy and unwholesome for them.Shaykh Abu al-Mansur has said: The purpose behind the whole Surah Yusuf and the story of Sayyidna Yusuf (علیہ السلام) narrated therein is to comfort the Holy Prophet ﷺ `. All this is to tell him that his sufferings at the hands of his people have been the lot of past prophets too. But, in the end, Allah Ta` ala enabled his prophets to overcome - and in his case too, this is what was going to happen.
Ibn Khaldun (1332–1406 CE) was a Tunisian-born polymath who wrote the Muqaddimah (Introduction) — widely considered the founding work of sociology, historiography, and economics. He developed the theory of 'asabiyyah (social cohesion) as the driver of civilizational rise and fall, documenting cyclical patterns in Islamic history. The Quran's repeatedly asking people to 'travel the earth and observe what happened to those before them' (3:137; 6:11) provided the religious mandate for his historical science.
Ibn Khaldun (1332–1406 CE) is widely regarded as the world's first true social scientist. His Muqaddimah (Introduction to History) articulated a methodology for historical inquiry that rejected mythology and divine intervention as explanations, seeking instead social, economic, and environmental causes. He distinguished between reliable and unreliable historical sources, developed criteria for evaluating historical claims, and recognized that historians must account for human psychology and social dynamics. Arnold Toynbee called him 'undoubtedly the greatest work of its kind that has ever yet been created by any mind in any time or place.'
The Quran is unique among world scriptures in its systematic use of historical narrative as theological argument. The Arabic term sunnat Allah (pattern/way of Allah, used in Quran 33:62; 35:43; 48:23) expresses the idea that divine laws governing the rise and fall of civilizations are as reliable and discoverable as physical laws. The Quran commands its readers explicitly: 'Travel through the land and observe how was the end of those before you' (3:137; 6:11; 12:109). This framework makes historical inquiry not merely intellectually useful but an act of Quranic obedience — placing Ibn Khaldun's sociological methodology squarely within an Islamic epistemological frame.
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